Expert opinion

Maurizio Spoldi, CEO of DSC, Diamond Service Company, is an expert in all fields related to diamonds, including the investments in natural gems: he explains us how this market works

Pension funds and institutional investors have for some time been allocating to alternative investments, including private equity, to seek additional returns and diversification. This is welcome progress…

CERN is known for the latest discoveries in nuclear research, but the European organization is also important in many other fields, including the economy. Tiago Araujo, Knowledge Transfer Officer at CERN, explains why to Marketplus.

Usually, the technology CERN develops becomes important for the general public, too, maybe years later. Could you give us an example?

It’s true, due to the specificity of our scientific challenges, our technologies are often state-of-the-art. A very good example of an early stage development ongoing at CERN are the high magnetic field magnets. We are producing unprecedented magnetic field intensity magnets that are potentially very interesting for example for the ultra-high MRI (Magnetic Resonance Image).

The dotcom bubble of 2000 was primarily an American affair that cost a lot of people a lot of money while the crisis of 2008 had far-reaching international implications

The price of gold is getting close to the 1300 dollars mark per one ounce, after a rally that brought it almost 12% higher since the beginning of 2017.

Most of the climb of the precious metal is attributed to its role of safe haven, especially after the rise of political tensions in Syria and more recently over North Korea, but also a gradual deterioration of the U.S. dollar value, which trends are usually inverse to those of gold, contributed to this rally. In figure 1, where the Dollar Index is compared to gold, it looks clear that since the greenback has begun to depreciate from the 14 years high that had reached at the end of 2016, the price of gold has inverted the down-trend that had subdued it for most of the second half of last year.

What are the scenarios of roboadvisory?

«According to our experience, it will take quite a lot of time before roboadvisory reaches a level of professionalism and competence. We believe that one day there will be a mix: the discretion of those investing in my opinion may be reduced but if customers want tailor-made solutions, the presence of man will always be necessary.

The German Business Climate Index released on March 27 hit the record high since mid-2011. Does that mean that German companies are, in general, indifferent to the existing political uncertainties, such as the US President Donald Trump’s protectionist policy, the upcoming elections in Germany and France and hot disputes about the two-speed Europe idea?

I would not say that they are completely indifferent. The Business Climate Index did show an initial reaction to the Brexit referendum decision back in the middle of 2016; however, despite the political uncertainties, the overall global demand picture has actually brightened up over the last six to nine months. Indeed, this is something the German economy benefits very much from due to the importance of its export industry. And the fact that we have seen the Euro weakening over the last year or so helped additionally. This is the result of the US reserves tightening up, while the ECB is not prepared to change its monetary policy yet.

When we want to invest in stock indices, sometimes we are very focused on large, medium or small capitalization indices. Sometimes we try to understand if it is better to invest in value stocks rather than growth stocks, and sometimes we follow only the sector indices that fundamentals indicate us more attractive for that period. But in Europe there is an index representing one of the Super Sectors of the Stoxx 600, which has always performed in an excellent way, and in the last twenty years has beaten the S&P 500 and the Stoxx 600 (see the graph below). This index is the Stoxx Europe 600 Personal & Household Goods Index.