Bloomberg’s New Markets Live Blog Provides Analysis and Commentary on Macro Trends

Thousands of terminal users have a new screen on their custom desktop featuring Bloomberg’s new Markets Live blog. As global uncertainty persists, the blog’s dedicated team of reporters and strategists provide instant commentary and analysis on the major themes affecting markets, connecting the dots between all asset classes. We recently sat down with Michael P. Regan, a longtime Bloomberg editor and Gadfly columnist who is leading the project, to get the scoop on what it’s all about.

Q. What exactly is Markets Live?
A. Markets Live is a new way for Bloomberg subscribers to follow trends, analysis and commentary on various markets in real time, all in one place. It’s a blog that is updated 24 hours a day, starting Monday morning in Asia and ending with the close of U.S. markets on Friday afternoons.

Q. Why did Markets Live launch this year? Was there a demand for this type of product?
A. It happened to be a great time to launch a macro-focused blog. The tectonic plates of global markets have shifted noticeably recently, with the election of Donald Trump, the Brexit vote and other assorted populist movements threatening to disrupt the longstanding order of the global economy. At the same time, the Federal Reserve is moving away from the record-low interest rates that dominated market discussions and trading decisions for the better part of a decade. All this means there is a heightened interest in the sort of macro, cross-asset commentary this blog specializes in.

Q. What can you tell us about the other members of the team? Are they all veteran Bloomberg journalists like yourself?
A. There about 20 of us in total, located in New York, London, Moscow, Singapore, Hong Kong, Sydney and Santiago, Chile. We also occasionally publish posts from reporters, analysts and editors from Bloomberg News and Bloomberg Intelligence. Many of us on the blog full-time are veteran and accomplished financial journalists, but there are also several members of the team who spent most of their careers actually trading and managing portfolios at various banks and hedge funds. The journalists and traders may tap into different instincts when it comes to how they approach blogging, but the two approaches complement each other very well.

Q. Do bloggers make recommendations or predictions about the market?
A. No. The goal is to be macro-focused, looking at the most-traded asset classes around the world and the way they relate to one another and the economy in general. Our analysis draws on the vast amount of Bloomberg data to provide insights into patterns and linkages that are relevant to today’s markets. Does the stock market look expensive compared with the bond market? What does the difference in interest rates between country A and B portend for the exchange rate between their currencies? What does all the short-selling in the Treasuries market mean for the path of interest rates? Are the markets over-reacting to the latest hint from the Federal Reserve about its plans? What do moves in currency markets mean for stocks and commodities? These are the types of questions we’re trying to answer.

Q. What’s been the customer response so far?
A. The blog is one of our fastest growing news products and thousands of customers have it installed on their Launchpads. Here’s one example of the type of reader feedback we’ve received: “I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate the Markets Live blog! I’ve added to one of my key Launchpad pages. Super-interesting items and analysis/ commentary, thank you very much for your time and effort :)”

Q. Where can users find Markets Live on the Bloomberg Terminal?
A. I’m glad you asked! We’re blogging away, 24 hours a day, at MLIV <GO>. It’s also available in TOP <GO>.