Happy New Year!
I have returned from my end-of-year break from my desk, although never any distance from the market and its constant state of flux. And quite the time it has been! Anyway, welcome to 2020; welcome to this week’s News, Views and Truths.
2019 was a belter. In investment terms, certainly.
And let’s be perfectly honest, the end of year “Boris Bounce” was a fitting end, adding nearly 5% to the FTSE 100 from the election date to the end of the year.
So, if you were invested, congratulations. And I do not say that blithely; remember the end of 2018. At that point, to remain invested was a somewhat difficult decision. The markets had sold off significantly and predictions into 2019 were not rosy. Commentators were highlighting the potential slowdown in global growth and the contraction of earnings could result in market instability.
In fact, let us review what my blog, this time last year, actually said…
- Inflation remained under control and continues to be; let’s roll that on…
- The US outperformed all other developed markets gain, with the S&P 500 notching 26.41%.
- Emerging Markets returned a very respectable 15.05% and continue to show significant value against developed markets. In fact, was 15% predicted…?
- 2019 was absolutely all about #timeinthemarket
- Although late to the party, geopolitical issues have arrived fashionably late.
- And all this despite Brexit.
So, moving into 2020, what are we looking at?
Market commentators are bullish; super-duper bullish. The threat of an imminent global recession seems now to be yesterday’s news, and equities are the only game in town.
However, the oft reported quote of “Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful” rings in my head whenever I see consensus. And so, I will continue on that front. For a much more in-depth view of our 2020 thoughts, keep an eye out for the annual outlook coming next week.
And to finish, our usual playlist. See you all next week.
