Reading time: 4 minutes
History tells us that geopolitics rarely matters for markets, except when it does, and then it’s the only thing that matters. Recent announcements from Western officials were significant and historic, and countered the prevailing belief among analysts that the West wouldn’t risk short-term economic pain in order to damage the Russian war effort.

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Key global market moves – war and rates hurt sentiment
Global equity prices weakened a further 1.1% in February after a sharp 6.2% decline in January, as persistent global interest rate and inflation worries were joined by a new risk factor – Russia’s assault on Ukraine – that further undermined investor sentiment.

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The Australian Composite Bond ETF (ASX Code: OZBD) continues the BetaShares ‘smart beta’ approach to investing within the fixed-income space. The Index which the OZBD ETF aims to track seeks to offer a higher yield than the widely-followed Bloomberg AusBond Composite Bond Index (AusBond),

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Reading time: 5 minutes
Given the enormity of Russia’s decision to invade Ukraine, this note provides a short update on the potential market implications.
Keeping in mind that the situation remains very fluid and uncertain, as at the time of writing – Tuesday morning, 1 March, Sydney time –

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Already growing in importance prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the forced lockdown of millions across the world in the past two years has rapidly introduced many more to the convenience, value and choice available through online shopping. As a result, what was a strong trend prior to COVID-19 has accelerated,

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The video gaming industry of today bears little resemblance to the industry of years gone by, when teenagers saved their cash to buy a cartridge of their favourite game at Walmart.
There are now around 3 billion gamers globally, of whom a full 2.5 billion play on their mobile devices¹,

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JANUARY 2022: INDUSTRY DROPS IN VALUE AS MARKET FALLS, WHILE FLOWS REMAIN POSITIVE
With global and Australian sharemarkets falling steeply in the first month of 2022, positive inflows were not enough to combat a drop in asset values,

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A recent survey shows that the number of Australians investing in ETFs grew strongly in 2021, and judging by investor intentions, that growth shows no sign of slowing.
The BetaShares/Investment Trends ETF Report 2021 is the 13^th annual survey commissioned by BetaShares,

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Be careful when yield types change!
Whilst yields on an investment can change over time, the type of yield used to assess the investment should remain consistent. Investors should be wary if a product frequently changes the yield measure displayed.

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Key global market moves – rate fears rattle stocks
Global equities suffered a sharp fall in January as rising bond yields placed downward pressure on price-to-earnings valuations, especially among growth stocks.
The yield on U.S. 10-year bonds surged 0.27 percentage points to 1.78%, as high U.S. inflation reports and hawkish commentary from U.S.

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