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May
19
2020

Beware The CoronaNazis
Bill Blain

We learn and adapt quickly. 

Business and markets are arbitraging government support packages and central bank QE Infinity to stay “insanely high” despite the massive economic hit of the virus. If the proverbial Martian visited the stock market today, he’d struggle to understand just why markets are so high when prospects look so low.

At which point we come back to earth with a bump. The papers this morning are full of doom and gloom – particularly re the UK. My email is full of analyst gibberish about why I should be buying Bitcoin, Tesla and other crap. I shall ignore them all, and focus on the real picture

Even if the global economy was to magically reopen tomorrow, we’d still see earnings for 2020 massively impacted, reduced credit worthiness as companies leveraged themselves with more debt to see them through the crisis, and an increasingly protectionist trade uncurrent. 

That’s not a favourable market for anyone. And we all get it – the world has changed. 

Understanding the nuances of this new markets is going to be critical. 

It’s not just about listening to what Fed Head Jay Powell was saying when he warned about how assets prices could be impacted by the pandemic, and how it might take 18 months for the US economy to recover. It’s not just understanding the consequences of how UK long-term unemployment might rise to 9%. It’s not even all about the 11.2% decline in US industrial production through April, or the 70% crash in car production – and the knock on effects these have across the economy. 

It’s also about understanding behavioural economics – how will people and politicians (note the distinction) respond in this changed environment. What impacts will politically driven decisions and consequences have on markets going forward. 

Much has been said about the welfare and mental health crisis the virus lockdown has unleashed. Anxiety and fears for the future are impacting just about everyone – which I why I recommend sailing to everyone. Getting back on the water this weekend has given my feel-good an enormous boost. People are going to cut spending plans if they fear their jobs and livelihoods are under threat because of the virus and the virus recession. 

How much damage can Coronaphobics and Coronanazis do to recovery? In the first bracket are the genuinely scared – frightened by the excitable news flow, and what the virus will do to them and their families. How to reassure them? 

The CoronaNazi camp is more dangerous.

There seem to be an increasing number of players willing to play politics to delay reopening to prize concessions and control. Corbynistas (yes, there is still a nest of them at the extreme end of the UK political spectrum) are demanding the unions are given control of workplaces to ensure worker safety is a complete red herring – but try to criticise it, and you will be trolled! (Some of the tweets are hilarious.) All political actions have consequences – and when the government has to play to the fears of Corona-phonics and respond to the Virus-Nazis, we are going to get sub optimal outcomes. 

Much of the growing China vs US trade war rhetoric is politically inspired. You can’t threaten trade sanctions again a microscopic bug, but you win voters by blaming Beijing! 

It’s clear much of government response has been about anticipating the coming blame-game. Just how did the staggeringly well-paid public health managers across the UK so conclusively fail the logistics and preparation tests for the virus? Because the buck doesn’t stop with them – it will be the health minister that takes the can. Bureaucracies have a tendency to become even more entrenched during times of crisis. Although the NHS desperately needs root and branch fundamental reform, and being dragged into the modern age though AI and apps, its unlikely to happen any time soon… Cost constraints etc will ensure the bureaucracy will probably grow. 

What businesses and sectors stand to win or lose short, medium and long-term? Clearly some stocks are going to do very well – companies that crack the vaccine and new treatments. But just how secure is the rest of the health sector? We’re hearing talk of being prepared for a second wave of the virus in the autumn/winter, but are governments going to keep the spending spigots open? Or do they start slash and burn cuts on health care to pay the costs of the virus? How vulnerable are any sectors that rely on government spending? Defence? Policing? Health? Education?

There is a well-circulated post doing the internet rounds how the UK’s furlough scheme is costing over £14 bln a month - £168 bln over a year. Put that in context of replacing our nuclear Trident deterrent at £205 bln, the money already spent on the HS2 railway to no-where (£100bln) or how much it’s cost to bail the banks out in 2008 - £500 bln! 

The debate about how much governments can afford to leverage up before crisis is going to be an ugly one between the traditionalists who will demand a sharp scale back, and the MMT factions arguing for even greater spending. Somewhere in that argument between spending our way of out recession, and calls for financial orthodoxy, some important lessons are going to be lost. And markets will arb these events. 

That’s what they do…

Bill Blain is Strategist for Shard Capital, a leading investment firm. 

Bill is a well known broadcaster and commentator, with over 30-years experience working for leading investment banks and brokerages at senior levels. He's been closely involved in the growth and development of the global fixed income markets, and pioneered complex financial products including capital, asset-backed securities and private placements. Increasingly, he's been involved in Real and Alternative Assets looking to explain their complexity and create liquidity in them. 

Bill is a passionate sailor, talentless painter, plays guitar badly, is learning the bagpipes, and built a train-set in his attic.  

He is a regular speaker on HoweStreet.com, and the FinancialSurvivorNetwork radio shows. Chris was also featured on the cover of AmalgaTrader Magazine, and contributes articles to several financial hubs like MoneyShow.com.

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