Pakistan 'prepared' for New Zealand

Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan all-rounder, said his side will have revenge on their mind when they take on New Zealand in the Emirates next month. The Black Caps, who parted company with their coach Andy Moles yesterday, defeated Pakistan in the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy in South Africa last month. The two sides will compete in a three-match one-day series and two Twenty20 games in Abu Dhabi and Dubai starting November 3.

Afridi said yesterday that the outcome would be different this time. "We are definitely better prepared for them this time," he said. "Bring on the [Daniel] Vettoris and the [Shane] Bonds, we are ready for you." Afridi will captain the side in the Twenty20 matches after Younus Khan retired from the shortest form of the game following Pakistan's victory in the World Twenty20 in England earlier this year.

Afridi refuted reports of ill-feeling between himself and Khan, who will captain the team in one-day games. "Younus and I go back a long way as friends, almost 15 years, and are mature enough to discuss and sort out any problem under the sun in amicable way," he said. "I am quite used to such rumours of discord or leadership difference which surface everytime Pakistan lose a key match or a tournament. I am not fazed by them anymore."

New Zealand impressed in the Champions Trophy, but media reports suggested the players had lost confidence in Moles. It led to him agreeing to step down in an "amicable agreement" yesterday. "There was a group of players who had lost confidence in my ability as a coach," he said. "This left me in an untenable position after that had been so widely reported the day before. "Over the 11 months I've been around I had no inkling, no communication there were problems until we got back after the Champions Trophy. It is unfortunate it wasn't raised before and that will be looked at, I'm sure, by New Zealand Cricket going forward."

Meanwhile the New South Wales Blues defeated Trinidad & Tobago by 41 runs in the final of the Champions League Twenty20 in Hyderabad on Friday night, with the Australian side's captain Simon Katich hailing the competition as a new chapter in cricket. @Email:sports@thenational.ae

From Europe to the Middle East, economic success brings wealth - and lifestyle diseases

A rise in obesity figures and the need for more public spending is a familiar trend in the developing world as western lifestyles are adopted.

One in five deaths around the world is now caused by bad diet, with obesity the fastest growing global risk. A high body mass index is also the top cause of metabolic diseases relating to death and disability in Kuwait, Qatar and Oman – and second on the list in Bahrain.

In Britain, heart disease, lung cancer and Alzheimer’s remain among the leading causes of death, and people there are spending more time suffering from health problems.

The UK is expected to spend $421.4 billion on healthcare by 2040, up from $239.3 billion in 2014.

And development assistance for health is talking about the financial aid given to governments to support social, environmental development of developing countries.

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How to play the stock market recovery in 2021?

If you are looking to build your long-term wealth in 2021 and beyond, the stock market is still the best place to do it as equities powered on despite the pandemic.

Investing in individual stocks is not for everyone and most private investors should stick to mutual funds and ETFs, but there are some thrilling opportunities for those who understand the risks.

Peter Garnry, head of equity strategy at Saxo Bank, says the 20 best-performing US and European stocks have delivered an average return year-to-date of 148 per cent, measured in local currency terms.

Online marketplace Etsy was the best performer with a return of 330.6 per cent, followed by communications software company Sinch (315.4 per cent), online supermarket HelloFresh (232.8 per cent) and fuel cells specialist NEL (191.7 per cent).

Mr Garnry says digital companies benefited from the lockdown, while green energy firms flew as efforts to combat climate change were ramped up, helped in part by the European Union’s green deal.

Electric car company Tesla would be on the list if it had been part of the S&P 500 Index, but it only joined on December 21. “Tesla has become one of the most valuable companies in the world this year as demand for electric vehicles has grown dramatically,” Mr Garnry says.

By contrast, the 20 worst-performing European stocks fell 54 per cent on average, with European banks hit by the economic fallout from the pandemic, while cruise liners and airline stocks suffered due to travel restrictions.

As demand for energy fell, the oil and gas industry had a tough year, too.

Mr Garnry says the biggest story this year was the “absolute crunch” in so-called value stocks, companies that trade at low valuations compared to their earnings and growth potential.

He says they are “heavily tilted towards financials, miners, energy, utilities and industrials, which have all been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic”. “The last year saw these cheap stocks become cheaper and expensive stocks have become more expensive.”

This has triggered excited talk about the “great value rotation” but Mr Garnry remains sceptical. “We need to see a breakout of interest rates combined with higher inflation before we join the crowd.”

Always remember that past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. Last year’s winners often turn out to be this year’s losers, and vice-versa.