Jeremy Grantham isn’t shaking his reputation as a perma-Bear.
His firm, Boston-based GMO, is out with its latest seven-year outlook and it doesn’t make for happy reading. GMO expects the annualized, inflation-adjusted return for U.S. stocks to be negative 4.2 percent over the period. U.S. bonds are forecast to lose 0.5 percent a year while emerging-market stocks, long a GMO favorite, are expected to climb 1.9 percent annually.
“To us, the opportunity set for equity investors looks pretty clear: favor non-U.S. markets, especially value stocks in emerging markets,” said John Thorndike, GMO asset allocation team member. “Additionally, with the Fed continuing to raise short-term interest rates and the potential inflationary effects of tariffs and trade wars, we think investors are well served to keep their duration short.”