Market Ethos - False start for inflation victory lap? Filed Under: Investment Services | Portfolio Management | Wealth Management Published by RWL on Nov 23, 2023 Cooler inflation data and cooler economic data have helped bond yields come down. Measuring the 10-year Treasury, yields dropped from 5.0% at the S&P 500 low near the end of October to 4.46% at the time of writing. So does a 50 bps yield drop equate to... Read more
Market Ethos - Active versus passive debate: why not both? Filed Under: Investment Services | Portfolio Management | Wealth Management Published by RWL on Nov 16, 2023 The debate is often framed in a binary fashion — either active or passive. Yet from a portfolio-construction perspective, investments, whether active or passive, are building blocks for building a portfolio. How the pieces are selected, and fit together... Read more
Investor Stategy - Here for a good time, not a long time (November 2023) Filed Under: Investment Services | Portfolio Management | Wealth Management Published by RWL on Nov 09, 2023 Markets and the economy are gradually adjusting to higher costs of capital (higher yields/rates) and less abundant capital. The process will take a long time to work its way through, causing both up and down oscillations in the stock and bond markets... Read more
Market Ethos - Earnings, trick or treat? Filed Under: Investment Services | Portfolio Management | Wealth Management Published by RWL on Oct 31, 2023 We are about halfway through the U.S. earnings season, with 245 of the S&P 500 companies having already reported. Earnings are backward-looking, kind of like GDP reports, since the quarter started in July and ended in September. Nonetheless, companies... Read more
Market Ethos - Thematic ETFs: proceed with caution Filed Under: Investment Services | Portfolio Management | Wealth Management Published by RWL on Oct 24, 2023 The essence of ‘Thematic focused investing’ is, at its core, a really good idea. There is no denying the world changes over time and often there are long-term tectonic shifts. In years past, we have all witnessed the rise of smart phones, the rise of... Read more
Market Ethos - The crowding out effect Filed Under: Investment Services | Portfolio Management | Wealth Management Published by RWL on Oct 11, 2023 U.S. banks have been buyers of Treasuries in years past. But with short rates so high and unrealized losses on their existing bond holdings (expect to hear more about that in the upcoming earnings season), let’s just say they too are not enthusiastic... Read more
Market Ethos - Yielding to yield Filed Under: Investment Services | Portfolio Management | Wealth Management Published by RWL on Sep 26, 2023 There’s no denying the economic data has remained resilient or even better than consensus expectations in North America. Add to this some rekindling of inflation fears as some of the base effects that were helping inflation grind lower start to reverse... Read more
Market Ethos - Little trouble in big China matters Filed Under: Investment Services | Portfolio Management | Wealth Management Published by RWL on Sep 12, 2023 China’s equity market and economy have been under pressure of late. Should we be concerned for the broader global markets and economy? Let’s dive in, starting with the China stock market. Click HERE to access the report. Read more
Investor Strategy: AI can’t rescue summer doldrums (Sept. 2023) Filed Under: Investment Services | Portfolio Management | Wealth Management Published by RWL on Sep 07, 2023 August was a difficult month for both stocks and bonds. Rising rates tightened financial conditions and sent both asset classes into the red. At one point, the S&P 500 was down nearly 6% from the July highs. August is just the second down month this year... Read more
Market Ethos - What happens after the peak? Published by RWL on Aug 29, 2023 Each year since 1978, the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City has sponsored a symposium on an important economic issue facing the U.S. and world economies. This annual pilgrimage to the beautiful mountain resort town of Jackson Hole, attracting bankers... Read more