Howard Marks, co-founder of Oaktree Capital Group, is one of the smartest guys I know. Each quarter, he sends out a letter to investors filled with sharp insights and observations. I find all of his letters to be worthwhile, but this quarter he played right to my confirmation bias in his discussion about experts. Here are the key concepts: ...

DUBAI / Reuters Stock markets in the Gulf diverged on Sunday with Saudi Arabia stalling near a six-week low and Dubai retreating on profit-taking, while Kuwait continued to outperform. Saudi Arabia’s index added 0.1 percent. Nine of the top 10 performers were from the insurance segment with Wafa Insurance in the lead, jumping 9.1 percent. Interest in the sector has ...

  Bloomberg Emerging-market stocks and currencies were little changed after US economic data bolstered the case for higher interest rates that could dim investors’ appetite for riskier assets. Mexico’s peso and Turkey’s lira rose. Shares and currencies in emerging markets struggled to find direction as traders boosted wagers the Federal Reserve will raise borrowing costs by its March meeting. Bears ...

  Bloomberg A substantial chunk of the bank bonds needed to comply with new rules designed to protect taxpayers may come from Scandinavia, according to calculations by Danske Bank A/S. In an extreme scenario, which assumes local regulators set the toughest criteria, the region’s lenders may need to find investors for more than $120 billion in notes to meet minimum ...

  Dubai / Emirates Business Mashreq, one of the leading financial institutions in the UAE, on Sunday became the first local bank to launch the Corporate Virtual Card, enhancing its comprehensive product suite for Commercial Payments. Mashreq Corporate Virtual Cards is a dynamic electronic payment platform, empowering corporates with real-time transaction security and control. This powerful tool, built on Mastercard’s ...

  Bloomberg Wall Street’s biggest banks are in a bright spot after years of massive layoffs and pay cuts. The same cannot be said for the largest asset managers. JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corp. reported generally positive fourth-quarter earnings, with debt-trading revenues surging amid volatility after Donald Trump’s election as next US president. BlackRock Inc., on ...

  Bloomberg Regulators are notorious for falling behind the financial industry, cracking down on risk in one area only to watch it move swiftly beyond their reach. This phenomenon has rearranged the competitive landscape in the nearly $1 trillion market for US leveraged loans. This week, Bloomberg News highlighted how private-equity firms have been winning a growing number of assignments ...

  Bloomberg As the Bundesbank turns 60 this year, it might have a message for the teenage European Central Bank: we’ve been there before. While the two Frankfurt-based institutions haven’t always seen eye-to-eye, the ties between them run deep. The ECB was deliberately infused with the spirit, and some of the staff, of the German central bank when it was ...

  Bloomberg The tightening of emissions limits for deep-water ships has some of North America’s busiest ports chasing a new opportunity. The UN’s International Maritime Organization last year cut limits on sulfur in marine fuels to 0.5 percent from 3.5 percent, starting in 2020. The target: So-called bunker fuel, a cheap, tar-like oil residue used by most ships. Now ports ...

  Bloomberg Saudi Arabia’s Almarai, the Gulf’s largest dairy company, reported a 1 percent increase in fourth-quarter net profit on Sunday, broadly in line with analysts’ forecasts, and said cost controls would continue to be a priority. Almarai said net profit totalled 488.5 million riyals ($130 million) in the three months to Dec. 31, up from 483.7 million riyals in ...