Macro-Regime AA

monthly rebalance Latest month-end signal: 2026-07-31
1Y Return
22.1%
vs 60/40
+7.5%
1Y Max DD
-8.9%
CAGR
11.4%
Sharpe
0.76

Current Allocation

SPY 100%
Category Security Ticker Weight vs prev month-end
Cash Cash (SHY/T-bills) Cash 0.0% 0.0%p
Equity SPDR S&P 500 SPY 100.0% 0.0%p

Weight change vs previous month-end rebalance (2026-05-31).

Performance vs 60/40

Macro-Regime performance chart

Drawdown

Macro-Regime drawdown chart

Allocation History

Macro-Regime allocation history

Latest month-end signals

Signals are evaluated once a month at month-end; they do not update intraday.

Signal Security IndicatorStatusSignal Date
Market Trend SPY: 745.76 vs SMA10M: 701.58BULLISH2026-07-31
Economic Trend UNRATE: 4.3% vs 12M MA: 4.32%OK2026-07-31
Regime Holding: SPYRISK-ON2026-07-31

Strategy Details

Inspired by Philosophical Economics' "Growth-Trend Timing" approach (~2016). This is the simplest strategy in the set: a binary regime switch between 100% equities and 100% Treasuries. It combines a market trend signal (SPY vs. its moving average) with an economic signal (unemployment rate trend). The key insight is that both signals must be bearish simultaneously to trigger a risk-off switch. A rising market OR a healthy economy is enough to stay in equities. This "both must agree" filter dramatically reduces false signals compared to trend-only models.

Asset Universe

Risk-ON Asset
SPY (US equity — S&P 500)
Risk-OFF Asset
IEF (7-10 Year US Treasuries)

Scoring Formula

Two independent signals: (1) SPY price vs. 10-month SMA, (2) US unemployment rate (UNRATE) vs. its 12-month moving average

Decision Rules

  1. Signal 1 — Market Trend: SPY > 10M SMA → bullish
  2. Signal 2 — Economic Trend: UNRATE > 12M MA → deteriorating (bearish)
  3. RISK-ON (100% SPY): if market trend is bullish OR economy is not deteriorating
  4. RISK-OFF (100% IEF): only when BOTH market is bearish AND economy is deteriorating
  5. Requires dual confirmation to exit equities — reduces false signals
Rebalancing: Monthly, end of month

Signal Charts (1Y)

Market Trend — SPY vs 10-month SMA

SPY price vs 10-month SMA, 1-year window

Economic Trend — Unemployment vs 12-month MA

Unemployment rate vs 12-month moving average

Risk-OFF (100% IEF) triggers only when BOTH signals are bearish: SPY below its 10M SMA AND unemployment above its 12M MA.

Source

Philosophical Economics, 'Growth-Trend Timing' (~2016); various adaptations of unemployment-based regime switching — Paper

Caveats

  • Standard backtest caveats apply: no slippage modeled beyond 5bps cost, dividends reinvested via adjusted prices.

Data: Alpha Vantage (prices), FRED (unemployment). Transaction cost: 5bps/trade. Backtest: 2003-01-31 to 2026-07-01. Generated: 2026-07-02 09:30:55.