Buy Food, Eye Care; Steer Clear of Autos

Food and farming plays like Monsanto, Potash, Yara and Syngenta are good buys, along with health-care stocks such as Essilor, Stephen Pope, chief global market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald Europe, told CNBC.

But investors should avoid auto stocks "like the plague," Pope said.

There could be another food shortage next year, Pope told "Worldwide Exchange," adding that "American farming communities do not have a problem with credit lines."

Potash, which produces fertilizers, and American agricultural-biotechnology firm Monsanto are two companies set to do well under the current conditions, Pope said.

(Watch Pope's full CNBC interview above - he thinks the market is over the worst).

European firms that could benefit in the same sector include Yara and Syngenta, Pope added.

Another growing issue that Pope identifies for the coming year is eye care. This health-care niche often gets overlooked and an ageing population means it will grow in importance, Pope said.

He picked France's Essilor as "a very strong name."

One sector Pope warned investors to avoid is automakers.

"Car companies are going to hell in a hand cart and they do not deserve any government money," he said, adding he had taken German's Volkswagen off his "buy" list.

Disclaimer