Angus McLeod, Portfolio Manager at Vanguard's Equity Investment Group has given his insights on equity markets

Angus McLeod, Portfolio Manager at Vanguard's Equity Investment Group has given his insights on equity markets. On Australia's poor performing equity markets compared to the US and Europe since the GFC, he said there are two main explanations: US monetary policy and Australia's reliance on China. China's slowdown and the prospects of a hard landing are very undesirable for the economy, and on this he said that the Australian economy is exposed to the fortunes of China and vulnerable to economic developments there. Chinese authorities' control of the economy is strong but their capacity to keep the growth engine ticking over at above 7 per cent is critical to Australia's economic outlook. In addition, McLeod also touched on the prospects for the local currency, potential overheating of equity markets at present and their outlook on investments in equities in general. (VIEW LINK)