Markets were jittery after the first Fed meeting with new Chairman Kevin Warsh. The market reacted negatively to the June Dot-plot from the Fed and Mr. Warsh's comments with a lack of projections. The June Dot-plot showed most members, despite leaving interest rates steady for June, expect at least one rate hike in 2026. The market also took the new chairman’s style, with less projections and more concise comments as “hawkish.” However, it is a new day at the Fed and mar

A peace deal between the U.S. and Iran is signed, but you might not know it if you listen to the market pundits. It usually seems like the end of the world to those who seek clicks more than they provide helpful investment information. This week's musings are inspired by the 1987 song "It's The End Of The World As We Know It" by R.E.M. Here is some trivia about the song: The song was not especially popular when released, as it only reached #69 on the Billboard charts, but

News of a peace deal between the U.S. and Iran emerged last week, causing markets to rise. As soon as the news broke on Friday morning, markets flipped on a dime. Oil finished lower on Friday by more than 3%, equities were higher, and the US dollar was lower. Over the weekend, more details emerged about the deal including the end of the U.S. naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and an end to hostilities, with expectations of a formal signing later this week.1 In pre-ope

This week was flush with activity as markets tried to bounce back from last Friday's sell off amid increased tensions in the Middle East and signs a deal might actually get done. Investors should realize there is no such thing as a "perfect" market to put money to work. This week's musings are inspired by the 1987 movie "Mannequin." Here is some trivia about the film: The movie wasn't a smash hit, but it did earn more than $42 million on a $6 million budget. However, the m

Markets pulled back late last week on a stronger jobs report and the prospect of rate hikes. One would think that an improved labor market might be a good sign of the U.S. economy improving, but "investors" quickly pivoted to risk-off positions in fears that the Fed would put rate hikes back on the table. After some weakness in December of last year and February of this year, payrolls improved over the last three months, with both March & April jobs revised higher and May's

There's a divergence between sentiment in the market and economic data. This could go down as one of the "least loved" bull markets in history. The view that things aren't so good from a quality of life perspective with soft economic data stands in stark contrast to equity markets making new all-time-highs and solid hard economic data. We seem to have a battle behind the scenes between two opposing forces. This week's musings are inspired by the 1984 movie "Red Dawn." Her