The US stock market is on a bullish run that started in April last year after suffering a devastating sell-off when the very first wave of lockdown was announced.
Since then the stock market is up and had continued at this blistering pace in the new year. Our analysts also diversified our portfolio and picked up some US-listed stocks last year and plan to add a few more to our Stock Select List.
We will get to this in a bit, but first, let’s check out the home front.
The National Bureau of Statistics released its 2020 4th quarter GDP numbers showing the economy just about eked out a slim 0.11% growth. The implication of this is that we are officially out of recession.
READ: Here are the Insurance Stocks you need to look out for capital appreciation
I recommend you read this Nairametrics article where our Blurb Team explained how we were able to get out of the recession. We will also be publishing our monthly Macroeconomic Review very soon and as usual, our SSN Subscribers get to read it first.
You will agree with me that any growth is much better than a contraction especially if it is able to get us out of a recession. The NBS also released its inflation numbers earlier in the weak showing Nigeria’s headline inflation rate for the month of January was 16.47%.
No surprises here as I have often stated that Nigeria’s inflation rate will rise to over 16% as the effects of fuel price increase, electricity price hikes start to filter into the cost of goods and services.
This set of data is by no means good for the country and as things stand, we will continue to be in stagflation for some time to come. My immediate worry however is how do we hedge against all these headwind risks?
READ: Rising bond yields expected to add pressure on Nigerian and U.S stock markets
With the inflation rate galloping and economic growth ever so fragile it is increasingly precarious to leave all your investments to the hazards of economic stagflation. When an economy is in this sort of dire straits, you flee to save havens to hedge against risks.
Unfortunately, there is hardly anywhere else to turn to. Nigerian stocks have mostly reached their peak, so value is hard to find. Interest rates on risk-free government securities are extremely low and real estate just cannot generate enough yields to hedge against inflation. So, what does this leave us with? Three investments; Cryptocurrency, Agri-tech, and US Stocks. I chose US Stocks for now,
Investing in US Based Stocks
In Week 31 of this Newsletter, I delved into the world of US Stocks and how you can invest in them. If you have not read that newsletter, I suggest you go ahead and do so before reading the rest of this newsletter.
In that newsletter, I mentioned some of the US Stocks I had purchased and included in my portfolio. Let us recap for a bit and let you into how these stocks are performing today.
1.Comcast Corporation – This is a US-based cable operator that offers a variety of consumer entertainment and communication products and services.
How is it performing? The stock is up 15.78% since I purchased it.
2. Impinj Inc. – This is another internet-based company this time it helps power the world of IoT, the Internet of Things. The stock was trading at $42 when we mentioned it in December and up 78% since then.
How is it performing? The stock is up 180% since I purchased it.
3. Pinterest Inc – This company needs to introduction. It is a social media-based company that allows users to pin images and videos they receive online on the website.
How is it performing? The stock is up 47.34% since I purchased it.
4. Zynga – This is a mobile gaming company that makes money from selling advertising and in-app purchases to its users.
How is it performing? The stock is up 49.82% since I purchased it.
US Stock Pick of the week
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