Geopolitics
The snap election which took place on Sunday resulted in a political deadlock in Spain. No single party has won enough seats to form a government. More importantly, both the left-wing bloc and the right-bloc fell short of the 176-seat majority needed in the 350-seat lower house. Negotiations are taking place as we publish, but neither side can see a clear and straightforward path to form a working government. Spain is heading into a political deadlock.
The looming risk of an economic downturn, geopolitical risk and inconsistent government policy are feeding commodity markets with volatility, additional to the market specific uncertainty-generating factors. Amidst heightened event-based uncertainty and a possible general economic deterioration, investors will pay more attention and react to events, increasing overall uncertainty levels, which in turn will further fuel commodity price volatility. Commodity producers will be disincentivized from making future supply investments against heightened price volatility and policy uncertainty.
Spain is holding a general election this Sunday and the country is likely to veer to the right. Will this shift threaten European unity and herald a new period of tensions in the Eurozone?
Falling inflation enables central banks to pause rate hikes, which is good news. But time goes on. Restrictive monetary policy, Chinese debt-deflation, energy supply shocks, US and global policy uncertainty, and extreme geopolitical risks will undermine hopes of a soft landing and beautiful disinflation.
Positive economic surprises have delayed the onset of recession in the United States. But tighter monetary and fiscal policy, slowing global growth, and a looming rebound in policy uncertainty and geopolitical risk suggest that investors should buy insurance while it is cheap.
The Russian mutiny reveals the underlying trend of domestic instability. Russian instability is negative for global stability. The endgame of the war in Ukraine is exacerbating the problem, likely pushing up the equity risk premium.