Category: Investment Insights

Equities maintained their momentum at the start of 2026, underpinned by strong corporate margins and a rotation into small cap stocks. Geopolitical shocks in Latin America and Europe, coupled with a weaker dollar, laid the groundwork for parabolic moves in precious metals. While fundamentals remain robust, recent bouts of volatility underscore the increasing complexity of the current environment.

Element Pointe is pleased to present our Market Outlook: Top Ten Investment Themes for 2026. In this piece, we highlight our views on the economy and explore some of the key topics that we believe will impact markets in 2026.

A November disruption in the AI leadership race drove a notable pullback in Technology stocks, even as broad corporate strength and a resilient consumer helped the S&P 500 finish in positive territory. With monetary policy now easing and structural tailwinds still supportive, we remain constructive on risk assets, yet cognizant of the risk of elevated volatility over the coming months.

US equities continued their rally in September, buoyed by a dovish pivot from the Federal Reserve and broadening market participation. As we enter October, a federal government shutdown adds a fresh layer of policy risk, reinforcing our case for disciplined positioning and broad diversification.

US equities gained in August, supported by robust corporate earnings, while sector leadership rotated away from Technology toward Materials and Healthcare.  AI-linked stocks lost momentum as earnings misses, an underwhelming ChatGPT-5 release, and an MIT study citing limited return on investment from enterprise AI pilots to date temporarily tempered enthusiasm.  Political risk also rose as President Trump dismissed senior economic officials, raising concerns about institutional independence and adding uncertainty to an already fragile backdrop.

A solid start to earnings season, relatively resilient economic data, and a slew of trade deals at the end of the month created enough positive rhetoric for US equities to achieve positive returns in July. However, trade policy risks remain a significant overhang for markets, and recent data signals towards a slowdown in the economy, which leads us to maintain a cautious outlook for US stocks in the back half of the year.