VantagePoint: The Bear Awakens

After three false starts, the hibernating bear has come out roaring with the sharpest peak-to-trough decline in global equities on record. Governments, business leaders, and individuals are putting commerce on hold and accepting the cost of a likely recession to curtail the spread of COVID-19. The recession period is expected to be brief, provided measures to contain the spread and policies to address economic disruption are effective. Rebalancing portfolios is always difficult, especially during bear markets. But opportunities are beginning to unfold, including an emergence with credit and real assets.