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Crisis Investing: How 14 Different Asset Classes Performed in Times of Distress

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Crisis Investing: How 14 Different Asset Classes Performed in Times of Distress

Crisis Investing: How 14 Different Asset Classes Performed in Times of Distress

Note: to see the bigger version of this infographic, click here.

History does not repeat itself, but it often rhymes. This could not be truer for crisis investing.

Between China’s stock market and the debt troubles of Greece and Puerto Rico, it is clear that we could be entering a time of potential financial crisis.

Every situation is unique, but generally the types of asset classes that protect investors in times of crisis are not necessarily the same as those during a bull run. Therefore, it’s worth taking a look at five previous periods of distress to see the returns of conventional and alternative asset classes.

1994: Surprise Rate Hike

In 1994, the economy was recovering from a significant recession and treasury yields started to rise from the lows of the previous year. The Fed and Alan Greenspan surprised markets by tightening monetary policy with the first rate hike in five years.

Returns: Large cap (-7.75%) and small cap stocks (-9.84%) got crushed. Managed futures (4.07%), commodities (3.15%), and gold (0.28%) did okay.

1998: LTCM Goes Under

Long-Term Capital Management started off with promise as it brought in annualized returns (after fees) of 21%, 43%, and 41% in its first three years with high leverage and normal macroeconomic conditions. LTCM directors Myron Scholes and Robert Merton would share the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences in 1997. Promptly after, the hedge fund would lose $4.6 billion in four months in the aftermath of the Asian financial crisis, requiring a bailout from the Federal Reserve and various banks.

Returns: Stocks and REITs get crushed. Bonds (0.78%) and managed futures (5.61%) survive.

2000: Dotcom Bubble Bursts

Fledgling internet companies with no profits and limited revenues went public, reaping huge gains on IPOs. Prices went up and up, but eventually came crashing down in March of 2000 with the Nasdaq losing up to 70% of its peak value.

Returns: Large cap stocks (-40.33%), small cap stocks (-35.29%), private equity (-25.40%), and international stocks (-46.53%) get hammered. REITs (49.48%), bonds (19.65%), global macro (44.69%) all did well. Gold (0.47%) remained virtually unchanged.

2001: 9/11 Tragedy

Coordinated attacks on the United States shock markets, and the NYSE and Nasdaq remain closed until September 17th. Upon re-opening, the Dow drops 7%.

Returns: Almost all asset classes struggle, but gold (3.73%) got the highest return.

2008: Global Financial Crisis

Lehman Brothers goes under and the Greenspan real estate bubble crashes and burns. Excessive speculation, lenient mortgage lending, and the proliferation of derivative financial products such as credit default swaps contribute to the problem. The Fed has $29 trillion in bailout commitments while 8.8 million jobs and $19.2 trillion in household wealth are lost.

Returns: Again, most assets get crushed. It is no surprise that worst off are REITs (-63.77%). Gold continues to shine, gaining double digits (16.33%).

Original graphic by: Attain Capital

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The 50 Most Valuable Companies in the World in 2023

The world’s 50 most valuable companies represent over $25 trillion in market cap. We break this massive figure down by company and sector.

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The 50 Most Valuable Companies in the World

Market capitalization, or market cap, is one measure of a company’s value as determined by the stock market. It is easily calculated by multiplying the company’s outstanding shares by its current share price.

In this graphic, we present a treemap chart that visualizes the world’s top 50 publicly-traded companies by market cap, using data as of Aug. 16, 2023.

Editor’s note: While market capitalization is a simple way to compare publicly-traded companies, it does have some limitations. Most importantly, it does not include debt or cash in the calculation.

Data and Highlights

All of the data we used to create this graphic is included in the table below.

CompanySectorCountryMarket Cap
(USD billions)
AppleInformation Technology🇺🇸 US$2,777
MicrosoftInformation Technology🇺🇸 US$2,382
Saudi AramcoEnergy🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia$2,222
AlphabetCommunication Services🇺🇸 US$1,636
AmazonConsumer Discretionary🇺🇸 US$1,385
NVIDIAInformation Technology🇺🇸 US$1,074
Berkshire HathawayFinancials🇺🇸 US$774
Meta PlatformsCommunication Services🇺🇸 US$754
TeslaConsumer Discretionary🇺🇸 US$715
Eli LillyHealth Care🇺🇸 US$519
VisaInformation Technology🇺🇸 US$501
TSMCInformation Technology🇹🇼 Taiwan$476
UnitedHealthHealth Care🇺🇸 US$469
Johnson & JohnsonHealth Care🇺🇸 US$448
LVMHConsumer Discretionary🇫🇷 France$442
JPMorgan ChaseFinancials🇺🇸 US$436
Exxon MobilEnergy🇺🇸 US$430
WalmartConsumer Staples🇺🇸 US$429
Novo NordiskHealth Care🇩🇰 Denmark$418
TencentCommunication Services🇨🇳 China$389
MastercardInformation Technology🇺🇸 US$374
Procter & GambleConsumer Staples🇺🇸 US$361
BroadcomInformation Technology🇺🇸 US$344
SamsungInformation Technology🇰🇷 South Korea$341
Home DepotConsumer Discretionary🇺🇸 US$335
Kweichow MoutaiConsumer Staples🇨🇳 China$319
NestléConsumer Staples🇨🇭 Switzerland$319
OracleInformation Technology🇺🇸 US$313
ChevronEnergy🇺🇸 US$297
MerckHealth Care🇺🇸 US$276
AbbVieHealth Care🇺🇸 US$267
Coca-ColaConsumer Staples🇺🇸 US$262
ASMLInformation Technology🇳🇱 Netherlands$258
PepsicoConsumer Staples🇺🇸 US$249
CostcoConsumer Staples🇺🇸 US$248
L'OréalConsumer Discretionary🇫🇷 France$244
RocheHealth Care🇨🇭 Switzerland$241
International Holding CompanyFinancials🇦🇪 UAE$240
AdobeInformation Technology🇺🇸 US$235
Bank of AmericaFinancials🇺🇸 US$233
AlibabaConsumer Discretionary🇨🇳 China$228
HermèsConsumer Discretionary🇫🇷 France$227
ToyotaConsumer Discretionary🇯🇵 Japan$220
NovartisHealth Care🇨🇭 Switzerland$216
AstraZenecaHealth Care🇬🇧 UK$216
CiscoInformation Technology🇺🇸 US$216
Reliance IndustriesEnergy🇮🇳 India$213
McDonaldConsumer Discretionary🇺🇸 US$208
Thermo Fisher ScientificHealth Care🇺🇸 US$204
ShellEnergy🇬🇧 UK$204

From this data, we can see that there are only a handful of trillion dollar companies in the world, including Apple, Microsoft, Saudi Aramco, Amazon, Alphabet, and Nvidia.

Two former members of the trillion dollar club are Meta and Tesla, but both companies currently hover around the $700 billion range in terms of market capitalization. In 2022, Meta lost significant value as its earnings fell, while Tesla suffered from demand concerns.

Altogether, the 50 most valuable companies represent over $26.5 trillion in shareholder value. At a sector level, Information Technology is the most represented in the top 50, with $9.3 trillion in combined market cap. The next biggest sectors are Consumer Discretionary ($4.0 trillion) and Health Care ($3.3 trillion).

Geographical Breakdown

At a geographical level, the majority of the 50 most valuable companies are American. The following chart shows each country’s tally.

Most valuable companies by country

After the U.S., the three most represented countries are Switzerland, France, and China, with three companies apiece.

From Switzerland are companies such as Nestlé, Roche, and Novartis. The latter two are major players in the healthcare industry.

France’s companies in the top 50 list all belong to the Consumer Discretionary sector, and include fashion giants LVMH and Hermès, as well as L’Oréal, a global leader in cosmetics. Earlier this year, LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault was officially the richest person in the world with a fortune of $215 billion.

Finally, from the Chinese side are two globally-recognized names in Tencent and Alibaba. China’s third company on this list is Kweichow Moutai, a partially state-owned producer of alcoholic beverages.

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