INSIGHTS

The unprecedented and long bull market in equities finally came to a close in the first quarter of 2020. Additionally, the long economic expansion in the US economy has come to an end. Not many would have thought that a biological condition would cause these scales to tip in world economies and financial markets.

Financial markets remain in a state of unrest while businesses, policymakers, and investors continue to assess the real economic impact of COVID-19. The economic disruption caused by the virus could become even more significant if more events get...

Things are beginning to improve relative to last year in the macro-economic backdrop that should help global growth going forward. However, an unexpected outbreak of a disease that started in China has now begun to trim earlier held estimates for...

Last year produced compelling results for many investors. Global security market indexes of most types produced positive total returns in 2019. US markets offered leadership with double-digit total returns showing up in equities and high-quality...

The preceding month saw further relative-strength in US large-cap equity performance. US small-caps spent most of last month in a downtrend, but were able to finally close out ahead by the end. Relative-performance of the last 52-weeks has shown...

Global equities are holding firmly despite a cloud of softer activity overshadowing domestic and international economies. Security price changes represent investor expectations regarding future growth prospects. A discussion covering international...

Something rather unusual happened in short-term money markets in mid-September. The repo-rate, an important financing tool for financial institutions, unexpectedly rose to as high as 10% at one particular moment. The rate’s move was a surprise...

Although completely arbitrary, history shows that equities often perform poorly in August. This past August was no exception. The S&P 500 index slipped -1.8% in price value. Losses were narrowed to -1.6% after including dividends. Last month’s...

The Federal Reserve gave financial markets what was expected by lowering the target rate for the Fed Funds by 25 basis points. The Fed called the rate cut a mid-cycle adjustment and not the beginning of a new easing cycle. The markets read this as...

Evidence of an economic slowdown may be starting to appear in recent economic data, specifically related to industrial production, manufacturing and construction. Securities markets appear aware that something is happening and are setting their...