Tenzing pacific services

April 2022 Market Update:
Are we heading for recession?

April Market Update

"The stock market is a device for transferring money from the impatient to the patient"

Stock and currency markets performance.

April has come and gone and the monthly stock market indices figures are pretty grim:

April 2022 Market Update - Stock

Data table is from Google Finance

As is always the case during periods of volatility, the currencies markets performed well against the safe haven of USD, where cash is parked. April saw some of the largest monthly increases I can recall, positive across the board:

April 2022 Market Update - Currency

Data table is from Google Finance

April did not turn out to be a springboard for share prices, following an already tricky start to 2022.  With the exception of the FTSE, which benefits from tracking large oil companies, all markets were down, most noticeably the S&P, which fell over 10%.

As was the case when we were experiencing month-over-month growth in the S&P due to the increase in value of the large cap technology companies, the scale of the index’s fall can be partly attributed to Facebook (Meta) and Amazon’s share prices falling by 40% and 27% respectively.  Markets always overreact to large fluctuations and the current volatility is causing drops which provide value, especially in the aforementioned shares.

Are we heading into a recession?

Are we heading into a recession?  Or are a range of complicated factors – interest rate policy, high inflation, Ukraine war – causing this period of volatility and sell-offs?

A quick Google search of the question revealed very different answers:  “A major recession is coming” and “We’re not going into recession.”  So clearly the answer is that nobody knows the answer.

A recession is a “significant decline in economic activity spread across the markets, lasting more than a few months and normally visible in real GDP, real income, employment and industrial production.”

Although GDP did decline by 1.4% for the first quarter of 2022, unemployment remains low and economic activity is increasing rather than declining, as we make our way back to normality. Supply chain bottlenecks continue to cause issues with production and the Chinese lockdown policies are stifling the return to normal, but the majority of the world is in a much better place than it was a year ago and certainly much better than it was two years ago.

How should investors react?

 So, my view is that the declines are more short-term than the kind of long-term declines we would see in a recession.  Whether it takes a month, three months or the rest of this year before we see a return to growth, I dare not predict of course, but tried and tested investment strategies such as remaining patient, buying low and utilizing dollar cost averaging all make sense right now.

Two years ago, an investment in a simple S&P index fund would have returned you 45%, even though the markets had already rebounded from their bottom in March 2020.  The mini crash the markets experienced then created great buying opportunities.  Those with a cool head and the ability to see past the noise took advantage and have been rewarded. 

The drops in 2022 are not as significant as 2020, but they do provide opportunities for those investors with a similar disposition.

GET A FREE CONSULTATION!

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Open Hours:

Mon – Fri: 8.30 am – 6 pm, Saturday – Sunday: CLOSED

Johannes Heikkila

Advisor
From Finland
Expat for 1 year
Speak Finnish, English & Spanish

Speciality:
- Health Insurance
- Savings Plans

Robert Cunningham

Advisor
From the UK
Expat for 13 years in Thailand & Vietnam
5 years' insurance & financial services

Speciality:
- Health Insurance
- Life Insurance
- Savings Plans

Romain Camillo

Senior Advisor
11 Years in Insurance & Financial Services
Expat in thailand for 7 years
Joined Tenzing in 2020
Speaks French & English


Speciality:
- Health Insurance
- Life Insurance
- Savings Plans"

Nancy Dao

Advisor
From Vietnam
International Business from UK
Lived in Singapore
Speaks Vietnamese & English

Speciality:
- Personal Health Insurance
- Group Health Insurance

Hunter Deems

Advisor
10 years' experience in insurance and investments
Joined Tenzing in early 2020

Speciality:
- Investments
- Savings Plan
- Health & Life Insurance
Patrik Shore Tenzing Pacific Services

Patrik Shore

Senior Advisor
From Sweden & New Zealand
7 years' insurance experience
Joined Tenzing in 2019
Crim Science
Speaks English and Swedish

Speciality:
- Savings Plans
- Health Insurance
- Life Insurance

Geoffrey Mann

Advisor
From the US
Employee benefits & insurance compliance background
Joined the Tenzing team in 2019
Law degree from the US

Speciality:
- Personal Health

Nhu Nguyen

Senior Advisor
From Vietnam
Joined Tenzing in 2017
Fluent in Vietnamese & English

Speciality:
- Group Health & Life Insurance
- Personal Health"
Tenzing's advisor

Ian Comandao

Health Insurance Manager
From Philippines
MBA from Duke University
Expat for 20 years in US, China, Hong Kong & Vietnam Worked at Tenzing since 2018
Fluent in English, Tagalog, Mandarin

Speciality:
- Personal Health Insurance
- Group Health Insurance
- Business Insurance

Craig McAvinue

Director of Wealth Management
From the UK
25 years' expereince in investments & insurance
Expat in Thailand for 5 years
Chartered Accountant by trade
Holistic approach to consulting his clients

Speciality:
- Investments
- Savings Plans
- Health & Life Insurance

Quinn Miller

CEO & Managing Partner
From the US
Joined Tenzing in 2014
Expat for 10 years in Vietnam
Finance & Entrepreneurship Degrees

Speciality:
- Group Health Insurance
- Life Insurance
- Savings Plans"
  • 84 35857 2629
  • 84 35857 2629
  • quinn.miller@ten-pac.com

Quinn Miller

CEO & Managing Partner
From the US
Joined Tenzing in 2014
Expat for 10 years in Vietnam
Finance & Entrepreneurship Degrees

Speciality:
- Group Health Insurance
- Life Insurance
- Savings Plans"