US equity investors are too bullish and bond investors too bearish

Market signals pose 'dilemma' for investors

clock • 3 min read

An ex-boss once told me that people who buy shares are optimists who look on the bright side of life, while people who buy government bonds expect the worst.

That certainly seems to ring true today, especially in the USA. The S&P 500 index is back near record highs just below 3,000 points, implying that sales and earnings at the country's largest companies should be strong for the next year or two. What is driving 'extreme price swings' in equity markets? Conversely, US Treasury yields are at a multi-year low - back below 1.5% for the 10-year bond - with the Federal Reserve talking about cutting interest rates further amid fears that global economic growth will decline. These two signals from the financial markets could not be more diff...

To continue reading this article...

Join Investment Week for free

  • Unlimited access to real-time news, analysis and opinion from the investment industry, including the Sustainable Hub covering fund news from the ESG space
  • Get ahead of regulatory and technological changes affecting fund management
  • Important and breaking news stories selected by the editors delivered straight to your inbox each day
  • Weekly members-only newsletter with exclusive opinion pieces from leading industry experts
  • Be the first to hear about our extensive events schedule and awards programmes

Join now

 

Already an Investment Week
member?

Login

More on Bonds

Partner Insight: It's time to lock in yields, while you still can…

Partner Insight: It's time to lock in yields, while you still can…

We’re buying duration as these yields may not be around in a few years' time, say Kris Atkinson and Shamil Pankhania

Kris Atkinson and Shamil Pankhania, Portfolio Managers, Fidelity Short Dated Corporate Bond Fund
clock 06 February 2024 • 5 min read
Nordea AM to wind down emerging markets debt team

Nordea AM to wind down emerging markets debt team

Outsourcing to external manager

Valeria Martinez
clock 30 January 2024 • 1 min read
Partner Insight: Bonds are back with a bang!

Partner Insight: Bonds are back with a bang!

The final two months of 2023 were among the strongest on record for global bonds and we expect this trend to continue well into the year says Aegon AM’s Alexander Pelteshki.

Alexander Pelteshki, CFA Portfolio Manager at Aegon AM
clock 29 January 2024 • 2 min read
Trustpilot