Northern Trust Makes Biggest Equities Bet Since 2008 on Economy

Northern Trust Corp., the asset manager that oversees $803 billion, is making its biggest bet on equities since 2008 on signs of economic revivals across the world’s largest developed markets.

The money manager’s stock positions outweigh the benchmarks it tracks by 11 percentage points, the highest level in five years, while its bond investments trail by 9 points, according to chief investment strategist Jim McDonald. He’s buying European and Japanese shares as those economies strengthen, while predicting that the U.S. Federal Reserve will reduce its monthly bond-buying more slowly than most investors expect.