Market Insights – First Quarter 2026
A Mid-Cycle Economic Revival The current administration entered this presidential term with an ambitious growth agenda based on reform and stimulus. While most policy initiatives were accommodative, there were also some restrictive measures aimed at improving balance in global trade and productivity from government spending. Unlike Trump 1.0 when stimulative tax cuts preceded the burden […]
Market Insights – Fourth Quarter 2025
Dichotomies and Bifurcations After consecutive years of strong returns, global stock markets were expected to take a breather and slow down in 2025. Those expectations seemed to be on track during the first two quarters. After a solid start to the year, prospects of a global trade war raised the specter of a recession and […]
Sandip Bhagat Breaks Down the Resilience and Sustainability of the U.S. Economy on Nasdaq TradeTalks
Whittier Trust’s Chief Investment Officer joined Nasdaq experts and the Head of Macroeconomic Research & Market Strategy at Guggenheim in an in-depth conversation on earnings growth tailwinds, the implications of a bifurcated economy, and whether or not we’re in an AI bubble. Although the first half of 2025 was rattled by trade fears, uneven consumer […]
Market Insights – Third Quarter 2025
The Calm After The Storm The first half of 2025 delivered all the thrills and scares of a turbocharged roller coaster. The twists and turns were sudden and startling; the ups and downs were vicious and violent. The ride left investors shaken from a potentially calamitous experience where mistakes would have been easy to make […]
Market Insights – Second Quarter 2025
A Growth Scare … And Likely No Worse The momentum from two years of remarkable economic resilience and strong market returns came to an abrupt halt in April 2025. The catalyst for market turmoil this time around was an unexpected turn in the administration’s global trade policy. April 2, 2025 was touted as Liberation Day […]
Whittier Trust CIO, Sandip Bhagat, Featured on NASDAQ TradeTalks Panel
Sandip engaged in a healthy debate with top industry professionals and economists about the recent turmoil in the markets as a growth scare threatens to devolve into a recession or stagflation. Risk assets have sold off in the midst of high policy uncertainty and fiscal austerity from government job cuts. In the span of just […]
Market Insights – First Quarter 2025
Shifting Gears In The Economic Cycle The U.S. economy has now remained resilient to the massive post-pandemic inflation shock for well over two years. As a result, the economic outlook has changed dramatically from the inflation peak in June 2022. We trace this progression to assess where we stand now and what lies ahead. The […]
Market Insights – Fourth Quarter 2024
How Heavy is the U.S. Debt Burden? The last several months have seen a steady drumbeat of data to validate both declining inflation and a slowing economy. CPI inflation for June posted a significant milestone with its first negative monthly print since the depths of the pandemic in Q2 2020. The remarkable deceleration of inflation […]
Nasdaq Weekly Guest Spotlight: Sandip Bhagat
Whittier Trust Chief Investment Officer, Sandip Bhagat, was recently featured in the Nasdaq Trade Talks Weekly Guest Spotlight. His professional insights and analysis of the current state of the U.S. Market were provided in an Interview format: Coming into this year, there was speculation of a potential recession. Why do you think the economy has been […]
Market Insights – Third Quarter 2024
The Big Central Bank Dilemma The U.S. economy and capital markets continued to surprise investors through the first half of 2024. The year began with high hopes that the rapid disinflation of 2023 would continue in an orderly and uninterrupted manner. This in turn spurred optimism that the Fed would be able to cut rates […]