United States
The January ISM Services missed estimates, decreasing to 52.8 from 54.0 in December. The move was driven by activity components, while employment and suppliers’ delivery times increased. Additionally, the prices paid measure decreased, reversing the…
Despite disruptive headlines, equity market volatility remains contained. The S&P 500 has been in a tight range since the last VIX spike, and news of a disruptive, cheaper AI technology has not sustainably brought down US tech stocks. Both implied and…
Our Portfolio Allocation Summary for January 2025.
The US High-Quality (USHQ) portfolio slightly outperformed in January, returning 3.4%, whilst its SPY benchmark returned 2.9%. That said, we think the USHQ portfolio will have a solid run through the first half of 2025, benefitting from rising market risk on the back of President Trump’s tariff agenda. USHQ’s underlying Quality and Safety Score factor tilts will be increasingly favored as market uncertainty grows.
While the US dollar has outperformed every single DM currency in the past few months, the only monetary asset it did not outperform is gold. The greenback is up between 5-10% against DM currencies since September of last year, but down by more than 8% vs.…
Trade tensions muddy the outlook for global central banks. The 2010s were an era of low growth and low inflation that called for easy monetary policy. The post-COVID era has been marked by overheating and high inflation calling for tight policy. The second…
December job openings missed estimates, decreasing to 7.6m from an upwardly revised 8.2m in November. Quits, hires, but also layoffs all ticked up marginally, leaving the general “slowing-but-not-collapsing” direction of the labor market…
Our Global Investment strategists offered their initial thoughts on the nascent US trade war with its allies, with a few longer-term takeaways. President Trump’s decision to delay Mexico tariffs on Monday highlights the uncertainty surrounding trade…
President Trump shot the opening salvo of his second trade war, announcing 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico, with a more modest 10% on China and Canadian energy. Both countries retaliated with tariffs and non-tariff measures. Financial markets initially sold…
The January ISM Manufacturing index beat estimates, increasing to 50.9 to end a 26-month streak of manufacturing contraction. New orders rose to 55.1 from 52.1. Employment is also back in expansion. Prices paid strengthened as well, rising to 54.9 from…