Insights

China’s Onshore Bond Market: An Update

Interest in China’s onshore bond market has been rising steadily since the market was thrown open to foreign investors. Yet foreign holdings remain relatively low. We think the market warrants further attention from global investors, given Chinese bonds continue to offer higher yields and lower correlations than those found in other major bond markets, with the potential to bring portfolio diversification benefits.

November 2020

Markets Price in Gridlock as Prospects for a Divided US Government Materialize

As many had expected, the US presidential election turned into more of a process than an event. Whatever the outcome, history has shown that markets are fairly agnostic to which political party holds power in the United States.

November 2020

Not All Liability Hedges Are Created Evenly: Guidance for US Plan Sponsors in Today’s Interest Rate Environment

For many US pension plan sponsors, the déjà vu of falling discount rates and volatile equity markets again raises the question of how best to hedge pension liabilities, if at all. The issue of liability hedging is especially pertinent in today’s complex and asymmetrical interest rate environment.

October 2020

Navigating Market Crises

With the initial chaos of the COVID-19 market dislocation behind us but uncertainty still ahead, now is the time to refocus and potentially recalibrate core tenets of pension plan management. In this video series, we share our recommendations on how to address these challenges.

October 2020

Endowment Spending to the Rescue?

The current health crisis is creating extraordinary financial disruptions for nonprofit enterprises, leading stakeholders to ask if the endowment can come to the rescue of revenue shortfalls and often growing costs. How should an institution evaluate this, and what are the long-term implications of boosting spending beyond policy levels? First, we consider whether it is […]

October 2020

Is Distressed Real Estate Actionable Today?

Yes, but the opportunity set is currently limited. To date, the large amount of government stimulus and lax credit enforcements, the differentiated impact of COVID-19 on real estate sectors, and the challenges associated with valuing assets have worked to keep broad-based distress at bay for now.

October 2020

Disruption, Liquidity Sources, and the Role of the Endowment

Nonprofit institutions have not been spared from the impact of COVID-19. In June 2020, when many endowed institutions were completing fiscal year 2020 and on the brink of a new fiscal year, we issued a survey that focused on endowment spending and other sources of liquidity for these institutions.

October 2020

Planning for the US Presidential Election

Do investors stand to gain more from a Trump victory or a Biden win in November’s US general election? Presidents often have a mix of market-friendly and market-unfriendly policies. Mitigating factors, such as a divided government, can offset market concerns or enthusiasm relating to one specific candidate’s policies. Investors should not tweak portfolios based on election prognostication.

September 2020