Monetary
In this, our final report of the year, we present our main global fixed income investment themes and recommendations for 2024.
A post-mortem of our trades for the year, and also comments on future yen and sterling moves from the recent BoJ meeting, and the UK inflation report.
Our outlook for the Fed’s interest rate and balance sheet policies in 2024.
In Section I, we discuss the implications and potential risks of the Fed’s recent pivot. The near-term implications of the Fed's dovish pivot are likely to continue to be bullish for risky asset prices, and a new high in global stock prices cannot be ruled out. The Fed has not effectively countered market expectations that monetary policy will cease to be tight in a year’s time, which has eased financial conditions and will work counter to the Fed’s economic forecasts. However, we would expect this, at most, to delay rather than to prevent a recession. Developed economies remain on a recessionary path so long as monetary policy in the US and euro area remains actually tight. As such, we do not see the December meeting as a truly bullish catalyst for risky assets on a 12-month time horizon. In Section II, my colleague Ryan Swift of BCA’s US Bond Strategy service reviews the outlook for the Fed’s interest rate and balance sheet policies for next year.
The statement from last week’s Central Economic Work Conference indicates that Chinese authorities are still not considering large-scale stimulus in 2024. Odds are that a full-fledged business cycle recovery in 2024 is unlikely. Chinese share prices remain vulnerable, and strengthening in the RMB will be short-lived.
Our outlook for the Fed’s interest rate and balance sheet policies in 2024.
Vietnamese stocks may not see an immediate rally as global manufacturing and exports remain weak. But investors with longer-term horizons should stay overweight this market.
Our last publication of 2023 is an illustrated guide to our view that the economy will enter a recession around midyear. We expect equities will underperform Treasuries and cash over much of 2024, but we are waiting to turn tactically defensive until more investors are drawn into the soft-landing camp, capping the equity rally.
Explore the eight main themes that will drive the returns of European assets in 2024.