Commentary

Fed Holds Steady, Keeps Door Open to Future Moves

After cutting rates at the past three meetings, it looks like the Federal Reserve has reached a plateau.

Commentary

Are Preferred Securities Still Attractive?

The higher yields they currently offer can be a benefit for income-oriented investors, but those yields reflect the additional risks they face.

Commentary

Q4 Tech Earnings: Will CapEx Take Bite of Profits?

Guidance and spending will be important to watch as analysts have their eyes on annual revenue growth, especially after news of DeepSeek shocked U.S. markets.

Commentary

Tariffs: Bark Worse Than Bite?

Markets responded positively during Trump's first week in office, despite threats of tariffs on the three largest trading partners of the U.S. Are trade risks being dismissed?

Commentary

Hard to Handle: A Look at Hard vs. Soft Data

Some soft data metrics have started to rebound sharply and catch back up to relatively resilient hard data, but it's too soon to say whether the gap is definitively closing.

Commentary

Are California Fires a Risk to the Muni Market?

The wildfires may affect some municipal bond issuers in the devastated areas, but the impact to other California bonds or to the broader muni market is likely limited.

Commentary

Schwab Market Perspective: Markets vs. Economy

Strong U.S. economic data has spurred a strong rise in Treasury yields but a tepid response in the stock market. Uncertainty likely will continue in coming months.

Commentary

New Congress Faces Massive Policy Agenda

Donald Trump and Republicans support sweeping changes that could affect the economy, markets and investors. But narrow margins in Congress could complicate that agenda.

Commentary

What's Ahead for China in 2025?

Economic data and policies out of China are typically delayed until mid-March. Stock volatility may be prevalent until initiatives are clarified after the Lunar New Year.

Commentary

Treasury Bonds: Riding the Range

Yields may trade in a wide range as markets work through issues in the new year. Navigating volatility may mean capturing higher nominal and real yields over the longer term.

Commentary

It Was a Very Good Year

Stocks are coming off another banner year, but strength has bred a frothy sentiment environment, which continues to loom as a risk for likely coming volatility.

Commentary

Schwab's 2025 Long-Term Capital Market Expectations

Continuing last year's trend, our 2025 outlook shows fixed income benefiting from high rates, while equities face a narrowing edge over risk-free investments.

Commentary

Stocks Rise in Shortened Session

Today often kicks off the Santa Claus rally. Stocks rose and volatility is down sharply from recent peaks, but yields keep rising, which has hurt the non-tech part of the market.

Commentary

Fed Cuts Interest Rate, Projects Fewer Cuts Ahead

With economic growth rising at a stronger rate than expected for this part of the cycle and inflation holding above the 2.0% target, the Fed appears more cautious about the need for rate cuts.

Commentary

Stocks Plunge After Fed Outlook Disappoints

U.S. stocks retreated as the Fed indicated it likely would lower rates only twice in 2025. The Dow dropped more than 1,000 points, and the S&P slid almost 3%. The Nasdaq lost 3.6%.