Why the MoneyWeek ETF portfolio won't need to change

Our long-running ETF strategy won’t be placing any bets yet about what Donald Trump will do in his new term

Silver metallic dice showing the alphabets ETF
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When Donald Trump was first elected in 2016, I said that whatever else he did, he would surely build things. His background in real estate and his fondness for grandiose plans seemed to make it a certainty. History shows that he did not: it was only under Joe Biden that America began a major infrastructure programme. Whether many of these projects carry on under Trump or get cancelled for other priorities will soon be seen but, in any case, it was a lesson in the difficulty of predicting what governments will achieve.

That’s why there are no changes to make to the MoneyWeek strategic ETF portfolio, just as there would have been none had Kamala Harris won. The aim of the portfolio is to do okay in all likely scenarios, rather than take big bets on any one outcome. That doesn’t mean that it will look the same in a year’s time, but we are not rushing to change our bond holdings on the basis that Trump will bring bigger deficits and higher yields.

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Cris Sholto Heaton

Cris Sholto Heaton is an investment analyst and writer who has been contributing to MoneyWeek since 2006 and was managing editor of the magazine between 2016 and 2018. He is especially interested in international investing, believing many investors still focus too much on their home markets and that it pays to take advantage of all the opportunities the world offers. He often writes about Asian equities, international income and global asset allocation.

Cris began his career in financial services consultancy at PwC and Lane Clark & Peacock, before an abrupt change of direction into oil, gas and energy at Petroleum Economist and Platts and subsequently into investment research and writing. In addition to his articles for MoneyWeek, he also works with a number of asset managers, consultancies and financial information providers.

He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and the Investment Management Certificate, as well as degrees in finance and mathematics. He has also studied acting, film-making and photography, and strongly suspects that an awareness of what makes a compelling story is just as important for understanding markets as any amount of qualifications.