The View | With stock markets decoupled from economic reality, the only way may be down
- Will central bankers take away the liquidity punchbowl that is decoupling asset prices from economic reality? It seems unlikely when they insist there is no sign of burgeoning inflation
- However, most workers would tell a different story amid rising shopping costs and stagnant salaries

As we all know, past investment performance is no indicator of future performance and, unless you are blessed with superhuman clairvoyance, market predictions are worth about as much as a used vaccination needle.
Market behaviour is so complex that there are no real market analysts – the best are merely gifted amateurs, so if you do follow an oracle, just be aware that they also have feet of clay.
The market meltdown of a year ago came as professional investors correctly realised that Covid-19 lockdowns would cause massive economic value destruction.
Indeed, growth figures for 2020 have been shocking. However, the mistake that these very clever people made was to underestimate the determination of the global authorities to avoid recession – at any cost.
