LGT: The global market may continue to fluctuate in 2025 but has growth potential, with U.S. stocks expected to outperform the broader market
Stefan Hofer, Chief Investment Strategist for LGT Royal Bank in the Asia-Pacific region, expects that global markets will continue to be volatile in 2025 but have the potential for positive growth, supported by declining interest rates and a surge in technology investments, leading to an optimistic performance of risk assets. He predicts that in 2025, the U.S. stock market, global information technology, healthcare, industrials, and U.S. financial stocks will all outperform the broader market. He further pointed out that the main risks stem from the impact of increased tariffs by the U.S. on international trade, which could lead to a potential rise in inflation in the second half of the year, forcing the Federal Reserve to pause interest rate cuts or even raise rates again. If Trump implements comprehensive tariff increases, the U.S. CPI could rise by 100 basis points within 12 months. He stated that the bank's core investment allocation in January 2025 will focus on the U.S., Japan, and Indian stock markets. In terms of sectors, they are optimistic about healthcare, U.S. financials, innovation and technology themes, industrials, and U.S. small and mid-cap stocks. For fixed income, they recommend flexible allocation to investment-grade bonds and higher-rated high-yield bonds. Additionally, the bank continues to be optimistic about investment opportunities in the private equity market
According to the Zhitong Finance APP, Stefan Hofer, Chief Investment Strategist for LGT Royal Bank in the Asia-Pacific region, expects that the global market will continue to be volatile in 2025 but has the potential for positive growth, supported by declining interest rates and a surge in technology investments, with optimistic performance for risk assets. He predicts that in 2025, the performance of the U.S. stock market, global information technology, healthcare, industrials, and U.S. financial stocks will all outperform the broader market.
He further pointed out that the main risk comes from the impact of increased tariffs by the U.S. on international trade, which could lead to a potential rise in inflation in the second half of the year, forcing the Federal Reserve to pause interest rate cuts or even raise rates again. If Trump implements comprehensive tariff increases, the U.S. CPI may rise by 100 basis points within 12 months.
He stated that the bank's core investment allocation in January 2025 will focus on the U.S., Japan, and Indian stock markets. In terms of sectors, they are optimistic about healthcare, U.S. financials, innovation and technology themes, industrials, and U.S. small and mid-cap stocks. For fixed income, they recommend flexible allocation to investment-grade bonds and higher-rated high-yield bonds. Additionally, the bank continues to be optimistic about investment opportunities in the private equity market