Global Macro Investing and Different Asset Classes

By Adam Smith

There are ten asset classes that are regularly traded by global macro investors. Real estate, venture capital, equities, currencies, commodities, cash, bonds, collectibles, statistical arbitrage, and private equity. While a few of these are tough for individual investors to get into, the majority are easily accessible.

Cash is the first asset on the list. While technically a currency we look at it as more of a place of last resort. You earn a bit of interest on it but basically you only use it when you can find another place to put your money to work for a higher return.

Equities are the next asset class on the list. We include domestic, foreign, and even emerging market stocks in the same broad asset class category. Equities represent ownership in a company.

Bonds also known as fixed income are a very important part of the macro traders arsenal. You can trade domestic government bonds, corporate bonds, foreign government bonds, and foreign corporate bonds. There is a lot of opportunity here and you would be remiss not to look at them.

Commodities are another hot spot in the macro arsenal of asset classes. While the term is broad the trading is even broader as you can trade energy, agricultural products, livestock, metals, and even precious metals. If you can pick it up or eat it you can trade it. This is a good thing as it gives us more potential trade opportunities.

The largest asset class is that of currencies. Currencies have long been one of the primary trading assets for macro traders. If you have an opinion on one country versus another then you have a basis for a trade. If the reward outweighs the risk then you can have another asset class to trade.

The last few asset classes are a lot harder to get good exposure to unless you manage a lot of money. With the possible exception of real estate via REIT's the rest of the asset classes are relatively illiquid, so they require a longer time frame in which to invest. Private equity and venture capital can take years to sell and collectibles go through very long dry spells in which liquidity dries up. By looking at everything you not only get a lead up on many trade ideas via the cross research but you also find more pure trading opportunities. - 23217

About the Author:

The Macro Trader helps investors find great Global Macro Investor opportunities. Tactical Asset Allocation is but one of the many strategies that we use to help find the best risk to reward opportunities across the globe.