CITIC Securities: Maintain the view that U.S. stocks will outperform U.S. bonds and the U.S. Dollar Index is supported

The U.S. economy may continue to experience uneven moderate growth within the year, while the weak recovery pace of the EU economy is being delayed, and private demand in Japan is inevitably disturbed by energy shortages. High oil prices are already pushing up global inflation. Overall inflation rates in Europe and the U.S. may fluctuate at high levels during the year, while Japan's headline inflation might remain moderate. The Federal Reserve is unlikely to cut interest rates this year, while potential rate hikes by the European and Japanese central banks are imminent. The "unrestrained" fiscal positions in Japanese and European politics could become sources of market risk this year. We maintain our view that U.S. equities are preferable to U.S. bonds and that the U.S. Dollar Index is supported, while gold prices are expected to recover from their dilemma as tail risks of inflation subside.