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“ ‘We have borrowed so much that I’m skeptical that three to five years out that equities will give us any kind of return.’ ”
That’s billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller talking about how a Democratic sweep of the White House and Congress in the upcoming elections could prove to be a headwind for the stock market for years to come. His comments, cited by Bloomberg, were made Tuesday at the virtual Robin Hood Investors Conference.
One way Druckenmiller, with a net worth of $5.8 billion, is reportedly playing the prospect of higher taxes and inflation is that he’s short the U.S. dollar DXY, +0.62%, sources at the conference told Bloomberg. He predicted that, in four years, inflation will top 4%, gold prices GOLD, -3.61% and bond yields will be higher, and the unemployment rate will be about 7%.
He’s not completely bearish on equities, however, saying that beaten-down stocks in this pandemic, such as airlines and cruises, could be profitable investments, particularly if a successful vaccine and another fiscal stimulus boost arrives. The technology high-fliers that have been leading this market, in turn, could see some selling, after their strong run, he warned.
Druckenmiller, who once served as chief strategist for George Soros, is one of the world’s top money managers, boasting returns of about 30% a year over the past three decades, Bloomberg reported.
Meanwhile, stocks got off to a brutal start in Tuesday’s session, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -2.30% down more than 400 points early. The Nasdaq Composite COMP, -2.68% and the S&P 500 SPX, -2.35% were also firmly lower.
