From higher commodity prices to food security concerns and ongoing supply chain constraints, global markets have been dealt a lot so far in 2022. Adding to this, Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has crossed the 100-day mark with no real end in sight. Roman Fuzaylov is a portfolio manager with Prince Street Capital Management, a NYC-based investment firm that specializes in the emerging and frontier markets. He sat down with the EM Bulletin to talk markets, Russia, and who’s on his mind–a guy named Jerome.   The post “It’s Been A Roller-Coaster”: Prince Street’s Fuzaylov On Russia, Com ..read more

In its meeting on June 2, OPEC+ agreed to speed up its production hikes, pledging to add 648,000 barrels a day in July and August, about 200,000 more than it had signaled previously. This move was mildly positive politically, helping to paper over fraught US-GCC relations, and may also be a precondition for a set of bilateral meetings. But the increase is small compared to the rising demand. It also puts off the tough decisions about how and whether to reallocate production away from those members who are struggling to meet targets. These trends, plus a focus on reducing the cost to consumers ..read more

Keppel Telecommunications & Transportation (Keppel T&T) has entered a deal to divest all of its stake in Keppel Logistics to Geodis International SAS for around S$80 million, Keppel Corp. said in a filing to SGX Thursday. The deal values Keppel Logistics at an enterprise value of S$150 million on a cash-free, debt-free basis, the filing said. The transaction includes Keppel Logistics’ businesses in Singapore, Malaysia and Australia, and UrbanFox, but excludes Keppel T&T’s logistics operations in China and also excludes its stakes in Keppel Puninar Logistics in Indonesia ..read more

Olam International obtained an aggregate US$4 billion in financing facilities from multiple banks as part of its reorganization plan, the agri-business said in a filing to the Singapore Exchange in January. “The signing of these facilities is yet another milestone in our reorganization plan to unlock value for our stakeholders. These facilities offer us additional flexibility to allocate financing in-line with the capital structure for our three operating groups,” N Muthukumar, Olam Group’s chief financial officer and CEO of operations, said in the statement. Under its reorganization plan, Ol ..read more

Keppel Infrastructure Trust (KIT) entered a deal to invest US$250 million in a minority stake in Aramco Gas Pipelines, which generates cash flows from the gas pipelines network of Saudi Arabian Oil (Aramco), the trust said Tuesday. Under the deal, KIT will invest alongside BlackRock Real Assets and Hassana Investment Co. for an indirect minority and non-controlling stake in a special purpose vehicle (SPV) which will acquire a 49 percent stake in Aramco Gas Pipelines for US$15.5 billion, the trust said in a filing to SGX. One of Largest Energy Infrastructure Deals KIT said the stake sale w ..read more

Large professional investors have experience and connections in-country along sectors of interest. They depend on institutional knowledge and careful record-keeping to stay aware of and find new opportunities. However, the amount of capital available through professional investment firms pales in comparison to the gap in the market. More capital is needed throughout emerging markets and particularly across sub-Saharan Africa. This is particularly true at an early stage where angels, who bear the greatest risk, have the most limited market information available. A recent study in Morocco found ..read more

As the world’s largest gold producer, China plays an outsized role in global gold markets. But in order to fully satisfy domestic demand for jewelry and other forms of gold, the country also typically relies on imports. The effects of the global pandemic triggered new trading dynamics between China and the rest of the world, with domestic Chinese gold now often quoted at a discount to global gold prices, such as the COMEX Gold futures benchmark (GC). With the introduction of Shanghai Gold futures on COMEX in 2019, CME Group offers seamless access to the world’s largest physical gold ..read more

China has announced bold targets to curb its carbon emissions, but the country will need to embrace significant policy challenges to end its heavy reliance on fossil fuels. The transition to a low-carbon economy is also likely to impact the demand and price of metals, such as copper, aluminum, and steel. Ambitious Carbon Reduction Targets President Xi Jinping announced at the UN General Assembly in September last year that China would achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, with carbon dioxide emissions peaking before 2030. Even so, China’s high coal usage is likely to be a hard habit to break ..read more

Strong GDP growth, improving governance, and limiting the rise in public debt have been key factors for the few emerging market (EM) sovereigns that have bucked the trend and seen net upgrades over the past 10 years. At Fitch Ratings, the average EM Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating has declined by 1.3 notches in the 10 years to end-August 2021 to ‘BB’, or by 0.9 notches after adjusting for composition effects. On both measures, it has fallen further behind the average developed market sovereign rating. In the five years to end-August 2021, the greatest upward rating movement wa ..read more

China’s accelerating imports of American corn and soybeans in 2020 has continued this year. Understanding whether this marks a long-term shift requires not just a review of demand drivers, the geopolitics straddling Sino-U.S. trade relations and food security, but also innovation in food technology. So far this year, China’s demand for corn continues unabated. After buying a record 11.3 million metric tons of corn in 2020, according to General Administration of Customs data, this marketing year’s total could reach as much as 26 million metric tons according to the United States Department of A ..read more