Jane Edmondson, Head of Thematic Strategy for VettaFi interviews MUSQ Founder and CEO David Schulhof about the Index behind the MUSQ ETF, providing pure-play exposure to the global music industry.

Every week I post an update on new unemployment claims shortly after the BLS report is made available. Our focus is the four-week moving average of this rather volatile indicator. The financial press generally takes a fairly simplistic view of the latest number, and the market often reacts, for a few minutes or a few hours, to the initial estimate, which is always revised the following week.

A bull market occurs when stocks are rising, the economy is expanding, and there is overall optimism towards market conditions. On the contrary, a bear market occurs when stock prices are falling, the economy is contracting, and there is overall pessimism towards market conditions. There are a handful of theories as to where the "bear" and "bull" names originated from for describing the stock market but the one that I find the most helpful is that they are derived from the way the animals attack their opponents. A bull thrusts its horns up in the air; a bear swipes its paws down.

The latest Conference Board Leading Economic Index (LEI) decreased in May to its lowest level since April 2020. The index fell 0.5% from the previous month to 101.2. While the index does signal softer economic conditions lay ahead, the LEI is currently not signaling a recession.

Let's do some analysis of the Consumer Price Index, the best-known measure of inflation. What does inflation mean at the micro level — specifically to your household?

The S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average (Dow), and Nasdaq Composite are all stock market indexes used to measure the performance of various aspects of the U.S. stock market. The indexes generally rise and fall together, however the extent of gains or losses produced by each can differ depending on market conditions and the state of the economy.

VettaFi reviews key ETF Trends from first half of 2024. We cover active management , index innovation and the growth of alternative investing.

Consumer attitudes are measured by two monthly surveys: the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index (MCSI) and the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index (CCI). In May, the MCSI fell to its lowest level in six months at 69.1. Meanwhile, the CCI rose for the first time in four months to 102.0.

Margin debt is the amount of money an investor borrows from their broker via a margin account. Trading with a margin debt can magnify gains because an investor can benefit from the upside of any stock without having to invest 100%, resulting in greater profit. On the flip side, trading with margin debt can also exacerbate losses because if a stock's value were to depreciate, the investor may face a margin call and would need to come up with additional cash to reach the minimum requirement.

On Thursday, May 30, VettaFi will host its 2024 Alternatives Symposium. Adding alternative strategies to an investor’s portfolio can provide diversified exposure and potential for returns. VettaFi’s event will highlight the wide variety of alternative solutions that are now available for advisors.

PM Chris Davis on the deep insights he gained from Berkshire Hathaway’s Charlie Munger on successful investing, the importance of stewardship, and “living a life in a web of deserved trust”

Let's take a closer look at the latest employment report numbers on full- and part-time employment. Buried near the bottom of table A-9 of the government's employment situation summary are the numbers for full- and part-time workers, with 35-or-more hours as the arbitrary divide between the two categories. The source is the monthly current population survey (CPS) of households. The focus is on total hours worked regardless of whether the hours are from a single or multiple jobs.

The Buffett Indicator, also known as Market Capitalization to GDP Ratio is a long-term valuation indicator for stocks that has become popular in recent years, thanks to Warren Buffett. Back in 2001, he remarked in a Fortune Magazine interview that "it is probably the best single measure of where valuations stand at any given moment." It is a measure of the total market value of all publicly-traded stocks in a country divided by the country's GDP and can be used as a way to assess whether the country's stock market is undervalued, fair valued, or overvalued.

Here's an interesting set of charts that will especially resonate with those of us who follow economic and market cycles. Imagine that five years ago you invested $10,000 in the S&P 500. How much would it be worth today, with dividends reinvested but adjusted for inflation?

The S&P 500 closed March with a monthly gain of 3.10%, after a gain of 5.17% in February. After close on the last day of the month, zero of five Ivy portfolio ETFs are signaling "cash", down from last month's final single "cash" signal.

The latest hypothetical real (inflation-adjusted) annual earnings are at $50,210, down 7.3% from over 50 years ago. After adjusting for inflation, hourly earnings are below their all-time high from April 2020.

This week on Charts in Perspective, economic analyst for VettaFi, Jennifer Nash, goes over four key market valuation indicators. Based on the latest S&P 500 monthly data, the market is overvalued somewhere in the range of 89% to 149%, depending on the indicator, up from last month's 82% to 140%.

This is an interview by Robert Huebscher of Woody Brock. They discuss what it means for a nation to "go broke," the tactics a country can use to avoid insolvency, the relevance of the gold standard, and a key finding about sovereign deleveraging and its impact on its standard of living.

The BEA's core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index for January shows that core inflation continues to be above the Federal Reserve's 2% long-term target at 2.8%. The January core Consumer Price Index (CPI) release was higher, at 3.8%. The Fed is on record as using core PCE data as its primary inflation gauge. For a closer look at each of those releases, check out our latest Consumer Price Index and PCE Price Index releases.

The latest employment report showed 353,000 jobs were added in January, almost twice as much as the expected addition of 187,000 new jobs. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate remained at 3.7%. In this video, economic analyst Jennifer Nash reviews the latest employment report from January while giving her insights into the modern job market.

In this interview, Dr. Richard Haass discusses geopolitical competition, global challenges, national security and why it's important for Americans to understand these topics on a deeper level.

Jon Fee of VettaFi and Marguerita Cheng of Blue Ocean Global Wealth discuss financial planning with the next generation, the exchange conference and her Ethics Education panel.

In a recent special edition video, VettaFi’s CMO Jon Fee sat down with Senior Research Analyst Zeno Mercer to discuss all things artificial intelligence. The duo explores several topics within this technology realm to give investors and advisors a better understanding of AI’s 2023 performance overall.

In preparation for the Exchange Conference, VettaFi CMO Jon Fee sat down with Garrett Stevens, CEO of Exchange Traded Concepts, to discuss many topics surrounding the pair’s expectations for the conference in Miami in February 2024.

VettaFi’s financial futurist, Dave Nadig, and VettaFi’s Head of Research Todd Rosenbluth sat down with one another to discuss some of the highlights from the year.

VettaFi’s Financial Futurist Dave Nadig sat down with Som Seif, the founder & CEO of Purpose Investments, to give investors and advisors more insight into what is going on in Canada. In addition, the pair discussed a multitude of different topics, including Bitcoin, to help give investors a better understanding of the Canadian market overall.

Jon Fee and Dave Nadig, Financial Futurist at VettaFi talk about the ETF marketplace in Canada.

Show host, Jon fee, and Jane Edmondson, Head of Thematic Strategy at VettaFi, discuss the EQM Natural Resources Dividend Income Index (NDIVITR).

Have you registered for VettaFi’s legendary Exchange conference? Interested in what the hype is all about? Jon Fee and Dave Nadig, Financial Futurist at VettaFi discuss what you can expect from 2024’s Exchange conference.

Dave Nadig, financial futurist and Jon Fee of VettaFi discuss how to introduce principals of financial planning to the next generation and the different aspects of financial education.