China put a halt to new ICOs and crypto transactions. In response, ethereum tumbled as much as 15.8 percent on Monday, or $55 a unit. Bitcoin lost $394 a unit.

Speculation had been rife that the European Central Bank might have used its September Governing Council meeting to signal the start of tapering for its quantitative easing program. That confirmation didn’t come, switching attention to the October 26 meeting.

As the global economy continues to muddle through, the days of easy monetary policy may have peaked – along with the period of ultra-low yields. We may begin to see changing policies as central banks re-evaluate, which could lead to jittery markets says Hans-Jörg Naumer, Global Head of Capital Markets & Thematic Research with Allianz Global Investors.

Select short-term government bond funds offer minimal risk and some income as higher-risk assets get frothy and tail risks loom.

Preparing for a stock market correction? We’ve got another thing to add to your to-do list: take a look at your fixed-income holdings, too.

As many of you know, we have been on holiday in South Africa for the past three weeks. The trip began with a long plane ride to Cape Town where we were gathered up and taken to the five star rated Ellerman House (Ellerman).

The macro data from the past month continues to mostly point to positive growth. On balance, the evidence suggests the imminent onset of a recession is unlikely.

The car is loaded with clean clothes and dog food. I’m heading out mid-morning to help load a support truck headed for Houston. Thankfully, my kid’s school has organized the donation drive. It has been heartwarming to watch the countless random acts of kindness in the wake of the current challenges. Much more will be needed in the days ahead.

According to Andrew Ang, a guru of factor-based investing and former chair of the finance and economics division of Columbia Business School’s Data Science Institute, the “anomalies” literature is the scientific foundation for quantitative asset management. But this focus, which was not very scientific to begin with, is proving its utter ruin.

Below are some key data points and estimates that help contextualize the severity of Harvey and its aftermath.

The Federal Reserve is widely anticipated to begin the process of balance sheet normalization, or quantitative tightening, this fall. What kind of impact to markets is expected?

Who will be the next governor of the Bank of Japan (BOJ)? This is an important question to be answered in the next several months, as Governor Haruhiko Kuroda’s current term will expire in April of next year.

I have written before how fantasy football is one of my favorite hobbies. For an analytical, data-obsessed sports fan like myself, it doesn’t really get any better than diving into statistics to try to draft a team of players that will beat my friends and win the trophy at the end of the season (and yes, we do have a real trophy).

We’ve been arguing since the end of 2016 that markets could be in for a sustained period of USD weakness and so far in 2017 they delivered just that.

This week the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City is hosting its annual Economic Policy Symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming and a number of Fed officials have commented on “inflation.” Why is targeting inflation so important? Because rising inflationary pressures will cause the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates and such periods tend to prove challenging for the stock and bond markets.

I hope investors have taken steps to prepare for some potentially disruptive economic storms, including this weekend’s central bank symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and the possibility of a contentious battle in Congress next month over the budget and debt ceiling.

Russ discusses the trend behind the surprising gold rally this year, and why the political drama in D.C. means it may continue.

The development of a personal trading or investing philosophy is usually an evolutionary and highly personal process. Through a combination of experience, trial-and-error, and the attainment of knowledge, successful market participants hone their skills until they find a strategy that works for them and that is consistent with their general mindset.

Portfolio Manager David Nadel makes the case for international small-caps.

UFC and mixed martial arts (MMA) have seen their popularity grow in recent years from relative obscurity, banned in many states, to the mainstream. Does the current fight represent a view of the future (e.g. the NFL and the upstart AFL) or a novelty (e.g. the XFL)? The fight highlights the topic of convergence and its current poignancy, from boxing to politics to investments.

The changing demographics of the municipal bond market in recent years, coupled with their reliable tax-free-income stream, has made munis a compelling core allocation for today’s fixed-income investors.

In this month’s Global Economic Perspective, Franklin Templeton Fixed Income Group takes a look at recent US economic data, and increased skepticism among many market participants about whether the Federal Reserve will implement another increase in interest rates before the end of the year.

Once again, the US debt ceiling is in focus. Since March, the US Treasury has been employing “extraordinary measures” to fund the US government, such as halting contributions to certain government pension funds and borrowing money set aside to manage exchange rate fluctuations. But those measures are expected to run out this fall.

The development of a personal trading or investing philosophy is usually an evolutionary and highly personal process. Through a combination of experience, trial-and-error, and the attainment of knowledge, successful market participants hone their skills until they find a strategy that works for them and that is consistent with their general mindset.

My thinking is impatient and mostly critical as I sift through research each week. I’m sure my “get to the point” personality frustrates my co-workers and I’m sure at times my beautiful wife. It’s a personality flaw, I know; but hey, I’m just not sure any amount of therapy can help.

Pharmaceutical costs represent about 10% of total U.S. health care expenditures, or about $325 billion each year.

For more than a decade and a half, my friend Alexander Green has been educating and entertaining investors as editor of numerous popular newsletters, many of which I’ve cited in my own writing.

The dramatic recovery in fixed income markets, which began in Q1, persisted throughout the second quarter. Investors increasingly sought safe haven investments in light of geo-political uncertainty and perceived overvaluation in equity markets more broadly.

I often hear criticisms about the use of bond ladders. Whenever the criticism comes from professional advisors, however, I’ve noticed it generally involves firms that use only bond mutual funds or ETFs instead of individual, tailored bond portfolios, whether in the form of a bond ladder or not. Unfortunately, much – if not all – of this criticism is based on falsehoods and the conflicts that can arise when advisors employ only mutual funds and ETFs.

The Trump administration took its first steps to address infrastructure Tuesday, with the president signing an executive order aiming to expedite environmental review and permitting processes. Some will decry the fact that these actions weren't accompanied by a multi trillion-dollar spending bill.

Jihan Diolosa, Associate Director of our UK Institutional team, poses questions to our lead multi-asset portfolio managers based on some of the key issues keeping investors awake at night.

The early optimism that President Trump would be able to reinvigorate domestic economic growth has faded as Congress struggled to pass health care legislation and confusion exists around Trump’s political agenda.

I believe, and there is plenty of evidence to back my belief, that current market conditions are at an extreme. Although rare, it’s not unusual for aberrant market action to occur. Warren Buffett once said: “The fact that people will be full of greed, fear or folly is predictable. The sequence is not predictable.”

A review of last month’s market-moving events across countries and asset classes

Earlier this summer, the Fed raised interest rates -- another step in a trend that economists expect will continue through the end of the year at least. Advisors are also looking at cash as a way to highlight their role as fiduciaries.

Whatever happened to the increase in interest rates that was supposed to occur? Russ explains.

Reading the signs in markets can be tough. When he headed the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan missed early signs of a housing bubble. Now he’s warning of a bond bubble that’s about to burst. We disagree.

Right now, we don’t know if we can put this North Korea news in the same category of past market shocks, but looking back at history, major market collapses generally occur because of economic and financial deterioration, not geopolitics.

Over the next 12 to 24 months, we expect that Asia, led by China, will become a far more significant part of the global capital markets – and global investment portfolios.

Looking for a way to increase your US exposure without adding equities? Need more income but worried about rising rates? US high-yield bonds deserve a place in your portfolio.

Dalio’s not the only one recommending gold right now. Speaking to CNBC this week, commodities expert Dennis Gartman, editor and publisher of the widely-read Gartman Letter, said that he believed “gold is about to break out on the upside strongly” in response to geopolitical risks and inflationary pressures. Gartman thinks investors should have between 10 and 15 percent of their portfolio in gold.

After taking a hit earlier this summer, oil prices have climbed back around $50 a barrel. What’s my advice on oil price volatility? Hang in there. The good news—we’ve been through this before. The bad news—we’ve been through this before.

With critical policy pivots on the horizon, investors should approach asset allocation with full appreciation for downside risk and stay focused on relative value and security selection.

At the time of writing (July 25) equity markets are generally up for the month – not massively (most less than 1% based on MSCI local currency price indices) but this modest appreciation contributes to a healthy run in 2017. The US and UK indices are both up more than 1% month-to-date.

Imagine an asset class with a decently positive expected rate of return, little to no equity beta, and little to no interest rate duration. A unicorn? We think not.

Earlier this year, Argentina, the Czech Republic and Uruguay joined the bellwether benchmark for the asset class, JPMorgan GBI-EM Global Diversified, taking the total to 18 countries. China, Egypt and another three countries may enter the index next year. The inclusions will make the EM local debt asset class much larger, deeper and more liquid.

As an asset class, fixed income generates longer-term returns that are largely predictable. So why are those returns not always a reasonably sure thing, and why is there controversy around the methodology being used for making predictions for one sector in particular?

Ladies and gentlemen, investing is a lot like whaling. Investors are constantly searching for that whale of a stock with the “right stuff” . . . aka the “ambergris factor.” Indeed, there have been many such “whales” on the Street of Dreams since the Royal Bank of Scotland’s “sell everything” advice at the January/February of 2016 stock market lows.