"First quarter earnings will be difficult," warns JPMorgan's global head of equity strategy, suggesting investors consider reducing market exposure and/or "consider buying protection." While Rees is not quite as directly 'sell-it-all ' - adding that he hopes H2 earnings will pick up - his overall message, beneath the JPM vineer, is not bullishly biased. "We are not chasing the oil rally," Rees adds, noting the technical short-covering nature of this most recent move, adding that "the worst is not behind us."