News

The irony will not be lost on many. If China’s recent forecasts are anything to go by, it looks set to become the only economy in the world to see positive economic growth in 2020. But how did the Chinese recover so quickly from the Covid-19 crisis, and what does it mean for investors?

The world is a rather unpredictable place at the moment. While equity markets are up by a whopping 40% since the March 2020 lows, the outlook for the global economy remains uncertain. All major economies except China are expected to contract by more than 5% this year.

When equity markets rallied 8 percent on the announcement of BioNtech and Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine, it showed just how eager investors were for some light at the end of the tunnel. But as global lockdowns persist, it’s clear we’re not out of the woods yet, and markets pulled back again to reflect that.

For the first time in history, the price of gold topped $2,000 an ounce as investors continue to look to the safe
haven metal amid the pandemic. The gold rush continues as the US prints money at an aggressive rate,
instigating fears amongst investors that the reserve currency status of the dollar might be under threat.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that a locally developed vaccine for Covid-19 has been given regulatory approval after less than two months of testing on humans. Experts were quick to raise concerns about the speed of Russia’s work, and a growing list of countries have expressed scepticism. Personally, we won’t be lining up for a jab just yet.

The S&P 500 (an index of the 500 largest US stocks) closed at an all-time record high on Tuesday, fully recovering from the losses it experienced in Spring. A day later, Apple became the first US company to reach a $2 trillion valuation, making its market value larger than the GDP of Canada. The tech company will need to deliver on some very demanding expectations in order to justify that valuation.

UK house prices hit an all-time high this week as pent up demand fuelled the largest monthly rise in 16 years. The average home in the UK is now worth over £224,000, 3.7% more than they were last August.

Equity and fixed income markets sustained their remarkable recovery last month thanks to continued government funding. But as prices rose, potential returns fell, and value became harder to find.

Volatility in the tech sector continued this week, taking the froth out of some rich valuations. Investors are
grappling with the recent market turbulence, assessing whether the pullback for equities is a sign of market
health or the start of a larger drawdown that has further to go.

Our Chief Investment Officer Philip Smeaton, CFA spoke to Christian May at City AM this morning about how markets have behaved in recent months and the forces that could shape them over the rest of the year.