Long-time readers know I have not been a fan of the Chevron deference. I think it was one of the worst decisions of the last century. I've been aware of it because I'm in a regulated business.
The reason I mention silver, oil and gold is because they were the top performing commodities in the first half of 2024. Let’s dive into what’s driving these trends and what they might mean for investors.
Despite narrow market concentration, we see opportunities in high-quality stocks that haven’t yet been rewarded.
Philanthropy is not a substitute for government action in areas like health, education, and the distribution of income and wealth, but it can advance public goods and improve human well-being. The key is to design institutions that deliver the reputational benefits that donors crave.
Tariffs do more harm than good to nations that impose them.
Having hit 31 record highs since January and up more than 15% year to date, the S&P 500 is off to its best start to the year since 2019 and the best start to an election year ever, driven by mega-cap tech stocks and artificial intelligence (AI) tailwinds.
An extended period of calm means investors must be vigilant and not become complacent. However, it's not necessarily a harbinger of an impending volatility event.
The expert and you are in a car and the expert is driving. After awhile, you notice that the expert is driving the car by looking through the rearview mirror. Concerned you ask him why he’s not looking ahead as he drives.
Rebalancing events help ensure benchmarks maintain exposure to companies within their targeted asset class or markets, but the rebalancing can also impact investment portfolios.
As part of our annual tradition, we’ve reached out to Russell Investments’ associate base to come up with four recommended books for this year’s summer reading list. Below are our choices, which cover a wide variety of topics, including leadership development, diversity and inclusion and the artificial intelligence revolution.
If you told me at the beginning of the year that we were going to go from starting with six interest-rate cuts to now we’re hoping to get one, I would be shocked to say that the equity markets are up 15%.
Today, large-cap stocks are in a favorable position as the stock market rally is broadening. Since the beginning of 2023, large-cap stocks have contributed an impressive 60 percent of the S&P 500's 40.5 percent return.
We’re borrowing from the upcoming Paris Summer Olympics for our quarterly theme – with a twist. Instead of using the most popular events (like gymnastics, swimming, and track & field) to express our views, we’ll go beyond the spotlight.
Ongoing budget deficits linger amid the post-COVID economic recovery. While markets appear unconcerned now, the accumulation of debt may exhaust investor patience. Anxiety about the sustainability of the nation’s debt could escalate with the upcoming elections in November. In part one of our series, let’s look at fiscal policy and Treasury debt.
Taking a closer look at the different types of active ETFs is important for investors. While many active ETFs incorporate some dynamic investment elements, their management philosophies can differ significantly and that has implications for their performance, risk profile, and alignment with investors’ financial goals.
The mid- to long-term costs of missed opportunities by staying in cash mean investors should consider moving off the cash sidelines.
Some experts believe favorable seasonality could kick in for bitcoin now that the calendar has turned to July.
Owning only the U.S. stock market likely means being overweight Tech. But Tech stocks don't always outperform. Investors may want to look outside the U.S. to be diversified.
In this piece, we attempt to answer a number of questions we have gotten from clients about the impacts that rising levels of passive investing may have had on the stock market.
Don’t miss out. Prepare to take advantage of opportunities in the second half.
June of 2024 was a good month for financial markets. Leading the pack were (again) technology stocks, with the NASDAQ up 6% on the month. Close in second place were emerging market ex-China stocks, largely driven by India, Taiwan, and South Korea, all of which had large rallies in the month.
On the latest edition of Market Week in Review, Senior Director and Chief Investment Strategist for North America, Paul Eitelman, and Regional Director for North America Advisor & Intermediary Solutions, Lam Guluka, discussed key market themes from the second quarter.
Making a case for emerging markets (EM) investing has never been straightforward.
Doug Drabik discusses fixed income market conditions and offers insight for bond investors.
In 1539, 30 years after San Juan was founded, the Spanish began building defenses of its harbor on the northern shore of Puerto Rico. Construction continued for another 250 years. Now that’s a long time-horizon! The mammoth fort known as Castillo San Felipe del Morro (or “El Morro”) is still standing.
We are contrarians and oddly crave the moments when history, psychology and mathematics get defied in the U.S. stock market. We believe this is one of those points in time.
Economic indicators are released every week to provide insight into the overall health and performance of an economy.
Key Takeaways
Financial advisors get a bad rap. Some deserve it; most don’t. The problem for the entire investment advisory and portfolio management community stems from the “career risk” they inevitably face.
The Generation X report released by Natixis Investment Managers included a check of investment sentiment and opportunities for advisors.
VettaFi looks at U.S. energy independence and the role the U.S. plays as a global energy supplier.
The presidential debate was the big story of the week and revealed a mild market preference for former President Trump. Notably, during the 90 minutes of the debate when there was no other market news, S&P 500 Futures rose 10 points, due to Trump’s business-friendly policies despite his higher-policy unpredictability.
We review the key themes of the first half of a busy year.
In 1852, Karl Marx said "Men make their own history, but they do not make it as they please; they do not make it under circumstances chosen by themselves, but under circumstances directly encountered and transmitted from the past."
In this video, Chuck Carnevale, Co-Founder of FAST Graphs, aka Mr. Valuation will showcase 10 blue-chip dividend growth stocks with yields above 3%, the opportunity for those yields to continue growing in the future and where we can be very certain that the dividend is safe.
Although this missive is tabbed as a 3rd quarter expository, it strikes home more as a 2025 conundrum because contained in the current data is a cause and effect that we believe is clearly being overlooked. Let’s begin with the fact that the stock market averages are trading at record highs.
Investors have been so preoccupied with Fed policy that they missed the economy sticking the soft landing.
Goldman Sachs recently upped its price target to S&P 6300 for the end of this year, along with Evercore ISI upping its year-end target to 6000. Such is not surprising given the strong run in the markets this year.
The giant federal debt we’ve been talking about isn’t just borrowed money. It is also lent money. Loans are two-party transactions. One side receives temporary use of cash which it agrees to repay with interest. The other gives up the current use of that cash in exchange for receiving interest. Ideally, it works out for both… but not always.
This week I had the privilege of participating in a YPO (Young Presidents’ Organization) event held in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. One of the main topics of discussion was investment opportunities in neighboring Zambia, a country that, despite its challenges, is a rising star on the African continent, due largely to its copper exports.
Rick Rieder and team argue that the economy is making further progress towards normalization and continues to offer a once-in-a-generation investing opportunity, which isn’t adequately represented by the benchmarks.
Initial rate cuts by the European Central Bank and Bank of Canada may signal a transformative trend toward monetary easing.
Retail trade sales in the U.S. are reported by distribution channel. For example, gasoline sales are reported through the gasoline stations distribution channel, although those gasoline stations’ sales also include everything else sold at gasoline station convenience stores, i.e., hot dogs, tobacco, sodas, gum, chips, coffee, etc.
How to help position your portfolio in anticipation of an economic downturn.
Investors of all stripes are getting increasingly acquainted with the AI megatrend, but some may not realize the depth therein.
The Asian high-yield market is evolving faster than investor perceptions.
Looking to assess your portfolio for the current inflation outlook? Natixis Investment Managers' Cyclicality vs. Inflation outlook can help.
Adapting to the new cycles requires swift operational changes, making the guidance of experienced managers crucial.
U.S. corporate pension plan sponsors are required to measure their plan liabilities for a few important purposes.
Sour sentiment toward emerging-market stocks is obscuring uncommon opportunities for equity investors.
