Sound Economies with Mel and Peter

More family offices based in Hong Kong are diversifying investments into private equity, which we see as a smart move. This episode also considers a projected rise in default rates for private credit, as well as the outlook for oil... Read More →

Markets plunged as the US and Israel launched attacks against Iran, though the more important question is: what happens after these military operations? We discuss possible outcomes in the globally important region. This episode, we also look at China’s 2026... Read More →

We flag some concerns in Southeast Asia: Indonesia’s USD 760 million planned consumption stimulus and initial hints of a crisis for the Philippine peso. We also look at more Chinese firms establishing homebases in Singapore, and an early exit planned... Read More →

Markets rallied after Prime Minister Takaichi’s Liberal party dominated Japan’s lower house election, but we stay wary about bold fiscal expansions without sustainable funding. We also look at China getting ahead in the global chips race, US fast food giants... Read More →

In this episode, we observe silver and gold prices plunge over the past week while China stocks saw a deep one-day slide. Though worrisome, we argue that these declines should not trigger panic among investors. We also weigh expectations regarding... Read More →

Trump’s wild rhetoric has claimed new victims: the US dollar, which suffered a continuing slide against the yen; and consumer confidence that has plunged to a 12-year low. This bolsters our forecast of a 10% slide for the dollar this... Read More →

Trump is pushing the markets to new limits as he threatens a renewed tariff war with the EU over his quest to acquire Greenland – an attempt that would make life harder for investors and offer little gains for the... Read More →

Trump vows to raise public spending on defence but demands defence companies to temper dividend payouts in favour of reinvesting to raise production, and we explain why this is unhealthy. This episode, we also look at the escalating attack on... Read More →

Big shifts headline the new year. In our maiden episode for 2026, we look at cost of living pains in the US and Europe against a fast-growing middle class in Asia, the latter fueled by high economic growth. We explain... Read More →