Policy responses: investment effects

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The crisis has seen unprecedented fiscal and monetary policy responses around the world. So what are the implications for investments?[vc_quotes layout=”accordion” quotes=”%5B%7B%22name%22%3A%22%20Greg%20Jensen%22%2C%22job_role%22%3A%22Co-chief%20investment%20officer%2C%20Bridgewater%20(United%20States)%22%2C%22content%22%3A%22Jensen%20joined%20Bridgewater%20in%201996.%20He%20oversees%20Bridgewater%E2%80%99s%20investment%20strategies%20and%20research%20efforts.%20He%20is%20also%20integral%20in%20overseeing%20investment%20talent%20and%20the%20firm%E2%80%99s%20account%20management%20and%20trading%20processes.%20In%202010%2C%202011%2C%20and%202012%2C%20he%20was%20named%20one%20of%20business%E2%80%99s%20rising%20stars%20in%20Fortune%20magazine%E2%80%99s%20Top%2040%20Under%2040.%20Jensen%20has%20earned%20a%20degree%20in%20economics%20and%20applied%20mathematics%20from%20Dartmouth%20College.%22%2C%22image%22%3A%2231892%22%2C%22linkedin%22%3A%22%22%7D%5D” title=”Speaker” el_class=””][vc_quotes layout=”accordion” quotes=”%5B%7B%22name%22%3A%22Colin%20Tate%22%2C%22job_role%22%3A%22Chief%20executive%2C%20Conexus%20Financial%20(Australia)%22%2C%22content%22%3A%22Colin%20Tate%20has%20been%20an%20investment%20industry%20media%20publisher%20and%20conference%20producer%20since%201996.%20In%20his%20media%20career%2C%20Tate%20has%20launched%20and%20overseen%20dozens%20of%20print%20and%20electronic%20publications.%20He%20is%20the%20chief%20executive%20and%20major%20shareholder%20of%20Conexus%20Financial%2C%20which%20was%20formed%20in%202005%2C%20and%20is%20headquartered%20in%20Sydney%2C%20Australia.%20The%20company%20stages%20more%20than%2020%20conferences%20and%20events%20each%20year%20%E2%80%93%20in%20London%2C%20New%20York%2C%20San%20Francisco%2C%20Los%20Angeles%2C%20Amsterdam%2C%20Beijing%2C%20Sydney%20and%20Melbourne%20%E2%80%93%20and%20publishes%20five%20media%20brands%2C%20including%20the%20global%20website%20and%20strategy%20newsletter%20for%20global%20institutional%20investors%20conexust1f.flywheelstaging.com.%20One%20of%20the%20company%E2%80%99s%20signature%20events%20is%20the%20bi-annual%20Fiduciary%20Investors%20Symposium.%20Conexus%20Financial%E2%80%99s%20events%20aim%20to%20place%20the%20responsibilities%20of%20investors%20in%20wider%20societal%2C%20and%20political%20contexts%2C%20as%20well%20as%20promote%20the%20long-term%20stability%20of%20markets%20and%20sustainable%20retirement%20incomes.%20Tate%20served%20for%20seven%20years%20on%20the%20board%20of%20Australia%E2%80%99s%20most%20high%20profile%20homeless%20charity%2C%20The%20Wayside%20Chapel%3B%20and%20he%20has%20underwritten%20the%20welfare%20of%2060%2C000%20people%20in%2028%20villages%20throughout%20Uganda%20via%20The%20Hunger%20Project.%22%2C%22image%22%3A%2231893%22%2C%22linkedin%22%3A%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Fcolin-tate-839a5a181%2F%22%7D%5D” title=”Moderator” el_class=””][vc_empty_space height=”10px”]

Key takeaways

• COVID-19 has accelerated trends that we thought would play out over a decade.
• The COVID-19 shock has mainly been a shock to corporations (not households), leaving a monumental hole in corporate balance sheets.
• The Developed World Populism Index has spiked significantly in recent years.
• It has never been more difficult to be an investor. Diversification is more important than ever but more difficult than ever to achieve.
• The hole in the real economy is harder to fill than the hole in the financial economy.
• Companies are recognising that if they are not willing to proactively become more purposeful, they will be forced to do so (or forced out of existence).
• We can get through this difficult period – it was done after each World War, but there will be very tricky policy decisions to make along the way as policy makers will have to prioritise what they want to achieve.