MSCI momentum gauge outperforms MSCI All Country World Index by 17 points, best streak since 1991

Buying stocks that are already going up is delivering its best returns in over three decades, and AI enthusiasm is the rocket fuel.

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Add us on Google by Editorial Team May. 26, 2026

The simplest strategy in investing, buying things that are already going up, is currently printing money at a rate not seen in more than three decades. MSCI’s global momentum gauge has outperformed the MSCI All Country World Index by 17 percentage points since the end of March 2026.

That gap represents the strongest two-month outperformance streak on record since Bloomberg started tracking this data in 1991. The engine behind it is exactly what you’d expect: AI stocks, and the herd of investors stampeding toward them.

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Momentum investing is having its moment

Here’s how momentum investing works. The MSCI ACWI Momentum Index uses a rules-based approach that selects and weights stocks based on their recent price performance while ensuring adequate liquidity. In English: it buys the winners and rides them higher.

The bubble question nobody wants to answer

Hao Hong, a prominent market strategist, projects that momentum will continue for a few more months, though he expects high volatility along the way.

Jun Bei Liu has been more blunt, warning about the risk of bubbles forming across various areas. Liu’s concern centers on investors neglecting prevailing macroeconomic developments while chasing the AI narrative.

What this means for crypto investors

The 2022 downturn demonstrated this pattern clearly. Tech stocks rolled over, growth-oriented factor strategies cratered, and crypto followed. The correlation between high-beta equity strategies and digital assets tends to spike during exactly the kind of stress events that end momentum runs.

For crypto-focused investors, the practical takeaway is to monitor equity volatility as a leading indicator. A sharp reversal in MSCI momentum factor performance, especially one triggered by macro fundamentals rather than sector-specific news, would be a meaningful signal that broader risk appetite is shifting.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.