August 2024
Summary August typically brings calmer markets and light trading volumes, with investor interests skewed more towards wrapping up the last of summer vacations. In this sense, August 2024 was anything but typical. Surprise activity from the Bank of Japan thrust global markets briefly into chaos before a just-as-abrupt rebound. Cooler inflation and negative jobs revisions…
Read MoreBuckle Up: A Wild Ride Part 2
Photo credit: Unsplash Unprecedented Movements in the Market: What’s Happening? In early August 2024 stock markets around the world declined precipitously, ending what seemed to be a never-ending low volatility trading environment. From peak to trough, the S&P 500 index declined approximately 10% in a handful of trading days; the volatility index as measured by…
Read MoreWhat’s the Cure for Fed Fatigue: Would You Believe Math?
photo credit: Unsplash How fixed income investing can alleviate interest rate stress and how you can forecast fixed income returns. Do you suffer from Fed Fatigue? The Federal Reserve Bank has dominated financial headlines lately. Will they, or won’t they? Do they dare drop rates? Will stubborn inflation take rates higher? It’s tiring to predict…
Read MoreJuly 2024
Summary July was a remarkable and volatile month, as stocks were mixed and bonds generated positive returns. Large cap stocks saw their first 2% single-day drawdown of the year and many of the big tech names which drove 2024’s AI-fueled rally sold off during July, while the Russell 1000 still managed to finish the month…
Read MoreHow Did You Get There?
photo credit: Unsplash Ernest Hemingway asked this question through a key character in his book “The Sun Also Rises.” The question was: “How did you go bankrupt?” The answer: “Two ways. Gradually, then suddenly.” The response, “gradually then suddenly,” is a great encouragement and a caution to us. It never ceases to amaze how this…
Read MoreFiscal Dominance: How Pension Plan Sponsors May Have to Adapt
Photo credit: Pixabay Buckets of federal spending are swamping conventional inflation fighting tools. What plan sponsors should know. Option A: The increasing price of milk, bacon or a fast-food burger may be common dinner table discussions these days. Not so often do you hear talk of fiscal dominance and yet, the concept holds significant implications…
Read MoreJune 2024
Summary Stocks were mixed in June and interest rates rallied in the month to what’s becoming a familiar tune – data indicating a slowing economy and inflation that is gradually declining. In the U.S., unemployment ticked up slightly and the housing market continued to cool, leading markets to price in more optimism for a Fed…
Read MoreSecure Act 2.0 Student Loan Match – Lightening the Student Debt Load to SECURE a Better Retirement
photo credit: istock “A hundred wagonloads of thoughts will not pay a single ounce of debt.” – Italian proverb As of 2023, 43 million Americans held $1.6 trillion[i] in student loan debt. That’s a wagonload of debt accumulated in the pursuit of higher thought. That burden of student loan debt is hindering retirement savings. Case…
Read MoreMay 2024
Summary Investors who chose to follow the old market adage of “Sell in May and go away,” ended up disappointed, as stocks and bonds rebounded with strong performance following April’s selloff. With inflation and economic data cooling, interest rates moderated and equities rallied during the month. Equities Stocks bounced back in May as global equities…
Read MoreHappy 5/29 Day!
photo credit: Unsplash Happy 5/29 Day! Today we celebrate the 529 Plan, a college savings vehicle with tax-free withdrawals. What Is a 529 Plan? What Are the Benefits? This beneficial tax treatment comes with a few strings attached: While not federally tax deductible, contributions in certain states are state income tax deductible The money must…
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