Investment Management – Second Quarter 2017
Expectations for global growth are rising. The near decade long bull market has been notable not just for its length, but also the negative lens investors have viewed it through. For anyone who regularly reads financial publications or watches investment news on television, the impression left seems to be one of worry due to sluggish – but positive – economic growth and concerns about geopolitical events. That narrative has begun to turn in recent months. In the first quarter, S&P 500 companies reported a 14% earnings improvement from a year earlier, along with 75% of companies beating analysts’ forecasts. Lower market volatility, demonstrated by the S&P 500 not experiencing a 5% correction over the last year, is a reflection of improving investor confidence.