MARKET INSIGHTS

Weekly market commentary

26-Jan-2026
  • BlackRock Investment Institute

Immutable laws in action again

Market take

Weekly video_20260126

Michel Dilmanian

Portfolio strategist, BlackRock Investment Institute

Opening frame: What’s driving markets? Market take

Camera frame

Title slide: Immutable economic laws in action again

Developed market government bonds yields jumped last week after fresh US tariff threats – though the headlines focused on the selloff in Japanese Government Bonds. As the US backed off from new tariffs, DM yields fell – showing how immutable economic laws again came into play.

1: More corporate bonds coming

Bond markets have started the year with a bang. Developed market bond yields jumped – particularly in Japan where 40-year yields saw historic spikes. These moves quickly grabbed headlines but were short lived as immutable economic laws limited extreme outcomes yet again.

Meanwhile, US corporate bond issuance is forecast to hit a record-high this year as companies are leveraging up to fund the AI buildout, as described in our Global Outlook. This is a feature of the current market environment, in our view.

2: Japan’s fiscal concerns stoking volatility

The headlines around the government bond selloff focused on JGB yields . But we think the story is a global one, where geopolitics are running up against immutable economic laws – specifically, the need for sizeable foreign investment to finance US debt.

Any spike in long-term bond yields could quickly raise questions about debt sustainability. This has already played out, with the result being a moderation of policies.

3: Leveraging up

This risk of higher bond yields comes against a corporate sector that’s leveraging up. Public and private balance sheets have diverged sharply since the Financial Crisisbut US corporates have room to take on more leverage, and they’re doing so from a position of strength.

Yet more leverage overall makes the financial system more vulnerable to shocks - like the yield spike we saw in Japan last week.

Against this backdrop of a surge in issuance, we’re more selective in fixed income. We prefer high yield over investment grade debt, and short-term over long-term credit. We also prefer direct lending in private credit and favor established, large borrowers.

Outro: Here’s our Market take

The recent spike and subsequent decline in yields shows how immutable economic laws can limit extreme outcomes. We stay underweight long-term DM government bonds – but still see select opportunities in fixed income.

Closing frame: Read details: blackrock.com/weekly-commentary

Immutable laws in play

This week saw immutable laws limiting how far US trade policy can go. Our leveraging up theme is also playing out with near-record bond issuance.

Market backdrop

US stocks were flat in a volatile week marked by renewed geopolitical tensions. US 10-year yields hit a four-month high. Gold soared 8% to new record highs.

Week ahead

We expect the Fed to leave interest rates unchanged this week. Mixed signals from recent jobs and inflation data justify a “wait-and-see” stance, in our view.

Developed market (DM) government bond yields jumped last week on fresh US tariff threats. Japan’s bond selloff attracted headlines as yields hit record highs. But as the US backed off from new tariffs on Europe, DM yields fell back: immutable economic laws – like the dependence on foreign financing of US debt – came into play like last April. Our leveraging up theme plays out too, with record US investment grade debt issuance for the first full week of January, per LSEG.

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More corporate bonds coming​

Gross issuance of US investment grade bonds, 2011-2026

The chart shows US investment grade bond issuance hitting a record $1.85 trillion this year, driven by a surge in corporate bond sales, partly tied to the AI buildout.

Forward-looking estimates may not come to pass. Source: BlackRock Investment Institute, with data from BlackRock Capital Markets and Credit Flow Research. Note: Gross bond issuance is the total amount of new corporate bonds sold in the primary market, before accounting for redemptions.

Bond markets have started 2026 in a bumpy fashion. DM government bond yields jumped, particularly in Japan, with historic spikes in 30- and 40-year yields. We see the jump as primarily a global story driven by renewed US tariff threats to Europe. The quick walk-back of those threats underscored how geopolitics – and US trade policy – is colliding with immutable economic laws that constrain policy swings. Another feature of this fixed income environment: an expected surge in US corporate bond sales, partly tied to the AI buildout, with BlackRock’s global markets team seeing US investment grade bond issuance hitting a record $1.85 trillion this year. See the chart. This shows the leveraging up theme from our 2026 Outlook at play: greater leverage can create vulnerabilities that expose the financial system to shocks like government bond yield spikes.

We think last week’s bond market volatility is ultimately a global story driven by US tariff threats, with the impact amplified in the more-volatile Japanese government bond (JGB) market by technical factors: new fiscal worries after a snap election was called and a weak auction of long-term bonds. Yet US trade policy again ran into an immutable economic law: the US’s need for sizeable foreign investment to finance its debt in a world shaped by greater bond supply and higher-for-longer interest rates. Any spike in long-term bond yields can heighten debt sustainability concerns, repeatedly leading to a moderation of policy extremes over the past year. In this environment, bonds no longer provide the same level of portfolio ballast, keeping us tactically underweight long-term JGBs since 2023, and long-term US Treasuries since December 2025.

Immutable economic laws can limit extreme outcomes

Also playing out in bond markets this year: our leveraging up theme. The risk of surging bond yields comes against a US corporate sector leveraging up to fund the AI buildout. Unlike the public sector, US corporates have room for more leverage. Public and private balance sheets have diverged sharply since the 2000s, with government debt surging to post-World War II highs while corporate leverage eases, US government and LSEG data show. And unlike the run-up to the dot-com bubble, the mostly mega cap tech companies powering the AI buildout are issuing from a position of strength, we think. But more leverage throughout the financial system makes it more vulnerable to shocks, such as bond yield spikes tied to fiscal concerns like those that we saw in Japan last week and policy tensions between managing inflation and debt servicing costs.

This shapes our fixed income views. Greater investment grade (IG) bond issuance this year is one reason we prefer high yield bonds over IG, and within IG short-term over long-term credit. We like mortgage-backed securities offering similar risk but higher income versus US Treasuries. We also like emerging market debt (EMD) that we see benefiting from EM countries delivering improved fiscal and monetary policy, as well as a weaker US dollar. In private credit, we favor direct lending, especially established and large borrowers who can better underwrite deals, in our view.

Our bottom line

Immutable laws again limited policy extremes after a brief jump in bond yields. We are underweight long-term DM government bonds. We favor mortgage-backed securities, emerging market bonds and stay selective in credit.

Market backdrop

The S&P 500 slipped slightly in a volatile week but is still up about 1% this month. US President Donald Trump threatened tariffs on European countries over Greenland before calling them off and saying an agreement had been struck. South Korean stocks rose 3% and have climbed 18% this year. US 10-year Treasury yields jumped to a four-month high near 4.30%. Gold was the winner over geopolitical uncertainty, soaring 8% on the week to a fresh record.

The Fed’s rate decision is this week’s main event. We think the Fed will leave interest rates unchanged given mixed signals from recent jobs and inflation data. US trade data for November will show if October’s trade deficit, a near two-decade low, will persist, potentially lifting expectations for 2025 GDP growth. Japan unemployment data will shed light on its tight labor market. We see room for more Bank of Japan hikes as it normalises monetary policy.

Week ahead

The chart shows that gold is the best performing asset year to date among a selected group of assets, while brent crude is the worst.

Past performance is not a reliable indicator of current or future results. Indexes are unmanaged and do not account for fees. It is not possible to invest directly in an index. Sources: BlackRock Investment Institute, with data from LSEG Datastream as of January 22, 2026. Notes: The two ends of the bars show the lowest and highest returns at any point year to date, and the dots represent current year-to-date returns. Emerging market (EM), high yield and global corporate investment grade (IG) returns are denominated in US dollars, and the rest in local currencies. Indexes or prices used are: spot Brent crude, ICE US Dollar Index (DXY), spot gold, spot bitcoin, MSCI Emerging Markets Index, MSCI Europe Index, LSEG Datastream 10-year benchmark government bond index (US, Germany and Italy), Bloomberg Global High Yield Index, J.P. Morgan EMBI Index, Bloomberg Global Corporate Index and MSCI USA Index.

Jan. 27

US consumer confidence

Jan. 28

US Federal Reserve policy decision

Jan. 29

US trade balance; Japan unemployment

Jan. 30

Euro area flash GDP, unemployment; US PPI

Read our past weekly commentaries here.

Big calls

Our highest conviction views on six- to 12-month (tactical) and over five-year (strategic) horizons, January 2026

Note: Views are from a US dollar perspective, January 2026. This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events or a guarantee of future results. This information should not be relied upon by the reader as research or investment advice regarding any particular funds, strategy or security.

Tactical granular views

Six- to 12-month tactical views on selected assets vs. broad global asset classes by level of conviction, January 2026

Legend Granular

We have lengthened our tactical investment horizon back to six to 12 months. The table below reflects this and, importantly, leaves aside the opportunity for alpha, or the potential to generate above-benchmark returns – especially at a time of heightened volatility.

Past performance is not a reliable indicator of current or future results. It is not possible to invest directly in an index. Note: Views are from a US dollar perspective. This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific time and is not intended to be a forecast or guarantee of future results. This information should not be relied upon as investment advice regarding any particular fund, strategy or security.

Euro-denominated tactical granular views

Six to 12-month tactical views on selected assets vs. broad global asset classes by level of conviction, January 2026

Legend Granular

Past performance is not a reliable indicator of current or future results. It is not possible to invest directly in an index. Note: Views are from a euro perspective, January 2026. This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific time and is not intended to be a forecast or guarantee of future results. This information should not be relied upon as investment advice regarding any particular fund, strategy or security.

Meet the authors

Jean Boivin
Head – BlackRock Investment Institute
Wei Li
Global Chief Investment Strategist – BlackRock Investment Institute
Ben Powell
Chief Investment Strategist for the Middle East and APAC — BlackRock Investment Institute
Michel Dilmanian
Portfolio Strategist – BlackRock Investment Institute

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