According to a popular quotation that has been apocryphally attributed to a wide cast of characters including Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin, and even Steve Bannon, “there are decades in which nothing happens, and weeks in which decades happen”. While the origin of the statement is uncertain (it may, in fact,…
"Fallen Angels" soar to new heights
The economic and market disruption in the spring brought bad news for many sectors, with particular impact on high-yield bonds, those issued by below-investment-grade companies who are typically at higher risk of default. So-called “junk” bonds predictably struggled as the market fell, with major high-yield bond funds plunging by 20%…
The SECURE Act Becomes Law
For the second time in three years, our friends in Washington have chosen to celebrate the holiday season by passing a significant tax-related bill. Two years ago, a Republican-controlled Congress enacted a substantial tax reform package, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. Then, in 2019, a divided government…
Brexit Negotiations Extended, But Still No End In Sight
With the negative economic headlines in the U.S. largely easing during the first quarter, there is only one obvious macro concern hanging over the market, but it happens to be a big one. The Brexit negotiations continue to drag on in Europe, and while an agreement has been reached to…
On Yield Curves and Recessions
Over the past few weeks, an increasing number of market-focused articles and analyses have begun to discuss the U.S. Treasury yield curve, which was recently described by CNBC as “one of the most reliable recession indicators in the market”. And indeed, the yield curve’s history of predictions is an impressive…
Investing in the O-Zone Layer?
By most metrics, the U.S. economy has fully recovered from the 2008 financial crisis and recession: housing prices have exceeded their pre-crisis peak, the stock market remains at stratospheric levels (even after its late-year stumble), and unemployment measures stand at multi-decade lows. However, the recovery has been extremely uneven, with…
What is "Passive Investing"?
Over the last several years, the ongoing debate over the relative merits of “passive” versus “active” investing has picked up steam, with the passive camp steadily gaining ground against the more traditional active portfolio managers. Lured by the simplicity and low cost of an ever-increasing number of passively-managed index funds…
VIXsplosion? Volatility-Related Investments Implode
In our Q4 2017 newsletter, we noted that the market had entered into an almost unprecedented period of market calm, at least as measured by one major measure of market volatility. We wrote then: “the CBOE S&P 500 Volatility Index (VIX), often simplistically referred to as the market’s ‘fear gauge’,…
What's Your (Retirement) Number?
For a while, the TV commercials were seemingly ubiquitous: a variety of working professionals and business owners, walking around their offices or homes with giant 6-figure or 7-figure numbers trailing behind them like overly dependent puppies. The numbers, of course, were meant to represent the workers’ “retirement numbers”, the amount…
Do You Need (More) Life Insurance?
The financial planning process is, by its very nature, an exercise in exploring sensitive and delicate issues. But perhaps no topic generates as much discomfort and anxiety among clients as life insurance. In general, most people—especially younger, healthier individuals with young children—find it difficult to confront the idea of their…
