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Home / White Papers 2021

Western Asset: Five reasons why fixed-income still matters

Franklin Templeton
9 September 2021

Diversification as an investing principle never goes out of style. But in today’s low-rate environment, do bonds still provide effective diversification in a traditional asset allocation framework? Are the reasons for owning fixed-income the same as they have been in the past? The short answer to both questions is a resounding 'Yes'.

Key Takeaways

Fixed-income is the only asset class that demonstrates a low to negative correlation to risk assets.
Fixed-income provides highly efficient returns per unit of risk.
Fixed-income is an effective tool to manage drawdown risk.
A passive manager cannot express duration, curve, sector or security preferences in portfolio construction in the ways that an active manager can.

Download the full paper here

9 September 2021

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