By Babajide Komolafe, Economy Editor

Comercio Partners, an investment banking firm, has highlighted the need for in-depth research to navigate economic headwinds and uncertainties to stay ahead of the curve and deliver value to investors.

Co-Founding Partner and Head of Advisory, Comercio Partners, Steve Osho, stated this in a media interview explaining that the firm was able to garner unfolding insights into the economy and market by leveraging on in-depth research, which helped it deployed appropriate strategy to stay ahead of the curve and deliver value to its clients.

He said: “As with many other investment organisations, the turbulent market posed a key challenge, particularly, with dollar-based assets like Eurobond and U.S. equities plummeting significantly. However, local equities were low-hanging fruits in the first half of the year, as the local bourse remained in the top five best-performing markets globally for a significant part of the review period.

Particularly, names in the telecommunication, industrial and agricultural sectors offered decent returns.

“Also, the aggressive selloffs in the Eurobond market created attractive long-term entry opportunities for the business, as yields on specific Eurobond sovereigns offered dollar returns that match and exceed the yields on corresponding maturities in the local bond market.

“Basically, we maintained a nimble approach this year, leveraging in-depth research to garner unfolding insights into the economy and market, which has in turn informed our strategy and kept us ahead of the curve, irrespective of the headwinds and uncertainties.

“We have also kept to the catchphrase of “following the money and making cash kings.” In a time of extreme volatility, it is preferable and smart to keep cash and play a lot on the short end of the curve.”

Speaking further, Osho noted that while inflation and rising government borrowing were some of the prominent headwinds in H1’22, their impact on the equities market and the fixed income market was muted.