Investors need to understand the potential physical damage from natural hazards before they can assess their financial implications.
Insurance is making national headlines in 2023 as major providers retreat from writing new policies in large parts of the country and renewal premium prices skyrocket.
The real world and the digital world are converging every day and becoming increasingly interconnected, and where the two intersect is described by some as “phygital.”
Markets improved last month across the board as interest rates pulled back on signs of slowing growth. U.S. markets were up by high-single to low-double digits, while international markets were also up by high-single digits.
New home prices are much lower than a year ago. The average price of a new home sold in October was 10.4% lower, while the median price was down 17.6%.
Our forecast for the federal funds rate has the Federal Reserve (Fed) starting to cut rates in July 2024, with a second rate cut before the end of 2024.
The global economy is still overwhelmingly powered by fossil fuels, with more than 80% of primary energy sourced from coal, oil, and gas, as of 2021.
Among Asia’s major economies, China has long been the benchmark against which other countries’ growth is measured. India, currently the continent’s third-largest economy behind China and Japan, appears poised to take the baton of economic growth leadership.
Valuations for municipal bonds are very attractive right now. And as yields remain strong, so do their fundamentals.
Money markets paid nothing. The dividend yield for the S&P 500 Index was 2%, and the 10-Year Treasury yield was stuck between 2%-3%.
The Canadian economy is buckling under the weight of higher interest rates, household debt and immigration.
The long-standing economic consensus that interest rates would remain low indefinitely, making debt cost-free, is no longer tenable. Even if inflation declines, soaring debt levels, deglobalization, and populist pressures will keep rates higher for the next decade than they were in the decade following the 2008 financial crisis.
Our outlook for 2024 is for a gradual U-shaped recovery composed of seemingly chaotic movements in economic data with turning points in policy rates and earnings growth.
Our portfolio managers field some tough questions on Pacific Tiger’s performance, its positioning and what they believe are its unique strengths for investors.
November was kind to fixed income investors as bonds posted their best month of 2023. High yield corporate debt participated in that rally as highlighted by the fact that the largest junk bond exchange traded fund is higher by nearly 4.3% over the past month.
For much of 2023, the market has tried to anticipate a Fed pivot – only to be wrongfooted several times. However, sharply higher interest rates, cooling inflation pressures and moderating wages have the market convinced that the Fed’s current tightening cycle is over.
The dearth of homes for sale has underpinned the housing market’s surprising resilience and may further lift home prices despite reduced affordability.
With more than 3,000 ETFs to cover and many new ones launching each month, it is easy to forget. For many people, S&P 500 Index-based ETFs remain the core of their portfolio. Heading into 2024, these products topped the latest monthly flow leaderboard.
Trench warfare in the early 20th century has been described as long periods of boredom punctuated by moments of terror.
I previously discussed a slate of recessionary indicators with high correlations to recessionary onsets. However, as we head into 2024, many Wall Street economists predict a “soft landing” or “no recession” outcome for the economy.
Inflation is a touchy subject, and given there are many ways to analyze it, investors should take note of the nuances that exist within the data.
Recent data point to a record shopping season for Shopify (SHOP), which saw Black Friday sales grow 22% y/y. Additional reports from Adobe Analytics show a strong $9.8 billion Black Friday season.
Even with $2.4 trillion in ETF assets spread across more than 400 ETFs, there’s a pending offering from BlackRock that caught my eye.
Back in the Great Financial Crisis era, someone quipped that the federal government had become a giant hedge fund with an army attached. That wasn’t far off. Various agencies and entities were absorbing all kinds of risky assets to stabilize an overleveraged system.
The life story of Charlie Munger, who passed away on Tuesday at age 99, serves as a shining example of the enduring American Dream, especially now at a time when many people doubt whether the promise of a better life is still intact.
In a turnaround from last year, there is renewed interest in the fixed income asset class as yields have risen. Ed Perks, CIO of Franklin Income Investors, shares his analysis of recent macro developments and where he sees opportunities for income.
Tax-loss harvesting creates an opportunity every year for advisors to turn lemons into lemonade. Advisors can realize losses that their clients experienced during the year and use them to offset realized gains in other parts of their portfolio.
Our 2023 Manager ESG Survey shows that transparency around DEI data is increasing among investment managers. The results reveal that equity product managers in particular are more inclined to share DEI data compared to managers in other asset classes.
Many advisors and investors in 2023 have turned to fixed income ETFs with an average duration of less than one year. Taking on very little interest rate risk through duration has been rewarding as well.
Generative artificial intelligence has a reliability problem. Here’s how investors can gain confidence in portfolios that deploy the technology.
After the underperformance of stocks and bonds last year, it’s no surprise that diversification strategies are a significant focus this year. Alternatives continue to garner advisor and investor interest as market dispersion grows, including managed futures and long/short strategies.
97% of corporate defined benefit (DB) plans can achieve full funding without a significant draw on corporate cash. This is an increase from the 86% noted in last year’s report.
Collateralized loan obligations, or CLOs, may be a way for advisors to enhance retail clients’ portfolios. They provide investors with access to a diverse pool of senior secured loans. While they have been primarily used by institutional clients to date, CLOs could enhance risk-adjusted returns for individual clients.
Recent labor agreements in the auto and airline industries spotlight the profitability conundrum facing US companies—and equity investors.
Franklin Templeton recently hosted due diligence meetings with financial advisors where Tony Davidow, Senior Alternatives Investment Strategist, led discussions focused on alternative investments.
Once again, larger deficits and higher debt-to-GDP ratios in rich countries have become fodder for fiscal hawks and bond vigilantes to warn of a looming crisis that will demand a return to austerity. But the case for such pessimism has no logical or historical basis.
In the wake of recent underperformance, healthcare is entering the new year with compressed valuations just as innovation picks up and a post-COVID reset winds down. That should make for a positive outlook, says Janus Henderson Portfolio Managers Andy Acker and Dan Lyons.
We hope you enjoy the latest Newsletter from Harold Evensky.
Economic conditions now are quite different from the 1970’s and still disinflationary.
In this video, Chuck Carnevale, Co-Founder of FAST Graphs, a.k.a. Mr. Valuation will explain the concept of a P/E ratio as a valuation reference using FAST Graphs for evaluating stock prices.
The likes of consumer resiliency based on the earliest readings on Black Friday sales and the degree to which the Artificial Intelligence theme continues support the idiosyncratic tendencies of the markets concentrated in the Magnificent 7.
Equities have an important role to play in a diversified allocation today, to help hedge against inflation and to navigate a lower-growth environment.
VettaFi is thrilled to announce that the ETF Express U.S. Distribution Awards will be part of Exchange in 2024. Exchange is just a few short months away. The financial services community will be gathered in Miami Beach February 11-14. Accordingly, Exchange is an ideal venue for the ETF Express awards.
The main point under contention this year will be the phase-out of fossil fuels and the limited progress achieved so far. As more businesses make net-zero commitments, there is mounting pressure for greater government support through policies and incentives.
The fourth quarter has seen a strong performance from gold. In early October, the price of gold stood at $1,820 per ounce, according to Kitco, and looked as if it would continue to drop in value as it had done the previous five months.
Real estate headlines seem to only focus on bad news right now, from remote work’s impact on offices to struggles for city center retail.
There is broad agreement that economic damages will increase with warming, but there is substantial disagreement on the magnitude of these damages.
Broad commodities have struggled this year. The S&P GSCI Index is down more than 5% year-to-date. However, there are still opportunities when investors dig a little deeper, according to Teucrium’s Senior Portfolio Specialist Jake Hanley.
Despite an increasingly challenging economic and geopolitical environment, the global economy performed better than expected over the past year. But although analysts’ projections for 2023 were too pessimistic, it appears that consensus forecasts for the coming year may have have swung too far in the opposite direction.
Drew O'Neil discusses fixed income market conditions and offers insight for bond investors.
