LONDON, ON, Jan. 9, 2019 /CNW/ - GLC Asset Management Group Ltd. (GLC) today released its 2019 Capital Market Outlook which examines the market opportunities and expectations for the year ahead.
The report highlights the latest economic insights and market forecasts, including regional forecasts for Canadian, U.S. and international equities, as well as sector forecasts for Government, investment grade corporate and high-yield bonds within the Canadian fixed income market.
In the report, GLC recommends that a neutral stance with a defensive bias is most appropriate for today's investors.
"The general theme underpinning our outlook is moderation," said Brent Joyce, Chief Investment Strategist, GLC. "For market cycles, we believe acceleration is followed by moderation, before eventually giving way to decline. Today's debate remains about how much global economies and corporate earnings will grow and, importantly, not how much they will shrink."
Highlights from the report include:
Fixed income: Fixed income's value as a risk mitigation tool has increased and continues to increase the longer we go in the cycle. We recommend a neutral weighting in fixed income, with a move towards higher credit quality. For fixed income investors, we see a one to two percent total return in 2019 for the Canadian asset class, with an overweight in high-quality investment grade corporate and government bonds.
Equity: We believe the global economy and corporate earnings growth are shifting from acceleration to moderation, keeping our near-term outlook constructive. On a risk-adjusted basis, a neutral stance is most appropriate. Our outlook calls for equity price gains between eight to 12 per cent in North America, and we suggest continued exposure to participate in equity market growth without stretching one's risk tolerance. Within equities, we recommend broad and diversified geographic and sector allocations – with a slight overweight to Canadian and U.S. equities, and neutral non-North American developed market equities with an underweight in emerging markets.
To view the full report, visit glc-amgroup.com.
About GLC Asset Management Group Ltd.
GLC Asset Management Group Ltd. (GLC) is a leading investment management firm with distinct investment divisions. GLC manages more than $50 billion in assets across a broad range of fixed income, domestic and global equity, balanced and asset allocation mandates. Each division has a dedicated team of experienced portfolio managers, as well as its own investment philosophy and strategy. Across each investment division, GLC has fostered a culture of excellence in portfolio management. GLC is a Canadian portfolio management subsidiary of The Great-West Life Assurance Company and is a subsidiary of Great-West Lifeco Inc. and a member of the Power Financial Corporation group of companies.
SOURCE GLC Asset Management Group
Liz Kulyk, Director, Media & Public Affairs, Great-West Life, 204-926-5012, [email protected]
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