The year ended on a highly upbeat tone for investors as equities rose to new heights against a backdrop of inflation and a prolonged pandemic

Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia President Patrick Harker joined the widespread calls by his policy-making colleagues for higher interest rates this year, saying he favors a March liftoff and three or four hikes for the 2022.

Bitcoin climbed above $44,000 for the first time in a week as the most U.S. inflation in four decades revives the debate about whether the cryptocurrency is a hedge against rising consumer prices.

Assuming the value that clients obtain from an advisor is distributed in a bell-shaped curve, the average client obtains considerable value from the average advisor – and even from a mediocre one.

Uncertainty has become an ongoing theme in markets, economies, and communities everywhere, and in this environment, PIMCO investment professionals gathered – virtually, once again – for our recent Cyclical Forum.

“Jobs day” last Friday was a bit of a dud.

Long before supply chain issues and soaring consumer prices made the headlines, I warned readers that massive monetary expansion made persistent inflation inevitable.

Housing markets are red hot, with prices up more than 18% from November 2020 to November 2021. That’s an acceleration over the previous two years, which saw increases of 4% and 8% each. It’s also a faster rate than the U.S. experienced during the housing boom of the 2000s that preceded the Great Recession.

What has been a tumultuous last few months for crypto markets has only accelerated through the turn of the New Year.

Here are five reasons not to recommend a Roth conversion to your clients.

Twenty-two years of tradition dictate I begin the new year by forecasting what lies ahead.

For emerging-market debt (EMD), 2022 is shaping up to be a contest of conflicting forces.

Every year has plenty of lessons when looking backward in December.

It’s official. For the first time since the unveiling of the Paris climate agreement in 2015, banks earned more fees arranging green-related bond sales and loans than they did helping fossil-fuel companies raise money in the debt markets.

Global central banks are set to spend 2022 diverging, as some take on the menace of inflation and others stay focused on boosting economic growth.

News that the U.S. population barely grew this year, together with ever-falling birthrates and the decline in immigration, raises the possibility that the nation will be shrinking in the not-so-distant future. So fewer people should make housing more affordable for those looking for it, right? Well, don't get your hopes up.

The breadth of the stock market is a measure of its health, and the wider the better. So, a narrowing of its focus, as we’ve seen recently, is often a red flag, both for the overall market and the darlings of the moment.

Sales of U.S. leveraged loans are likely to stay strong for at least the next few months thanks to private equity buyout activity that is showing few signs of abating.

Thompson Clark sits down with Mauldin Economics publisher Ed D’Agostino to discuss three of his top stock picks for 2022, how inflation could affect his Wealth Accelerator strategy, and how investors can better prepare for the year ahead.

The reality is that despite media commentary to the contrary, debt-driven government spending programs have a dismal history of providing the economic growth promised. As a result, the disappointment of economic and earnings growth over the next year is almost a guarantee.

In 2021, readers of the Investor Alert and Frank Talk were most interested in stories on gold mining, precious metals, natural resources and emerging markets (no surprise). But there was also interest in macroeconomic topics (inflation, mostly) as well as Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.

Supply-chain issues are often cited in the current debate about inflation—and aren’t going away as quickly as consumers and businesses would like. Our Franklin Templeton Investment Solutions team explores how supply chains became stuck, whether they will loosen up in 2022, and the implications for multi-asset investors.

Are we living in 1858 or 1968?

That is, are America’s divisions so profound and political institutions so crippled that we are poised for a breakdown akin to the Civil War? Or is the current polarization the product of conflicting social forces that can be gradually reconciled or redirected into more healthy electoral competition?

What to expect in 2022.

The reason that few predicted Soviet collapse was that the Soviet Union outwardly appeared to be a mighty military power with an extensive security apparatus. Few observers understood just how little legitimacy the system possessed; that it was eaten away on the inside by the rot of corruption, by the loss of faith in ideology, by the dismal standards of living, and, lastly, by elite in-fighting.

When the Fed initially starts hiking rates, it is usually during a strongly trending bull market. Much like a car rolling downhill in neutral, tapping the brakes initially doesn’t do much to curb the momentum. However, keep pushing on the brake pedal long enough, and the car will slow to stop. There are two things to take away from the chart below.

For many Americans, between Christmas presents and their regular Amazon (AMZN) deliveries, the number is high. After all, Amazon delivers over 600 million packages a year. That’s a lot of cardboard. Things are a little different in South Korea. The country’s ecommerce powerhouse, Coupang (CPNG), offers all the perks Amazon does, like free delivery. But it takes a “zero packaging” approach, with 75% of deliveries arriving in reusable packages.

As we close out the year, I’ll provide my top five advisor observations from my work with large and small practices.

Anyone gearing up for bond yields to surge in 2022 should think again. A global glut of saved cash has the potential to restrain an increase in rates, even as central banks dial back their pandemic stimulus.

Despite a drop in clean-energy stocks and intensifying concerns about widespread greenwashing, the market for investment products sold as being ESG-related had another record year by most yardsticks.

The year 2021 will be remembered as one in which markets tumbled down a rabbit hole and entered financial wonderland: A once-elite undertaking became more populist, tribal, anarchic and often downright bizarre.

Despite the strong year for stocks in 2021, markets have confidently priced in some negative trends gathering more momentum in 2022 which may help markets, should trends reverse.

While world leaders seem unable or unwilling to pass legislation to meet their commitments, Russell Investments is on a mission to support the low-carbon economic transition through our active ownership activities.

Rick Rieder and team identify 11 themes that could drive returns in 2022, as the greatest monetary experiment since the advent of flat currency enters its next phase.

The semiconductor shortage and its impact on everything from autos to smartphone production has been much in the news. The shortage has been a boon for semiconductor stock prices. But it likely will resolve itself in the coming months—or years, depending on whom you talk to—raising the specter of a bust.

The Fed has made a sharp pivot by accelerating the tapering of its asset purchases.

Capitalism’s death warrant was signed on March 19, 1968. That is when President Lyndon Johnson eliminated the requirement that the Federal Reserve back the U.S. dollar with gold reserves.

Investors in the booming ethical bond market are having to swallow short term losses on the road to improving their green credentials.

The BoE has started tightening. Will the ECB follow?

It has been my tradition to informally rate the investment-related books I read in the past year. I have also included some novels and books of general interest. Here is my list of winners and losers.

The dollar is on the rise, and with it comes underappreciated consequences.

The metaverse is part of the next iteration of the internet some are calling Web 3.0—and it promises to upend everything as we know it.

Last week’s What Really Caused Inflation letter generated an unusual number of questions and comments. That tells me I need to go a little deeper. We know inflation by the higher prices it generates, but exactly how it flows through the economy isn’t always obvious.

Some of the market’s recent pressures are showing signs of easing.

Private markets can help to future-proof your portfolio through responsible investing. Samantha Steele, director, private markets, dives into the main trends and challenges that investors should consider.

The purpose of this whitepaper is to highlight the development of values-based investing at a summary level and, more importantly, provide research that indicates there is no sacrifice of investment returns in adopting a faith-based approach to values investing.

At the end of every year, I like to look back on my work and see which themes and findings are as striking now as they were months ago. I’ve chosen ten ideas – and the ten charts to go with them...

With 2021 almost finished, it's a good time to look ahead to the key questions and themes for 2022. Overall, we believe economic growth, inflation and investment returns should moderate through 2022, but expect growth to remain above trend, which should support the outperformance of equities over bonds.

Insights from Franklin Templeton specialist investment managers Brandywine Global, Clarion Partners, ClearBridge Investments and Western Asset