Mutual Funds

Markets were rattled by tariff announcements in early April. Here are three takeaways for investors considering preferred securities, investment-grade and high-yield corporate bonds.

In nominal terms, the yellow metal set multiple new all-time highs this week, exceeding $3,300 an ounce for the first time ever on Wednesday. And on an inflation-adjusted basis, gold also notched a new record price, surpassing the longstanding record set in 1980.

U.S. trade policy has evolved significantly in a matter of weeks.

Emerging-market (EM) stocks might not seem an obvious choice for anxious investors during a trade war. But history suggests that past volatility peaks have created favorable moments to invest in EM stocks.

The first quarter of 2025 marked a significant departure from the preceding two years, which had been characterized by an improving global economy and correspondingly positive market returns. Market performance in Q1 was dominated by abrupt, short-term policy shifts rather than longer-term economic trends, and tariffs became the foremost concern for market participants.

Less favorable seasonal technicals, increased focus on municipal-specific policy risks, and severe volatility spurred by higher-than-anticipated tariff increases weighed heavily
on sentiment and resulted in deeply negative total returns and significant underperformance versus Treasuries in March and early April.

Rapid U.S. policy changes pose challenges for investors accustomed to a global financial system anchored in U.S. markets and assets.

Banks blew Q1 earnings expectations out of the water, benefitting from high trading volumes, but CEO commentary remains cautious for 2025.

Stock markets have been rattled by trade war tensions and economic uncertainty driven by US tariff policies. Yet history suggests that equities have usually performed well in the aftermath of peak market volatility.

Right now we are in an incredibly complicated environment with regard to U.S. tariff policy gyrations and its whipsawing impact on global equity markets. One thing we can confidently assert is that however the trade negotiations play out, there will be higher tariffs and this will be negative for U.S. growth.

One day doesn’t make a trend, but wary small-caps investors may find some comfort in knowing the Russell 2000 Index jumped 8.50% on Wednesday

While we remain open to changes in market conditions, as well as periodic “fast, furious, prone-to-failure” advances that can relieve the oversold “compression” produced by market losses, we are presently on high alert for a possibly abrupt and cascading market and economic dislocation in the weeks ahead.

Covered call strategies have been around for a very long time, but covered call ETFs have recently enjoyed a massive increase in popularity.

The month of April will unfortunately go down in financial market folklore as being one of the more noteworthy on record.

CIO Sean Taylor assesses a better-than-expected quarter for emerging markets and takes stock of the drivers that may support the asset class in what could be difficult months ahead for global markets.

Navigating market volatility can be challenging for investors. Our Bill Cass shares several tax planning strategies to consider.

Last week, the S&P 500 was up 5.7%, the strongest week for the market since November 2023.

While the US experiments with reordering the world’s trading system, uncertainty rises and volatility ensues. We are reminded of the delicate balance between safeguarding domestic interests and promoting a cooperative global trading system.

Nick Goetze discusses fixed income market conditions and offers insight for bond investors.

As we write this, stocks have bounced back as Trump retreated from electronic tariffs from China. Nevertheless, this was a remarkable week for markets with Trump’s tariff policy taking center stage for market stress across stocks, bonds and currencies.

While we continue to feel the U.S. has structural investment advantages, we are mindful that the scope of the current administration's policy shifts may present challenges to our sustained economic momentum.

The current market unrest over the potential for tariff increases and their impact is unpredictable. The volatility can be unnerving.

2025 has marked a striking reversal, with European stocks delivering exceptional returns that have handily surpassed US market performance.

SPY's recent surge of inflows showcases how advisors are using ETFs as crucial vehicles for navigating market volatility.

Markets have had a wild ride these past couple of weeks, alongside chaotic tariff-related news, with volatility (and its policy triggers) most elevated in the bond market.

On Monday, April 7, the S&P 500 dropped as much as 4.7% at the session low before whiplashing higher on reports of a potential tariff delay—closing the day up 3.4% from Friday’s close.

Swap spreads measure the difference between the interest rate on a swap and the yield on a Treasury bond with the same maturity.

Yield spreads are critical to understanding market sentiment and predicting potential stock market downturns. While yield spreads have widened, they remain well below the long-term averages. However, if recession risks increase due to tariffs, sentiment, or illiquidity, those yield spreads will widen further.

After starting the year on a high note with the S&P 500 index of U.S. Large Cap stocks posting an all-time high on February 19th, equities retreated during the second half of the quarter, officially falling into correction territory (down 10 percent) on March 13.

Another period of heightened volatility in the markets reminds us why tax management can be such an essential part of fixed income investing.

On 9 April, President Donald Trump announced a 90-day pause on the higher “add-on” reciprocal tariffs on 50-plus countries that had been announced the previous week, precipitating a historic equity market rally and showing that there was seemingly a limit to how far he would go to move forward with his trade agenda.

Spending cuts, tariffs and recession risk—Jan van Eck’s latest outlook breaks down what to watch and why he’s focused on gold, bitcoin, semiconductors and India.

Vanguard head of U.S. ETF Capital Markets Bill Coleman discussed the growing role that active ETFs are playing in portfolios.

Bonds have gained as investors sought shelter amid growing fears around a tariff-driven global economic slowdown.

The markets are in the middle of a historic decline. Not so much in the magnitude—while we are approaching a bear market, these happen fairly regularly—but in the speed of the drop.

On 2 April, the Trump administration announced sweeping tariffs that were more aggressive than many had expected. Then on 9 April, the administration announced a 90-day pause on most of the new country-specific “reciprocal tariffs.”

Markets responded swiftly to President Trump’s recent announcement of sweeping reciprocal tariffs, with the S&P 500 falling more than 3% in a single day.

Concerns about a trade war have rattled markets so far in 2025, but we believe fixed income investors need to be patient, stay defensive, and see how things evolve before making any big decisions.

Global equities faced fresh challenges in the first quarter of 2025 amid growing trade-war concerns and developments in artificial intelligence (AI).

Last week President Trump announced tariffs on nearly all US trading partners, a move that far exceeded the most pessimistic expectations of market participants.

In an era when a select group of tech behemoths has dominated market returns, investors are growing increasingly wary of the concentration risk it poses.

Markets were jolted last week after President Trump announced sweeping tariffs, including steep increases on China, Japan, and the EU, leading to a 10.5% drop in the S&P 500 over two days—an event seen only during major crises in the past 75 years.

A Wall Street axiom states that the stock markets lead the economy by about six months. While not a perfect predictor, the stock market reacts to investor expectations about future corporate earnings, economic activity, interest rates, and inflation.

With uncertainty in abundance, we think investors should avoid drastic moves.

The April 2 “reciprocal” tariff announcement has introduced a considerable amount of uncertainty and confusion about the path ahead and the end game for President Trump.

VettaFi addresses common questions on midstream/MLPs, oil prices, recessions, and tariffs following last week’s equity sell-off.

An enduring image from 2024 will be the capture of the SpaceX booster rocket by the Mechazilla robot arms on its return to Earth.

While there are no absolute winners in a trade war, there may be relative winners in the global stock market for investors to consider.