Why Slow Economic Growth Ahead Favors Stockpickers

Investors will need to be more selective in their stock-picking because modest economic growth of about two percent will not lift the entire market going forward, said Ronald Sanchez, chief investment officer at Fiduciary Trust Company International. 'The stock market has done well as a whole since the Great Recession, but now we are experiencing a transition where we need to pick stocks that do well in different environments,' said Sanchez. 'Much more selectivity needs to be a focus for investment managers.' Sanchez said two percent economic growth is nothing new, but previous economic cycles have conditioned investors to expect a stronger rebound and ramp-up in growth. In his view, the absence of a strong recovery range can be attributed to the difficulties associated with digging out of the banking crisis to the regulatory environment, subdued productivity and aging demographics.