The tide turns

In the latest instalment of our editorial series, Link, experts from Aviva Investors’ credit, equities and real asset teams discuss the consequences of COVID-19 on the retail sector and their implications for investors.

Just when investors thought they couldn’t sink any lower, the economic shock caused by COVID-19 has put further downward pressure on interest rates in developed markets. Caroline Hedges, head of global liquidity portfolio management at Aviva Investors, looks at the impact on money market funds.

For credit investors, resilience is about taking appropriate levels of risk, understanding market dynamics, and identifying companies best prepared for the future. All these qualities could be tested given the wide range of possible outcomes as the world begins to recover from COVID-19.

COVID-19 has led to a new appreciation of the importance of healthcare in ensuring all members of society thrive. So where should investors be looking to find resilience in an industry facing enormous change?

In the latest instalment of our editorial series, Link, Aviva Investors experts discuss the prospects for financial markets and the world economy in the face of escalating hostilities between the US and China.

In the midst of the COVID-19 shock, Felix Mantz from Lincoln Pensions and Joachim Sudre from Aviva Investors explore how defined benefit pension schemes should plan their journey towards an end game and adopt a more holistic approach to risk.

While concerns around credit market liquidity have been rising since the global financial crisis, the COVID-19 sell-off has highlighted how fragile liquidity can be during periods of real stress. Colin Purdie discusses the short- and long-term implications for investment grade and high yield credit globally.

As an increasing number of companies battle the economic consequences of COVID-19, their ability to service bond payments is coming under intense scrutiny. In this Q&A, Sunita Kara considers whether current high-yield valuations adequately compensate investors for default risk and looks at the broader implications of the pandemic.

As China gradually emerges from lockdown, emerging market debt and equity investors are trying to gauge the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on its economy – and the knock-on effects for other emerging markets.

The scale and speed of COVID-19’s impact on global financial markets has caused emerging market debt returns to decline at a pace not seen since the global financial crisis. However, history suggests the recovery of the asset class may also turn out to be quick.

As COVID-19 sweeps across the world, a contraction in global growth is causing an adverse short-term reaction to the economy and financial markets. While the extent of contagion from public markets to private debt remains unclear, transactions with strong downside protection should remain more resilient through the crisis, explains Nikhil Chandra.

UK investors considering whether to allocate to global investment-grade credit may discover the broader diversification benefits can significantly improve a portfolio’s overall risk dynamics.