Few would disagree that the period from 1870-2010 saw immense technological advancements that improved our quality of life. But, according to Bradford DeLong, far fewer advances lie ahead, and societies should adapt by “slouching” away from a free-market system. He’s wrong on both counts.
The U.S. economy is weak, as GDP numbers in both the second quarter and the third quarter have shown. The fundamental reason why the U.S. economy grew 2.6% during the third quarter of the year was because Net Exports, which is exports of goods and services...
Equity investors are trying to figure out whether steep share-price declines have led to attractive valuations, given mounting threats to fundamental business performance. The answer varies from company to company and requires an active equity investing approach to separate winners from losers.
In 1990, a new tech start-up was spun out of Apple to invent the future.
Exxon Mobil Corp. posted the highest profit in its 152-year history as natural gas demand and prices surged, following similarly strong results from European peers Shell Plc and TotalEnergies SE.
I literally grew up in the oil patch: Wise County, Texas, 60 or 70 miles northwest of Fort Worth in a little town called Bridgeport. The two first-generation Greek immigrant brothers who became Mitchell Energy talked old man Christie into funding Christie, Mitchell and Mitchell and they drilled (hundreds?) of natural gas wells which they eventually sold to an Illinois utility. This was in the 1950s and ‘60s.
It is unlikely that US corporate defined benefit (DB) pensions will have to face liquidity issues like those UK DB pensions recently witnessed, primarily because of their different approach to valuing liabilities, varying use of derivatives/leverage, and therefore a different investment style of liability-driven investing (LDI), according to Franklin Templeton Fixed Income’s Tom Meyers.
This economy can’t go on forever.
Short-term bonds currently offer higher yields than longer-term ones, but there are risks in holding only short-term bonds.
Last week, the FOMC published its minutes from the September meeting, confirming its recent stance that Fed rate hikes will continue until inflation is vanquished.
Depending on where they live, student borrowers may soon face an unexpected tax burden.
In these tumultuous times on Wall Street, at least one investing trend is proving remarkably consistent: Dividend ETFs are notching relentless inflows as traders take refuge in the stock-market storm.
Every year, the IRS offers taxpayers a polite warning in the form of what it calls the “dirty dozen” – 12 of the latest tax-related scams. We introduce “the permissible dozen” – the 12 easiest ways to reduce federal income taxes – legitimately, of course.
Now that the Party Congress is over, Xi Jinping has one big decision to make. Sinology explores.
The balanced portfolio strategy of allocating 60% to equities and 40% to fixed income generated a highly satisfactory 7.9% annualized return over the last 30 years.
In recent reports, we’ve been highlighting that innovation—as a factor represented by R&D as % of sales—has stopped underperforming and it is selling for an attractive valuation.
Franklin Mutual Series believes that fewer value investors in the market today may mean better opportunities for those who remain.
In this piece, we update our valuation charts and commentary, with additional details on our methodology available upon request.
A new study shows just how difficult it will be for younger Americans to copy that success.
Bond yields may keep rising, but a significant driver of yields is done selling.
There are early signs that US consumers, who have been largely resilient in the face of relentless inflation, are beginning to balk at high prices.
Investors are facing a make-or-break week for some of Wall Street’s most influential tech stocks in a historic year for the group marked by a plunge into bear market territory.
It is difficult to convince yourself that if things are going a certain way they will not continue down the same path indefinitely.
Student loans haven’t delivered their promise of a middle-class life for millions of Americans, and the US system of financing higher education via individual borrowing is making inequalities in the country worse, according to a new study.
I cannot emphasize enough the importance of including a conversion page in a site build.
U.S. stocks are trading mixed in pre-market action.
There are lots of “total return” bond funds these days, almost a half century since I innovated the concept in 1987.
Clients often assume that their need for life insurance ends when they stop working. I spoke with Neil Drzewiecki, the head of life products for MassMutual Life Insurance Company, about how whole-life insurance can play an important role in your client's retirement income strategy.
I built a 4.36% real (inflation-adjusted) systematic withdrawal portfolio using a 30-Year TIPS ladder.
Life Insurance Awareness Month just wrapped up in September. It’s a good time to dispel some common myths around this important financial product.
Is it time to move beyond I bonds?
To President Joe Biden’s credit, his policies didn’t cause many of the economic problems we face today.
Investors love easy-to-follow “rules.” The simpler, the better.
The heated debate about how central banks should respond to high and persistent inflation has focused primarily on how high interest rates should go and how long should they stay there.
When you plan for exiting your advisory practice, start by asking three questions.
“Recession Fatigue” is setting in as consumers struggle under rising interest rates, high inflation, and a declining stock market.
With mortgage rates more than doubling from ~3% to over 7% today the difference in cost between buying a home twelve months ago compared to today is very big.
Key Takeaways
Macro uncertainties and tightening financial conditions are pressuring the real estate investment market. Tim Wang, Head of Investment Research for Clarion Partners, discusses the challenges and opportunities in this current environment.
Investors today probably feel a bit like the joker and the thief from Dylan’s classic, “All Along the Watchtower” – there’s too much confusion, they can’t get no relief. But our Core Equity team believes there is a way outta here – investing in dominant companies that pay growing dividends.
With this week’s announcement that the White House is deploying nearly $3 billion to boost domestic output of EV batteries and the minerals used to make them, it may be time for investors to take notice.
The Treasury market was upended Friday by a surge in wagers that circumstances will allow Federal Reserve to slow its pace of rate increases as early as year-end.
Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities can be a buffer against long-term inflation, but it's possible for TIPS price declines to outpace principal adjustment in the short term.
The battering of bonds this year from inflation and higher rates has made long-term municipal securities so cheap that investors who usually shun them may be buyers.
Fear and uncertainty in financial markets driven by inflation-fighting central banks, slowing economic growth and geopolitical tensions has driven risk-off investor behavior. While this can be disorienting, the U.S. Value team at Artisan Partners, led by portfolio manager Daniel Kane, views the current market drawdown as a healthy readjustment to the cost of capital. This comes after years of central bank interventions that distorted asset prices and provided a tailwind for growth stocks. It drove less selective managers to pay higher price multiples. He will explain why today’s shifting financial landscape will create more attractive investment opportunities, particularly for disciplined value investors.
Independence means doing things your way. Advisors go independent with a variety of goals in mind. Some want to design every aspect of their Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) firm, while others simply want to be able to focus on their clients. Some want to build equity in their business, while others prefer to join a firm and negotiate for income and an equity percentage in a larger asset.
Much attention has been paid to the elevated risk (and announcement) of a recession, but investors should instead focus on signals coming from leading economic indicators.
It's no secret that delaying the start of Social Security benefits typically means you'll get more money in retirement. And waiting just got even more worthwhile thanks to the program’s big cost-of-living adjustment set for next year.
Blame the Fed, war and fiscal profligacy all you want. But big trouble was lurking in many widely followed portfolio strategies long before those threats took hold.
While the Fed continues to hike rates to combat high inflation levels aggressively, history shows that deflation will become a more significant threat when something “breaks” in the financial or credit markets.
