Strategic Income Quarterly Update – April 2021

France’s chronic government paralysis repeatedly created headlines this month, and fixed income markets are rightly worried about the sustainability of French government borrowing levels. Meanwhile, forecasts of a £50bn blackhole in the UK’s public finances are keeping gilt yields elevated and have made this November’s UK Budget a potential flashpoint.

Earlier this month, we wrote about the high cost of staying in cash in the Euro market. In that note, we argued that a combination of inflation, low front-end rates and steeper curves, favoured a rotation out of cash and cash like instruments into other alternatives that delivered better real returns, including credit. Building on this argument, we wanted to extend this perspective to the US dollar market and highlight a few key points.

The labour market in the UK continues to cool off along the lines of what the Bank of England (BoE) expects. Yesterday, the Office for National Statistics (ONS), released its monthly labour market data report, highlighting a rise in the unemployment rate and a reduction in some wage inflation measures.

As fixed income investors face inflation surprises, tariff rhetoric and growing concerns around central bank independence, Gordon Shannon, Partner and Co-Head of Investment Grade, explains why the focus remains on resilience.

In our latest Multi-Sector Bond quarterly update, Jakub Lichwa, Portfolio Management, discusses why we retain a favourable view on credit despite tighter spreads.

In our latest Asset-Backed Securities (ABS) quarterly update, Aza Teeuwen, Partner and Co-Head of ABS, explains how strong CLO issuance, robust investor demand and tightening spreads have driven a standout year for the European ABS market.