Latest News,
Views & Blog

CIO Monthly View with Will Bartleet, CIO and multi-asset portfolio manager at Pacific Asset Management

Central banks around the world continued to ease monetary policy in September, with 12 countries cutting interest rates during the month. At Mario Draghi’s penultimate meeting as President of ECB, the committee voted to cut the deposit rate by 10bps to -0.5% and resume quantitative easing by purchasing EUR 20 billion of bonds per month, every month until the ECB raises rates.  

Will Bartleet, CIO and multi-asset portfolio manager at Pacific Asset Management features in the latest edition of ETF Stream - Expert Investor series. The series interviews key individuals from across the fund selection and research space about the ETF industry and how they use ETFs in their portfolios.
 
Read the full interview here. https://www.etfstream.com/feature/8973_expert-investors-will-bartleet-of-pacific-am/  

Will Bartleet, CIO and Portfolio Manager of Pacific Multi-Asset
The importance of being genuinely multi-asset in the face of global trade wars

It looked as though trade peace had broken out between the US and China. Now Trump’s latest salvo of new tariffs and ban on Chinese telecom giant Huawei threatens to usher in a long-term conflict over technology supremacy. 

In the latest of our Multi-Asset Master Classes, Matthew Lamb, CEO of Pacific AM and Will Bartleet, CIO/Portfolio Manager of Pacific Multi-Asset discuss some of the reasons behind recent movements in the markets and the Federal Reserve’s input into these movements. They discuss market opportunities in this environment including EM equities, EM debt, gold and macro funds and the potential impact of inflation. They conclude by explaining the continued importance of diversification.
 

Will Bartleet, CIO and Portfolio Manager of Pacific Multi-Asset
Market commentary, portfolio positioning and outlook

After nearly a decade of a mostly uninterrupted rise in equity markets, the final months of 2018 saw a sharp pick up in volatility and a decline in stock markets around the world. Headwinds for the markets have been building over the last few months: central banks have persisted with interest rate increases and ended their QE programmes, uncertainty surrounding Brexit has continued, the trade war between the US and China has intensified and global growth has slowed.  

Will Bartleet, CIO and Portfolio Manager of Pacific Multi-Asset
Unlocking value in Japanese companies 

Assets that offer asymmetry, where the upside potential is greater than the downside risks are the holy grail of investing. Sometimes these are found in unlikely places; one such opportunity lies within the Japanese stock market. In these uncertain times, let’s start with the downside protection. This comes in the simplest form possible: lots of cash on company balance sheets. Japanese companies have been hoarding cash for 30 years after the traumatic experience of the bubble bursting in the early 1990’s. In a world of high corporate debt, more than half of Japanese companies have net cash on their balance sheet. 

In the latest of our Multi-Asset Master Classes, Matthew Lamb, CEO of Pacific AM and Will Bartleet, CIO/Portfolio Manager of Pacific Multi-Asset discuss how recent moves in the market have seen bond and equity markets falling in tandem. Although the recent fall has felt sudden, Will discusses the three risks that he identified last quarter that in fact have been building over the last six months. They also discuss market opportunities and how the Multi-Asset portfolios are positioned.  

In the latest of our Multi-Asset Master Classes, Matthew Lamb, CEO of Pacific AM and Will Bartleet, CIO/Portfolio Manager of Pacific Multi-Asset discuss what is currently driving markets and the impact of Trump, Trade Wars, BREXIT and more. Will explains why he believes having plenty of 'dry powder' is key and discusses how the portfolios are currently positioned. They also discuss the recent record moves in Technology Stocks and the influence of the FANGs on US Equities. 

Will Bartleet, CIO and Portfolio Manager of Pacific Multi-Asset
Opportunities in energy stocks

Energy companies have been in the doldrums for a decade, generating no returns for investors despite generous dividends, whilst global equities have returned nearly 80%. The obvious culprit has been the oil price which is down by a quarter over the same period as the phrase “commodity super cycle” crashed out of the investment lexicon. With the usual enthusiasm to build capacity in the good times, oil companies kept on spending for a full five years after the peak in the oil price. The additional capacity pushed the market into over-supply and the oil price crashed a year later. Not so super. 

In the latest of our Multi-Asset Master Classes, Matthew Lamb, CEO of Pacific AM and Will Bartleet, CIO/Portfolio Manager of Pacific Multi-Asset look back at Q1 2018, discuss the current global investment outlook and what the return of volatility has meant for global equities and bonds. They also discuss how the Pacific Multi-Asset Portfolio is positioned and consider where the opportunities are going forward.