Asset management.

•    Sébastien Lecornu's surprise resignation caused French stocks to falter momentarily. However, the former French Prime Minister's stated desire to avoid a dissolution reassured investors.
•    The election of Sanae Takaichi as head of the PLD party led to a sharp rise in Japanese equities and a fall in the yen, due to her positions in favor of accommodative fiscal and monetary policies. 
•    The European Union wants to protect its steel industry by halving import quotas and raising levies on imports above this quota to 50%. Meanwhile, in the United States, the government shutdown persists without a clear resolution in sight.

All that for nothing. Barely a month after his appointment and just hours after the announcement of his government's composition, Sébastien Lecornu has already resigned, becoming the only Prime Minister of the Fifth Republic whose government never saw the light of day. The extremely virulent reactions to the announcement of the government team last night, both from the opposition and within the Common Base itself, left Sébastien Lecornu with little choice, and attention is now focused on Emmanuel Macron. The latter surprised many by appointing one of his close advisers to replace François Bayrou, when many were expecting a sign of openness towards other parties, and it appears that his options are now very limited. 

•    The US shutdown may deprive the Fed of the necessary visibility on the job market ahead of its next monetary policy meeting, but further rate cuts are nevertheless expected.
•    In Europe, ECB chair Christine Lagarde thinks current benchmark rates are adequate. Her views were backed up by a slight increase in eurozone inflation.
•    Gold hit a new all-time record above $3,800/oz while oil prices retreated on expectations the October 5 OPEC+ meeting will decide to increase production. 

Edmond de Rothschild Real Estate Investment Management (“REIM”) improved the results of its funds’ scores in the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (“GRESB”) further, and several of its strategies are within the top of the industry groups.