A guide to fixed income and the US election
Fast reading The race for the House of Representatives and the Senate is also too close to call. The uncertainty has prompted slightly more defensive positioning, at least in the short term. There is a decent cushion to total returns this year. The rate outlook and supportive fundamentals means this is unlikely to change, but […]
Decades in the making: MDT Advisers
Who is Federated Hermes MDT Advisers? Video transcript MDT Advisers is the active quantitative equity arm of Federated Hermes. MDT is a US equity-focused investment manager; today we manage nearly US$12bn across several US equity strategies, including a market neutral strategy. While the name ‘MDT’ may not be familiar to you, we have been around […]
Stock market looking to run the table
One mystery that the Bears forever struggle with is how stock markets are fuelled by the Wall of Worry. Try as we all might to find problems that the market doesn’t already know about it, and hasn’t already reflected in valuations, time after time the markets rally into those very concerns. Everyone is analysing the […]
Can Beijing do enough to maintain the rally?
Fast reading At the most recent Politburo meeting, President Xi Jinping outlined a far-reaching commitment to enact measures that protect the economy, property and equity markets from further deterioration – it was a clear ‘whatever it takes’ statement. Officials have launched a series of fiscal and monetary stimulus measures, but investor enthusiasm has been tempered […]
Investors vote with their feet
Video transcript Presidential election years tend to be very volatile and choppy in the latter stages going into the election. There were two indicators that we’re watching closely. The first is the economy itself. If the economy historically is growing strongly into the election, the incumbent party retains the White House 100% of the time. […]
Has the inflationary dragon really been slain?
market snapshot
Sky high
The Chicken Little1 predictions that the US Federal Reserve easing cycle would lead to an exodus of assets from liquidity products have been proven wrong. Money market funds across the industry alone have experienced inflows of around US$150bn since the Fed cut rates by 50bps in mid-September to a range of 4.75-5%. It’s another case […]
The China catalyst
Market snapshot
A falling rate environment
Video transcript In a falling rate interest environment, it’s actually on a flow basis, from an assets under management standpoint, a positive situation in the marketplace for money market funds. Despite what has been thought of from a media perspective as being a wall of cash that will start to exit money market funds in […]
School’s in session
With colleges and schools resuming, September always feels like a fresh start. The markets are studying economic data and Federal Reserve communication anew to determine when it will finally ease. In Jackson Hole, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell all but promised he would announce the first cut at the upcoming policy-setting meeting on 18 September. […]
