As far as 2016 goes, one thing seems apparent: it is time to go back to the drawing board if your profession is polling.
Both the Brexit vote last summer and of course the U.S. presidential election went against the consensus. In either event, if investors had known the results beforehand, we hazard to guess that most would have assumed calamity for stocks. The reality was starkly different. After an initial drop, equities rallied following both of these surprising results as markets anticipated increased stimulus for the economy. The only consensus event of the fourth quarter was that the Federal Reserve did raise interest rates. Our takeaway: stick to your long-term plan, maintain exposure to high quality investments, and let time be your friend.
