Investment Commentary: Embargoes and Innovation – July 2026
The Chip Embargo That Backfired When the US moved to restrict the export of advanced semiconductors and chip-making equipment to China, the intention was to slow China's progress in artificial...
Investment Commentary: AI’s Sputnik Moment – June 2026
The contest for AI leadership between the United States and China is intensifying. China has released its latest frontier AI model, Kimi K3, as open-weight software, allowing users to access,...
Investment Commentary: The Singularity – May 2026
A single week in early June 2026 crystallised the defining tension of this investment cycle: the world's most prominent Artificial Intelligence (AI) safety company (Anthropic) calling for a global...
Investment Commentary: The World’s Strategic Chokepoints – April 2026
Geopolitical risk is ultimately a story of geography. A handful of narrow waterways control the flow of the world's trade, energy, and technology; and whoever controls them holds extraordinary...
Investment Commentary: New Valuation Gaps Emerging – March 2026
Unsurprisingly, the US–Iran conflict has pushed energy prices sharply higher amid concerns over oil supply disruption. Brent crude has risen from $58 per barrel at the start of the year to $88 at...
Investment Commentary: Chaos & Opportunity – February 2026
The escalation of conflict in the Middle East has reintroduced a layer of geopolitical uncertainty that markets have not had to meaningfully price for some time. Given the region’s central role in...
Investment Commentary: Valuation Implied Returns – January 2026
The chart above shows Morningstar's Valuation Implied Return (VIR) for various country indices in the Emerging Market index since the start of 2016. Brazil is currently offering a VIR of 10%,...
Regional Performance & Value – December 2025
Last year marked a year of exceptional dispersion in global equity markets, with the performance gap between the best- and worst-performing country indices reaching approximately 105%. This wide...
Consumer Staples – November 2025
In prior commentaries, we have highlighted Morningstar’s global research uncovering investment opportunities in unpopular and overlooked regions and sectors such as South Korea and US Healthcare. To...
Market Dispersion & U.S. Healthcare – October 2025
Market dispersion, the gap between the best- and worst-performing sectors and geographies, has widened significantly this year, reaching levels not seen in some time. This environment creates both...
Healthcare Sector Undervaluation – September 2025
Policy and regulatory uncertainties have created headwinds for healthcare providers thus far this year, leading to a sector-wide discount to the S&P500 to near 30-year lows. US SectorForward...
Understanding the Magnificent 7 in Historical Context
15 August 2025 Dear Fintax Investor How big are the Magnificent 7, today’s tech giants, compared to their historic counterparts? To answer this, we can look back at the peak inflation-adjusted...