In a market update webcast, Western Asset Management Chief Investment Officer Ken Leech described a global economy rife with problems – yet one that continues to grow, especially in the United States, even if slowly and with evident risks.
“We expect steady, unspectacular U.S. and global growth,” Leech said adding: “That’s been our basic message: slow but sustainable growth globally. The fear the market had in the first quarter, that the slow growth rate might actually fall, is what got the markets in pretty dire straits.”
During that first quarter, Western Asset did not believe the global growth situation was going to develop into a global recession, (a prediction that has so far proven correct), but it has warranted exceptional monetary accommodation.
“Policymakers have to be attentive to downside risks, especially in an environment where U.S. and global inflation remain exceptionally subdued,” Leech said. “Fortunately, central bank accommodation is aggressive, and increasing. That means U.S. Treasury bonds and sovereign bonds will be underpinned by these low policy rates, which will continue around the world.”
As for the U.S. Federal Reserve, which Leech said has made “a dovish pivot,” he concluded, “The Fed is going to be very cautious, and is unlikely to be moving rates up any time soon.”
Leech continues to see strong opportunity ahead in investment grade (IG) corporate bonds. Regarding Europe, the recent Brexit vote injected a high level of uncertainty into the outlook.
He expects that the European Central Bank (ECB) will expand its QE program, both in length of the program and the size. Addressing emerging markets, Leech reported a generally positive outlook. “There’s a real case to be made for emerging markets, both in local currency and dollar-denominated bonds,” he said. “That’s an area we are focusing on even more meaningfully than coming into the year. The yield spread between EMs and developed has reached crisis wide. When you think about valuations and people needing yield, this is where yield is abundant… The two positions we’ve liked structurally have been Mexico and India. Over the course of the year we have been opportunistically investing in a number of others. One I’d highlight is Brazil.”
“Another point highlighted by the World Bank is the bumpy adjustment in China,” he added. “China’s growth is going to be slow. We need to be very thoughtful about it, but the policy adjustment in China was so aggressive that they could avoid a hard landing.”
“Global headwinds are straightforward. When you look at world GDP, we have been in the camp that a 3 percent growth rate, very slow by historical standards, can be maintained. A low bar, and it’s going to take a lot of policy help. Fortunately, we’ve had that, which truncated some of the downside risk. But the major headwind of growth over time is the enormity of the debt burden around the world. It’s going to take time, low interest rates and a continuation of policy support.” He concluded.
You can watch the replay of the webcast in the following link.