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November 25, 2014 at 09:59 AM
A strengthening U.S. dollar, now near its highest level since 2009, has important implications for investors.
A new report released by the Schwab Center for Financial Research, a division of Charles Schwab & Co., examines exactly what those implications might be and suggests practical advice for investors in a rising dollar environment.
As the report states, the U.S. dollar has appreciated by more than 7% on a trade-weighted basis since May.
“We believe the dollar is entering a longer-term uptrend that could last a year or longer,” said Kathy A. Jones, vice president and fixed income strategist with the Schwab Center for Financial Research, in the white paper.
Jones attributes being bullish on the U.S. dollar to the performance of the U.S. economy compared with other major countries.
“Over the past year, the U.S. economy’s GDP growth rate has picked up, while growth is floundering elsewhere,” she says in the white paper. She then points to estimates that show “the U.S. economy will expand at a 3.1% pace in 2015 compared with 1.3% for the eurozone and 0.8% for Japan.”
Emerging market countries are also slowing down, Jones says. The GDP growth among this group is estimated to be 4.4% this year, which Jones says is the lowest since the financial crisis.
“With stronger growth, U.S. interest rates — even at current paltry levels — are significantly higher than those in core European countries or Japan, making the dollar more attractive for investors to hold,” Jones writes.
Jones says a rising U.S. dollar means that U.S. bonds are likely to outperform international bonds from developed countries and emerging markets, and commodities are expected to underperform — which is why she suggests reducing exposure to international developed country bonds and emerging market bonds and commodities.
“If the dollar continues to appreciate, then the return on foreign bonds is likely to lag behind the return on U.S. bonds,” Jones writes, adding, “This is especially true in the developed country bonds, where yields tend to be lower than in the U.S.”
She says U.S. bonds will likely outperform even among the countries with higher bond yields, such as Australia, because “the yield spread versus U.S. bonds is relatively low compared to a year ago and may not compensate for the risk of a further decline in the currency.”
