Volatility/Downside Protection

A “boatload” of news this week suggests that the shipping industry continues to look very attractive from an investing point of view. Global cargo carriers are estimated to have recorded $150 billion in profits in 2021, the first time they’ve collectively reached that figure in a single year.

When reviewing the current state of the global economy and investment markets, we recommend focusing on market signals and weeding out market noise.

The surge of the coronavirus omicron variant has implications not only for broader asset-class allocations but also for macro exposures within asset classes.

The municipal bond market has historically outperformed relative to Treasurys during periods of rising interest rates.

Members of Loomis Sayles' Global Credit Sector Team share their views on key themes in 2022.

Now that the Fed has officially stopped referring to inflation as “transitory,” the question is whether they can bring it under control without slowing the economy. In our view, they have the right tools – reducing the balance sheet and raising the fed funds rate – they just need to trust their data and keep a steady hand on the wheel.

Passive ETFs are hiding a bear market in stocks.

As we reflect on 2021, we can’t help but feel it was quite a year. Looking ahead, we think many of the same headwinds and tailwinds are likely to persist in 2022, so we are trying to find the right balance between offense and defense.

The year ended on a highly upbeat tone for investors as equities rose to new heights against a backdrop of inflation and a prolonged pandemic

2021 is now in the rear-view mirror and I believe that future financial historians may regard it as the year of peak speculation.

The Federal Reserve dealt the bond market a sharp body blow on January 5th with the release of the minutes of its last Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) policy meeting in December 2021.

The global macro environment is ripe for EM assets outperformance as a combination of stronger growth in China, the end of exceptionalism in the US and less uncertainty on US interest rates, lead to a strong backdrop for EM assets.

Uncertainty has become an ongoing theme in markets, economies, and communities everywhere, and in this environment, PIMCO investment professionals gathered – virtually, once again – for our recent Cyclical Forum.

“Jobs day” last Friday was a bit of a dud.

January market trends historically set the direction for the full year per his title “As January Goes”. Well, so far, not so good!

The opening ceremony for the Winter Olympics is just four weeks away, but the athletes have spent years training to ultimately experience either the thrill of victory or the agony of defeat.

What has been a tumultuous last few months for crypto markets has only accelerated through the turn of the New Year.

One of WisdomTree’s flagship value Funds made some notable changes at the start of the new year.

Every year around this time, we update our always-popular Periodic Table of Commodities Returns.

Rising inflation is troubling bond investors worldwide, but European bond markets will likely experience comparatively weaker inflation pressures and stronger central bank support.

With both the pandemic and inflation proving longer lasting than many had anticipated, what does that mean for central bank policy in the months ahead?

Loomis Sayles' high yield sector team share their views on rising rates, CCC-rated bonds and where they're seeing potential opportunity in 2022.

Every year has plenty of lessons when looking backward in December.

India reported spending a record $55.7 billion on gold imports last year.

If you have read the Absolute Return Letter for years, you will be aware that the January letter always stands out from the others.

As soon as an asset owner allocates capital to more than one manager, an interaction effect exists which will have an impact on the investor’s overall portfolio outcome.

In this issue of Sinology, Andy Rothman explains why China’s 2022 investment environment will be defined by two competing weather patterns.

Small cap growth stocks lagged for most of 2021 as the market simultaneously dealt with the pandemic, inflation, and tightening Fed policy. Given these challenges, we have been focusing on high quality companies trading at attractive valuations, and we have also been looking at non-technology businesses that are embracing digitization.

Equities have enjoyed strong gains since the pandemic low of 2020, aided by massive monetary and fiscal stimulus, excess consumer savings, and incredibly negative real policy rates and bond yields.

Global equities surged in 2021 during a year full of surprises.

A change in fundamentals could make international bonds more attractive.

The year ended on a high note for the Dow and S&P 500 despite economic challenges posed by the coronavirus and extreme weather events.

In 2021, readers of the Investor Alert and Frank Talk were most interested in stories on gold mining, precious metals, natural resources and emerging markets (no surprise). But there was also interest in macroeconomic topics (inflation, mostly) as well as Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.

Supply-chain issues are often cited in the current debate about inflation—and aren’t going away as quickly as consumers and businesses would like. Our Franklin Templeton Investment Solutions team explores how supply chains became stuck, whether they will loosen up in 2022, and the implications for multi-asset investors.

In October, we published analysis demonstrating why it’s never too early to sell a bubble. Unsurprisingly, investors still seem reluctant to reduce their bubble exposure, preferring instead to move up in bubble quality.

In his latest report, Dan Suzuki shows that when a bubble collapses, everything in it goes down, including proven leaders and tomorrow's winners, regardless of valuation, beta or quality. Thus, the only way to protect from a bubble is to get as far away from it as you can.