S&W The Pulse

In this episode we’ll be looking at whether vaccines can outrun new variants and what this is likely to mean for economies and stock markets.Let’s start by looking at the virus situation. The vaccine rollout appears to be gathering pace, but new variants threaten to undermine some of the good work. It seems equity investors still believe the vaccine will triumph – where do you think the balance lies?Despite higher levels of new COVID-19 cases prompting stricter lockdowns in many parts of the world, the MSCI All Country World equity index (ACWI) is currently up around 3% so far in January(1). This optimism is largely down to the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, plus some ongoing stimulus and expectations of an earnings recovery. There are reasons to be encouraged: globally, around 1% of the population have been vaccinated, at a run rate of nearly 4 million per day(2). The new Biden administration has promised to deliver 100 million shots to Americans in his first 100 days. Given the current pace is 1.5 million per da