When I was working as a junior doctor many years ago, one of my professors always stresses the importance of determining the cause (etiology) of a disease rather than simply alleviating the patient’s symptoms. The collapse of SVB in March and the associated ripples to other regional banks are one of the many symptoms ofContinue reading “Bank Failure Is Only One of Many Symptoms of Tight Monetary Conditions”
Tag Archives: recession
Gradually, Then Suddenly: Beware of the Lag Impact of Policy Tightening
Green shoots in the economic data and the associated change in market narrative from hard landing six months ago to no landing currently have bolstered the performance of equities and pushed bond yields to near previous highs. January’s retail sales number shows consumers in the U.S. spent 3% more relative to in December, outpacing analysts’Continue reading “Gradually, Then Suddenly: Beware of the Lag Impact of Policy Tightening”
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 theContinue reading “Evidence, Dear Boy, Evidence”
Bracing for an Economic Winter
The week between Christmas and New Year last year was exceptionally cold, with snowstorms in both the Eastern and Western Coast of Canada and the U.S. Many flights were cancelled and those that managed to land at their destination, including the one that I was in, experienced heavy turbulence. The exceptionally cold winter this yearContinue reading “Bracing for an Economic Winter”
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.Continue reading “Ten Predictions for 2023“
An Update on Equity Sector
Market has been trading lower since mid-August peak and we are revisiting our recommendation on sectors given the sharp moves in cyclical and defensives of late. Below are our sector view with a brief rationale and supporting charts. Healthcare: Overweigh (2-4%) Pro: uncorrelated to the cycle and historically outperformed due to earnings resilience during downturn.Continue reading “An Update on Equity Sector“
The Making of An Accident, Brace for Impact
It was four decades ago when Federal Reserve last tighten monetary policy in a comparable speed and size to what we are seeing today. This is not surprising as it was also the last time the U.S. saw headline CPI inflation above 8% (Chart 1). Although the Fed was successful in bringing down inflation andContinue reading “The Making of An Accident, Brace for Impact”
Equity Bear Market and Today’s Macro: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
The U.S. and global stock market have officially entered the bear market in June following upside surprises on U.S. inflation that was followed by the Fed having to raise its interest rate by 75bps – contrary to Chairman Powell’s comment that such size of hike is not on the table weeks earlier. Monetary conditions haveContinue reading “Equity Bear Market and Today’s Macro: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly”
Have We Seen the Cyclical Top in Commodity and Stock Market?
Download PDF: For the past several months we have ramped up our bearish view towards risk assets amid the unfavorable global macro and geopolitical backdrop. Central banks across the world are tightening aggressively as inflation spiked to decades’ high in many developed countries and over double digit in several developing economies, while fiscal boosts areContinue reading “Have We Seen the Cyclical Top in Commodity and Stock Market?”
Strength of the U.S. Economy and Implications of Russia’s Ukraine Invasion
Download PDF: Three market moves have dominated the macro landscape in the past quarter amid the Fed tightening policy and geopolitical tension in Eastern Europe: rise in Treasury yields, strengthening dollar, and rally in oil prices. These all amount to a growth tax for consumers, which will inevitably lead to a growth slowdown in theContinue reading “Strength of the U.S. Economy and Implications of Russia’s Ukraine Invasion”
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