In one month, China dropped most of its Covid-related restrictions, vowed to support the housing market more, and set pro-growth policies.

China’s cyclical recovery outlook hinges critically on developments in Covid-19 policy. Housing will become less of a drag as the sector manages an L-shaped landing.

The extended lockdown in Shanghai and other cities have shattered market confidence, sending Chinese equity market down again over the month.

The purpose of this paper is to appraise recent ESG trends in global equity markets. It contributes to a broader research project started at Amundi in 2014 on the relevance of ESG.

2021 Covid surging in 1H and inflation swelling in 2H have contributed to the political pendulum swinging hard left in LatAm. More structurally, the commodity super cycle unwind mid last decade and the political discontent likely set the entire shift in motion. Against the general trend, some elections cycles moved in the other direction as well.

Covid-19 vaccines have been rolled out for a year now. Despite official commitments to provide access to effective jabs to all countries, production constraints and national priorities have resulted in uneven distribution.

When we reflect back on 2021 in years to come, will we see it as a turning point leading to fundamental change in the way we live, a missed opportunity, or merely an interlude before “ordinary” life continues?

The coming of summer has also seen the return of extreme heatwaves, catastrophic flooding and devastating forest fires. The arrival of the COP26 could not be more timely given the need for a universal response to the climate crisis. Pension funds as major global asset owners have a key role to play in this response.

The disruption of global supply chains has been a wakeup call for the European Union. For years, the principle of an open and free Single Market has led to a massive transfer of industrial production and outsourcing mainly to Asia.