Outlook

The back-to-school season isn’t just producing frowns for some students, it’s also dealing investors with losses.

When Fed Chair Powell laid out a strategy to cut short-term interest rates, but did not say “when” or “how much”, the financial markets helped him fill in the blanks to both questions.

Investors responded favorably to Fed Chair Powell's much anticipated speech about rate cuts. The remaining question being how significant a rate cut might be.

Consumer confidence rebounded this month despite households’ apprehension about stock market bumpiness, reduced employment opportunities and other headwinds

Investor sentiment in commodity markets has reached a five-year low, presenting potential opportunities for contrarian investors. Potential opportunities and challenges exist in industrial metals, energy, precious metals and agricultural commodities.

In the world of investing, market uncertainty shaped by various economic, geopolitical, and societal factors is an inevitable reality. During periods of heightened uncertainty, financial advisors (FAs) can provide advice to their clients that extends beyond asset allocation and retirement projections.

July inflation data was slightly better than expected. Both overall and core (ex-food-and-energy) prices increased 0.2% MoM. The headline CPI print marked the first sub-3.0% reading since March 2021.

This commentary covers the key takeaways for the listed commodities. Click the name of the sector to see the respective monthly chart pack.

Last week’s market rally saw assists from two places: economic data and constructive Fed comments. Three critical economic data points gave investors what they were looking for: wholesale inflation, consumer prices, and retail sales.

Monday was the worst day for the S&P 500 and the Dow in nearly two years. But initial jobless claims fell less than expected—a positive sign for the labor markets— which quieted some of the recession talk. Also, as the week progressed, there was growing speculation that the July jobs report was more of an outlier than a lead indicator of a pending recession.

The need for validation of the recent rally is emphasized, questioning whether the UST 2-Year yield being significantly below the Fed Funds Rate is justified given current economic data

As the earnings season unfolds, these corporate outlooks offer real-world insights that often contrast sharply with the uncertainty emanating from the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC)