It has not been a very good calendar year for the S & P 500 . The U.S. benchmark has dropped 25% of its price so much this yr, placing it firmly in bear current market territory. And it could still slide by “a further simple 20%” from current levels, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon predicted on Monday . A sharp decrease in equity marketplaces is a familiar tale around the earth, as traders flee stocks versus a backdrop of stubbornly superior inflation and climbing fascination fees that threaten to derail world wide financial advancement. But a single index is beating the S & P 500, according to investment veteran Jeffrey Kleintop — and it’s not 1 you may expect. “Shares in the MSCI United Kingdom Index have outperformed the S & P 500 this year,” Kleintop, main global investment decision strategist at Charles Schwab, advised CNBC’s “Road Signs Asia” on Thursday. The MSCI United Kingdom Index, which features substantial and mid-cap U.K. shares, is down about 5% and 22% this 12 months, in sterling and greenback phrases respectively, according to Eikon information. The outperformance is because of to higher earnings estimates for U.K. stocks, he explained. Indeed, the U.K has been a “surprising exception” at a time when earnings estimates are slipping around the environment, Kleintop said, with earnings estimates for U.K. companies continuing to trend higher in the second half of the yr — notably when when compared to the S & P 500. “Analysts’ consensus S & P 500 EPS estimate for 2022, at about $224, has been declining considering that June. But earnings for U.K. corporations have continued to climb to around £230 [$256] from £170 at the begin of the 12 months,” he included. Kleintop mentioned that a vital purpose for U.K earnings power is the British pound’s weakness towards the U.S. greenback this yr. “Historically, earnings for U.K. firms advantage from a weak pound. At this time, the most significant share of revenues for U.K. firms are in dollars at 27% for the organizations in the MSCI United Kingdom Index, much larger than the 19% of gross sales that are in pounds,” he said. “With most expenses in lbs, the final result is that U.K. businesses are seeing a beneficial currency contribution to their earnings progress,” he additional. Although U.K. stocks may well be a relative outperformer this calendar year, the British economy continues to fight a slew of troubles , like a forex at historic lows towards the dollar, a sharp market-off in U.K. government bonds and a in close proximity to collapse in pension cash . Outperformers in a bear current market So how should really investors situation against a backdrop of world wide economic uncertainty? “For buyers, we go on to spotlight attributes of shares that are outperforming in this recessionary bear current market environment. Instead than emphasis on the just one sector that has posted gains, all this yr we have centered on ‘quality’ shares throughout sectors and international locations,” Kleintop stated. He favors brief-period shares, which he stated have been “outperforming all yr by a extensive margin.” These shares have additional rapid money flows, whereas extensive-length stocks, also acknowledged as advancement shares, derive considerably of their money flows in the more distant foreseeable future. Traders, while, are extra likely to come across brief-duration shares outside the U.S market place. They comprise about 70% of all shares on non-U.S. indexes, in accordance to Kleintop. “That is a single motive intercontinental shares are outperforming the S & P 500 by 800 foundation details calculated in area currency, even although they are lagging by 400 basis points measured in pounds thank to this year’s dollar toughness,” he mentioned.