This article reviews historical and contemporary attempts by world leaders—from Nixon's price controls to European energy subsidies—to contain costs, ultimately illustrating the limits of policy intervention in combating inflation. While some measures provided temporary relief, the persistent challenge of high prices remains a central political concern.
Despite facing rising tariffs and trade barriers globally since the U.S.-China trade war began in 2017, Chinese exports have surprisingly continued to grow. Total annual exports have expanded by 58% since 2017, reaching a staggering $3.58 trillion, which is a performance far better than many analysts predicted given the severity of the trade conflict.
Retail earnings ahead of Black Friday show a clear split: value-focused discounters like TJX and Walmart are thriving, while Target and home improvement stores struggle with consumer pullback on discretionary items. This shift reflects broader economic pressure, as consumers trade down due to high prices, weakening income sentiment, and increased reliance on credit.
The ALPS Electrification Infrastructure ETF (ELFY) is drawing investor attention as U.S. electricity demand heads for its fastest growth in decades, driven by artificial intelligence data centers, manufacturing reshoring, and expanding electric vehicle infrastructure.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang turned heads earlier this month when he told the Financial Times he believes China will win the artificial intelligence (AI) arms race due to the country’s expanding power capacity and lack of regulatory bottlenecks that slow things down here in the U.S.
Amid concerns that the traditional 60/40 investment mix no longer works, financial experts are recommending a 20 percent allocation to gold as a necessary portfolio adjustment. This shift is driven by the fact that gold is increasingly viewed as the most reliable hedge against inflation and government spending, unlike bonds which have lost their safe-haven status. Consequently, investors are initiating a "quiet revolution" by moving billions into gold ETFs.
Bitcoin miners are landing contracts with some of the world’s largest technology companies. This happens as they pivot from cryptocurrency mining to artificial intelligence infrastructure, according to recent research from CoinShares.
In this new series, Chuck Carnevale, co-founder of FAST Graphs and widely known as “Mr. Valuation”, begins the process of constructing a F.I.R.E. Dividend Growth Portfolio from the ground up. F.I.R.E., which stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early, is built on the idea of creating enough growing income to eventually support early retirement.
Returns from emerging market bonds hinge on five factors, our economic research suggests. And for the first time in two decades, four of these are now favourable, heralding a new phase of outperformance for the asset class.
While financial innovations often emerge on the system’s periphery, beyond the reach of regulation, if they prove to be systemically important, they end up being integrated into the system’s regulated core. Stablecoins are likely to follow this trajectory.
Although the September employment report surprised to the upside, the overall stance of the US labor market remains weak, something that was underscored by the third consecutive increase in the rate of unemployment, from 4.1% in June to 4.4% in September.
Transitioning to an independent RIA model involves complex challenges, from navigating compliance and non-solicitation agreements to setting up scalable technology. This article highlights how specialist partners, specifically Terrana Group’s Advisor Transition Consultants, provide the strategic guidance and hands-on support needed for a seamless and profitable move.
After a gangbuster stock market rally since the early-April lows, many of the prior highfliers have taken a breather amid AI bubble and valuation concerns.
Many of you may have recently seen a chart circulating on the internet suggesting a nationwide collapse in home prices is on the way, that we are in the “biggest bubble in history,” the collapse is “inevitable and nothing can stop it.”
Markets traded with an unusual mix of strong micro data and fragile macro sentiment last week and nowhere was that clearer than the reaction to Nvidia’s excellent earnings. The fundamentals showed strong demand, a robust product cycle, and clean forward guidance—yet the stock slumped after an early surge.
The U.S. economy’s recent growth has a distinctive engine: large‑scale capital expenditures (capex) tied to artificial intelligence (AI). Firms such as Microsoft, Alphabet (Google), Meta Platforms, and Amazon have announced massive investments in data centers, servers, networking equipment, and AI infrastructure.
This article explores the growing changes and challenges facing the Federal Reserve. It argues that due to political pressure and fiscal irresponsibility from Congress, the Fed is losing its policy effectiveness and its long-held tradition of consensus voting is breaking down, leading to an era of unpredictable decisions.
AI looks like a classic investment bubble to us, with very high valuations and signs of rampant speculation. But we recognize that while many investors harbor fears that AI might be a bubble, they are far from sure of that fact and tend to assume the market is appropriately priced as a fairly strong prior.
With Thanksgiving around the corner, there’s so much to be thankful for in 2025, especially for investors. After a challenging start to the year, the economy and markets regained their footing quickly, with nearly all asset classes on track for solid gains heading into year-end. Looking ahead, there are reasons for optimism to continue into 2026 as well.
Answers to questions investors are currently asking about Treasury bonds, tax policy, credit quality and other issues currently affecting fixed income investments.
The SEC has granted Dimensional exemptive relief to offer dual share class funds, a move that allows certain mutual funds to offer an ETF share class under the same structure. This monumental decision, following the expiration of Vanguard's patent, is expected to open the floodgates for other asset managers seeking to offer their existing mutual fund clients the tax efficiency and structural benefits of ETFs.
We enter 2026 after a year of robust global stock gains on AI optimism, falling interest rates and a resilient world economy. Beneath this stability, however, lies a more fragile environment.
It’s been a tough year for high-quality stocks in Europe. Yet despite vexing market conditions, the underlying business features that define quality stocks often remain intact. For investors, there are compelling reasons to maintain conviction in companies with robust profitability and resilient business models—even when short-term returns disappoint.
Last week's economic landscape was defined by conflicting signals from key indicators, suggesting a growing divergence between investor behavior and underlying consumer health.
Looking at your portfolio and feeling a distinct lack of income? Now may be the time to get more income into portfolios, with this version of covered call ETFs offering a solid option.
Vanguard continues its push into the active ETF market with the introduction of three news funds focused on equities. These are the Vanguard Wellington U.S. Value Active ETF (VUSV), Vanguard Wellington U.S. Growth Active ETF (VUSG), and Vanguard Wellington Dividend Growth Active ETF (VDIG). This bolsters the current active equity roster to now eight funds for the issuer.
This month’s Muni Monthly covers performance, supply and demand technicals, fundamentals and valuations for the month ending October 2025.
As measured by the largest ETF dedicated to the sector, real estate stocks are offering middling performances this year. That is disappointing considering the Fed has pared interest rates two times. However, that tepid sentiment arguably belies opportunity with ETFs such as the ALPS Active REIT ETF (REIT).
In times of uncertainty — whether in sport or in markets — the ability to separate fact from feeling — or ideology — is critical. This principle applies across leadership, investing and even today’s AI-driven economy.
Alternative investments have already gained plenty of traction in 2025, and things may very well be the same for 2026. However, it’s crucial to evaluate which kind of alternative investments could provide a more potent use case than others.
While passive portfolios have excelled recently due to mega-cap dominance, the article warns that market disruption and concentration make them vulnerable to a sudden reversal in sentiment. It asserts that skilled active management is essential now to identify future winners and benefit from a potential broadening of the equity market.
The ETF industry continues to grow, with new funds arriving all the time. Each year, hundreds of ETFs arrive on the scene, from covered call ETFs to active bond ETFs and everything in between.
Macro Signposts highlights takeaways from the data analysis conducted by our team of economists and other experts.
Are you looking to combine small-cap upside with income? With markets seeing increased volatility and large-caps looking expensive, marrying the two could boost portfolios.
We examine valuations in historical context, how today’s market compare to the tech bubble of the 1990s and what’s driving stock gains now.
Okay, this is for more than just millennials. It’s for anyone who feels stuck and can’t get started with their investing strategy. If you poke around on the internet, it sounds like my generation might be in the most trouble.
October ETF launches saw a plethora of funds join the ETF ecosystem, representing important trends and intriguing ideas.
Every market needs speculation, but when it spreads into nearly every asset class, investors face a different kind of challenge. Sometimes the smartest move is the least exciting one.
In today’s equity markets, investors face a paradox: share price swings are more dramatic than ever yet often have little to do with a company’s underlying health or earnings. So how can investors achieve true diversification and risk reduction in a world driven by fickle market forces?
With the federal government shutdown now over, until the end of January at a minimum, the money and bond markets have turned their attention back to the Fed. Specifically, the conjecture is centered on whether another rate cut will be forthcoming at the December 10 FOMC meeting.
As 2025 draws to a close, investors and advisors will be considering their tax-loss harvesting opportunities. By selling some investments at a loss, those investors can reduce their overall tax bills next year.
GMO has posted a new 7-Year asset class forecast as of October 31, 2025.
In this Money Metals podcast episode, host Mike Maharrey talks with money manager Michael Pento of Pento Portfolio Strategies about what he sees as a dangerously distorted financial system.
As 2025 nears its final 100 calendar days, market focus is already beginning to turn forward and attempt to reconcile what market drivers could remain in place, and what could change in the first year of the new half-decade. While not an exhaustive list, here’s some of our early keys to 2026.
The gains were erased after Federal Reserve officials hinted they were hesitant to cut rates, leading to broad market losses. This challenging environment reinforces the long-term need for investors to seek global diversification outside of the overvalued U.S. dollar and domestic assets.
Stocks started the week with strong gains following the government reopening agreement, but the momentum was quickly erased by concerns over Federal Reserve policy. Hesitancy from Fed Chairman Powell to cut rates pushed down the odds of a December cut, causing the Dow to drop significantly from its record level.
The wealth management industry is on a collision course with a talent crisis due to a looming retirement wave and rising demand for financial professionals. The key to survival hinges on making talent development a strategic priority and adapting to the next generation of clients.
Covered call strategies have become a very popular fund type in recent years. By leaning on the options market, covered call funds offer high levels of income but can limit upside.
Artificial intelligence has brought about a paradigm shift in the diagnostics industry, enhancing the accuracy, speed, and efficiency of disease detection. AI can now process and analyze vast, complex datasets, from medical images and lab reports to genetic data, far beyond human capacity.
With the federal government open after its longest shutdown on record, we will soon get a clear indication of how payrolls fared in September and October.
