It’s summertime and volatility in the financial market has been relatively muted compared to what we saw earlier this year. Indeed, summertime has historically been a period of relative quiet in the market before volatility started to pick up in September and October (Chart 1). For macro strategists, this is the perfect time to reflectContinueContinue reading “Twelve Questions on Top of Mind”
Tag Archives: economy
This Time It’s Different?
It is often said that the invention of steam engine in the 18th century was one of the world’s greatest inventions in the past one thousand years. The printing press, electric lightbulb, vaccination, and computer are also among the top of the list. These inventions are considered great not solely due to their direct usageContinueContinue reading “This Time It’s Different?”
Beyond the Headline Numbers: The Best and Worst of Time
Over the past two years we have seen diverging takeaways from various macroeconomic indicators that worked well in the past. Indicators of consumer sentiment are downbeat, but overall consumer spending has been strong. In the Canadian province where I currently live, Ontario, slightly over one million people visited a food bank between April 2023 andContinueContinue reading “Beyond the Headline Numbers: The Best and Worst of Time”
The Touchdown: Tailwinds from Rate Cuts and Chinese Policy Stimulus
With less than three months to the end of the year, returns so far in 2024 is set to be among one of the best in recent years. The fear that the U.S. and global economy will go through a deeper slowdown amid the most aggressive monetary policy tightening in four decades has been quashed,ContinueContinue reading “The Touchdown: Tailwinds from Rate Cuts and Chinese Policy Stimulus”
Turning Point in U.S. Economy, Monetary Policy, and Equity Market
Over the past year U.S. economic growth has significantly outpaced the rest of the world as tight labour market condition and robust consumer spending supported real GDP growth above the 2% trend. This contrasts with growth conditions across European and Emerging Market countries, which have fallen to anemic levels, and in China where the country’sContinueContinue reading “Turning Point in U.S. Economy, Monetary Policy, and Equity Market”
Into the Wild: The Known Unknowns
“It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so” – Mark Twain I think the quote above sums up beautifully the blind spot we and other strategists may have amid the current late phase of the business cycle. After all, few, if any,ContinueContinue reading “Into the Wild: The Known Unknowns”
Evidence, Dear Boy, Evidence
The resilience of the U.S. equity market despite falling fundamentals have continued to puzzle investors expecting lower stock prices. The S&P 500 has rallied 14% from its recent bottom in October, consumer discretionary has been outperforming staples for the past two months and sell-side analysts are sounding more bullish – with some pointing to theContinueContinue reading “Evidence, Dear Boy, Evidence”
End of Year Recap: 2022 in a Rearview Mirror
December has always been a good month to reflect on what happened over the past year and set goals for the next. Although this year has been painful for most investors, in hindsight it was only logical that the above-potential growth seen following the pandemic could not last forever and the frothy valuations of bothContinueContinue reading “End of Year Recap: 2022 in a Rearview Mirror”
Ten Predictions for 2023
This year has been particularly difficult for most investors as there are few places to hide from inflation and rising cost of capital. Both equity and long-term bonds are down over 20% YTD, and even the value of cash is being eaten out by inflation, which rose as high as 9.1% y/y back in June.ContinueContinue reading “Ten Predictions for 2023“
Show Me the Data: Equity Outlook Through Growth and Liquidity Lenses
Sentiment and technical analysts are bullish. Fundamental and macro analysts are bearish. This captured the tone among the sell-side research I read in the past three weeks. The equity market 15%+ bounce from mid-June low has made several strategists turned bullish on risk assets, believing that we have seen the low of the cycle. TheContinueContinue reading “Show Me the Data: Equity Outlook Through Growth and Liquidity Lenses“
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