COVID-19 Impact on the paper & packaging sectors, Overview World economies are being severely impacted by COVID-19 Stock markets around the world have entered bear territory although they have been recovering recently Bear markets typically signal a recession Longest economic expansion in US history at risk of recession 2Q 2020 to be characterized by severe declines in GDP sudden surge in layoffs and a collapse in spending historic in size and…

2Q2021 Review, We end this second quarter of 2021 with global financial markets awash in liquidity while capital markets participants are desperately striving to see past the mixed signals emanating from central bankers Central bank messaging is likely reflecting the clouds they see in their own crystal balls Credit markets are still priced to perfection Rates markets are episodically sloughing off “hot” data…, Read full brief

This has been a remarkable quarter for everyone who shares this small planet Geo-politics hot inflation market disarray in labor energy and commodities global equity market volatility Russian sovereign default  and a crypto-meltdown have made this an extremely challenging quarter for investors  Russian revanchist aggression has shown itself to be as dangerous in failure as it appeared to be in…

Currency for return   |   Latest MCM viewpoints   |   Contact us   |   Explore currency solutions, US dollar finishes middle of pack, USD snuck into the upper half of the G10 this quarter While delivering only 25bps of rate hikes over 2Q23 the FOMC dot plot was hawkish in nature pointing towards two more hikes this year as Chair Powell’s tone at the press conference was more balanced sticking to the higher-for-longer narrative  FIGURE 1 DXY – 2Q2023 Source Bloomberg  , EUR |,  Euro landed in the upper half of the G10 with strong performance against US dollar last month resulting in a relatively stronger quarter Although economic data surprised to the downside (1Q23 GDP revised downward into a technical recession and headline inflation decelerated further (flash rate at 55% YoY in June a hawkish ECB supported Euro with two 25bps hikes in 2Q23 bringing rates to 35% , GBP |,  Sterling was broadly higher outperforming its G10 peers this quarter Inflation surprised higher again with headline CPI at 87% YoY vs 84% consensus The BoE responded by hiking the bank rate by 50bps to 50% at its June meeting following a 25bps hike earlier in the quarter , JPY |,  Yen was the worst performer in the G10 this quarter as the BoJ stood pat on rates and continued its YCC program Although economic growth registered at positive 27% in 1Q BoJ Governor Kazuo stated he did not see the need to change the YCC dampening any speculation towards interest rate changes , AUD |,  Australian dollar was middling dropping into the lower half of the G10 The RBA surprised the market by hiking 25bps in May and June raising rates to 41% Unemployment fell a tic to 36% in May and employment beat expectations with a 759K print showing a tight labor market, CAD |,  Canadian dollar outperformed the G10 save a robust Sterling with CAD supported by BoC action and strong data The BoC hiked rates by 25bps in June up to 475% surprising markets as the central bank justified its stance by stating that monetary policy was not restrictive enough to combat the excess demand in the economy , CHF |,  Swiss franc performed well trailing only Sterling and Canadian dollar in the G10 CHF was supported early on as Parliament approved the Credit Suisse rescue package While the SNB hiked rates by 25bps in June many expected a higher increase  TABLE 1 USD-BASED AS OF JUNE 30 2023    , FX Rate, Change 3M %, Change YTD %, EUR-USD 10910 042% 223% GBP-USD 12714 282% 569% USD-JPY 1445350 -792% -871% AUD-USD 06657 -061% -184% USD-CAD 13233 227% 240% USD-CHF 08947 211% 341% Source WM/Reuters   Currency for return Currency Alpha STRATEGIES Overall Mesirow Currency Management’s (MCM Currency for Return strategies had a positive second quarter Our Emerging Markets Currency Alpha Strategy was like last quarter the star…, Barclays Aggregate Global Bond Index, HFRX Global Hedge Fund Index, MSCI ACWI Index, S&P 500 Index, Consumer Price Index, Extended Markets Currency Alpha 007 012 004 004 -004 Asian Markets Currency Alpha -010 -008 -018 -017 006 Emerging Markets Currency Alpha -003 -004 -014 -013 -014 Systematic Macro -007 010 -006 000 -005 Source Mesirow   Mesirow Currency Management’s (MCM neural network models (found in the Technical component of the alpha strategies produced exceptional performance possibly owing to an increased…, FX Rate, Change 3M %, Change YTD %, USD-ZAR 188913 -608% -993% Source WM/Reuters   FIGURE 2 USD–ZAR | JANUARY 1 2003 – JUNE 30 2023 Source Bloomberg   Intelligent Multi-Strategy Currency Factor STRATEGY MCM’s Intelligent Multi-Strategy Currency Factor recorded a positive quarter on the back of a strong June as short positions against a weaker US dollar prevailed The Carry factor was the main contributor to outperformance over the…, Explore currency solutions, Passive and Dynamic Risk Management, Customized solutions to manage unrewarded currency risk in international portfolios Learn more, Currency for Return, Strategies that aim to profit from short and medium-term moves in the currency market  Learn more, Fiduciary FX, Trading solution for asset managers and owners with focus on reducing transaction costs improving transparency and enhancing efficiency Learn more 1 Source Mesirow Bloomberg US Bureau of Labor Statistics The above performance information is supplemental Performance of the Extended Markets Currency Alpha Strategy Asian Markets Currency Alpha Strategy Emerging Markets Currency Alpha Strategy and…

At Mesirow our client focus and our values have not changed since Norman Mesirow founded the firm in 1937—we advise individuals and families to help align their financial resources with their life goals We believe that an essential part of your financial wellbeing is the confidence that your financial identity is secure, There are a number of ways to help protect yourself from cybercrime including Using multi-factor authentication when verifying your identity and verifying transactions via telephone Creating secure passwords Protecting your personal information, Multi-factor authentication & transaction verification help protect you, Given the vulnerability of online data more people are relying on multi-factor authentication to protect their accounts Two-factor authentication adds an extra layer of security which requires not only a password and username but also a second factor typically a temporary code sent to a mobile phone via an authentication app SMS text message or voicemail Make sure your SMS texts are not visible…, Help protect yourself with secure passwords and careful online chatting, Create a secure password Password length is more important the complexity The longer the password is the more difficult it is to hack Avoid the use of loved ones’ names (these can be easily identified by others Don’t use autosave for your passwords It may be easier but it is much less secure Use different passwords for different websites Change your passwords regularly even the ones you consider…, Protect your personal information, Review your bank statements and credit card statements each month for suspicious or unrecognized transactions If your financial institution provides an automatic alert system set that up so you can be alerted to any suspicious activity Consider setting up security/fraud alerts through a trusted third party service Cover the PIN on your credit card so that cashiers cannot see it With access to…, What to do when you think your information is compromised, Set up a Fraud Alert As a precaution fraud alerts can be placed on your credit file by contacting one of the three major credit bureaus Once contacted the credit bureau will notify the other two agencies Experion experiancom TransUnion transunioncom Equifax equifaxcom Annually review your free credit report for unfamiliar transactions and inquiries Reports can be requested via the FTC’s website…, Summary, Ensuring your sensitive information is secure from fraud and theft in today’s digital world is more challenging than ever By implementing as many safeguards as possible including those mentioned in this article online hackers will be more likely to set their sights on an easier target Please reach out to your Mesirow Wealth Advisor to learn more about Mesirows commitment to help you stay safe , Published January 2025

It’s often hard to tell the difference between relevant market information and noise That’s why every quarter our Market Observations newsletter lets you know what articles our advisors are using to form ideas and shape opinions Take a look at what caught our eye this quarter, Byron WIEN, Complacency Gives Way to Uncertainty, Over the past several decades Byron Wien the Chairman of Blackstone has hosted a series of luncheons for some of the world’s biggest investors at the end of each summer One of the recurring themes from this years lunches was that of uncertainty Inflation central bank tightening the war in Ukraine China midterm elections and still Covid all are contributing to this sense of unease about the future…, re, ad More , MORNINGSTAR, Three Lessons for Investors From the Third Quarter, Markets provided investors with a dizzying ride in the third quarters with a sharp rally in the first half of the quarter followed by an even sharper decline over the second half The optimism from the start of summer faded during August and September leaving markets near their lows of the year at quarter end This article looks at some recent lessons and at how this market differs those of the…, KINGSWELL, The Late Great Sandy Gottesman, David Sandy Gottesman the founder of First Manhattan long-time friend of Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway board member passed away in September at the age of 96 Despite a notable career as a prominent investor Gottesman typically shunned publicity once explaining to the New York Times that The only time a whale gets harpooned is when he surfaces” While Gottesman didnt seek the limelight the…, Published October 25 2022, Mesirow has no affiliation with any of the sources referenced in this article 

M&A 3Q2020 review Packaging sector, After a sharp decline in share prices and a collapse in M&A activity in late 1Q2020 / early 2Q2020 the packaging sector has experienced a recovery with share prices for plastic packaging slightly above those at the beginning of the year As the packaging sector overall has performed well during the pandemic valuations have also recovered and are currently above their past three-year average M…