The biggest elephant in the room IS NOT stocks, it is the bond market
The US 10-year Treasury yield spiked +13 basis points on Friday to 4.38%, the 2nd-largest single-day jump since the April 2025 Liberation Day sell-off. Since early March, the 10-year yield has surged +45 basis points, the fastest rise in nearly a year. The bond market sell-off is being driven by soaring oil prices fueling inflation fears, hawkish signals from the Fed and Bank of England, and hedge funds being forced to unwind leveraged bond trades at a loss. If yields rise another 20 to 30 basis points from here, it could trigger a liquidation cascade across all asset classes as institutional trading desks would have no choice but to slash risk exposure, similarly to April 2025. Source: Global Markets Investor
Private Credit Faces Early-Year Withdrawal Pressure
In Q1, wealthy investors requested over $10B from major private credit funds. Blackstone, BlackRock, and Morgan Stanley are limiting withdrawals to ~70%. Apollo, Ares, and Goldman Sachs will report soon. Though small relative to $1.5T in direct lending, private credit’s fast growth and $9T U.S. retirement exposure mean liquidity strains could test the model’s foundations. Temporary squeeze or early warning? Source: FT
With buybacks stepping away, downside moves become more exposed.
McCullen: "We are expecting the next blackout window to begin this week ~3/18, estimating ~45% of the S&P 500 to be in blackout by that point, assuming entry 6 weeks prior to earnings ... We expect blackout to run through the end of April." Source: TME
Geopolitics is now the biggest tail risk according to the latest BofA Fund Manager Survey
Source: BofA, TME
UBS says private credit defaults could hit 15%.
That's 3x the peak bank loan default rate in 2008. Source: Leadlag report, Michel Gayed
The Global Equity market is valued at $154 trillion as of 2025 and here's the detailed breakdown.
44% of the global share is owned by USA, while the rest of the world combined holds 56%. China and the European Union (EU) hold similar stakes at about 9.6% each. India is the third largest country, representing 6.9% of the global equity markets, followed by Japan at 4.9%. A 10-year comparison (2015 vs 2025): Interestingly, China, EU, Hong Kong, Japan and UK have each seen a decline from their share in 2015. On the other hand, India and USA have both witnessed an increase in their share. Source: Stocks World @anandchokshi19
Goldman Sachs on stocks
Goldman Sachs on stocks: "Overall, equities [aka stocks] face rising correction risk; valuations are stretched, macro conditions are deteriorating at the margin and cracks are appearing across growth, inflation, credit and labour markets. But strong fundamentals argue against a bear market, reinforcing the view that weakness should be temporary as the medium-term backdrop is more constructive: earnings remain resilient, balance sheets are solid and history suggests that geopolitical shocks often present opportunity rather than lasting damage." Source: Brian Sozzi
The US private credit exit wave is picking up speed
Cliffwater’s $33B flagship fund capped redemptions at 7% after investors requested 14%—a record, per Bloomberg. Morgan Stanley limited withdrawals to 5% from its North Haven Private Income Fund, and BlackRock recently imposed limits at 9.3%. Pressure spreads as JPMorgan marks down software-linked loans and tightens lending to private credit firms due to concerns over credit quality, loan valuations, and AI disruption. Public BDCs are also under stress: FS KKR Capital ($FSK) saw its NAV premium collapse over 40 points, and Hercules Capital ($HTGC) dropped roughly 30 points. Investors seek liquidity, but options are shrinking. The key question: when will the broader market take notice? Source: FT, Global Markets Investor
