Shipping Races Against Time

Global slowdown is another blow to  shipping, still suffering from the downturn caused by the Great Recession. On the other hand, investors are attracted by low prices and see opportunities in the industry’s expected consolidation. Some hedge funds look to get into deals while others seek distressed assets.

Analysts discussed the prospects at a Capital Link Forum

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Steel Partners Liquidates Japan Fund

Chidem Kurdas

Activist shareholders have a tough time in Japan. This is confirmed by the experience of Warren Lichtenstein and his New York-based Steel Partners, who fought for more than five years to change the governance of beer maker Sapporo.

Resilience Despite Japan, Mideast Crises

Chidem Kurdas

There were dramatic reversals in hedge fund asset growth over the past five years in response to certain incidents, as documented in the new capital movement index series from fund administrator GlobeOp.  Have recent events – political turmoil in the Middle East, nuclear threat in Japan after the earthquake and tsunami – affected hedge funds?

Soros Down on Gold?

Chidem Kurdas

Nowadays you don’t hear talk of a gold bubble, even though the metal is still at the near-record highs reached this week. The notion that the steep rise of the past year is sign of a bubble was a hot topic just  months ago.

But between political unrest in the Middle East and the earthquake-tsunami-nuclear threat in Japan, gold once more looked like a safe haven. Of course, it will likely take a downward correction once the geopolitical events appear less threatening. How good an investment is gold now?

Japan ETF Trades Rear Up

Japanese stocks were a money sink for so long that a lot of people gave up on them. However, what went down usually comes up again and brave souls are once again buying Japanese equities—or at least dipping in a toe by using exchange traded funds.