Fed rate cuts not enough to shift from cash to equities
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FED RATE CUTS NOT ENOUGH TO SHIFT FROM CASH TO EQUITIES
A surge in inflows to money market funds (MMFs) due to higher rates could slow as central banks embark on looser policy, but analysts at Barclays don't think it's time for cash to shift into riskier assets just yet.
"Since last year, there have been widespread and persistent expectations that investors would shift out of cash and into equities to drive share prices higher," Barclays says, noting that there is $6 trillion in MMFs that could be look to earn higher returns elsewhere as the Fed cuts rates.
The Fed kicked off its easing cycle with a 50 bp rate cut, but the central bank is seen cutting rates in a gradual manner through next year as the labour market remains relatively robust.
And Barclays doubts the Fed's projected policy path will create enough of a premium to encourage investors away from money markets and into credit or stocks yet.
"The rotation into credit is unlikely for another six months or so... because money funds still yield more than front-end IG. However, this should change as the Treasury yield curve steepens," they write.
As for stocks, "The equity risk premium (defined as the spread of 12m forward earnings yield over 10y Treasury yield) is 75bp, up from the multi-year lows in June, but not enough for money fund balances to move this far up the risk curve," Barclays says.
So how much equity risk premium is enough?
Barclays finds the dotcom bubble era to be a good proxy as the risk premium that equity investors could earn over the 10-year treasury yield jumped to 200 bps.
"Subsequently, and despite Fed hikes that begun in 2004, cash holdings fell sharply in 2002-2005 as equity markets stabilized and then entered the 2000s bull market," Barclays says, "leading us to believe that a substantial rotation from cash to equities took place during this period."
(Samuel Indyk)
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