Investor Corner/The wider picture

5.1 Macro and Market Context

How interest rates, monetary and fiscal policy, and full market cycles shape the returns every other asset class in this series depends on. Interest rate decisions, fiscal policy and full market cycles shape returns across every asset class this series covers, whether or not an investor is watching them directly. This section is background rather than a rulebook: enough context to understand why markets are moving, without pretending to predict them.