Tag Archives: bonds

 There is no change to the risk budget this month. For the moderate risk investor, the allocation between risk assets and bonds is unchanged at 50/50. There are other changes to the portfolio though so please read on. As I write this the stock market is in the process of taking a dive (well if 1.4% is a “dive”) and one can’t help but wonder if the long awaited and anticipated correction is finally at hand. Which means,...

In October 2015, Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Bill Dudley admitted that the US economy might be slowing. In the typically understated fashion befitting the usual clownshow, he merely was acknowledging what was by then pretty obvious to anyone outside the economics profession. Dudley was at that moment, however, undaunted. His eye was cast toward the unemployment rate and that was nothing but encouraging no matter the...

Of the economic releases of the past two weeks the one that got the most attention was the employment report. That report is seen by many market analysts as one of the most important and of course the Fed puts a lot of emphasis on it so the press spends an inordinate amount of time dissecting it. I don’t waste much time on it myself because it is subject to large revisions and has little predictive capability. In...

The mainstream media is about to be presented with another (small) gift. In its quest to discredit populism, the condition of inflation has become paramount for largely the right reasons (accidents do happen). In the context of the macro economy of 2017, inflation isn’t really about consumer prices except as a broad gauge of hidden monetary conditions. Therefore, if inflation behaves as it is supposed to after so many...

This economic cycle is one of the longest on record for the US, eight years and counting since the end of the last recession. It has also been, as almost everyone knows, a fairly weak expansion, one that has managed to disappoint both bull and bear. Growth has oscillated around a 2% rate for most of the expansion, falling at times perilously close to recession while at others rising tantalizingly close to escape...

Retail sales were thoroughly disappointing in June. Whereas other accounts such as imports or durable goods had at least delivered a split decision between adjusted and unadjusted versions, for retail sales both views of them were ugly. Seasonally-adjusted first, spending last month was down for the second straight time. Worse than that, estimated sales were just barely more than in January. The economy in 2017 is not...

There is no change to the risk budget this month. For the moderate risk investor, the allocation between risk assets and bonds is unchanged at 50/50. There are no changes to the portfolio this month. Growth and inflation expectations rose somewhat since last month’s update. The change is minor though and within the range of what we’ve seen in recent months. The most significant change from last month is the continued...

The majority of the economic reports over the last two weeks have been disappointing, less than the consensus expectations. The minor rebound in activity we’ve been tracking since last summer appears to have stalled. Retail sales continue to disappoint and inventory/sales ratios are once again rising – from already elevated levels. Even the positive reports were clouded by negative undertones. So far though our market...

Das Fed erhöht die Leitzinsen, doch die «Trump Reflation» bleibt aus. Bild: Carlos Barria (Keystone) Janet Yellen ist guten Mutes. Die Vorsitzende der amerikanischen Notenbank (Fed) und ihre Kollegen haben am Mittwoch den Leitzins abermals um 0,25 Prozentpunkte erhöht. Es war die vierte Zinserhöhung, seit das Fed im Dezember 2015 den Pfad der Nullzinsen verlassen hatte. Steigende Leitzinsen – konkret geht es dabei um die Federal Funds Rate, also den Zinssatz, zu dem sich Banken...

Das Fed erhöht die Leitzinsen, doch die «Trump Reflation» bleibt aus. Bild: Carlos Barria (Keystone) Janet Yellen ist guten Mutes. Die Vorsitzende der amerikanischen Notenbank (Fed) und ihre Kollegen haben am Mittwoch den Leitzins abermals um 0,25 Prozentpunkte erhöht. Es war die vierte Zinserhöhung, seit das Fed im Dezember 2015 den Pfad der Nullzinsen verlassen hatte. Steigende Leitzinsen – konkret geht es dabei um die Federal Funds Rate, also den Zinssatz, zu dem sich Banken...