For the record, we're discussing hypotheses for market behavior and I don't think either of us have the standing to do so. That said, REITs are getting pounded which more directly reflects the sentiment on housing. The construction boom is directly linked to Trump's infrastructure plan and, from the article,China devalued its currency to the lowest level since breaking its dollar peg in 2010 in an effort to reinvigorate an overindebted, overinvested, export-dependant economy. This creates its own problem, as China's bad loan issues are exacerbated by the capital outflows encouraged by the currency weakening. Moreover, this is exactly the type of currency manipulation Trump wants the U.S. Treasury to crack down against. The iShares FTSE/Xinhua China 25 Index ETF (FXI) fell to test four-month lows on Friday, down more than 8 precent from its early October high.
I'm on the internet, that's all the standing I need! I don't see anything in those links that necessarily undercuts what I'm saying. Real estate holdings are used as refuge by wealthy Chinese, not the Chinese government. Their own country's economic woes are all the more reason to invest in something tangible and not subject to the same fluctuations. Plus, the first article you mention is mostly devoted to why you should invest in those very trusts. So doesn't exactly suggest the same level of pessimism. Trump's discussed infrastructure spending is awfully nebulous--as is typical, he has given few details, and there's a lot to suggest that it won't be implemented in the way he proposes. So I'm not convinced that such a theoretical plan is really the cause, or at least a major one.For the record, we're discussing hypotheses for market behavior and I don't think either of us have the standing to do so.