News
Diversification Benefits Are Reasserting Themselves During this U.S. Equity Sell-off
Since mid-February, investors have been inundated with fear-inducing headlines around tariffs, recessions, and bear markets. While these headlines have been primarily focused on U.S. equities, we believe they are obscuring the re-emergence of a market dynamic that is helping mitigate that sharp pullback for investors: diversification is working again.
Handling the Emotions of Uncertainty
Technology has revolutionized our access to information. Three hundred years ago, news spread only as fast as the wind could push ships. One hundred fifty years ago, news traveled at the speed of the telegraph wire and the Pony Express. One hundred years ago, radio was all the rage. Seventy years ago, the television took the center stage. Today, cable news and the internet give us instantaneous access to information that is often presented in a way customized to our previous personal beliefs.
Tariffs – Navigating Short-Term Volatility with a Long-Term Plan
A little over a month has passed since President Trump took office, and while uncertainty remains around his policy agenda, his initial focus appears to be on redefining trade policy via tariffs. Given this, we wanted to share some thoughts on tariffs and their potential impact on the economy and markets.
Initial Reactions to the Election Outcome
Now that the final seat has been decided in the U.S. House of Representatives, we wanted to share some initial thoughts on the implications of this year’s election on our outlook for the economy, financial markets, and financial planning in 2025.
What to Expect When You’re Expecting Rate Cuts
After a little over a year of watching how their 525 basis points of interest rate increases has impacted growth and inflation, the Federal Reserve finally began its rate cut cycle yesterday. While the economy, financial markets, and your financial plan are driven by more than changes in interest rate policies, policy changes still have important implications for these key inputs into achieving your goals.
SEO Abuse on the Rise
Recently, we have noticed scammers have started using more sophisticated methods to convince user that they are legitimate. These are ways to detect these scams and avoid falling into their traps.
Turning the Fed’s Inflation Rubik’s Cube on its Head
Last week’s U.S. inflation report was highlighted by yet another modest slowdown in inflation. Stock markets reacted well to the inflation data, breaking out to new all-time highs. Yet consumer confidence – which historically tends to track closely with stock market performance – remains subdued versus its pre-COVID peak.
Interest Rates Should Not Drive How Much Cash You Hold
The highest interest rate in decades has led many investors to wonder how to best take advantage of the new-found yield from holding cash and cash-like investments. While cash plays an important role in your financial plan, the level of interest rates should not be the driving force behind how much you hold.
Time to Consider High-Quality Bonds
After a year and a half of rapid tightening by the Federal Reserve (Fed), U.S. inflation has cooled to a pace that is roughly in line with their target. This cooldown allowed the Fed to announce at their January meeting that they no longer anticipate needing to raise interest rates further and could begin to cut rates in 2024. Now might be the time to consider high-quality bonds.