Although the prospect of the Federal Reserve tapering its bond purchases has unsettled markets in the past, we expect it to be more orderly this time around.

News about Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, much like hearing about a neighbor who won the lottery, have been impossible to ignore lately.

China’s stock market pullback this year has been in line with the average annual drawdown; historically, this volatility has tended to produce double-digit annualized gains.

As expected, in a unanimous vote, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) of the Federal Reserve (Fed) kept the fed funds rate unchanged in its range of 0-0.25%.

In what shaped up to be a very impressive first half of the year for both the economy and stock market, stellar earnings growth has been a key ingredient.

COVID-19 resurgences appear to be the primary driver of moves across many markets this year.

For investors considering preferred securities today, there is good news and bad news.

In the last few weeks, stock market leadership reversed back to lockdown-era defensives as the stock market made new all-time highs.

More than 75% of the West is in an extreme or exceptional drought, with over 58 million people living in a drought area—and expectations are that it will get worse.

There is always a lot of controversy around the implications of high and rising government debt. Over the past 70 years, rising government debt has generally been accompanied by weaker economic activity.

Inflation continues to be a concern these days, and many investors are looking for investments that can keep pace with, or hopefully beat, the rate of inflation

It is possible that good data could be interpreted as bad news for the U.S. stock market at least in the near-term as strong economic data, especially on jobs, could prompt the Fed to unwind earlier.

The Fed made no changes to its interest rate or balance sheet policies; but some of the language in its statement was tweaked, reflecting recent hotter inflation data.

To get the facts, sometimes you need to look beneath the surface.

Liz Ann Sonders shares her perspective on the U.S. stock market and economy in this monthly Market Snapshot video.

The recovery is now over; a new global economic expansion has begun.

Second quarter is likely the peak growth rate for both the economy and corporate earnings; with positive economic surprises waning.

Is the stock market disconnected from the economy?

While it’s very early to say the rise in inflation has passed, there are signs that the fastest part of the rebound in inflation might soon be over.

In a complete reversal from what was expected roughly a year ago, the outlook for muni issuers is much brighter.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have been getting a lot of attention lately.

A boom in spending has stirred fears of economic overheating, which has coincided with a surge in commodity prices and a lift in traditional inflation metrics.

With commodity prices soaring, money supply growth exploding, and government spending surging, there is a palpable fear of a return to 1970s-style inflation.

Special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs)—also known as blank-check companies—have gained immense popularity among investors since the beginning of 2020, despite being around for decades.

Economic and earnings data are in boom territory, with more momentum likely near-term.

Inflation is likely to rise in 2021—but will the rise be sustained? That seems to be the million-dollar question lately.

This week’s unveiling of the American Families Plan, the latest proposal from the White House, makes it clear that President Joe Biden is serious about pursuing some of the individual tax increases he called for during the 2020 campaign.

In recent months, two investment themes have been rewarding investors with outperformance: defense sector companies and those participating in share buybacks.

Although it’s early in the first quarter earnings reporting season, it’s worth a look at the progress so far and the implications for the rest of the season, as well as valuations.

Hundreds of years of history shows us that investment bubbles have been a regularly occurring feature of the financial markets.

Floating-rate notes can help lower a portfolio’s sensitivity to interest rate changes, but they aren’t necessarily the secret weapon to combat a rising-rate environment.

As Shakespeare might put it, “full of sound and fury, signifying nothing” is perhaps an apt way to describe the character of the market so far this year.

Policymakers in major economies have pointed to 2023 as the date the stimulus payback may begin.

I am often asked by investors why we do not have formal tactical views on growth vs. value like we do on large caps vs. small caps.

We are often asked if the U.S. dollar will lose its status as the world’s reserve currency.

This probably isn’t the start of a bear market, but it may feel like less a bull market compared with last year’s charge.

U.S. economic growth is accelerating as vaccinations rise and social-distancing measures ease, but hopes for a long-lasting spending boom may hit a couple of speed bumps. Vaccine rollouts in major countries are proceeding at different speeds, but stock market performance contradicts what vaccination data would seem to imply for investors. Meanwhile, inflation-adjusted longer-term Treasury yields have risen as investors anticipate stronger economic growth.

Is the stock market disconnected from the economy? Perhaps, but less so lately.

“Bull markets are born on pessimism, grow on skepticism, mature on optimism and die on euphoria.” -Investor and mutual fund manager Sir John Templeton

What’s a “zombie company”? You may have heard the term in the financial media recently and wondered if it’s something you should be worried about.

Accelerating growth is generally a good thing for stocks, evidenced by bond yields and stock prices typically rising and falling together.

The late-February spike in U.S. Treasury bond yields sent ripples throughout the global markets. As yields surged to the highest level in a year, stocks and commodities sold off sharply, while the dollar rallied.

Looking at the latest economic data reveals V-shaped recoveries in many goods-based indicators; while services has more catch-up to do.

The Year of the Ox looks bullish for China with economists and analysts forecasting GDP growth of 8.1% and earnings growth of 18% for the MSCI China Index. But February holds key developments for China that could impact this outlook, including stock delistings, trade, and COVID-19.

Hope is high that economic growth will accelerate as more people are vaccinated against COVID-19, but so far economic data has been lackluster. Meanwhile, bond investors are expecting inflation despite signs that the economic recovery’s momentum may be stalling. Why does everything seem so disconnected?

This is a new type of exchange-traded ETF that is built differently from a traditional ETF.

As quickly as it soared to the moon, GameStop came back down to earth; but the lessons learned are key to turning day trading speculators into longer-term investors.

The COVID-19 crisis opened up cracks in the muni market, but we don’t expect those cracks to alter the reality that municipal bonds can be a relatively conservative investment option. Many municipalities are under stress, but that’s not a reason to avoid munis, in our view.

When investors talk about “the stock market” they are most often referring to an index that tracks stocks only in their home country. This “home bias” is evident when it comes to the make-up of investors’ stock portfolios. Investors around the world tend to hold mostly domestic stocks.