Originally we were going to write about a disappointing Chinese PMI in conjunction with an improving US manufacturing situation and their macro ramifications, but watching Olympic curling changed our mind. Why? Because curling made me think about how investors may respond to changing macro conditions.

Unlike other ice sports, Curling does not have a Zamboni cleaning the ice between periods (i.e. ends). Therefore ice conditions change during a match affecting the stone’s speed and curl (direction). While changes in the ice are noticeable (often dramatically so) as the match progresses, this is just part of the game. As a result you try to predict how a shot will react in a particular condition. However, strategy—looking for opportunities for good stone placements—never changes.

This is a lot like investing.  There are a lot of changes to the macro playing field occurring constantly; but we usually have no idea to what extent those changes will impact the market in aggregate. Therefore how do we investors adapt to all these changing crosscurrents on our playing field? By ignoring them in the macro and paying close attention to them in the micro. It’s exceptionally hard to predict what a decelerating Chinese manufacturing situation may do to the US economy, but it is far easier to adjust one’s earnings estimates for companies that do or wish to do business in China, such as Emerson Electric, Yum Brands or Apple. If those estimates end up being outside your risk tolerance you can adjust your positions in those names accordingly, likely leading to aggregate changes in your portfolio that reflect these changed circumstances. This often leads to a better decision making process than a top down approach–trying to divine how a perceived macro change will impact a portfolio. Therefore I’ll leave the dramatic macro calls to the talking heads on financial networks.

So like curling, its better that we pay attention to our portfolios one shot at a time than trying to predict how playing conditions will alter the game in total. Conditions in curling ice, and markets, do change but you can make adjustments to your “game” so your tactics change but not your goal—making good shots.