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 purchasing power of your investment has increased to $19,357 for an annualized real return of 13.28%.

Value continues to look cheap, however predicting when it will begin to outperform is challenging. Russ suggests one potential catalyst: an unexpected acceleration in nominal economic growth.

Valid until the market close on August 31, 2018.

The S&P 500 closed June with a monthly gain of 3.60% after a small gain of 0.48% in June. All three S&P 500 MAs are signaling "invested" and three of five Ivy Portfolio ETFs — Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (VTI), Vanguard REIT Index (VNQ), and PowerShares DB Commodity Index (DBC) — are signaling "invested".

Rieder and Brownback argue that as we depart the era of QE, where rising tides lifted all boats, the income component of total return becomes ever more vital to investor prospects.

Infrastructure is not a glamorous topic — it isn’t satirized on late-night TV, nor is it trending on social media. But the need for increased infrastructure investment is real across the globe. Given expected demographic trends, disruption by new technology and insufficient spending in the past, we at Invesco Real Estate believe infrastructure-related companies could be poised for decades of growth.

Women face at least 12 unique financial and life challenges related to long-term retirement planning. Addressing them can be overwhelming and uncomfortable. Only by understanding the issues can you develop strategies that will provide the greatest chance of achieving your clients’ goals.

The price of bitcoin surged above $8,000 on Tuesday for the first time since May after the Group of 20 (G20) meeting in Argentina concluded last weekend with little urgency to take regulatory action on cryptocurrencies. In a communiqué, finance ministers and central bank governors expressed confidence that the technology underlying alt-coins “can deliver significant benefits to the financial system and the broader economy.”

Roboadvisors don’t cause fee compression; when used correctly by advisors, they are the solution.

Recently, fears of a slowdown in global growth brought on by a trade war have led to turbulence in cyclical assets. The US Dollar has risen while commodities and emerging markets have struggled.

Recent economic data reports, while mixed, continued to paint a picture of a strengthening economy in 2Q18. This improvement, expected to be seen in the GDP report to be released this Friday, partly reflects a rebound from a “soft” 1Q18. Averaging the two quarters should show a robust pace of growth in the first half of the year.

We calculate statistics for all developed and emerging equity markets around the world. For our mid/large cap indexes, we take the top 85% of all stocks in a given region or country and convert all prices into US Dollars.

Despite plenty of news, there was little market reaction. In a summer week including many vacations, we have a modest economic calendar but plenty of earnings news.

C. Thomas Howard, PhD, is the CEO and chief investment officer at AthenaInvest, Inc., a Colorado-based investment manager. He is the co-manager of the Athena Global Tactical ETFs, a separately managed account. As of June 30, 2018, since its inception in September 2010, it has had an annualized return of 19.0%, outperforming its benchmark, the MSCI All Country World Index (ACWI) by 900 basis points. It is rated five-stars by Morningstar.

US equities have gained every month since April, and are up over 3% so far in July. Our long term view remains that SPX will make a new all-time high in the months ahead. The short term is less clear.

Russ describes the signs that gold, notoriously difficult to assess, is starting to look cheap.

Let’s investigate the market for individuals with $25 million or more to invest, discover their wants and needs, and look at ways that a firm can prepare to meet those needs.

Emerging markets equities have lagged in 2018 and throughout most of the last decade. Recent fund outflows have been extreme. Fund managers are underweight the region. Their currencies and commodities are not liked. The region is now "cheap" and it might be ready to outperform.

For much of this recovery and expansion, many have opined that this economic cycle would ultimately end very differently than those of the past. We have resisted this narrative and instead explained our belief that this cycle will indeed follow the same path and end like all others.

Topics of discussion are Economic Outlook – “It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World”, Market Outlook – “Volatility is the New Black”, Building “All Weather” Portfolios.

If your brand is failing to connect with affluent prospects, here’s a glimpse inside their minds.

In light of Fed Chairman Powell’s congressional testimony, we thought it relevant to revisit the inflation story and provide yet more evidence that the trend in inflation continues to be higher. For now, the Fed has assessed the risks to inflation and growth as balanced in both directions, which is Fed-speak for a policy that is on auto pilot.

During the second half of the year, convertibles should benefit in advancing but volatile equity markets. Convertibles have outperformed bonds during rising rate environments. Thanks to their equity characteristics, convertible securities have performed well versus bonds during periods of rising interest rates—including this most recent period.

I cannot remember a market week with so many significant events. Important economic data and testimony by Fed Chairman Powell would be a big week. But we also have the Trump/Putin meeting, the start of an important earnings season, and the daily soap opera from Washington.

As Russ explains the key to asset returns in the first half of 2018 was the dollar, not interest rates.

The potential escalation of tariffs combined with rising rates present a formidable risk for advisors and their investors in the second half of 2018. Avoid betting for or against a trade deal and build in risk managed strategies that position your investors for either outcome.

With market returns expected to be lower going forward, target-date funds that invest in passively managed underlying components are at risk of underdelivering. We think diversifying beyond traditional asset classes and tapping alpha opportunities with a multi-manager structure can increase the chances of success.

Corporate investments are the cornerstone of future growth. Yet shareholders are often seduced by buybacks and dividends. Equity investors should always make sure companies strike the right balance between deploying cash flows for short-term shareholder rewards and strategic reinvestment.

A bond allocation is like a railroad. Credit is the locomotive that generates high returns, duration the track that keeps the train in line. Take the track away and you risk running your portfolio into the ditch. That’s why duration-hedged credit strategies are dangerous.

In this issue, Research Affiliates discusses positioning for a potential inflation shock and offers insight into its collaboration with PIMCO to bring forth innovative solutions for investors.

The economic calendar is a light one, and many regular participants are on vacation. The most important data include PPI, CPI, and JOLTS, the best read on a tightening labor market.