The world’s major economies have performed quite well in recent months despite the influence of political and policy upheaval. Brexit and the outcome of the U.S. election have yet to produce the negative outcomes some had feared.

This time is different. Stocks will always go up. And pigs can fly. Given that pigs are highly intelligent, don’t bet against them. That said, investors might want to take at least the first two statements with a grain of salt.

On March 25, EU leaders gathered in Rome to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the organization’s founding. The EU’s primary goal was to prevent another world war from being fought on European soil. The key to meeting this goal was to solve the “German problem.”

While the equity markets finished with a strong quarterly gain, it was the underlying rotation which left your portfolio spinning. The markets returned to their pre-election tone as growth stocks were bought and value stocks were sold. This trend is likely to continue until the market gains some certainty on future tax reform and infrastructure spend.

UK politicians are not telling the full truth about Brexit. Why? Most likely because it is not in their interest to do so. UK exports to the EU are far more important to the UK economy than vice versa, and a substantial number of UK jobs could be at risk should the free trade agreement go up in smoke.That is only one of several issues our political leaders are concealing.

United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS) currently offers a dividend yield in excess of 3%. Moreover, it is also available at a valuation that is slightly below historical norms. The company has provided a stable and growing dividend since it went public in 1999.

Key points from Russell Investments’ latest Global Market Outlook: See what their strategists believe is ahead for global markets in 2017.

Last week, I discussed the “World’s Most Deceptive Chart” which explored the deception of “percentage” versus actual “point” losses which has a much greater effect on both the real, and psychological, damage which occurs during a bear market.

Joel Greenblatt serves as managing principal and co-chief investment officer of Gotham Asset Management and is one of the foremost value managers. His fund, the Gotham Index Plus Institutional Fund (GINDX) is in the 1st percentile of its Morningstar peer group (Large Cap Blend) for the period since inception (March 31, 2015) through March 31, 2017, significantly outperforming the S&P 500.

Lately we have been dealing with clients who are aligning themselves with centers-of-influence whom we find very difficult. These people have an opinion about everything we do. But they are not investment experts.

We have a big economic calendar and potential Fed news. Those stories will take a back burner this week. My safest prediction is that we are about to see a new rash of China experts both in print media and on CNBC!

Today we continue looking at angst in America, the financial worries that so afflict us here in the world’s largest economy and by extension in much of the developed world. We may be the envy of the world in some ways, but we also have no shortage of stress. Today we’ll look at some data on retirement savings – or lack thereof.

Flanked by coal workers, President Donald Trump signed the American Energy Independence Executive Order this week, directing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to review the Clean Power Plan, former President Barack Obama’s signature environmental policy. Unveiled in August 2015, the plan is intended to reduce carbon dioxide emitted from U.S. power plants 32 percent by 2030.

Dividend stocks and closed-end MLP funds are two options for income-oriented investors in an uncertain market, while bonds offer retirees less equity risk and additional income.

Donald Trump swept into office on a populist wave. His promise of greater growth for the United States economy resonated with a large part of those disappointed with stagnant wages and a lack of opportunity. He said he would bring manufacturing jobs back and provide better healthcare coverage at a lower cost.

The X factor is intangible. I can’t describe it in concrete terms. But I recognize it when I see it. I recently found it in an unlikely source: the commissioner of the National Basketball Association, Adam Silver.

Britain’s divorce from the EU is underway, but the complex negotiating process has just begun. We believe a mutually beneficial deal can be reached—as long as both sides focus on the risks of failure.

For the month of March, the preliminary purchasing manager’s index (PMI) for the eurozone reached 56.7, its highest reading since April 2011. Significant gains were made in new work and backlogs of work, employment and service sector job creation.

I have been promising a review of Nicholas Eberstadt’s very important book, Men Without Work: America’s Invisible Crisis. The book is relatively short at 216 pages, but it is packed with meaty facts and insights.

College savings plans can help companies boost their employee benefits packages.

In a companion paper, “Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast,” we present evidence that asset markets are generally priced for “secular stagnation,” and argue that this requires a number of extreme assumptions on the part of investors.

There is plenty of “upside risk.” Earnings growth is improving, even in the environment of modest growth. The recent market strength could go on for years without any policy changes. If some of the Trump agenda (probably with Democratic support) becomes law, it could mean a spike in both economic growth and profits. We already see improved business and consumer confidence.

Regardless of its failure to be repealed, tax reform is on its way. Just today, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin reassured Americans that we could still expect “comprehensive” tax reform by August. It’s also worth recalling that, even though he failed to reform health care during his eight years in office, President Bill Clinton still managed to tackle tax reform with the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993.

The value of the US dollar is a key player across global economies & markets. How is the value shifting and what might it mean for investors?

A tailwind for the rally over the past year has been the bearish positioning of investors, with fund managers persistently shunning equities in exchange for holding cash. 

The UK’s triggering of Article 50 on March 29 is like firing the starting pistol on the process of leaving the EU – but this race will be slow and tortuous. Here is our view on what investors should expect and how they should prepare.

The public reaction to recent proposals that robots be taxed when they replace human labor has been largely negative. But a moderate tax on robots – even a temporary levy that merely slows the adoption of disruptive technology – seems like a natural and obvious component of any policy to address rising inequality.

We expect the global economic expansion to strengthen and broaden over the cyclical horizon, but with improved growth and inflation prospects, central banks may scale back accommodation.

A common lament during the presidential campaign was over middle-class income stagnation and the wealth of the top 1%. But are most people getting poorer while the rich get richer? In a sparkling – and delightfully short – new contribution to the econo-optimist genre, Johan Norberg, author of Progress: Ten Reasons to Look Forward to the Future, emphatically answers “no.”

Although the value of a currency can impact your international holdings, Russ talks about when it makes sense to hedge that effect.

The combination of high anxiety and a subconscious bias against taking affirmative action means you need to harness all the tools at your disposal to have a successful outcome with a prospect. The use of empathy is critical.

One of the realities we will face is recession. The good news is that we are in the eighth year of a growth phase (the last recession was in 2009) and as you’ll see in my favorite indicator charts below, there are no current signs of recession.

This week we begin a series of letters exploring the new economic and sociological anxiety. I want to look at what causes it and think about what we can do to ease it. I don’t know how many letters this dive will take. I may break away for other topics and then come back to the topic of angst. 

Investor exuberance is being supported by proposed fiscal policy such as lower corporate taxes, deregulation and historically large budget cuts to help finance the rebuilding of the nation’s infrastructure and military.

The post-Fed action in the bond market yesterday was impressive, yet left some begging for answers. If the Fed raised short rates yesterday and reiterated its plans for the subsequent five rate increases through 2018, shouldn’t the long-end be selling off? If it were only that easy.

In this month’s Global Economic Perspective, Franklin Templeton Fixed Income Group weighs in on the factors spurring the US Fed’s decision to raise rates, why the ECB’s Draghi is likely to resist calls to adopt a more hawkish line, and why the backdrop for emerging markets has improved.

In the coming months, important elections in the Netherlands, France and Germany will determine more than the fate of individual politicians. Growing populism and anti-Europe sentiment could move the European Union away from integration and toward disintegration says Ingo Mainert, CIO Multi Asset Europe for Allianz Global Investors.

If robots are supposed to take all our jobs, they're not very good at it. Nonfarm payrolls rose 235,000 in February, rising faster than even the computer models thought they would. This was the 84th month in a row of private sector job growth, the longest streak on record.

The FOMC is likely to enact a third hike in the federal funds rate this week. With economic data continuing to be good, the risk to equities of a rate hike is small. Higher rates indicate continued economic growth, so equities, commodities, the dollar and yields generally respond positively. However, the recent picture is more mixed: in particular, the dollar and yields have sold off after rates have been hiked. This was not the consensus' expectation, nor is it this time. Is another surprise likely now?

During the later part of the roaring 20’s, Irving Berlin wrote “Blue Skies,” which captured some of the optimism of the era that preceded the Great Depression. Unfortunately, untethered optimism is not the friend of investors, particularly when they have already committed their assets to that optimism, and have driven valuations to speculative extremes.

If America wants to restore manufacturing employment to its former glory, the federal government should form a search-and-destroy task force with the authority to enter manufacturing facilities in the U.S. to smash robots, computers and any other labor-saving equipment the deputized task force deems appropriate. Then there will be a tremendous increase in demand for U.S. manufacturing employees. 

Eight years ago this week, President Barack Obama gave investors a surprisingly hot trading tip. In office less than two months, he commented that we were at “the point where buying stocks is a potentially good deal if you’ve got a long-term perspective.” Obama couldn’t have known then how accurate his call was. The market found a bottom that very week, and investors who took the president’s advice managed to get in on the absolute ground floor.

With his widely followed, and positively reviewed, address to Congress last week, President Trump showed how easy it could be to unite Washington around a big-budget centrist agenda on health care, immigration, taxes, infrastructure and the military.

Introduction According to an article in Quartz today, March 9, 2017, marks the 8th birthday of the US bull market which started on March 9, 2009. According to the article, this is the 2nd longest and 4th strongest bull market in history for the S&P 500.

I recently had the opportunity to visit South Africa, which has seen its fair share of challenges over the past few years.

Russell Investments’ Senior Investment Strategist, Wouter Sturkenboom explores geopolitical risks through the three building blocks of our investment process: Cycle, Value and Sentiment.

There is a strong case for the ECB to continue tapering its QE programme, to alter its forward guidance and to begin normalising policy rates.

The interplay between debt and income can be a difficult thing to understand. Here is a useful analogy. Imagine a hot air balloon lying on the ground preparing for take-off.

With rising demand for alternative investments, two articles explore the offerings in liquid hedge funds. Another article looks at a new platform that makes it easier for advisors to access alternative investments.