The markets seemed to react with fear last week. The major indexes fell, with about 90% of S&P 500 stocks losing ground and every major market sector closing in the red. Investors turned to bonds, sending the price of 10-year Treasury notes up and the yield down. Wall Street is also preparing for what is […]
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Required Distributions: Changes You Need to Know
The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act of 2019 changed the rules for taking distributions from retirement accounts inherited after 2019. The so-called 10-year rule generally requires inherited accounts to be emptied within 10 years of the original owner’s death, with some exceptions. Where an exception applies, the entire account must generally […]
Read MoreWeekly Update as of market close April 22, 2022
Wall Street closed lower last week as investors weighed mixed earnings data against increased certainty of aggressive interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. It was the third straight week of losses for the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, while the Dow declined for the fourth consecutive week. The hawkish stance taken by the Fed […]
Read MoreFederal Student Loan Repayment Postponed for Sixth Time
On April 6, the U.S. Department of Education announced a record sixth extension for federal student loan repayment, interest, and collections, through August 31, 2022.1 The fifth payment pause was set to end on April 30, 2022. The six extensions have postponed federal student loan payments for almost two and a half years — since March […]
Read MoreWeekly Update as of market close April 14, 2022
Stocks ended last week mostly lower. Each of the benchmark indexes listed here closed down during the holiday-shortened week, as Wall Street was closed in observance of Good Friday. Tech shares slid lower, pulling the Nasdaq down 2.6%. The S&P 500 also fell more than 2.0% for the week. Only the Russell 2000 pushed higher. […]
Read MoreIs the Russia-Ukraine War a Threat to the Global Economy?
Before Russia stunned the world by invading Ukraine, it was widely believed that the economic ties formed through globalization would help promote peace. But the war is testing that assumption and drawing attention to the vulnerabilities in far-flung supply chains, which were already under pressure because of the pandemic and recovery. In response to the […]
Read MoreWeekly Update as of market close April 8, 2022
Stocks lost value last week as each of the benchmark indexes listed here finished lower. The Nasdaq and the Russell 2000 were hit the hardest, followed by the Global Dow, the S&P 500, and the Dow. Ten-year Treasury yields jumped 34 basis points as bond prices slid lower. The dollar strengthened against a bucket of […]
Read MoreWeekly Update as of market close April 1, 2022
Stocks closed generally higher last week, with only the Dow failing to post a gain. As has been the case since the end of February, investors have had to weigh the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on the economy in general and inflation in particular. Adding to the list of concerns is the Federal Reserve’s […]
Read MoreManaging Bond Risks When Interest Rates Rise
After dropping the benchmark federal funds rate to a rock-bottom range of 0%–0.25% early in the pandemic, the Federal Open Market Committee has begun raising the rate toward more typical historical levels in response to high inflation. At its March 2022 meeting, the Committee raised the funds rate to 0.25%–0.50% and projected the equivalent of […]
Read MoreWeekly Update as of market close March 25, 2022
Wall Street closed higher for the second consecutive week, despite several days where stock values seesawed. The tech-heavy Nasdaq led the gainers, followed by the S&P 500, the Global Dow, and the Dow. The small caps of the Russell 2000 edged lower. Information technology was the worst-performing sector, while energy had the biggest gains. Investors […]
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