(For the quarter ended December 31, 2014.) Autumn’s twists and turns did not deflect the stock market from its upward climb. When the dust settled on New Year’s Eve, the S&P 500 ended up more than 4% on the quarter and more than 11% on the year, despite sharp dips in mid-October and mid-December. The NASDAQ […]
It is estimated by the U.S. Secret Service, the federal agency responsible for protecting the U.S. currency, that prior to the adoption of a national currency in 1863 up to one-third of the currency in circulation was counterfeit.¹Today, while 90% of all known counterfeit currency is seized before it reaches circulation, combating counterfeiting remains core […]
Did you know that more than $5.14 trillion in assets are benchmarked to the Standard & Poor’s 500 Composite Index, including $1.6 trillion in index assets?¹The S&P 500 is ubiquitous—we see it on the TV news, read about it in the newspapers and very likely see some of our own investments’ performance compared against it. […]
As the Federal Reserve winds down its massive bond-buying program, the widely predicted after effects — rising interest rates and inflation — have thus far failed to materialize. The yield on the bond market’s bellwether 10-year Treasury note, which started 2014 at 3.03%, had fallen to 2.33% as of October 29.1 Similarly, inflation, as measured […]
For as long as there has been a stock market, investors have sought a reliable framework to determine the future direction of prices. Success has been elusive. But thanks to the work of three American economists, we operate today with a better understanding of what determines an asset’s price than the generations of investors that […]
Would it surprise you to hear that China owns just 8% of the total outstanding debt of the U.S. Government?¹This still amounts to nearly $1.3 trillion, but China’s ownership of Treasury securities is well behind two major domestic owners—Social Security and the Federal Reserve.² Nevertheless, the emergence of a political and economic competitor on the […]
If you look up “currency” in Merriam-Webster, you will find it defined as “the money that a country uses” and “the quality or state of being used or accepted by many people.” Recent news stories involving a new form of currency, bitcoin, have sparked the interest of many individuals. How Bitcoin Works Bitcoin has emerged […]
What has upswings and downturns, troughs, peaks, and plateaus? Though such terms could easily describe a roller coaster ride, in fact they are commonly used to refer to something known as the business cycle. The business cycle — also known as the economic cycle — refers to fluctuations in economic activity over several months or […]
Have you ever taken a close look at paper money? Each U.S. bill has the words “Federal Reserve Note” imprinted across the top.1 But many individuals may not know why the bill is issued by the Federal Reserve and what role the Federal Reserve plays in the economy. Here’s an inside look. The Federal Reserve, […]
U.S. Personal Savings Rate The U.S. personal saving rate stood at 4.9% at the end of 2013, a bit higher than its 10-year average of 3.9% and well below the recent five-year high of 8.7% in December 2012.1The personal saving rate is the federal government’s estimate of what percent of their incomes U.S. households are […]
