Hope you’re all enjoying the heart of summer. It’s easy (and justified) to pay a bit less attention to markets during this time of year when fun and family take center stage. If you’ve tuned things out a bit, I have good news for you. Markets have been taking care of business! Let’s take a […]

Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) have exploded in popularity over the past decade. These investment funds hold a collection of assets (cash, stocks, bonds, commodities, etc) and are commonly designed to track the performance of a certain index or sector. Unlike their predecessor in retail investing (mutual funds), ETFs can be bought and sold on a […]

Don’t look now but after a harrowing few weeks earlier this year, US equity markets sit at (or above) all time highs depending on which index you are tracking. Market commentators are once again discussing the many reasons they “knew this was coming” (sidenote- they did not) and discussing why markets will march higher from […]

Don’t look now but as of next Tuesday, we will have reached the halfway point of 2025. It has certainly been an eventful year! If you’ve been stayed invested throughout this entire period and resisted the temptation to “abandon mission” in March/April, congratulations! Once again, your commitment and ability to resist action based on worst […]

We wrote last week about the increased importance the labor component of the Federal Reserve’s dual mandate. This week, the second part of the mandate (inflation) got its turn in the spotlight yet again. First up – Consumer Price Index (CPI) report was released for May and it showed favorable results. The CPI rose 2.4% […]

It’s that time of year – second quarter estimated tax payments are due June 16, 2025 (you get an extra day as a result of the 15th falling on a weekend!) I talked with a client this week about adjusting tax payments mid-year (due to a change in business earnings). It’s a great question that […]

Don’t look now but as of the time I’m writing this post, US equity markets are fast approaching new all-time highs. I know – that is hard to believe after what we went thru just a few months ago. The recovery off the April lows has been staggering – yet remains a very hated and […]

Markets tend to focus on one “hot topic” per week – and this week, jobs took center stage. As you know by now, the Federal Reserve Bank in the US has a dual mandate – meaning it has to balance two priorities as it considers interest rate levels and monetary policy. That dual mandate includes […]

If you’re feeling a bit better about your portfolio and investing outlook than you were in April, you are not alone. In early 2025, there was a high level concern about weakness in “soft” data (ie: consumer and investor sentiment surveys). While this data is not as conclusive as “hard” data (actual measurable statistics and […]

I’m endlessly amazed (and amused) by the acronyms that market participants come up with. Anyone remember what FANG, BRIC, and/or TINA stood for? Well, don’t worry about those because there is a new acronym starting to take hold. It’s a catchy take on a favorite food – TACO.. which stands for “Trump Always Chickens Out” […]