Allianz Global Investors (AllianzGI) expects European companies to pay out a record c.315 billion euros in shareholder dividends in 2016.

The performance of CTAs during the recent market meltdown is remarkable. It highlights the fact that the power of diversification of the strategy in a portfolio remains intact. Recent developments provide additional evidence that managed futures often outperform traditional long-only investments and hedge fund strategies during market dislocations and macro events.

Institutional investors worldwide say it is challenging to find diversification among traditional asset classes, with more than half (54%) saying stocks and bonds are too highly correlated to provide distinctive sources of return, according to a recent survey by Natixis Global Asset Management...

The CGFS report, Fixed income market liquidity, finds signs of greater fragility, with liquidity conditions being more susceptible to disruptions, such as sudden stops of liquidity in key segments of the market and a deterioration of market depth metrics.

With increasing concern over China's growth, investors are significantly less confident in the global economic outlook, according to the BofA Merrill Lynch Fund Manager Survey for January. Allocations to equities have fallen sharply, while cash holdings have risen.