Market Update from the Global Asset Allocation team – January 2020

Investors headed towards the end of 2019 in an optimistic mood as two policy risks that were plaguing sentiment throughout the year receded in December, while some nascent signs of a stabilizing global economy also buoyed risk appetite. Of note, the US and China managed to agree on the details of a “phase one” trade accord that averted a fresh onslaught of tariffs and modestly rolled back some existing duties. And across the Atlantic, the likelihood of a disorderly Brexit scenario declined after PM Boris Johnson secured a solid Conservative majority in the general elections, which has paved the way for a smooth exit in 2020.