John Ockerbloom: Will the market regain momentum?

Before the novel coronavirus disease, or COVID-19, dominated every business decision, the current stage in the market cycle was considered by some to be exuberant; characterized by high prices and a robust investment environment. But all that can change in an instant — and according to John Ockerbloom, U.S. head of real estate equity at Barings, a large part of that has to do with a disruption in momentum.

In February, Ockerbloom sat down with IREI in a video interview to discuss his outlook for investment opportunities and challenges going into 2020. At that time, shelter-in-place orders were nonexistent, businesses were still open, and COVID-19 was not yet classified as a pandemic. Experts like Ockerbloom were waiting to see how the situation would play out and what impact it would have on the market.

In his interview, Ockerbloom told IREI that the biggest near-term risk that he perceived was related to momentum. While many things have the potential to disrupt mome