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Market Outlooks
Don’t fight the Fed. And, maybe the Federal Government too
Among the better-known Wall Street maxims is “Don’t fight the Fed,” which speaks to the idea that monetary policy and the trend in interest rates determines the direction of the stock market.
Market Outlooks
Two bits of good news. And, what are two bits, anyway?
The economic headlines of late have been driven by – and understandably so – BIG pieces of news, both bad and good.
Human Capital
Finding Talent – Relying on Personal Networks Won’t Get You to Diversity
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Diversity, according to research from McKinsey & Company may be correlated with both profitability and value creation. Deloitte's research suggests that diversity and inclusion may not only impact performance, but also brand and corporate purpose. To reap the rewards of gender and other types of diversity, however, financial advising firms may need to adjust their recruiting mindset.
Human Capital
The Culture of Diversity – It’s a Better One According to Advisors
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Financial advising may have a diversity problem. In fact, with reportedly 81% of the financial advisors being white, advising may be one of the least diverse professions in the United States. It should be no surprise then that, according to the Knight Foundation research, only 1.3% of assets are managed by women or minority-owned firms as of 2019.
Human Capital
Diversity is Good Business for Advisory Firms
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U.S. demographics are changing and we are expected to be a minority/majority by 2045. Yet the majority of financial advisors are still overwhelmingly white, male and shrinking in numbers. FlexShares conducted a survey of investors and advisors to see if diversity was being pursued and how firms were building diverse teams.
Human Capital
The Inherent Value of Diversity
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The client of the future doesn’t look, or act, like the client of the past, or in many aspects, the client of today. As people of all identities -- race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientations, family status, and more -- overcome historical barriers to access economic opportunities, financial advisors aiming to stay competitive may want to find ways to help a broader range of clients build wealth.
Market Outlooks
What small caps might be telling us about the economy and the market
For a big country, we sure have an affinity for little things. Think TV shows: “Tiny House Nation”; sayings: “Big things come in small packages”; and children’s books: “The Little Engine That Could” as being among the more obvious examples of our love of things little or small. It is a love of small things which brings us to the focus of this week’s Weekly Wire, US small cap stocks, and what the asset class might be telling us about the US economy and the US stock market as we approach the second half of 2020.
Market Outlooks
What history will COVID-19 write?
The COVID-19 pandemic has made history in more ways than one, including catalyzing an economic downturn that cost the US more than 20 million jobs and a policy response that saw the Federal Government pass the $2.1 trillion CARES Act, the largest ever US economic rescue package. That said, we don’t think COVID-19 is finished filling up our history books. We think the long-term consequences of the virus could prove much more meaningful than what we have seen to date.
Behavioral Finance
Focused expertise
There have been many restrictions placed on the normal rhythms of life in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The interactions we typically take for granted such as going to restaurants, spending time with friends, working out at the gym, and traveling on vacation have all been curtailed in an effort to tame the pandemic.
Market Outlooks
The market as a leading indicator…for the market
We frequently write about the stock market as a leading indicator of the real economy. The idea being
the market will anticipate the economic environment to come, rallying in the face of awful economic news and selling off in the face of constructive economic news.
Policy and Regulatory Commentary
How the Federal Reserve is like Spike from Happy Days
As a child of the 70s, I have come to embrace a few, eternal truths: disco should have never died; big collars were a good idea, and the Fonz was the coolest guy who ever lived. Speaking of the Fonz, I am reminded of a Happy Days episode featuring Spike, the Fonz’s nephew, and how that episode and Spike can help us all better understand monetary policy today. Seriously.
Fixed Income Insights
Weekly Wire: It’s always darkest before the dawn
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It is one thing to understand we are living through an unprecedented, pandemic driven economic downturn, and all together another to learn the US unemployment rate is 14.7% and that 20.5 million of our fellow Americans lost their jobs in April.