Change is the sum of fundamental trends, the gradual elimination of accumulated extremes, and the random arrival of new shocks. This is true for nearly every process, including economic growth and stock market returns.| Hussman Funds
What drives investment returns? Can you simply buy stocks at any price and assume you'll enjoy long-term returns on the order of 10% annually? The answer is no. Unfortunately, the financial industry often encourages investors to imagine this is how markets work. Is there some meaningful structure that drives returns? The answer is yes. Understanding it offers clear insights about how we got here, and where we may be going.| Hussman Funds
The S&P 500 is two years into what we expect to be a very long, interesting trip to nowhere. The strongest stock market returns in the coming decade, perhaps longer, are likely to emerge during advances in the S&P 500 that attempt to catch up with the cumulative return of risk-free Treasury bills. Recall that investors experienced the same outcome between 1929-1947, 1968-1985, and 2000-2013.| Hussman Funds
There’s no question that Fed-induced speculation encouraged investors to chase extreme valuations, and to accept low returns on every class of investments. Unfortunately, Fed policy does not change the arithmetic that links valuations with subsequent returns. By our estimates, the S&P 500 is likely to lag Treasury bonds, and even Treasury bills, for more than a decade. Now comes the hard part.| Hussman Funds