Quick Takes: Rising Rates and Short-Term Opportunities

Text on screen: PIMCO

Text on screen: PIMCO provides services only to qualified institutions and investors. This is not an offer to any person in any jurisdiction where unlawful or unauthorized.

Text on screen: PIMCO Quick Takes: Rising Rates and Short-Term Opportunities

Text on screen: Jerome Schneider, Head of Short-Term Portfolio Management

Jerome Schneider: For investors over the coming quarters, they're undoubtedly going to be focused on the tightening monetary policy that's before us, both here in North America, but globally. Specifically for investors, what they should be focused on is the changing liquidity conditions and financial conditions which come along with higher rates and a reduced balance sheet from the Federal Reserve.

Full page chart -- TITLE: Heightened front-end U.S. Treasury yields help create a buffer for rising rates. The second complementary chart plots the U.S yield curve across 1 month, 6 month, 1 year, 2 year, 3 year, 7 year, 10 year, 20 year and 30 year U.S. Treasury yields, calling out that 2 year Treasury yield rose 145 bps higher since hitting its low on August 4, 2020, and that forward yields suggest that most if the rate move higher is likely behind us. Source: PIMCO and Bloomberg.

As this chart illustrates, 2-year notes are well in excess of 1.5 percent which means that a lot of the rate hiking sequence has been effectively priced into the marketplace.

Full page chart -- TITLE: Heightened front-end U.S. Treasury yields help create a buffer for rising rates. Bar chart that shows the required rate increase for negative returns by plotting U.S. Treasury rate increases across 6 month, 1 year, 2 year, 3 year, 7 year, 10 year, 20 year and 30 year U.S. Treasuries for two periods: 2/10/22 and 12/21/2020. It shows improving prospects for forward-looking yields.

The higher yields exhibited through the fourth quarter of last year and the first quarter of this year we believe provide ample cushion and carry to the income portion of portfolios, well outpacing the prospect of potential Fed hikes over the course of the next two quarters, and more importantly, potentially providing a shield against higher rate expectations than the market is currently expecting.

When we think about managing liquidity, we still want to be defensive. We want to think about portfolios which are resilient, but yet have degrees of freedom to pivot when we find those opportunities.

Since the beginning of the year, the carry contribution has gradually increased, in response to the expectation of forward interest rates within the U.S. money market curves.

Full page graphic -- TITLE: – Stepping out of money market funds can provide a meaningful increase in yield potential”; Image of three steps with a blue arrow going from the bottom step to the second step. Additional text and bullets in the step image: SUBTITLE – PIMCO short-term strategies may offer investors; BULLETS –Active management; Broader opportunity set; Increased return potential; Liquidity preservation; Defense against volatile markets; Resiliency in a rising rate environment

For those investors who are wanting to take advantage of the rising rate expectations, we would suggest a more active approach to doing so, we believe this is an opportune environment to step out of cash, step out of money market funds and bank deposits, which will remain near zero for the foreseeable future.

As such, we look at 2022 as being a constructive period, much more constructive than we saw in the previous 2 years.

There's a couple of key considerations to take into account. Number one, yields have actually moved higher already in the front end, and taking into account many of the rate hikes which the Federal Reserve has forecasted over the course of 2022.

Text on screen – Key Take-aways: Duration, Bias to own slightly more interest rate exposure, Corporate Credit, Favor financials due to solid fundamentals, Senior Securitized Credit, Loss-remote senior tranches at the top of the capital structure, Non-USD denominated, Opportunities with attractive yield when hedged back to USD

As such, owning some interest rate exposure in the front end is actually a good source of carry and income to portfolios at this point in time in modest amounts. Secondly, corporate credit remains a focal point for most investors in the front end. However, we still encourage people to be defensive, and more importantly, be very selective in terms of those criteria, as spreads remain remarkably thin at this point in time. Third, look into structured credit, and more importantly, securitized product. They can provide not only income and carry, but also be defensive, should we find other bouts of volatility on the horizon.

And then finally, look to find sources of liquidity premiums. For us here at PIMCO, we like our clients to think more globally speaking, by looking to non-dollar asset classes to extract liquidity premiums.

Images on screen: PIMCO trade floor

This flexibility will ultimately provide our clients with the ability to seek those premiums and potentially earn carry, well in advance of what money market funds or bank deposits could potentially yield through the course of 2022

Text on screen: For more insights and information, visit pimco.com

Text on screen: PIMCO

Disclosure

PIMCO provides services only to qualified institutions and investors. This is not an offer to any person in any jurisdiction where unlawful or unauthorized.

Investing in the bond market is subject to risks, including market, interest rate, issuer, credit, inflation risk, and liquidity risk. The value of most bonds and bond strategies are impacted by changes in interest rates. Bonds and bond strategies with longer durations tend to be more sensitive and volatile than those with shorter durations; bond prices generally fall as interest rates rise, and low interest rate environments increase this risk. Reductions in bond counterparty capacity may contribute to decreased market liquidity and increased price volatility. Bond investments may be worth more or less than the original cost when redeemed. Investing in foreign denominated and/or domiciled securities may involve heightened risk due to currency fluctuations, and economic and political risks, which may be enhanced in emerging markets. Mortgage and asset-backed securities may be sensitive to changes in interest rates, subject to early repayment risk, and their value may fluctuate in response to the market’s perception of issuer creditworthiness; while generally supported by some form of government or private guarantee there is no assurance that private guarantors will meet their obligations. High-yield, lower-rated, securities involve greater risk than higher-rated securities; portfolios that invest in them may be subject to greater levels of credit and liquidity risk than portfolios that do not. Equities may decline in value due to both real and perceived general market, economic, and industry conditions. Derivatives may involve certain costs and risks such as liquidity, interest rate, market, credit, management and the risk that a position could not be closed when most advantageous. Investing in derivtives could lose more than the amount invested.

Statements concerning financial market trends or portfolio strategies are based on current market conditions, which will fluctuate. There is no guarantee that these investment strategies will work under all market conditions or are appropriate for all investors and each investor should evaluate their ability to invest for the long term, especially during periods of downturn in the market. Outlook and strategies are subject to change without notice. There is no guarantee that these investment strategies will work under all market conditions or are appropriate for all investors and each investor should evaluate their ability to invest long-term, especially during periods of downturn in the market.

Forecasts, estimates and certain information contained herein are based upon proprietary research and should not be interpreted as investment advice, as an offer or solicitation, nor as the purchase or sale of any financial instrument. Forecasts and estimates have certain inherent limitations, and unlike an actual performance record, do not reflect actual trading, liquidity constraints, fees, and/or other costs. In addition, references to future results should not be construed as an estimate or promise of results that a client portfolio may achieve.

It is not possible to invest directly in an unmanaged index.

This material contains the opinions of the manager and such opinions are subject to change without notice. This material has been distributed for informational purposes only and should not be considered as investment advice or a recommendation of any particular security, strategy or investment product. Information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but not guaranteed.

PIMCO as a general matter provides services to qualified institutions, financial intermediaries and institutional investors. Individual investors should contact their own financial professional to determine the most appropriate investment options for their financial situation. This is not an offer to any person in any jurisdiction where unlawful or unauthorized. | Pacific Investment Management Company LLC, 650 Newport Center Drive, Newport Beach, CA 92660 is regulated by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. | PIMCO Europe Ltd (Company No. 2604517) is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (12 Endeavour Square, London E20 1JN) in the UK. The services provided by PIMCO Europe Ltd are not available to retail investors, who should not rely on this communication but contact their financial adviser. | PIMCO Europe GmbH (Company No. 192083, Seidlstr. 24-24a, 80335 Munich, Germany), PIMCO Europe GmbH Italian Branch (Company No. 10005170963), PIMCO Europe GmbH Irish Branch  (Company No. 909462), PIMCO Europe GmbH UK Branch (Company No. 2604517) and PIMCO Europe GmbH Spanish Branch (N.I.F. W2765338E) are authorised and regulated by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) (Marie- Curie-Str. 24-28, 60439 Frankfurt am Main) in Germany in accordance with Section 15 of the German Securities Institutions Act (WpIG).  The Italian Branch, Irish Branch, UK Branch and Spanish Branch are additionally supervised by: (1) Italian Branch: the Commissione Nazionale per le Società e la Borsa (CONSOB) in accordance with Article 27 of the Italian Consolidated Financial Act; (2) Irish Branch: the Central Bank of Ireland in accordance with Regulation 43 of the European Union (Markets in Financial Instruments) Regulations 2017, as amended; (3) UK Branch: the Financial Conduct Authority; and (4) Spanish Branch: the Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV) in accordance with obligations stipulated in articles 168 and  203  to 224, as well as obligations contained in Tile V, Section I of the Law on the Securities Market (LSM) and in articles 111, 114 and 117 of Royal Decree 217/2008, respectively. The services provided by PIMCO Europe GmbH are available only to professional clients as defined in Section 67 para. 2 German Securities Trading Act (WpHG). They are not available to individual investors, who should not rely on this communication.| PIMCO (Schweiz) GmbH (registered in Switzerland, Company No. CH-020.4.038.582-2). The services provided by PIMCO (Schweiz) GmbH are not available to retail investors, who should not rely on this communication but contact their financial adviser. | PIMCO Asia Pte Ltd (Registration No. 199804652K) is regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore as a holder of a capital markets services licence and an exempt financial adviser. The asset management services and investment products are not available to persons where provision of such services and products is unauthorised. | PIMCO Asia Limited is licensed by the Securities and Futures Commission for Types 1, 4 and 9 regulated activities under the Securities and Futures Ordinance. PIMCO Asia Limited is registered as a cross-border discretionary investment manager with the Financial Supervisory Commission of Korea (Registration No. 08-02-307). The asset management services and investment products are not available to persons where provision of such services and products is unauthorised. | PIMCO Investment Management (Shanghai) Limited Unit 3638-39, Phase II Shanghai IFC, 8 Century Avenue, Pilot Free Trade Zone, Shanghai, 200120, China (Unified social credit code: 91310115MA1K41MU72) is registered with Asset Management Association of China as Private Fund Manager (Registration No. P1071502, Type: Other) | PIMCO Australia Pty Ltd ABN 54 084 280 508, AFSL 246862. This publication has been prepared without taking into account the objectives, financial situation or needs of investors. Before making an investment decision, investors should obtain professional advice and consider whether the information contained herein is appropriate having regard to their objectives, financial situation and needs. | PIMCO Japan Ltd, Financial Instruments Business Registration Number is Director of Kanto Local Finance Bureau (Financial Instruments Firm) No. 382. PIMCO Japan Ltd is a member of Japan Investment Advisers Association, The Investment Trusts Association, Japan and Type II Financial Instruments Firms Association. All investments contain risk. There is no guarantee that the principal amount of the investment will be preserved, or that a certain return will be realized; the investment could suffer a loss. All profits and losses incur to the investor. The amounts, maximum amounts and calculation methodologies of each type of fee and expense and their total amounts will vary depending on the investment strategy, the status of investment performance, period of management and outstanding balance of assets and thus such fees and expenses cannot be set forth herein. | PIMCO Taiwan Limited is managed and operated independently. The reference number of business license of the company approved by the competent authority is (110) Jin Guan Tou Gu Xin Zi No. 020. 40F., No.68, Sec. 5, Zhongxiao E. Rd., Xinyi Dist., Taipei City 110, Taiwan (R.O.C.). Tel: +886 2 8729-5500. | PIMCO Canada Corp. (199 Bay Street, Suite 2050, Commerce Court Station, P.O. Box 363, Toronto, ON, M5L 1G2) services and products may only be available in certain provinces or territories of Canada and only through dealers authorized for that purpose. | PIMCO Latin America Av. Brigadeiro Faria Lima 3477, Torre A, 5° andar São Paulo, Brazil 04538-133. | No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form, or referred to in any other publication, without express written permission. PIMCO is a trademark of Allianz Asset Management of America L.P. in the United States and throughout the world. ©2022, PIMCO.

CMR2022-0223-2050632