Resource Search

What if Trump trumps Clinton in the U.S. Election? With just a few weeks remaining, the markets have not meaningfully priced in the chance of a Trump presidency. While indeed this is not the base case scenario, the outcome of the election is sufficiently unclear that serious consideration should be given to the potential impact of a Trump victory on the economy and the markets over the short term. And at least over that short term, there are concerns. By contrast, the markets would likely take a Hillary Clinton victory as an extension of the status quo and not react dramatically.

Gross domestic product per capita, a proxy for living standards, has slowed dramatically over the last 15 years. For equity investors, slower economic growth translates into reduced opportunity for revenue growth and increased risk for transitory shocks and market volatility. The biggest risk to the economy is that political leaders will respond to subpar growth in living standards by implementing anti-growth policies, including protectionist measures, higher taxes, restrictions on immigration and tighter government regulation of industry, which would likely slow growth even further.

Increasing data availability and shifting investor focus toward ESG integration has led to rapid innovations in the financial industry as demand grows for impact investing. Research suggests that ESG Tilt strategies can earn competitive returns, with particularly favorable results in emerging and European markets. Meanwhile, ESG Momentum strategies appear to provide the greatest probability of earning excess returns for impact investors by rewarding companies with improving “material” environmental, social and governance factors.

In recent years, investment professionals have identified a more nuanced category of diversification—specifically, gender diversification within workplace leadership. Data shows that leadership diversity tends to provide the same benefits as asset-class diversification: higher returns and lessened risk. Given this research, investors, particularly those committed to ESG investing are allocating funds to companies with strong female leadership.

Lower population growth and productivity growth will weigh on future GDP growth. These lower rates of growth, in turn, bring lower returns to many asset classes, including equities and fixed income. While this circumstance creates challenges for portfolios of any risk level, it is particularly challenging to build a low risk portfolio that generates much positive return after inflation and taxes. Adapting to this new environment may require some changes.

Structuring and strategically managing an investment portfolio is not easy in any environment. Until recently, the task was made easier with expected average returns that were at levels that would normally meet expectations to fund pension benefits, endowment distributions and lifestyle needs. However, today’s environment is drastically different. What can investors do to increase the probability that their average portfolio returns are higher across a broad spectrum of asset classes?

While hedge fund performance can be cyclical, as it is with equity and fixed income markets, an allocation to hedge funds can provide compelling attributes in an investment portfolio over the long run. At a closer look, hedge funds have been accretive to portfolios over the last 15 years, and in each of three 5 year segments. From a historical perspective across different market cycles, a case can be made that now is good time to allocate to hedge funds.

The surprise result of the British referendum to leave the European Union this June sent shockwaves through the markets and some investors expected additional fallout down the road. It seems the opposite has been happening. Recent data from the U.K. Office for National Statistics showed the British economy grew by 0.7 percent in the second quarter and just above consensus expectations.

Maintaining a financial and moral investment perspective appeals to both individual and institutional investors, who have been turning to sustainable, responsible, and impact investing (SRI). In fact, SRI assets grew from $3.74 trillion in 2012 to $6.57 trillion or more in 2014, according to The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment. In its broadest sense, SRI refers to an investment discipline that strives for strong financial performance while also seeking to create positive change in the world. Who are the SRI investors and how are they making SRI work for them?