HOUSE OVERSIGHT 014528 bad (higher volatility) and investors will have to reposition portfolios, rebalancing when necessary, in order to take advantage of the new era. Prior to the U.S. presidential election, and even dating back to the summer months when bond yields bottomed, the economy was already beginning to improve. Corporate earnings were picking up, the consumer was spending at a healthy clip, there were some subtle signs of positive surprises in European economic activity, and the downturn in emerging markets (and negative earnings revisions) ceased. We were certainly not waving the celebratory flag on growth, but the economy was getting up off the ground, which is what risk assets, including equities, need sometimes. However, the S&P 500—a major benchmark for U.S. stocks--had lost momentum heading into the election, as investors worried that the secular stagnation era would continue and that monetary policy had lost its effectiveness. Market sentiment changed dramatically during the early morning hours on November 9. The surprise victory by Donald Trump caught many investors off-guard. The potential for fiscal stimulus measures, reduced regulation, corporate tax reform and other potential pro-growth initiatives increased. Animal spirits perked up. Investor positioning was heavily skewed toward long-duration fixed income, low-volatility equities and high-dividend-paying companies. These areas significantly outperformed in the first half of the year but started to lose momentum once rates bottomed mid-year. However, investor positioning did not change materially at first. Portfolios were still generally overexposed to higher- quality, rate-sensitive investments— otherwise known as "bond proxies." In our Hills Have Eyes strategy report, published on November 16, we outlined the need to rebalance portfolios given our belief that we were already transitioning toward the late-cycle expansion phase and that the new enthusiasm for pro-growth