‘Wall of Worry’

Shares Climb a 'Wall of Worry' - but is it sustainable?  by Dr Shane Oliver - Head of Investment Strategy and Economics and Chief Economist, AMP Capital After a roughly 35% plunge from their February high point to their lows around 23 March on fears regarding of global recession on the back of the coronavirus shutdowns, share markets have since rebounded sharply, led by US shares. The rally has pushed the Australian ASX 200 back through 6000 for the first time since March. A common concern is that the rebound in share markets is “too optimistic” and “irrational” – how can share markets rebound so rapidly when economic conditions are so weak, coronavirus uncertainty remains high, the US is seeing civil unrest and US/China tensions are rising? I must admit that I have also been surprised by the speed of the rebound and think maybe the markets are ahead of themselves. But I have seen this happen before and [...]