Published December 7, 2018
Stock investors were reminded this week that the market remains unhealthy. After approaching a retest of this market correction’s lows a couple of weeks ago, stocks ripped higher last week to recover all of the ground given up the week before. This week began well. (more…)
Published October 19, 2018
Our post last week noted that the October selloff in stocks likely had drivers other than the oft-noted rise in interest rates as some of the most interest rate-sensitive sectors, such as utilities, were holding up just fine. We also noted that the wave of geopolitical issues that seem to be ever-widening were unlikely to be a major cause of the selloff as investors were not pouring money into bonds, as they typically do during periods of angst. A recent note from Oppenheimer points to persistent and increasing weakness in non-U.S. economies as being the primary catalyst for the current stock market correction. (more…)
Published March 2, 2018
This week we share some good information from a webcast given by Charlie Bilello of Pension Partners. The first chart shows the downward trend of the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield. Note the green arrows as the yield hits the upper portion of the channel. We are sitting right at the top of the channel. Do we want to see yields break through to the upside? (more…)
Published August 11, 2017
Yield spreads provide a view into the risk appetite of market participants. If the spread between low risk and high risk bonds is large, investors are concerned and want to receive more compensation for taking on the added risk. As investors become more comfortable with the market and begin to view it as increasingly benign, they require less compensation. In times of extreme market complacency, the relationships between risk and return appear to almost break down. And so it is with European high yield (aka “junk”) bonds today. (more…)
