Morningstar recently tested the niche world of publicly traded tactical-allocation funds and found mediocre results at best. The Capital Spectator came to a similar conclusion a couple of months back in a mini-study of a handful of tactically minded ETFs. Let’s update the numbers and see if anything’s changed.
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China and US report progress in trade talks: Bloomberg
Trump picks former head of pizza company for Fed board: NY Times
Economists expect rebound in today’s employment report for March: Reuters
Trump backs away from threat to close US-Mexico border: LA Times
Philippine president warns Beijing re: actions in S. China Sea: CNN
German industrial output rose in Feb but mfg component fell: Reuters
First quarter job cuts in US rose to highest since Q3:2015: CG&C
US jobless claims fell to 50-year low last week: CNBC

No corner has been left untouched by 2019’s bull run, based on a set of exchange-traded funds that represent the world’s major equity regions. China is still the leading performer, but even the year-to-date laggard – Latin America – is posting a solid gain.
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Trump to meet with China’s Vice Premier, possibly announce summit plans: MW
Oil and gasoline prices rising faster than expected: CNBC
ICE conducts biggest workplace immigration raid in a decade in Texas: NBC
German factory orders fell sharply in February: Bloomberg
Economic forecasts for Germany cut by more than half for 2019: Bloomberg
Bank of England’s Carney: No-deal Brexit risk ‘alarmingly high’: MNI
Demographic trends pose a rising economic challenge for the US: NY Times
Global growth picked up to 4-month high in March, via survey data: IHS Markit
Growth eased in US services sector in March, according to PMI and ISM data
US private-sector job growth continued to slow in March: ADP

After a brief hiatus in second place earlier this year, technology shares are again the top-performing US equity sector in 2019, based on a set of exchange trade funds. Tech’s re-acceleration, which began in early March, demoted the former leader – industrial stocks – to second place, based on trading through Mar. 2.
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Senate Leader McConnell to Trump: We’re not repealing Obamacare: The Hill
GOP and business groups advise Trump not to close US-Mexico border: WSJ
US and China reportedly moving closer to trade agreement: CNBC
Chinese woman arrested at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort: Reuters
World Trade Org: 2018’s slowdown in global trade is expected to continue: Reuters
UK’s May to meet with opposition party for talks on Brexit solution: BBC
Eurozone Composite PMI: sluggish growth continued in March: IHS Markit
China services activity picked up to 14-month high in March: Reuters
Is the Fed fanning a financial bubble? Bloomberg
US durable goods orders & business investment: 1yr trends weakened in Feb:

The projected risk premium for the Global Market Index (GMI) ticked higher again in March, edging up to an annualized 4.7% return. The fractional gain lifted the outlook above the 4.6% estimate in last month’s update. Today’s revision for GMI (an unmanaged market-value-weighted portfolio that holds all the major asset classes except cash) reflects the ex ante premium over the projected “risk-free” rate for the long term.
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Trump appears to be edging closer to closing US-Mexico border: CNN
S&P 500 rally lifts index to 2% below its all-time peak: CNBC
US-EU trade talks look set for delay: Bloomberg
Another Brexit vote fails in UK Parliament: BBC
New policies in Mexico a factor in migrant surge from Central America: NY Times
Global Mfg PMI unchanged in March, indicating ‘weak’ growth rate: IHS Markit
Mixed messages: US Mfg PMI fell to  lowest since 2017 as ISM Mfg up to 9mo high
US construction spending rose in Feb, posting 3rd monthly gain: MW
Sign of slowing demand? Business inventories rose more than sales in US: Reuters
US retail sales post surprise decline in Feb, contributing to subdued 1yr trend:

Property shares dominated the broad-based performance gains for the major asset classes in March. Foreign real estate securities led the rally last month, closely followed by US-listed property linked stocks. The only slices of global markets that retreated: foreign high-yield bonds, bonds issued by emerging markets and a broad definition of commodities. Otherwise, the 2019 rebound in assets rolled on in March.
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Taiwan scrambles jets after ‘provocative’ move by China’s air force: CNN
Comedian wins the first-round vote in Ukraine’s presidential election: BBC
Turkey’s lira falls after president’s party suffers election setback: CNBC
Russia’s military influence is on the rise in in Africa: NY Times
China’s mfg sector unexpectedly expanded in March, according to survey: CNBC
Eurozone mfg survey data: sector’s contraction deepened in March: IHS Markit
Fed’s Kashkari: don’t cut rates, at least not yet: WSJ
A busy week of US data updates will stress test the economy’s health: Bloomberg
Chicago area business barometer at lowest quarterly avg in 2 years: Chicago PMI
New US home sales rose in Feb, reaching 11-month high: MW
Consumer Sentiment Index for US rebounded in March: UoM
US consumer spending’s 1yr trend in Jan dipped to slowest gain in over 2 years: