What if I told you that future returns could approach zero? Such seems hard to believe, considering young investors piling back into the markets since the beginning of the year

The COT (Commitment Of Traders) data, which is exceptionally important, is the sole source of the actual holdings of the three critical commodity-trading groups, namely: Commercial Traders, Non-Commercial Traders and Small Traders.

We think the U.S. debt limit showdown will spark renewed volatility in markets. That risk reinforces why we stay invested and cautious by going up in quality.

As the credit market grows more stringent, investors should consider high-quality, longer-term bonds. Here are some fixed-income strategies.

Over the next decade, the total return for U.S. or global equities will be nearly zero, according to Felix Zulauf.

Political brinkmanship in Washington adds to concerns about the economy.

There are still some optimists in the market confident that a solution will be found in time to the US debt-ceiling crisis even as the Washington stalemate persists and many investors shun the most at-risk Treasury bill issues.

Review the latest portfolio strategy commentary from Mike Gibbs.

There is a disconnect between the Fed’s message regarding taking a pause in hiking interest rates this year and the market’s expectations of rate cuts.

The Banking emergency arising with mid-sized, regional banks is a direct consequence of policy decisions. Examine the causes of bank failures in 2023 and the potential for larger contagion.

The longer-term risks of sticky inflation, monetary policy changes, and slowing economic growth continue to challenge the markets. Within this uncertain backdrop, Franklin Income Investors’ Ed Perks shares his latest outlook and the investment opportunities he sees across fixed income and equities.

The central bank likely won't have enough reason to hike rates again this cycle. In fact, we wouldn't be surprised to see one or two rate cuts later this year.

We are presented with this decision in finance a lot. There is a small probability of something bad happening and a large probability that everything will be fine. What do you do to insure yourself against something bad happening? Because there is no such thing as a free lunch.

An allocation to fixed income may help investors navigate a potential recession as well as uncertainty around the Federal Reserve’s policy trajectory.

Markets will likely get increasingly unsettled as the X-date approaches without resolution. Congress has about four weeks to hatch a deal. Chief Economist Brian Horrigan looks at five possible scenarios and relates important considerations for each.

With the Fed purposely trying to slow economic growth and a banking crisis in full swing, do the heightened risks argue for accepting the current bond yields and reducing equity exposure?

Pay attention to the bond diversification, resiliency quality stocks may offer, and current allocation to cash within portfolios in the wake of Fed action.

The financial media is rife with misinformation on the debt ceiling and the jump in interest rates. However, a history review shows that the “debt-ceiling” issue is not only a non-crisis, but the recent rise in rates is likely an opportunity to buy bonds.

Doug Drabik discusses fixed-income market conditions and offers insight for bond investors.

Bill Gross, the former chief investment officer of Pacific Investment Management Co., recommended buying short-term Treasury bills, expecting the debt-ceiling issue eventually gets resolved.

When March’s bank failures ignited a historic bond rally, few, if any, made more money than Josh Barrickman. His army of funds gained roughly $26 billion, the equivalent of more than $1 billion in paper profits every single trading session.

Financial cracks from rate hikes have led to jitters over commercial real estate. Yet granularity is key. We see opportunities in some U.S. industrial properties.

With regional bank volatility grabbing headlines, CIO Larry Adam looks at what this activity means for the economy and asset classes.

The Fed's tools for managing interest rates are adding to deposit competition.

Taking risks is no longer necessary to make a return on your savings.

Investors are bailing on preferred shares at a historic clip because of the growing concern about the health of US regional banks.

Hedge funds supercharged bearish Treasury bets to historic levels just days before the US banking turmoil took a turn for the worse and spurred a stampede for the world’s safest assets.

A direct repercussion of higher central bank policy rates is on the cost of capital for corporations and other issuers of debt. However, not all issuers feel the impact of higher rates at the same time, and we’re more cautious on asset classes that are experiencing higher interest costs sooner.

Since early March bonds and growth stocks have rallied, and for the first time since 2021 bonds have resumed their role as an equity hedge.

Investment Strategist Devon McKenna believes intermediate-maturity corporate bonds can offer a fresh value proposition that may help defend the segment against rallying rates and widening spreads.

The Fed and its loose monetary policy are to blame, according to Lacy Hunt, for high inflation, excessive risk taking, slow growth and other maladies afflicting our economy.

Floating-rate bank loans tend to do well when conditions are just right: the Federal Reserve is raising rates and the economy is growing. But such conditions typically don’t last long.

With unanimity, the Federal Open Market Committee raised the Fed funds rate by 25 basis points in May and signaled that further tightening will depend on various economic factors.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon made a bold call on Monday: his firm’s rescue of First Republic Bank ended the initial phase of the turmoil engulfing banks.

The threat of recession is making debt securities a safer bet, while the stock market is yet to price in those risks.

Though equities have proven resilient, more of the long-expected effects of the Federal Reserve’s (the Fed’s) rapid interest rate-raising policy arrived in April.

Markets posted a strong first quarter, though it was a rollercoaster ride. The path forward will likely stay turbulent, with bank turmoil likely tightening credit conditions and the Fed still wrestling with inflation.

The odds of a “hard” recession are 99%, according to David Rosenberg, and it will start in the second quarter. Indeed, he said, it may have already started.

Lending standards are a lot like carbon monoxide since they operate in the back ground. When the Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey (SLOOOS) showed that banks significantly increased lending standards in the third quarter, no one on Wall Street noticed.

As stocks and bonds gyrate in well-defined ranges, the exchange traded-fund industry is sending a clear message: traders are tired.

For nine of the last fifteen years, few people thought about the Fed. Sure, we discussed QT and QE, but the Federal Reserve held interest rates at zero year after year.

Extreme volatility is making it more challenging than usual to predict market movements and where best to allocate portfolios. In fact, even BlackRock executives admitted that they're facing difficulties with allocations.

Do broker dealers put customer interests first? Don’t count on it if you are buying or selling municipal bonds.

The Fed is likely to lay the groundwork for a pause, and push back against an early pivot.

The pandemic hurt small retailers by hastening the transition to digital commerce and emptied office buildings by turning living rooms into workspace. But it also fueled a warehouse building boom and unleashed a torrent of pent-up travel-and-leisure spending when economies reopened, underscoring the diversity of commercial real estate.

Cryptocurrency adoption in the U.S. increased amid fears of a full-blown banking crisis, a new poll finds. According to Morning Consult, 22% of Americans, over one in five, said they owned at least one form of crypto in April, representing a four-percentage-point increase from January.

Fear of missing out, or “FOMO,” seems to be a common trend with investors. Whether it was GameStop, AMC, Bitcoin, or the FAANGs, the last few years has seen some investors exhibit FOMO as they chase the hottest trends in the market.

Economic fundamentals are lining up for a return of QE. Yes, inflation is still on the high side but falling so rapidly that at least some central banks will be willing to take action before inflation is back to 2%.

Although investing in in-state municipal bonds may have tax advantages, there can be good reasons to buy out-of-state munis.