If price stability is the legal mandate of the Bank of Japan (BOJ), and the central bank’s official target for price stability is 2%, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI),* then why are fluctuations in prices the norm for Japan?
The standoff between the White House and Congress over raising the US debt ceiling has been the talk of the town for months. Now that the government has reached an agreement, savvy investors will be on the hunt for opportunities—and we think there will be some attractive ones.
The financial markets are giving off mixed signals of late, and credit investors may wonder whether to be downbeat or optimistic.
Here’s what we learned in earnings season about how companies are coping with a particularly tricky set of macroeconomic conditions.
Parking your fixed-income assets in cash may seem like a safe choice in today’s volatile investing environment, but it’s actually a risky proposition. Here are three reasons why sitting on the sidelines can be a dangerous game.
The Federal Reserve’s latest 0.25% interest-rate hike has likely capped one of its most aggressive policy-tightening cycles in 40 years. And the cumulative 5% policy rate increase in just over a year is now starting to have an effect on rate-sensitive sectors and inflation.
Muni investors have more reasons for optimism than concern as California tackles a projected $31.5 billion budget deficit.
As the US economy begins to feel the weight of the Federal Reserve’s rate hikes, investors have grown leery of US high-yield corporate bonds. On the surface, that makes sense. Historically, credit conditions soured when growth slowed.
Stock selection in a climate investing strategy takes more than just avoiding companies exposed to global warming risks. The process should intersect with an active search for diverse opportunities among companies helping to fight climate change, but with high-quality business models, too.
ChatGPT is generating excitement about the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to reshape the business. For investment firms, AI can help execute many menial functions to free up analysts for deeper research dives, armed with more information than they could ever process alone.
The big picture is that this week’s adjacent decisions by two major central banks point to a near-term divergence in policy paths between the US and Europe: the Fed is on hold and the ECB is still raising rates.
Floating-rate bank loans tend to do well when conditions are just right: the Federal Reserve is raising rates and the economy is growing. But such conditions typically don’t last long.
Markets posted a strong first quarter, though it was a rollercoaster ride. The path forward will likely stay turbulent, with bank turmoil likely tightening credit conditions and the Fed still wrestling with inflation.
The pandemic hurt small retailers by hastening the transition to digital commerce and emptied office buildings by turning living rooms into workspace. But it also fueled a warehouse building boom and unleashed a torrent of pent-up travel-and-leisure spending when economies reopened, underscoring the diversity of commercial real estate.
My grandmother always had something witty or wise to share. One of her favorites had me imagining vivid pictures of pounds of medicine in bottles and spoonfuls of colorful liquids.
India’s ability to attract foreign investment has long been hampered by subpar infrastructure and excessive bureaucracy. But reputations can obscure real change.
Investors in European bank shares have been rattled by recent turmoil in the sector. But many banks are in much better shape than widely perceived, and the sector is subject to much tighter regulation than in the US.
For years, investors seeking tax-efficient income grappled with a key question: Are municipal bonds that are subject to the alternative minimum tax (AMT) worth their higher yields? After all, an attractive bond yield didn’t hold as much luster once the AMT shaved off up to 28%.
The lack of diversification benefits of government bonds in 2022 was painful for multi-asset investors. The sell-off in US Treasuries in particular was sharp, and we saw correlations versus stocks move well into positive territory.
We think dividend-income strategies can be effective across multiple environments, provided that they’re designed to tap into a wider opportunity set beyond traditional dividend payers alone.
Global equities were volatile in the first quarter, as turmoil in the banking sector jolted markets.
Stock and bond markets were shaken by the recent banking crisis in the US and Europe.
Yesterday, the Fed raised its benchmark interest rate 25 basis points to a 4.75%–5.0% range and signaled that one more hike is likely this cycle.
Income-seeking investors are accustomed to casting wide nets after years of low yields.
Investors focusing on climate change often overlook Chinese firms.
Investors in emerging markets (EM) have endured a decade of poor performance. But things may be changing. Based on The Economist magazine’s data comparing hamburger prices across countries, many EM currencies look cheap today—as they did 20 years ago before an extended rally of EM stocks and bonds.
Over the past few decades, investors have become conditioned to expect that rising interest rates will trigger broader US financial market crises.
ChatGPT has ignited the world’s imagination about the power of artificial intelligence (AI).
As the financial services industry has evolved away from transactions and toward financial planning, an interesting shift has happened: more couples have started showing up in advisors’ offices to discuss their investments and their financial plan.
Passive equity investing has retained its dominance and outflows from active portfolios have continued amid the market and macro shocks of the past year.
When we think about generating income for our clients, for over 30 years we’ve thought the most efficient way to do this is to blend the two key risks of fixed income into one portfolio.
European policymakers face a dilemma: continue to hike interest rates to combat inflation or ease off to stimulate growth.
Healthcare stocks have remained in vogue through volatile markets, driven by increased interest in the sector during COVID-19.
European bond-market performance was among the worst on record in 2022, as Europe ran the gamut of geopolitical, economic and market storms.
After a year defined by inflation and the policy response to it, we expect 2023 to be a year of transition.
Small-cap companies are usually the most vulnerable to volatility, with their stock prices and earnings getting hit particularly hard and early in economic downturns, much like what occurred in 2022. Yet they also tend to lead the way on both fronts during recoveries.
As global warming worries approach critical mass, corporate bond investors expect issuers to be part of the solution.
As Europe struggles with war, costly energy, record inflation and slowing growth, it’s no surprise that European corporate credit is out of favor.
In this year’s global economic crisis, no two regions are having identical experiences. While inflation rages across much of the world, price rises have been more moderate in some countries than others. Similarly, the scale of rate hikes and the degree of recession fears aren’t uniform.
With the year winding down, investors might think they’ve seen it all. But one element of market dysfunction that’s largely flown under the radar is increased friction within the US Treasury market. Treasuries are experiencing a liquidity decline on the back of economic uncertainty and higher volatility, with large blocks of government debt increasingly hard to trade.
In one of the most challenging years for markets, 2022 brought persistently high inflation, aggressive central bank tightening and heightened geopolitical risks, leaving investors with few places to hide.
After a tough year for equities, is a recovery imminent?
What a difference a decade makes!
Equity investors have sustained significant losses this year and are facing a long list of new uncertainties.
Equity valuations have fallen substantially as central banks hike interest rates to combat inflation.
The cost of prescription medicine is a constant strain for many Americans.
Equity investors are trying to figure out whether steep share-price declines have led to attractive valuations, given mounting threats to fundamental business performance. The answer varies from company to company and requires an active equity investing approach to separate winners from losers.
Technology stocks have been pummeled this year, leading some investors to question the sector’s future.
UK government bonds prices have plunged recently. Sterling-denominated corporate bonds have also fallen sharply and are looking cheap.
China's 20th National Congress could help air ideas for more growth-supportive policies.
