It has been 15 years since Tim Albrecht assumed responsibility for the DWS Deutschland fund. In July 2002, the volume of the equity fund, which had been badly battered by the tech bubble, stood at a mere 200 million euros. Today, investors entrust seven billion euros to the Head of German, Austrian and Swiss Equities.

We see further strength in Japanese equities after their recent rally, given an encouraging earnings outlook, relatively low valuations and a stable yen under Japan's ultra-easy monetary policy.

Risk assets range-traded before rallying after Yellen's dovish testimony before Congress and amid positive economic prints in the U.S. and Eurozone. Releases in the U.S. suggested healthy activity and job growth.

The meeting between President Trump and President Xi in April removes a cloud hanging over the equity market. This comes at a time when fears over debt levels have been well discounted, while growth appears to have stabilised nicely at a relatively high level. Furthermore, corporate earnings are starting to surprise positively.

According to Richard Turnill, BlackRock's Global Chief Investment Strategist, if we look at the earnings yield of U.S. equities — the implied yield in earnings estimates that makes potential returns comparable to bond yields. U.S. equities look expensive on this basis. But compared with historically low bond yields, U.S. equities still look cheap.