I promise that I will not do an explainer of the VIX this week. Instead, I will lead with some observations on markets and finish with a war-story from the world of retail investing. The return of equity volatility has engendered two responses. Firstly, it seemed as if investors breathed a sigh of relief on Monday when it became clear that we could peg the swoon to the blow-up of short-vol ETFs and related strategies. It is always scary when markest fall out of bed, and even more if so if we can’t explain why. Blaming excessive risk-taking in short-vol strategies assured that the sell-off, while painful, would be short. Secondly, every strategist note that I have subsequently read—and comments from policymakers—have echoed this sentiment. A sell-off was long overdue and is perfectly normal. There is nothing to worry about, and underlying economic fundamentals for risk assets remain robust. Many have even welcomed the volatility as a sign of healthy markets. I have no particular reason to disagree, but my spider sense tingles when investors and strategists welcome a 10% puke in equities. I understand that macro traders are excited but real money and long-only? The logical response from markets would seem to be: “Oh, so you think you’re tough?”
Read MoreYour humble scribe is old enough to remember the Kinder egg commercials, which lured kids with the promise of a three-in-one treat. Chocolate, a surprise and something to play with. Markets feel similar at the moment except they aren’t exactly treating investors; they are posing a riddle. The year has begun with a rally in stocks, a collapse in the dollar and sharply higher global bond yields. Just as punters seemed to have settled on this constellation of price movements, though, markets threw a curve ball last week. The sell-off in bonds continued, but stocks weakened, and the dollar strengthened. What the heck is going on? I was never a fan of the idea that a weaker dollar and higher U.S. bond yields signalled investors’ abandonnement of U.S. assets in the face of a shit-show in Washington, aggressive fiscal stimulus and a widening CA deficit. This is especially the case given that we were supposed to keep buying U.S. stocks. That makes little sense if you think that U.S. assets are no longer high quality.
It is relatively simple to make sense of bonds, stocks and the dollar in isolation. But if we want to connect them, our best chance is to start with how bonds impact the two others and work our way up from there.
Read MoreApparently, the flogging of the dollar will continue until morale improves. I said my peace on the topic last week, but that hasn’t prevented markets from upping the pressure on the greenback. The prospect of a government shutdown added to the pain last week—it is now a reality—but so far other markets haven’t taken note. Bond yields have been rising, although not faster than before the dollar was taken to the woodshed. And equities…well, it’s looking pretty good, isn’t? Global equities rallied incessantly last year, and they have come out swinging in 2018. The MSCI World is up a punchy 4.3% year-to-date, and we aren’t even through the first four weeks of trading. In case you’re wondering, this pace would deliver a cool 74.5% return for the year, if sustained. Even the most ardent equity bulls probably don’t believe that, but I am starting to wonder what exactly we’re supposed to expect. I have also reached the stage where I am struggling to make sense of my equity models. I concede that the technical picture is mixed. My normalised put/call ratio on the S&P 500 has collapsed, indicating that few investors are bothered to hedge. Breadth, however, remains resilient, hinting the big bear is still far away.
Read MoreOn a headline level, 2018 has started exactly as 2017 finished. Stocks are up, U.S. short term rates are up—but the dollar has traded heavy—and economic data continue to tell a story of a synchronised upturn in global growth. The bears are furious, or perhaps just confused. Hussman recently published a prepper’s guide to a hypervalued market. And value investor extraordinaire—and famed bear—Jeremy Grantham from GMO invokes the “highest-priced markets in US history,” but also proclaims that we’re now in the “melt-up phase” of the bull market. I am all for holding opposing views at the same time, but markets demand a view and a position. So which is it Mr. Grantham? Long, short, or flat? I am not holding my breath for an answer. I have long since left the extremes behind. Picture a spectrum with Hussman and GMO at one end, and the wet-behind-the-ears trader, who have never experienced a sizeable drawdown in Spoos, at the other end. Hint: You want to be somewhere in between.
Separating signal from noise is an important skill in this game, and markets currently are throwing a number of curve balls at investors. What better way to kick off 2018 than by highlighting the ones that matter.
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