Markets are sending mixed signals. After a downturn at the end of 2018, we’ve seen the stock market rally in 2019 against a backdrop of geopolitical ups and downs. The whiplash looks set to continue, with trade disputes ongoing in almost every world region, 2020 U.S. elections in full swing and tensions building in the Gulf.

Our measure of market chatter around geopolitics – the BlackRock Geopolitical Risk Indicator – is at its highest level since 2005. On this episode of The Bid, we speak to Eric Van Nostrand, Head of Macro Research and Portfolio Strategy for BlackRock’s Multi-Asset Strategies Group, about why that is, and how to build geopolitics into the investment process.

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