Street Signals

Many of the consequences of the latest disruption to global energy supply have yet to surface. While oil has been the immediate focus, volatility across global interest rate curves is emerging as an equally consequential second-order effect. Markets are rapidly reassessing the scale and timing of inflation and growth shocks – and how central banks are likely to respond. Whether this period of upheaval deepens worries already evident in credit markets is a further concern. This week, Marvin Loh, senior strategist at State Street Markets, joins the podcast to share his outlook for rates, credit and the impacts on the global economy through the coming months.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the conflict in the Middle East enters a third week, markets remain uneasy but resilient. Lessons absorbed during past geopolitical shocks have so far kept this a slow-burn test of positioning and risk tolerance, rather than a volatility event with a specific breaking point. This week, we speak with Lee Ferridge, Head of Macro Strategy for the Americas for State Street Markets as to whether this equilibrium can hold. He notes the most relevant variables of investor positioning and activity and their current messages, if markets are correctly pricing the policy response and why the US dollar has reasserted its safe-haven status.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A wider Middle East war and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, seen for years as extreme ‘what-if’ risks, are now realities. The ranges of macroeconomic and geopolitical outcomes are as vast as they are unknowable, but reasonable future scenarios are starting to take shape. This week, we speak to Elliot Hentov, Chief Macro Policy Strategist at State Street Investment Management, about the evolving conflict in Iran and the market implications for a prolonged disruption in one of the world’s key energy chokepoints.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While geopolitical uncertainty dominates headlines, this week’s episode digs deeper into themes driving markets before the weekend’s events — particularly the sharp rotation in equities in 2026 and the reassessment of crowded AI‑linked trades and their fundamental drivers. Cayla Seder, senior multi-asset strategist at State Street Markets, speaks to the shifting market perceptions around AI, the scale of hyperscaler investment, the growing role of debt financing in the tech sector and how technology's potential to transform the economic outlook is likely to play out.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Market volatility continues to climb in February, with a landmark Supreme Court ruling on US tariffs last week upending US trade policy in an afternoon. Questions now circle as to whether last years trade-induced USD weakness that was expected to continue into 2026 is now at risk of reversal. Meanwhile, the yen's tumble under Takaichi-nomics has resumed, equities and gold remain choppy and many long-dormant correlation relationships are starting to reassert themselves. Managing risk remains a constant challenge, as Dan Mazza, head of FX Forwards trading in the Americas at State Street Markets, highlights in this week's episode.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In celebration of Lunar New Year, we take a deep dive into China’s political economy. Despite trade tensions, a weak consumer and a halting post‑COVID recovery, a powerful export boom kept China on track last year—and could do so again in 2026. Fresh off a two-week fact-finding trip across the country, Ning Sun, senior EM strategist at State Street Markets, joins us to unpack what she saw on the ground and the challenges facing the world’s biggest exporter.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The changing of the guard at the top of the Federal Reserve comes at a crucial time for policymakers and markets. It is far from certain whether the promise of artificial intelligence heralds an era of stronger trend growth, or if the displacement in labor markets that might result will prove more damaging. Kevin Warsh’s term as Chairman will surely be defined as much by this question as his stated desire to reorient Fed policies and its mission. To discuss all of this, we are thrilled to welcome back Simona Mocuta, Chief Economist of State Street Investment Management.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Everybody loves an origin story, this week’s podcast has two. Featuring clips from our first episode, before the podcast even had a name, with our first guest, Fred Goodwin, a.k.a. Mr. Risk, we talk about the formative years of both the medium and the messenger. As his retirement nears, we look back over Fred’s long career as a trader, salesperson and strategist, and the many lessons learned along the way, especially on how to think about markets at their extremes. In detailing how his contrarian outlook was formed, we bring a strong sense of history to bear in thoughts on the current trends in gold, the US dollar, the Japanese yen and global equities.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Extrapolating past results to predict future outcomes is typically futile. But what if we could isolate the most statistically relevant historic parallels towards making better forecasts? This week, we discuss the techniques of relevance based prediction and how more robust and successful outlooks can result from their use. Joining us are Megan Czasonis, Head of Portfolio Management Research at State Street Associates, and Michael Metcalfe, Global Head of Macro Strategy, to discuss recently-published research on these new methods used to forecast USD performance and what the current framework says about a dollar outlook over the medium term. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ron O’Hanley, Chairman and CEO of State Street, is back on the podcast for a wide‑ranging discussion, looking back on the main stories of 2025 and ahead to the forces shaping 2026. Ron and host Tim Graf explore whether risks that once loomed large have faded or simply changed form, and how growth, monetary policy, and AI‑led investment may influence markets in 2026. Asset allocation trends, private markets expansion and global currency dynamics feature, before concluding with a view of State Street’s strategic priorities — from AI adoption to digital assets and ETFs.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.