Forex

Last Friday, the US Supreme Court ruled that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act did not give the President the authority to impose tariffs, providing a lift to global equities. However, President Trump swiftly responded by announcing his intention to apply a 15% global tariff, sending the dollar lower and gold higher as markets moved to price in renewed trade uncertainty.

Electricity demand is growing after years of stagnation, driven by electrification, reindustrialisation, and artificial intelligence, which are outpacing infrastructure expansion. 

London, 19th February 2026 - Union Bancaire Privée (“UBP”) has appointed Peter Kinsella as Head of Investment Services, UK, as it continues to strengthen its investment platform.

Global markets remained broadly stable despite ongoing sector rotation and mixed macroeconomic signals.

Despite rising geopolitical tensions, the underlying macroeconomic backdrop remains supportive of risky assets, with US technology, high-yield bonds, and gold continuing to anchor our allocations.

Global equities navigated a volatile week with limited damage. Although investors appear to be recalibrating risk exposures, the earnings season continues to underscore that EPS growth remains firmly driven by the technology sector.

Union Bancaire Privée, UBP SA (“UBP”), one of the world’s largest family-owned private banks headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, announces the appointment of Fahd Iqbal as Head of Investment Services, Dubai, alongside the appointments of Joy Chammas and Mohammed Zaheer as Market Heads, Middle East, with immediate effect.

As we head into 2026, emerging market (EM) bonds offer a solid opportunity, backed by improved fundamentals, positive technicals, and attractive all-in yields thanks to high baseline Treasury levels.

The nomination of Kevin Warsh to serve as the next Chair of the Federal Reserve from May pushed the US dollar slightly higher, while gold and silver fell sharply in a deleveraging move that began in Asia.