US Monetary Policy – Investors face stormy future

US investors have been blessed with calm seas of late but their good luck is unlikely to last

Monetary Policy has entered a period of calm after enduring something of a turbulent passage through the global financial crisis.  The unprecedented tempest which buffeted the banking sector led central banks to trial a number of measures never seen before.  Yet, since tapering of quantitative easing was launched at the end of 2013, it has been relatively smooth sailing.  Tapering has been implemented in steady waves so as to not shake the delicate stomachs of investors.  However, rather than signalling the end of the choppy weather in the financial markets, the current lull could just be the eye of the storm.

Skies clear following predictable monetary policy

Investors prefer favourable conditions in the same way as sailors.  A view far ahead to the horizon is prized in the financial markets as well as by mariners.  One element that helps investors to better plan a course for the future is having a predictable monetary policy as a guide.  Investors had come to rely too much on the Federal Reserve as a steady hand at the helm using quantitative easing to put some wind back in the sails of the US economy.  Problems thus arose when the Federal Reserve first floated the idea of trimming back its expansive monetary policy in the middle of 2013.

What was a stiff breeze for the US hit many emerging markets like a financial hurricane.  This is because a considerable portion of the money printed in the US had travelled the globe in search of more bountiful returns.  Some developing countries had become a haven for the extra cash but the money left in a whirlwind once the prospects for returns in the US picked up.  The resulting market turbulence pushed some countries to the brink of going under, but investors eventually settled down again after adjusting to the new forecasts.

The outlook for US monetary policy has brightened considerably with the steady progression of tapering.  The Federal Reserve has cut back its purchasing of bonds by US$10 billion at each of its meetings, which happen almost every month.  As a result, bond purchases have been reduced a few times already in 2014 and fell from US$85 billion in late 2013 to US$45 billion at the most recent meeting at the end of April.  The predictability of US monetary policy also survived the potential shipwreck that was the change in skipper from Ben Bernanke to Janet Yellen at the beginning of the year.

Forecast for storms ahead

All is well for now.  However, there may be trouble on the horizon as tapering is just the start of the Federal Reserve relinquishing its role of propping up the economy.  A bigger storm may be coming next year as interest rates have to be raised from their current record low levels.  The Federal Reserve has pledged not to change interest rates for a while as it monitors the economic recovery.  Interest rate hikes must happen sometime in the next year or so especially in light of the surprising improvements in the US job market.

The end of quantitative easing and higher interest rates are all part of a voyage back to normality.  It has been a strange new world in terms of both the financial markets and monetary policy following the waves of financial havoc over the past several years.  The recent squalls that hit emerging markets can be seen as a necessary part of this journey.  Nevertheless, other rough patches may still lie ahead considering that it is far from normal for US stocks to be pushing on record highs despite slow economic growth. 

While it is tough to gauge what normal should look like in terms of the financial markets, the signs indicate that rough seas lie ahead.  Emerging markets have already taken a beating which makes it likely that the next storm may strike US investors closer to home.