Throughout the second half of 2016 I’ve remained in the camp that interest rates are going higher and that bonds are a fade. The action into 4th of July weekend originally put me in that camp and I continue to believe that, bigger picture, this is the underlying trend that we need to respect. The catalyst here, in many cases, is becoming more and more clear with each passing day. Forget the economy and the stock market, inflationary forces are moving in sync with the bond market suggesting a very high correlation between the inflation trade and higher rates.
Let’s break this down using math and blatantly ignore anything the federal reserve has to say. Listening to them has been a time waster and money loser for years. I don’t expect this trend to change any time soon. I’m sure they are nice people, but from a portfolio construction perspective, they offer absolutely zero value, and some might argue that listening to the fed is actually detrimental to a sound investing plan. I agree with both the latter and the former: that noise is toxic on all accounts.
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