In South Africa and other emerging markets we’ve been bracing for more investment pain, partly on the expectation that China will have a smaller appetite for resources. Offshore diversification is usually recommended to reduce investment risk associated with having all our money in Johannesburg-listed shares.
But, as this piece by Ryan Vlastelica of Reuters highlights, diversification into the so-called developed markets isn’t necessarily an antidote to emerging market woes. Investors in US stocks, including the big companies reflected in the S&P 500 index, will feel some discomfort along with emerging market investors.
The business world has never been more interconnected. Just as South African companies have hedged against rand weakness by spreading their business activities to other jurisdictions, so too have companies elsewhere diversified against domestic risks.
US-listed companies have significant bets in emerging markets. Goldman Sachs analysts note that when MSCI’s emerging markets index, which consists of indices from emerging economies, falls at least 5 percent, the S&P 500 – a representation of the US market – tends to fall by half of that. – JC
By Ryan Vlastelica
NEW YORK, Feb 2 (Reuters) – Investors may crave a quiet market this week to digest the recent volatility in stocks and rehash Sunday’s Super Bowl, but the prospect doesn’t look likely.
The catalysts that drove the Dow and the S&P 500 to their worst monthly performances since May 2012 have not gone away. The retreat from emerging markets – and stocks in general – appears to have more room to run as the factors that helped propel the market to record highs in mid-January aren’t providing enough support. Although fear is back in the market, some investors see this as a time to buy.
Calls for a market correction have become louder, with the S&P 500 down 3.6 percent from its all-time closing high and the Federal Reserve’s announcement on Wednesday that it will keep trimming its monthly bond buying.
More than 80 S&P 500 components are set to report earnings this week, but the myriad issues surrounding emerging markets remain at the forefront for investors.
“Bad news in any area of the globe is bound to make sentiment less positive in others. This isn’t an issue of contagion, but there will be influence,” said John Chisholm, chief investment officer of the Boston-based Acadian Asset Management, which has an emerging market equity fund with $1.2 billion in assets. “There’s plenty more instability ahead.”
While countries such as Turkey and South Africa have taken steps to stabilize their currencies, the trend has remained negative for those assets.
The CBOE Volatility Index, a measure of investor anxiety, rose 34.2 percent during January to end the month at 18.41, after wrapping up 2013 at 13.72. The VIX remains below the long-term average of 20, however, and has not traded above 19 since October.
For the month of January, the Dow fell 5.3 percent and the S&P 500 lost 3.6 percent – marking their worst monthly percentage declines since May 2012. The Nasdaq fell 1.7 percent in January, its worst month since October 2012.
It’s tempting to believe that U.S. stocks are a salve for this pain. But the reality is that when emerging markets swoon, U.S. stocks decline as well, just not as much.
BRICs AND THE BOTTOM LINE
Goldman Sachs analysts wrote that when MSCI’s emerging markets index falls at least 5 percent, the S&P 500 tends to fall by half of that. The MSCI index has dropped 11 percent since an October peak of 1,047.73.
“Our EM strategists believe some EM equity markets have further to fall, and that they require significant current account rebalancing before bottoming,” Goldman Sachs analysts said in a late January note about their outlook on emerging markets.
The effect on U.S. companies is harder to discern. Goldman estimated that S&P 500 companies derive 5 percent of their profits from emerging markets, with some sectors more affected than others.
Among the companies with large emerging markets exposure set to report earnings this week are General Motors and Yum Brands Inc. Yum, in fact, gets more than half of its sales from the BRICs – Brazil, Russia, India and China. Yum’s stock lost 11.2 percent in January, while GM shares dropped 11.7 percent.
Both stocks, along with the shares of other internationally exposed companies, have underperformed the S&P 500 since the Fed first said it would cut back on its stimulus on Dec. 18.
Demand in China has been particularly sluggish, which affected Apple Inc’s results, as the company’s iPhonesales were worse than expected, and Wal-Mart Stores, which closed some locations in that country, as well as inBrazil.
Some are still looking to buy, though.
“We’d need to see more significant hits from overseas exposure before we start paring away our allocation to those names … GM is doing well because of its EM exposure,” Acadian’s Chisholm said.
‘BEST HOUSE’ IN A POOR NEIGHBORHOOD
With half of the S&P 500 companies having reported earnings so far, almost 70 percent have topped earnings expectations, above the long-term average of 63 percent, according to Thomson Reuters data. Two-thirds have exceeded estimates on revenue, above the historical average of 61 percent, though companies have generally been meeting or beating lowered expectations.
“While there are equity risks, there’s very little risk from a bear market standpoint,” said Jim Dunigan, chief investment officer of PNC Wealth Management in Philadelphia. “That markets have held on as well as they have shows that equity appetite still exists.”
Whether there is conviction behind the buying is debatable. The three busiest days for the market in terms of the S&P’s E-mini futures contract, the most heavily traded equity futures contract, were Wednesday, Monday, and last Friday, Jan. 24 – all of which were selloffs.
Still, investors keep pouring money into stock market funds, with $10.24 billion added in the week ended Jan. 29, according to Thomson Reuters’ Lipper service. This marked the sixth straight week of net new cash.
The S&P 500 is about 0.5 percent above its 100-day moving average, a level that could provide support against further losses. According to the most recent Reuters poll of analysts, the benchmark index is expected to end the year at 1,925 – about 8 percent away from current levels.
Dunigan, who helps oversee $127 billion in assets, said that stocks remain “the best house in a bad neighborhood,” especially with U.S. interest rates low.
“When you look at the alternatives, fixed income continues to look risky, and cash doesn’t help you,” he said. “Unlike other asset classes, equities will still get boosts from contributions like buybacks, merger activity and capital expenditures.”
