COVID-19 UPDATE: TX surge arguably "head fake" as 186 counties had ZERO cases past weekend, and +4,574 today. Cyclicals waiting for F-CAT peak

STRATEGY: Epicenter stocks struggled since June 9, exact day USA cases bottomed...
Despite equity markets making gains in the past few weeks, it has felt awfully "defensive" with FANG and secular growth stocks leading.   In fact, as this chart below shows, this infection towards FANG started on June 9, 2020.  So, this has been taking place for the past month.



Source: Fundstrat


I can think of multiple ways to explain this leadership:

- "momentum" strategies favor what is working
- bond proxy driven, as cash from sidelines buys stocks most like bonds
- FANG/Growth are "succeeding" during this pandemic, so valuation expands further (very true)
- markets are getting worried about a contested election/Biden, so it is becoming defensive
- markets are getting worried about COVID-19, so it is becoming defensive
- markets are getting worried risk of no vaccine/cure, so it is becoming defensive

The latter two explanations resonate with me, partly because this is my sense from speaking with clients.  The data for COVID-19 is not decisive, because cases are going up, but deaths are down.  And as for vaccine/cure, there are many "shots at goal" but mostly just further progress.  

- daily cases bottomed on 6/9/2020, before rising
- the peak in "epicenter" performance was 6/9/2020

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