Company: PIM
Filing Date: 2025-12-01
Form Type: N-CSR
Source: 0001133228-25-012988
Chunk: 2

Company: PUTNAM MASTER INTERMEDIATE INCOME TRUST
Filing Date: 2025-12-01
Form: N-CSR
Chunk 2
---
credit

default,

total

return

and

interest

rate

swap

contracts,

for

hedging

and

non-hedging

purposes

and

to

obtain

leverage.

#### Q.

#### What

#### were

#### the

#### overall

#### market

#### conditions

#### during

#### the

#### Fund's

#### reporting

#### period?

#### A.
Over

the

past

12

months,

market

conditions

were

shaped

by

shifting

sentiment

around

U.S.

trade

policy

and

fiscal

dynamics.

In

late

2024,

attention

centered

on

the

presidential

election,

leading

to

increased

volatility

and

spread

widening

in

corporate

credit.

Following

the

election,

markets

shifted

to

a

risk-on

tone,

volatility

declined,

and

investment-grade

corporate

spreads

returned

to

20-year

lows.

In

early

2025,

sentiment

reversed

as

investors

assessed

the

new

administration’s

actions.

Spreads

widened,

particularly

in

corporate

credit,

pressuring

fixed

income

returns.

In

early

April,

trade

policy

dominated

headlines

as

the

President

announced

broad

tariff

increases,

impacting

major

trading

partners.

This

triggered

a

global

sell-off

in

equities

and

spread

products.

However,

most

tariffs

were

paused

for

90

days

to

allow

negotiations,

prompting

a

market

rebound

and

strong

second

quarter

finish.

Market

sentiment

improved

across

the

third

quarter

of

2025

due

to

a

partial

resolution

of

some

of

the

outstanding

trade

policy

concerns

and

a

25-basis

point

(bps)

rate

cut

by

the

U.S.

Federal

Reserve

(Fed).

This

bolstered

markets

which

viewed

that

the

cut

was

addressing

some

of

the

weakening

economic

measures,

such

as

the

status