The MUFG Global Markets Podcast

The first half of this decade has witnessed a significant acceleration in green capex – investment that advances UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Yet, a combination of tariff-driven uncertainties, focus on corporate returns and interest rate headwinds is set to see a slower pace of growth in the back half of this decade.

As corporates re-evaluate the risk/returns on investments, Ehsan Khoman, Head of Research – Commodit...

Recent market volatility, the macro environment, changes to corporate sustainability targets and policy uncertainty have challenged sustainability themes globally. 

Ehsan Khoman, Head of Research – Commodities, ESG and Emerging Markets (EMEA), discusses what corporates could prioritise from a sustainability lens amid an increasingly deglobalised operating environment.

He believes that (1) improving consumer efficiency to reduce con...

This week’s Global Markets podcast takes place against a backdrop of financial market turmoil with signs of a building crisis of confidence in US assets. Derek Halpenny, Head of Research Global Markets EMEA & International Securities talks to Chris Jakubowski Head of FI FX Sales about what needs to happen to halt the slide in confidence. There are certain actions that would help but none seems that likely. Derek and Chris also ...

 US President Trump’s “Liberation Day” announcement of (1) a 10% baseline tariff effective from 5 April, along with (2) a set of higher, country-specific “reciprocal” rates on 57 trade partners with which the US has trade deficits from 9 April, has jolted global markets. Chinese policymakers have promptly responded with a broad set of countermeasures that mirrors the US move.

Glob...

George Goncalves, Head of Macro Strategy in the Americas, walks us through the latest tariff developments and potential implications for the economy and markets. As a reminder, a palooza is informally viewed as a large frenzied event, thus it’s apt to call this latest version a “tariff-palooza” as markets got jolted by the larger than expected and broad-based announcement on “Liberation Day.” Although the approach the administratio...

The US dollar is weaker this week against most G10 currencies ahead of the key reciprocal tariff announcement on 2nd April. Derek Halpenny, Head of Research Global Markets EMEA & International Securities talks to Shan Husain Institutional FX Sales EMEA about how the markets are positioned ahead of the announcement and what we can expect in the days and weeks following. Derek suggests financial markets are possibly overly optimi...

US President Trump has threatened to impose “secondary tariffs” at a rate of 25% on countries that purchase crude oil from Venezuela, aiming to stymie its oil trade with other nations. The move is seen as a novel dimension in the new US administrations policy toolkit to use as leverage in achieving its foreign and domestic policy goals.

Ehsan Khoman, Head of Research – Commodities, ESG and Emerging Markets (EMEA), discusses the rev...

Uncertainty about US policy, especially trade policy, has contributed to substantial rises in inflation uncertainty and in the University of Michigan’s measure of long-term US household inflation expectations, which has risen to the highest since 1995.

Ehsan Khoman, Head of Research – Commodities, ESG and Emerging Markets (EMEA), believes that as tariff threats, inflation expectations and inflation uncertainty rise further, commodi...

The dollar is ending this week on a weaker footing and Derek Halpenny, Head of Research Global Markets EMEA & International Securities talks to Simon Mayes Head of UK, Ireland & Switzerland FX Corporate Sales about the drivers in the FX markets and looks ahead to the numerous central bank meetings taking place on Wednesday and Thursday. Derek hones in on the BoJ and the yen and highlights the key focuses of the BoJ meeting ...

Commodities are front and centre in President Trump’s trade and foreign policies as his administration pursues US dominance, spurred by competition with China. This paradigm envisions affordable US energy prices, higher US output in the old economy (such as, crude oil and manufacturing) and new economy (such as, power, metals, and AI).

In this week’s podcast, Ehsan Khoman, Head of Research – Commodities, ESG and Emerging Markets (E...

The US dollar remains weaker on a year-to-date basis on President Trump’s more pragmatic approach to implementing trade tariffs. But that could be about to change. Derek Halpenny, Head of Research Global Markets EMEA & International Securities talks to Seiko Kataoka-Fisher Head of Japanese Customer FX Sales about the risks for the US dollar going forward given the imminent threat of tariffs on Canada and Mexico next week and th...

Conventional wisdom suggests tariffs leads to demand destruction, which in-turn could ease environmental impacts (through lower carbon intensity that lower GDP growth brings on a first order basis). Having said that, should there be a re-allocation of production, onshore or to other trade partners – due to the forces of deglobalisation – then the energy and/or electricity mix of the alternative country’s matter.

In this week’s podc...