%0 Journal Article %A Edward Qian %T Tactical Asset Allocation with Pairwise Strategies %D 2003 %R 10.3905/jpm.2003.319918 %J The Journal of Portfolio Management %P 39-48 %V 30 %N 1 %X An alternative approach to quantitative tactical asset allocation (TAA) is based on time series forecasting models and mean-variance optimization. The central concept is pairwise TAA, and the correct metric for assessing forecast quality is the pairwise information coefficient. TAA using mean-variance optimization is generally equivalent to a linear combination of pairwise TAA, with the relative weights of the pairs in the combination directly connected to the covariance matrix used in the optimization. TAA managers should avoid using a covariance matrix without knowing its implied pairwise weights, but instead should use pairwise information to influence the choice of the pairwise weights. The expected long-term performance of TAA strategies for a given set of pairwise weights as well as optimal sets of pairwise combinations that attain the maximum information ratio is also derived. %U https://jpm.pm-research.com/content/iijpormgmt/30/1/39.full.pdf