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Retail Sales Inch Up 0.1% in April, Higher Than Expected
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The Census Bureau's Advance Retail Sales Report for April showed consumer spending inched up last month, with head sales rising 0.1%. This comes on the heels of March's 1.7% surge in spending and was higher than the 0.0% forecast.
Empire State Manufacturing Survey: Activity Continued to Decline Modestly in May
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Manufacturing activity contracted for a third consecutive month in New York State, according to the Empire State Manufacturing May survey. The diffusion index for General Business Conditions fell 1.1 points to -9.2. The latest reading was worse than the forecast of -8.2.
Income Without the Volatility…or Credit Exposure
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Our overarching theme for U.S. fixed income has been, and will continue to be, based on the premise that interest rates will stay at more historically “normal” levels, but that, within this backdrop, investors will face heightened volatility.
The Extreme Risk of High Valuation: The Truth About the S&P 500’s Valuation (Part 2)
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In this video – Part 2 – Extreme Risk of High Valuation – Chuck Carnevale, Co-Founder of FAST Graphs, aka Mr. Valuation discusses the volatility of the stock market, using the S&P 500 (SPY) as a proxy.
5 Ways an Overlay Can Smooth Out a Rocky Market
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When volatility ripped through markets last month, many investors scrambled to respond. Some wanted to quickly adjust specific security exposures. Others wanted to flee to cash or build in protection against additional downside moves. And some rushed to buy the dip.
Private Credit’s Latest Golden Moment Is Hiding the Cracks
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Anyone betting on the end of the private credit boom has been on the back foot of late as the upstart $1.6 trillion asset class has notched up a string of wins. But the industry’s naysayers won’t be conceding defeat just yet.
Buying the Dip Still Works — Even in This New World
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Retail investors have won again. When trade tensions flared in early April and about $6.6 trillion in market value vanished from US stocks in just two business days – the fifth-worst two-day drop since the S&P 500’s creation in 1957 – they didn’t panic.
US Oil Output Has Peaked. But Don’t Expect a Rapid Decline.
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The chain-smoking protagonist of Landman, the American television drama series about the Texas oil industry, puts it better than anyone else: “You want oil to live above 60, but below 90,” says the fictional Tommy Norris. “Seventy-eight dollars a barrel, that’s about perfect.”
A Bear Market Rally? Or, Just A Correction?
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Assessing a bear market rally proves challenging when you experience it firsthand. It is only in hindsight that the complete picture reveals itself to investors. Of course, after a bear market rally, investors tend to review their investments and speculate on what they should have done differently.
Fed's Rigidity Risks Recession as Tariffs Start to Bite
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The surprisingly large reduction in mutual tariffs between China and the U.S. announced early Monday morning has sent the markets flying. Trump has softened his approach dramatically and markets are expecting future deals. The base case: everyone at 10%, China at say 20% is still a jump, but at least will likely prevent a recession. Trade and tariffs remain the main focus for markets.
Dissecting the Stock Market: The Truth About the S&P 500’s Valuation (Part 1)
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In this video, Chuck Carnevale, Co-Founder of FAST Graphs, aka Mr. Valuation discusses the volatility of the stock market, the truth about the S&P 500’s valuation, using the S&P 500 (SPY) as a proxy.
Commonwealth Partners with Messina College, Creating Career Paths for First-Generation College Students
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Commonwealth Financial Network®, a national RIA dedicated to providing financial advisors with holistic, integrated business solutions, has initiated a new partnership with Messina College, a two-year, all-residential degree program of Boston College that welcomed its first-ever class of students to the school’s Brookline Campus last summer.
Liquidity Risk in 2025: A Strategic Priority, Not a Side Concern
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In 2025, liquidity is not a background variable — it's a front-line risk factor, one that’s being tested repeatedly as global markets navigate a web of geopolitical uncertainty and macroeconomic signals.
Cross-Atlantic Retirement Readiness: What the U.S. Can Learn from the U.K.
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While the U.S. and U.K. have different economic and regulatory landscapes, there are clear opportunities for the U.S. to improve retirement readiness by adopting some best practices from across the pond.
Inside the Consumer Price Index: April 2025
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Inflation affects everything from grocery bills to rent, making the Consumer Price Index (CPI) one of the most closely watched economic indicators. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) tracks this by categorizing spending into eight categories, each weighted by its relative importance.
How to Cut US Drug Prices Without Hurting Innovation
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The price of Wegovy, Novo Nordisk’s blockbuster weight-loss drug, is $1,349 a month in the US; in Germany, it’s $328. The US price for Keytruda, a cancer treatment, is $191,000 a year; in Japan, it’s $44,000.
US Firm Global AI Secures Saudi Investment Worth Billions
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Global AI, a US tech firm, plans to collaborate with a Saudi Arabian artificial intelligence venture, Humain, in an agreement expected to be worth billions of dollars, according to a person familiar with the mattter.
NFIB Small Business Survey: Uncertainty Continues to Drag Down Optimism
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The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index dropped for a fourth straight month, falling to 95.8 in April. Notably, the percent of small business owners who reported difficulty filling job openings fell to its lowest level since January 2021.
Consumer Price Index: Inflation Cools to 2.3% in April, Lower Than Expected
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Inflation cooled for a third straight month in April, hitting its lowest level in over four years. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the headline figure for the Consumer Price Index was at 2.3% year-over-year, down from 2.4% in March and lower than the expected 2.4% growth.
Active Fixed Income Perspectives Q2 2025: Risks to Realities
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The early-April announcement of a broad new round of tariffs against virtually all U.S. trading partners—followed by a pause for many of them—has triggered a tidal shift in the global economy. Uncertainty created by tariff negotiations, as well as burgeoning federal debt levels and other ongoing concerns, has far-reaching economic implications, leading us to reassess our 2025 outlook.
The Link Between Tariffs and The U.S. Federal Budget
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Tariff talk has been at a fever pitch for the past three months. Its dominance of the news cycle has crowded out discussion of other important economic issues, such as the sustainability of America’s national debt.
Three Takeaways From Earnings Season
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The roller coaster continues! A stronger than expected first quarter earnings season and encouraging signs on the trade front—highlighted by the US-UK trade deal—helped lift the S&P 500 from its April 8 near-bear market lows, reversing nearly all post-Liberation Day (April 2) losses.
What’s the Frequency. . . Russell?
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In the latest edition of Design Matters, titled “What’s the Frequency… Russell?” Greg Behar of Westwood’s Managed Investment Solutions (MIS) team examines how the Russell U.S. Indexes’ decision to return to a semi-annual reconstitution schedule is transforming risk management practices, market participation and the future of custom indexing.