Investors start 2019 under a cloud of uncertainty as American beef and wheat exports will likely take a hit under a new Trans-Pacific trade deal, but the Dow is set for triple-digit gains on hopes of U.S.-China trade talks.
But investment strategist Spencer McGowan, founder and president of McGowanGroup Asset Management,believes the tone of 2019 will be set in the coming weeks with the market rebounding from what he calls a "Bear" correction during December.
“China President Xi Jinping and President Donald Trump are both narcissists, they want they big headline that they've fixed the world's problems,and if it doesn't come in the next two months, it'll probably come within the next six,” he says. “Earnings expectations in January are likely to be exceeded based on our intelligence.”
Throw in recent rate hikes from the Fed, a government shutdown and Democrats taking back control of the U.S. House.
“The leadership is definitely changing, where it goes that is what January is going to tell us, so it's a time to really look for better bargains,” says McGowan.
He urges Houston area investors to find deals in their own back yard.
“The pipelines are like a big toll booth, those are some of the best bargains I've seen since the crisis because they actually pay you cash flow, you get paid to wait,” says McGowan. “The energy sector is arguably the cheapest sector out of the entire market right now.”