Fidelity Answers: The Investment Podcast

This month's guests challenge the consensus on recession risk and sticky inflation - and where central banks are getting it wrong. Richard Edgar is joined by Fixed Income CIO Steve Ellis, Global Macro Economist Anna Stupnytska, and Portfolio Manager Rosanna Burcheri. And Nina Flitman takes a look at what the destocking trend in the chemicals sector could tell us about wider market stress with three analysts who cover the industry from different asset class perspectives. You can read more on their discussion here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When it comes to currencies, it often feels like it's all about the US dollar. Although the greenback has dominated international trade and finance for decades, some subtle shifts have started playing out among the currencies of major economies. Rising geopolitical tensions and the changing structure of global trade are prompting some countries to rethink and scale back their reliance on the dollar, a process now referred to as ‘de-dollarisation’. At the same time, China has been pushing to increase the use of the renminbi in international markets with the hope that someday it could challenge the dollar as a major reserve currency. This comes despite China's capital account remaining mostly closed and the renminbi not being freely convertible, and also despite the dollar's current dominance as the world's go to safe haven asset. In July’s episode, Catherine Yeung, Investment Director, and Marty Dropkin, Head of Equities, Asia Pacific, ask Portfolio Manager, Morgan Lau, and Asia Economist, Peiqian Liu, how far can de-dollarisation go? Could it disrupt how companies or countries pay for imports and exports? Or even how the US funds itself as the world's biggest debtor nation? With additional contributions from Amit Goel, Portfolio Manager, Monica Li, Director of Research, and Shing Zhu, Investment Analyst. Read more at fidelityinternational.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

China’s economic rebound hasn’t been as strong as many anticipated. But then, it’s not that surprising, as no one was expecting any major stimulus like in previous cycles, such as the global financial crisis. However, the Chinese consumer was really the one that was expected to underpin and power this recovery.  At the beginning of June, Fidelity’s global investment team embarked on a research trip to Shanghai and Hefei in eastern Anhui province where they met with dozens of companies. To get their on-the-ground insights, Catherine Yeung, Investment Director, and Marty Dropkin, Head of Equities, Asia Pacific, are joined in this episode by portfolio managers Dale Nicholls and Hyomi Jie. With additional contributions from Eric Zhu, Research Associate, and Eric Tse, Investment Analyst. Read more at fidelityinternational.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the shifting fortunes of economies, what role could Private Credit play in traditional portfolios? Richard Edgar is joined by Fidelity’s Head of Private Credit Strategies, Michael Curtis, and Portfolio Managers Camille McLeod-Salmon and Marc Preiser to discuss what investors can expect from the market in future. With additional contributions from Oliver Newman and Nina Flitman. You can read more of our private markets coverage here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr Doug Gurr, Director of London's Natural History Museum, joins Richard Edgar to discuss the urgency of tackling biodiversity loss and what the financial community can do to help.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How do you measure biodiversity? From the forests of Borneo, with the help of a pioneering team of scientists, Fidelity have followed a project to explore if sound recordings - layered with artificial intelligence - could help to solve biodiversity's data issue. Analyst Minlin Lee travelled to Indonesia to see, and hear, the data gathering in action, while Charlotte Apps followed the analysis in the south of France. Back in the studio, Richard Edgar is joined by Fidelity International's Global Head of Stewardship and Sustainable Investing, Jenn-Hui Tan, to discuss why investors should be aware of nature loss.  With additional contributions from Portfolio Manager Velislava Dimitrova and Director of the Natural History Museum in London, Dr Doug Gurr.  You can hear Dr Gurr's conversation with Richard in full here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2021 was a big year for the global fight against climate change. China's president, Xi Jinping, again pledged that China would hit peak emissions by 2030 and be net zero by 2060. Then at COP26 in Glasgow, over 100 countries pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions and eliminate deforestation. But that appeared to come to a screeching halt when the world was hit by the triple blow of Omicron spreading globally, the war in Ukraine breaking out, and the Fed starting to hike interest rates. For some people, it looked like fighting climate change took a back seat as priorities shifted towards energy security and economic stability. Coming back to 2023: China is still the biggest greenhouse gas emitter. But has the country slipped on its path to decarbonisation? Or is progress indeed moving ahead? In this episode, Catherine Yeung, Investment Director, and Marty Dropkin, Head of Equities, Asia Pacific, are joined by Flora Wang, Portfolio Manager & Head of Stewardship, Asia, and Dhananjay Phadnis, Portfolio Manager. With additional contributions from Senan Yuen, Head of Investments, China, Bunny Huang, Investment Analyst, and James Richards, Senior Industry Analyst. Read more at fidelityinternational.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What impact will climate change have on portfolios? Should investors ready themselves for a disorderly transition to net zero? And what if it all gets sorted out - what are the investment implications for a greener, decarbonised future? Richard Edgar is joined by Global Macro Economist Anna Stupnytska and Portfolio Managers Kris Atkinson and Caroline Shaw to discuss how investors can rise to the challenge. With additional contributions from Fidelity's Global Head of Investment Research Ned Salter. Listen to more from Ned's Trade Offs series here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chip shortages at the start of the Covid pandemic threw semiconductors into the limelight. More recently, chips have been the focus of trade tensions between China and the US. Now, as China reopens and supply chains adjust, how will the ‘Chip War’ affect the future of the global tech hardware industry, and ultimately the prices of thousands of types of consumer goods?  In this episode, Catherine Yeung, Investment Director, and Marty Dropkin, Head of Equities, Asia Pacific, are joined by Terence Tsai, Analyst and Portfolio Manager, and Tina Tian, Portfolio Manager, as they discuss China's evolving role in the global tech hardware supply chain, the effects of the ‘Chip War’ with US, and what it all means for the economy and investors. With additional contributions from Miya Huang, Innovation Intelligence Lead in Dalian; Zaf Tiu, Research Associate in Singapore; Chandrasekhar Sridhar, Analyst & NDA in Mumbai; Vivian Pai, Fund Manager, Taipei; Jonathan Tseng, Equity Research Analyst, London; and Vivian Wang, Investment Analyst in Hong Kong.   Read more at fidelityinternational.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, Richard Edgar is joined by Steve Ellis, Global CIO for Fixed Income, Anna Stupnytska, Global Macro Economist, and Gita Bal, Global Head of Fixed Income Research, to discuss the fallout and whether it could be enough to force a rethink at the Federal Reserve.  Asia Economist Peiqian Liu also joins Richard to discuss what China's recovery looks like on the ground. You can read more analysis on SVB and the fallout on your local Fidelity website or here. Opening clip: US President Joe Biden, March 13th, Sky NewsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.