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According to the University of Michigan, the US consumer sentiment index stood at 94.3 in June 2016, compared with 94.7 in the previous month.

The three US equity indices that we review in this weekly series fell from December 8 to December 15, 2015, after a rebound in oil prices.

For the past month or so, several equity investors have anticipated a rate hike and factored it into stock prices, readying their portfolios for the event.

Apart from JPMNX’s long positions, the fund’s portfolio is also made up of short holdings in the financial, IT, and healthcare sectors.

In a recent interview, Jim Rogers said, “I’m on record as saying that we’re going to have a recession certainly within a year or two.”

According to the report from Markit Economics, the August US Services PMI (purchasing managers’ index) report showed a strong improvement in the US (SPY) (QQQ) (VFINX) business climate.

According to a report from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, US CPI (consumer price index) rose 0.3% in September 2016 compared to a 0.2% rise in August 2016.

The February US services PMI (purchasing managers’ index) report, released on March 3, 2017, indicated softness in US (SPY) (SPX-INDEX) (QQQ) (VFINX) business conditions.

According to a report from the University of Michigan, the US Consumer Sentiment Index rose slightly in April 2017.

After the failure of the healthcare bill, investors’ eyes are on the phenomenal tax reform bill. Tax reforms could boost employment in the economy.

In a CNBC interview on October 18, Jamie Dinan and Marc Lasry discussed their views on the current market environment.

After the Fed decided to leave the interest rate unchanged in September, Grant thinks that market participants are gradually losing confidence in central banks.

The AQR Diversified Arbitrage Fund – Class I (ADAIX) is one such alternative fund that extensively uses the diversified arbitrage strategy to achieve its investment goals.

Billionaire investor and bond guru Jeffrey Gundlach also shared his view on bond yields in an interview with CNBC.

In 2001, when Federal-Mogul was undergoing a Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Icahn had invested in $1.1 billion in the company’s convertible bonds.

The Eaton Vance Global Macro Absolute Return Fund – Class A (EAGMX) applies its global macroeconomic and political research process in directing its fund investments.

JPMNX is an alternative mutual fund that seeks to mimic the “market neutral” hedge fund strategy in achieving its investment objectives.

The PIMCO RAE Low Volatility Plus International Fund – Class A (PLVBX) uses a long or short hedge fund strategy to achieve its investment objective.

In June 2016, volatility spiked in global markets (VXUS) (VTI). Many fund strategies outperformed the global market with heightened market volatility.

David Rubenstein discussed the US business environment in the interview. He said that US (QQQ) (SPY) (IVV) business spending is declining.

The negative interest rates in major developed markets (EFA) such as Europe (VGK) (EZU) and Japan (EWJ) (DXJ) make US government debt more attractive.

The holdings of the DFA Commodity Strategy Portfolio – Institutional Class (DCMSX) mainly consist of corporate and government bonds.

In 4Q16, US (SPY) (QQQ) (IVV) (VFINX) real GDP grew at an annual rate of 1.9% compared to a 3.5% rise in 3Q16.

AMFQX is an alternative mutual fund that seeks to generate positive absolute returns with a low correlation to the returns of broad stock and bond markets.

On April 28, 2016, Icahn stated, “We no longer have a position in Apple,” during an interview with CNBC.

Between April 6 and April 13, 2017, the Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) fell 1.9%.

ADAIX is an alternative mutual fund that seeks long-term absolute returns over a reasonable period of time regardless of equity market ups and downs.

EAGMX employs an absolute return investment approach by benchmarking itself to an index of cash instruments, rather than a stock or bond market index.

The top holdings of EAGMX include fixed income securities of the firm from various countries, including the US. The fund also has forward contracts of the S&P 500 Index (VFINX).

As of November 30, 2015, The Arbitrage Fund Class R (ARBFX) manages total net assets worth $1.9 billion.

GABCX is an alternative mutual fund that seeks to achieve total returns that are attractive to investors in various market conditions without excessive risk of capital loss.

The DFA Commodity Strategy Portfolio – Institutional Class (DCMSX) is an alternative mutual fund that uses a commodity hedge fund return strategy.

PLVBX aims to generate a low volatility portfolio with the potential to generate high income. In terms of the strategy, it’s similar to PIMCO’s PLVVX.

The Arbitrage Fund Class R (ARBFX) uses the merger arbitrage strategy extensively.

On October 28, 2016, at 1:42 AM EST, US crude oil (UWTI) (OIIL) was trading at $49.71 per barrel—a 2.2% fall compared to its closing price on October 21.

According to the recent 13F filings, Soros Fund Management has increased its position in the iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) by 36% in 1Q17 compared to the previous quarter.

GONIX is an alternative mutual fund that seeks long-term capital appreciation with minimal correlation to the stock market.

The Arbitrage Fund Class R (ARBFX) is an alternative fund that uses the merger arbitrage strategy to achieve its investment objectives.

In an interview on October 25, Jim Chanos, founder and managing partner of Kynikos Associates, discussed his investment decisions in the current market environment.

CRSAX presently trades at $4.47 with an average dividend yield of 3.9%, and could benefit Investors seeking to diversify their portfolios.

EBSAX seeks to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns across a broad range of market conditions.

Valeant is currently trading at $23.86. On a year-to-date basis, the stock returned -77%.

Between March 23, 2017, and March 30, 2017, the Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) rose 1.9%.

From April 13–20, 2017, the Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) fell 1.7%. It was the largest loser among the sector-based SPDR ETFs we’re comparing.

The Gateway Fund – Class A (GATEX) has a different approach to investment. It mainly uses a market neutral strategy to achieve its investment objectives.

The Brexit referendum aftermath has translated to gains for certain hedge funds, while washing away earlier gains for others.

The PIMCO RAE Low Volatility Plus International Fund – Class A (PLVBX) portfolio consists of securities that are issued all over the world.

The rising credit level is a warning sign for the economy, and Gross believes this situation may trigger a crisis like the 2008 global debt crisis.

Some of the AMFQX fund’s top holdings include floating-rate notes of Apple, JPMorgan Chase, Turquoise Hill Resources, and Hewlett-Packard Enterprise.

JPMNX suffered a reduction in its NAV between January 2013 and January 2016. GATEX managed to generate positive returns while CVCSX was the worst performer.

The AMFQX fund’s investment model is primarily a counter-trend model. It looks to sell short-term overbought levels and buy short-term oversold levels.

The OPGSX fund aims to grow capital through exposure to equity stocks of companies that are associated with gold and other precious metals.

At the end of 4Q15, the fund had an overall market beta of zero compared to the beta of 0.04 of its benchmark Morningstar Managed Futures Category Average.

Alternative mutual funds such as the Credit Suisse Commodity Return Strategy Fund (CRSAX) use commodity strategy to achieve their investment objectives.

DCMSX is an alternative mutual fund that has suffered due to its commodity real return strategy.

GATEX could increase the exposure of an investor’s portfolio in the equity market. It has less volatility risk than the equity markets.

DCMSX is an alternative mutual fund that gives retail investors access to the commodity return strategy.

According to Carl Icahn, whether or not the Fed raises interest rates, the current market environment is showing dangerous signs.

The Gateway Fund – Class A (GATEX) seeks to attain capital appreciation through its equity market investments. It has less risk compared to equity markets.

JPMNX’s top holdings include Avago Technologies (AVGO), Lam Research Corporation (LRCX), Verizon Communication (VZ), and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ).

The Gabelli ABC Fund – Class AAA’s (GABCX) portfolio mainly consists of corporate bonds, stocks, and government securities.

All of JPMNX’s top holdings except CJPXX were trading below their 20-day and 100-day moving averages as of January 29, 2016.

Last week, US crude oil May futures fell 2.7%, and natural gas April futures rose 4.3%. The broad market S&P 500 Index fell 1.3%.

In GONIX, as of January 13, Sanderson Farms, Pilgrim’s Pride, and Hormel Foods were trading above their respective 20-day and 100-day moving averages.

Managed futures The Equinox Campbell Strategy Fund Class A (EBSAX) is an alternative mutual fund that seeks to achieve its investment objectives by using the “managed futures” strategy. The Natixis ASG Managed Futures Strategy Fund Class A (AMFAX) and the Direxion Indexed Commodity Strategy Fund Class A (DXCTX) use similar alternative managed futures strategies. 7 […]

There are those betting against the Chinese yuan on the belief that it will keep trending south. There are also those betting against the Chinese economy.

Let’s take a look at where we are in the business cycle, what factors are at play, and what stands to work given current macroeconomic influences.

According to data provided by the U.S. Census Bureau, US retail sales rose 0.6% in July 2017, which beat the market’s expectations of a 0.4% rise.

The Gabelli ABC Fund – Class AAA (GABCX) uses an event-driven strategy to generate profit at relatively low risk.

TFSMX seeks to grow capital while having a low correlation to the S&P 500 Index. It also seeks to produce lower volatility.

In a recent interview with CNBC, Fidelity’s Jurrien Timmer shared his views on equity markets, corporate earnings, and Europe (VGK) (IEV).

The Oppenheimer Gold & Special Minerals Fund – Class A (OPGSX) seeks capital appreciation through exposure to gold-related stocks.

Alternative mutual funds like GONIX give retail investors access to modern hedge strategies such as market neutral, global macro, and arbitrage hedge.

On December 9, Carl Icahn discussed his views on the markets and Trump’s potential impact on various sectors in an interview with CNBC.

Though the TFS Market Neutral Fund (TFSMX) has given a return lower than the benchmark S&P 500, it has shown consistent positive performance over the years.

During the Jackson Hole Symposium, the Federal Reserve chair, Janet Yellen, already hinted that if the August jobs report provided a strong performance, there was a chance for a rate hike during its September 2016 meeting.

Valeant Pharmaceuticals has remained in the top five holdings of Ackman’s company, Pershing Square Capital Management.

When the Fed maintained a dovish stance at various meetings in 2016, Grant said that market participants were gradually losing confidence in central banks.

TFSMX’s top holdings include stocks such as YRC Worldwide (YRCW), MRC Global (MRC), Tech Data (TECD), and Concert Pharmaceuticals (CNCE), among others.

An alternative fund, the Eaton Vance Global Macro Absolute Return Fund – Class A (EAGMX) uses the popular global macro hedge fund strategy. The primary benchmark of EAGMX is the BofA Merrill Lynch 3-Month US Treasury Bill Index.

In the previous part of this series, we saw that Ray Dalio is comfortable with the steps central banks have taken.

Larry Fink shared his view on investment management strategy in a recent interview.

According to a report from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, US CPI (consumer price index) rose 0.4% in October 2016 compared to a 0.3% rise in September 2016.

Although Ray Dalio said at the World Economic Forum that this market rally will continue in the near term, he believes there are some risks that could affect market (SPX-INDEX) movement.

According to a report provided by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, in January and February 2017, non-farm payrolls saw stronger improvements.

In an interview with CNBC, Ray Dalio said he believes that populism is a great market concern in the current environment.

Marks advised investors to be cautious and look at low-risk investments to safeguard their returns from possible future losses.

Bill Gross said in his July 2017 Investment Outlook that central banks in major developed nations maintained an ultra-low monetary policy for nearly a decade.

It’s difficult to determine whether corporate credit is the phoenix or the canary in the coal mine for growth in an economy.

On April 11, former Fed Chief Ben Bernanke shared his thoughts on helicopter money. He talked about monetary policy tools that are available to spur growth.

Gundlach thinks that investors should short low volatility equity funds. People invest in them thinking that they’re safe, but they aren’t.

In August 2015, VRX stock was at its historic peak of over $250. It is now below $25, as the stock has lost over 90% in the past year.

Billionaire investor Jeffrey Gundlach had positioned himself expecting Bremain to pass. Gundlach, however, sold off his newly acquired European stock positions before the Brexit results impacted the Market.

Asset managers and hedge funds have made gains from Brexit. Macro strategies and shorting the pound or a rush to safe-haven gold have reaped gains for hedge funds.

On Thursday, January 18, 2018, Pimco, one of the world’s largest asset management firms, said that investors should be cautious in the current market scenario.

US non-farm payroll data in December December non-farm payroll data indicated a slowdown in the US labor market (SPY) (VFINX) after a strong rise in November 2017. Non-farm payrolls stood at 148,000 in December, compared with 252,000 in November 2017. However, this figure didn’t meet the market expectation of 190,000. December highlights of the jobs report […]

Many market participants are expecting that the market (SPY) (QQQ) could show a strong pullback if tax reform doesn’t happen.

The September non-farm payroll report indicated a fall in the US labor market (SPY) (VFINX) compared to August 2017.

In an interview with CNBC’s Halftime Report on August 10, Howard Marks shared his views on market valuation, risk in the market, and FANG stocks.

The US Consumer Price Index rose 0.1% in July 2017, compared with no change in June 2017, falling short of the market’s expectations of a 0.20% rise.