France
A world of political churn favors safe havens — buy yen, stay overweight US stocks, and avoid chasing the fragile rally in China.
Despite concerns about fiscal sustainability, a rise in term premia, and attacks on central bank independence, monetary policy remains the primary driver of bond markets. In our Q3 Review & Outlook, we update our views and identify opportunities in government bonds, short-term interest rate futures, global yield curves, inflation-linked bonds, and credit.
The bond vigilantes are circling over several targets right now: France, the UK, and Japan. But France is the most vulnerable because of a toxic combination: a total debt ratio well above 300 percent plus the worst primary deficit in the G7 plus political gridlock, which will get even worse if Prime Minister Francois Bayrou loses the September 8th vote of confidence in his minority government. We explain why the ECB cannot save France, and the investment implications. Plus, we unveil our brand-new complexity ‘heat map’ for global asset allocation which leads to a new tactical trade to underweight world communication services (WTEL).
Political instability will persist in France as PM François Bayrou loses the confidence vote. The nomination of a new PM will not end the country’s political paralysis and will further fuel fiscal fears. Investors should remain underweight French OAT. French equities, especially French banks, should be bought on dips.
