Monday, January 8, 2024

Citi | Wealth outlook 2024 |

Here is the report. 

Page 20 
After-inflation US Treasury yields of 2.5% are currently higher than 80% of all periods in the past 25 years.
 
The inversion of the US yield curve, even if less pronounced than before, remains an indicator of tight monetary policy. This can leave the economy more vulnerable to a shock, as was the case when the pandemic hit. Another supply shock that tips the economy into a broader recession can never be ruled out given geopolitical uncertainties. If a new, global shock were to materialize, monetary easing could be more profound than we expected, but it would be no immediate substitute for economic growth and profits. 

Assuming no imminent recession or major global supply shock, it seems likely that the Fed will ease monetary policy gradually in the coming few years. This should be consistent with 10-year US Treasury yields falling back somewhat, perhaps to 3.75% by year-end 2024. Investors should also understand that the long period of zero interest rates – and even negative yielding bonds – will go down in history as an outlier. We see this much like the mirror opposite period of “great monetary neglect,” which boosted inflation and yields throughout the 1970s.

 

 Investment strategy: both income and growth opportunities have been restored

The two pillars of investment returns – income and growth – have been reinvigorated. Yields in the US have risen toward two-decade highs ( FIGURE 10 ).

 With investment grade US corporate bond yields averaging 6% and inflation decelerating, it is quite possible to earn real returns of 4% across a diversified range of fixed income (please see Core portfolios could be ready to shine on page 34). At the same time, tight monetary policy has driven both bond and equity investors to focus predominantly on the largest and safest perceived corporate balance sheets. This has left numerous growth opportunities behind. The seven largest US technology-related shares have driven most of the return in global equities in 2023. We believe this is unlikely to be the case in 2024 and 2025.

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