It’s a funny old world. Having yesterday noted the impending 10th anniversary of the starting gun going off on the global financial crisis I subsequently tripped over a vignette on Bloomberg which read “Junk subprime auto ABS spreads at record lows”. It really was just a vignette and went on...

Most investment markets performed admirably in the last twelve months, particularly as economic trends have generally been uninspiring. Stock and real estate prices have certainly benefitted from the unprecedented stimulus provided by central banks and governments, in the form of extraordinarily low interest rates, and even more extraordinary money printing programs.

When asked for his views on ‘chance’, Mikhail Baryshnikov replied, “To walk across the street is a risk”. Pushed further, the great dancer may have spoken of managing risk by, for example, using designated pedestrian crossings and traffic lights.  All too obvious for pedestrians but what about the many risks that investors face? Can these be managed … and, if so, how?.