Michael Blayney: It’s time to be patient and wait for an opportunity | Pendal Group
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Michael Blayney: It’s time to be patient and wait for an opportunity

Markets are around fair value, economic data is contradictory and market momentum is patchy — so it’s a good time to be close to neutral, argues Pendal’s MICHAEL BLAYNEY. But be ready for opportuities

INTEREST rates are set to rise again after this week’s US CPI figures, though the data shows some heat is coming out of inflation.

The January headline rate of inflation in the US was 6.4 per cent higher than a year earlier. Core inflation was up 5.6 per cent.

It was “pretty much as expected”, says Pendal’s head of multi-asset Michael Blayney. “Inflation is too high but it’s coming down.”

How should investors react?

“There are always risks,” says Blayney. “It’s a natural feature of the economic/market cycle. Inflation, interest rates, earnings and the potential for a recession are all in focus.

“For investors, that means sticking to their plan.

“Markets are fair value at the moment and it’s a good time to be a bit like Switzerland – neutral. It’s time to be patient and wait for an opportunity.”

Market expectations matter

While the absolute CPI numbers matter, markets tend to react relative to expectations, notes Blayney.

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Market reaction to this week’s CPI print was relatively muted.

“For the market, it’s not what the number is,” says Blayney. “It’s what the number is relative to what the market expected.”

“The US inflation figures reinforce the high probability of a 25-basis point hike to 5 per cent in March.

“But it doesn’t change the overall picture of high-but-moderating inflation.

Futures markets are implying the Fed Funds rate will peak around 5.25 per cent mid-year.”

Inflation will fall before rates

One difference this cycle is that the Fed will be determined to see inflation falling before cutting interest rates – having learnt from past experiences, Blayney says.

He notes that market volatility after an inflation print or Fed rates decision has lessened in recent months.

“Those factors remain very important, but markets have shifted their attention somewhat to recessionary risks and corporate earnings.”

Recession outlook

In terms of recessionary risks, Blayney says leading indicators have been weakening over the past year, though there has been a small bounce recently.

“They’re still bad, but less bad – and that usually makes markets reasonably happy.”

And while corporate earnings have been downgraded, things aren’t as poor as first feared. 

Blayney adds a caveat: “Historically spikes in inflation and the related Fed hiking cycles have flowed through to earnings with a lag.”

Another factor is Pendal’s in-house market stress indicator, which has been falling for a number of months as markets start to see a turning point for inflation.

Finally, China reopening, and Europe emerging from winter much better than expected in economic terms, has mitigated global recession risks.

Where to look for opportunties

Blayney says it’s a good time for investors to be Switzerland – neutral.

“Markets are around fair value. Economic data is contradictory and market momentum is patchy so it’s a good time to be close to neutral.

“But there are still some reasonable relative value opportunities.

“For example in equities, small caps all around the world are cheap relative to large caps. In the US for example, small and mid-caps as a percentage of market cap are near 20-year lows.

“That doesn’t necessarily mean they outperform in the short term if there is a recession, but it does mean they have a great set-up for the next decade.”  

Bond holdings should be around investors’ strategic long-term level.

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“They will still be helpful in the case of a recession, and are now generating much better yields,” Blayney says.

“It’s hard to make a compelling case for credit at the moment given spreads have shrunk. Right now you simply aren’t paid well to take on credit risk.”

Stay diverse

As always, it’s about having a diversified portfolio, Blayney says.

“You need to own some assets that will do well if growth is better than expected, like equities, and some assets that will do better in a recession, like bonds.

“And you should hold some assets with cash flows that are indexed to, or resilient to, higher inflation.

If market pricing is wrong and there’s persistent inflation, investors are going to want this because historically inflation has tended to be bad for earnings and bad for bonds.”


About Pendal’s multi-asset capabilities

Pendal’s diversified funds provide investors with a variety of traditional and alternative asset classes and strategies.

These include Australian and international shares, property securities, fixed interest, cash investments and alternatives.

In March 2024, Perpetual Group brought together the Pendal and Perpetual multi-asset teams under the leadership of Michael O’Dea.

The newly expanded nine-strong team will manage more than $6 billion in AUM and create a platform with the scale and resources to deliver leading multi-asset solutions for clients.  

Michael is a highly experienced investor with more than 23 years industry experience, including almost a decade leading the team at Perpetual.

Find out more about Pendal’s multi asset funds:

Contact a Pendal account manager here


This information has been prepared by Pendal Fund Services Limited (PFSL) ABN 13 161 249 332, AFSL No 431426 and is current at February 15, 2023. PFSL is the responsible entity and issuer of units in the Pendal Multi-Asset Target Return Fund (Fund) ARSN: 623 987 968. A product disclosure statement (PDS) is available for the Fund and can be obtained by calling 1300 346 821 or visiting www.pendalgroup.com. The Target Market Determination (TMD) for the Fund is available at www.pendalgroup.com/ddo. You should obtain and consider the PDS and the TMD before deciding whether to acquire, continue to hold or dispose of units in the Fund. An investment in the Fund or any of the funds referred to in this web page is subject to investment risk, including possible delays in repayment of withdrawal proceeds and loss of income and principal invested. This information is for general purposes only, should not be considered as a comprehensive statement on any matter and should not be relied upon as such. It has been prepared without taking into account any recipient’s personal objectives, financial situation or needs. Because of this, recipients should, before acting on this information, consider its appropriateness having regard to their individual objectives, financial situation and needs. This information is not to be regarded as a securities recommendation. The information may contain material provided by third parties, is given in good faith and has been derived from sources believed to be accurate as at its issue date. While such material is published with necessary permission, and while all reasonable care has been taken to ensure that the information is complete and correct, to the maximum extent permitted by law neither PFSL nor any company in the Pendal group accepts any responsibility or liability for the accuracy or completeness of this information. Performance figures are calculated in accordance with the Financial Services Council (FSC) standards. Performance data (post-fee) assumes reinvestment of distributions and is calculated using exit prices, net of management costs. Performance data (pre-fee) is calculated by adding back management costs to the post-fee performance. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. Any projections are predictive only and should not be relied upon when making an investment decision or recommendation. Whilst we have used every effort to ensure that the assumptions on which the projections are based are reasonable, the projections may be based on incorrect assumptions or may not take into account known or unknown risks and uncertainties. The actual results may differ materially from these projections. For more information, please call Customer Relations on 1300 346 821 8am to 6pm (Sydney time) or visit our website www.pendalgroup.com

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