Wealth Advisor Magazine September 2024 Edition - 8

UPFRONT
THE NATIXIS MODEL
PORTFOLIO
20%
ALTERNATIVES
60%
EQUITIES
20%
FIXED
INCOME
MARKET MOOD
Where Are the Bulls?
t looks great out there. Inflation is
below its long-term trend, interest
rates have peaked, and even if
there's a recession in the air, it's
probably too mild a slowdown to
prompt government economists to
issue a press release.
And yet, the professionals aren't
willing to relax. A full 67% of the strategists
Natixis Investment Managers
surveyed over the summer say the
bulls have gotten ahead of themselves.
Part of the problem is politics.
Most of the experts in the Natixis
network consider the ongoing
presidential election cycle a weight
on the market, and almost half of
them are actively worried about the
Federal Reserve getting sucked into
the drama of it all.
And then, when you go overseas,
47% are worried about Ukraine or
Gaza or China flaring to the point
where the market shifts back into
reverse.
Otherwise, recession risk is low.
Inflation is alive but relatively subdued:
higher than the Fed wants but
a whole lot lower than what we've
already endured.
I
Why the disconnect? Reading
between the lines, part of the problem
here is a failure of imagination.
Very few of these strategists are
willing to contemplate a scenario
in which foreign stocks grab the
leadership baton, much less small
caps or value stocks.
Most of these people are looking
toward tech stocks and maybe
European banks to remain the best
bets around. They don't even like
bonds here.
They're even conflicted when
it comes to ESG. Although they
acknowledge that regulations and
public sentiment will drive demand
for greener business models,
there isn't a lot of enthusiasm for
this sector.
Reading between the lines, this
can play out in one of two ways.
Either the experts are too jaded and
animal spirits will prevail . . . or the
experts are right and stocks have
gotten ahead of what are admittedly
supportive fundamentals.
All in all, we'll root for the experts
as long as they aren't actively
rooting for a crash.
This is the asset allocation strategy the
Natixis strategists think will outperform in
the second half of 2024. Diversification is
never a bad thing!
CLIENT PSYCHOLOGY
Rich Parents
Crave Educational
Vacations
W
ant to make your UHNW clients
happy? Suggest that their next trip
revolve around teaching the kids or
grandkids, says Tutors International.
Obviously there's an angle here.
Tutors International would love it if a
traveling educator were to go along on
the next " immersive learning experience "
your clients undertake.
But the logic holds up. Rich families
want to see the world, but they also
want to invest in their kids, and they
aren't eager to leave the lessons to
chance.
Where are they going? The Galapagos
Islands are apparently a hot destination
for biology and the environment.
Kyoto is all about tradition. And there's
always Athens for the classics.
8 | SEPT/OCT 2024
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Wealth Advisor Magazine September 2024 Edition

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