The Big Picture

MAY 16, 2024

The Misery Index — the combination of Inflation and unemployment — failed as a bearish criticism of the economy. Unemployment remains at 60-year lows, and Inflation has plummeted from 9% down to the 3s. If you have a bearish mindset , and seek confirmation of that perspective, then the next economic critique after the Misery Index you try on for size is “Stagflation.” We have heard the S-word from Jamie Dimon , Stanley Druckenmiller , Bank of America , Barclays , Fox , Ma

Advertising 317

Advertising Economics Economy Banking 317

Abnormal Returns

MAY 16, 2024

Books A Q&A with Michael Muthukrishna author of "A Theory of Everyone: The New Science of Who We Are, How We Got Here, and Where We’re Going." (behavioralscientist.org) An excerpt from "Magic Pill: The Extraordinary Benefits and Disturbing Risks of the New Weight-Loss Drugs" by Johann Hari. (tim.blog) A Q&A with Zoë Schlanger author of "The Light Eaters: How the Unseen World of Plant Intelligence Offers a New Understanding of Life on Earth.

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Nerd's Eye View

MAY 16, 2024

In the initial stages of their careers, many financial advicers find that, with little revenue coming in and less than a full load of client-facing work to do, they spend the majority of their time on operations and marketing as they try to establish their practice. As a result, an advicer often has the capacity to say "yes" to any opportunity that comes along as they try to keep busy and (hopefully) improve their cash flow.

Financial Advice 130

Financial Advice Clients Communication Financial Planning 130

Abnormal Returns

MAY 16, 2024

Markets Three assets that don't diversify your portfolio as well as you think. (morningstar.com) Risk-on assets have failed to outperform in 2024. (allstarcharts.com) How market consensus forms. (mrzepczynski.blogspot.com) Exchanges CME Group ($CME) is planning to launch bitcoin trading. (ft.com) The CFTC doesn't want you betting on event contracts.

Financial Advising 144

Financial Advising Media Assets Economy 144

Speaker: Igli Laci, Strategic Finance Leader

In today’s competitive market, pricing is more than just a number — it’s the cornerstone of profitability. The right pricing strategy ensures that you capture the true value of your offering, paving the way for sustainable growth and long-term success. Join Igli Laci, Strategic Finance Leader, in this exclusive session where he will explore how a well-crafted pricing approach balances customer perception with business objectives, creating a powerful tool for securing both competitive advantage a

Numbers

Calculated Risk

MAY 16, 2024

Today, in the Calculated Risk Real Estate Newsletter: MBA: Mortgage Delinquencies Increased Slightly in Q1 2024 A brief excerpt: From the MBA: Mortgage Delinquencies Increase Slightly in the First Quarter of 2024 The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties increased to a seasonally adjusted rate of 3.94 percent of all loans outstanding at the end of the first quarter of 2024, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) National Delinquency Survey.

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Calculated Risk

MAY 16, 2024

From the Fed: Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization Industrial production was little changed in April. Manufacturing output decreased 0.3 percent; excluding motor vehicles and parts, manufacturing output edged down 0.1 percent. The index for mining fell 0.6 percent, and the index for utilities rose 2.8 percent. At 102.8 percent of its 2017 average, total industrial production in April was 0.4 percentage point lower than its year-earlier level.

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Manufacturing 107

Advisor Perspectives

MAY 16, 2024

Month-over-month nominal retail sales in April were up 0.4% and up 3.04% year-over-year. However, after adjusting for inflation, real retail sales were down 0.3% MoM and down 0.31% year-over-year.

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Retail Sales 102

Calculated Risk

MAY 16, 2024

What this means: On a weekly basis, Realtor.com reports the year-over-year change in active inventory and new listings. On a monthly basis, they report total inventory. For April, Realtor.com reported inventory was up 30.4% YoY, but still down almost 36% compared to April 2017 to 2019 levels. Now - on a weekly basis - inventory is up 35.0% YoY. Realtor.com has monthly and weekly data on the existing home market.

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Sales Numbers Marketing Marketing 107

Wealth Management

MAY 16, 2024

Too many RIAs fail to clear a path for junior advisors to take over, threatening the future viability of the business. A panel of practice management consultants at the Wealth Management Edge conference discussed why that’s a mistake and what advisors can do to change it.

Wealth Management 98

Wealth Management Consulting Management 98

Speaker: Nancy Wu, Head of Sales and Customer Success at SkyStem

A good, fast, clean audit leads to a happy work life. Join us in this one-hour webinar, where we share the best ways to prepare and conduct your audit process to maximize audit satisfaction and minimize administrative time in month-end close and financial reporting. Learning objectives: This course objective is to review leading practices to maximize audit success.

A Wealth of Common Sense

MAY 16, 2024

A reader asks: I ran across this blog post by Econ blogger Noah Smith, “Americans are still not worried enough about the risk of world war.” He makes the case that we could well be in what he calls “the foothills” of another conflict on the scale of World War II, arguing that right now feels a lot like the mid-late 1930s must have felt as conflicts broke out across the world and gradually merged in.

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Wealth Management

MAY 16, 2024

Too many RIAs fail to clear a path for junior advisors to take over, threatening the future viability of the business. A panel of practice management consultants at Wealth Management EDGE discussed why that’s a mistake and what advisors can do to change it.

Wealth Management 87

Wealth Management Consulting Management 87

The Better Letter

MAY 16, 2024

My high school chorale was rehearsing the terrific William Dawson arrangement of the spiritual, “Soon Ah Will Be Done,” when the director, trying to get us to sink into the harmonies at the end of each phrase, many of which were on the word, “God,” said “God is a groove.” I immediately wrote the following on the front of my choir folder: “‘God is a groove.’ ~ John Sternisha.” In the interest of fairness, my friend and folder-mate (now a

Ethics 76

Ethics Investing Investments Management 76

Wealth Management

MAY 16, 2024

NorthRock Partners CEO and founder Rob Nelson shares his formula for mastering excellence and creating a superstar enterprise.

Financial Advisor 97

Financial Advisor Clients 97

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Advisor Perspectives

MAY 16, 2024

There was white smoke over the Bureau of Labor Statistics, sort of, on Wednesday morning. The key measures of consumer price inflation for April confirmed expectations for a slight decline, and alleviated growing anxiety over a possible reacceleration. Risk assets across the world spent the rest of the day exhaling deeply.

Assets 75

Assets 75

Calculated Risk

MAY 16, 2024

The DOL reported : In the week ending May 11, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 222,000 , a decrease of 10,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 231,000 to 232,000. The 4-week moving average was 217,750, an increase of 2,500 from the previous week's revised average.

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Wealth Management

MAY 16, 2024

The firm recently expanded the team building out Cetera's RIA services.

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Advisor Perspectives

MAY 16, 2024

In the week ending May 11, initial jobless claims were at a seasonally adjusted level of 222,000, a decrease of 10,000 from the previous week's figure. The latest reading is higher than the forecast of 219,000 jobless claims.

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Speaker: Hilary Akhaabi, PhD - Founder, Chief Financial & Operations Officer at Go Africa Global

In the fast-paced world of corporate finance, staying ahead of the curve is crucial for sustainable growth and profitability. This exclusive webinar with leading expert Hilary Akhaabi, PhD, will teach you practical ways to navigate complex financial landscapes and enhance your company's revenue management capabilities. Whether you're aiming to refine your financial strategies or seeking innovative solutions to drive performance, this new session is for you!

Management

Wealth Management

MAY 16, 2024

Clark, the head of Schwab Advisor Services, will be replaced by COO Jon Beatty.

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Advisor Perspectives

MAY 16, 2024

In April, housing starts rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.360 million, falling short of the forecasted rate of 1.420 million. This marks a 5.7% increase from March and a 0.6% decline compared to one year ago.

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Wealth Management

MAY 16, 2024

Why Silicon Valley is confident, amid slowing economic growth.

Economy 89

Economy Economics 89

Advisor Perspectives

MAY 16, 2024

In April, building permits were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.440 million, falling short of the forecasted rate of 1.480 million. This marks a 3.0% decrease from March and a 2.0% decline compared to one year ago.

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Banking

Random Roger's Retirement Planning

MAY 16, 2024

Corey Hoffstein had a thought provoking Tweet thread that started with "leveraged portfolios are subject to variance drain." The conversation went on to compare the effect of variance drain in leveraged portfolios, which is what the ReturnStacked ETFs do, versus variance drain in more common, long only portfolios. Variance drain is a fancy term for the potential underperformance that could be caused by volatility working against a portfolio's result.

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Portfolio Taxes Investing Investments 52

Advisor Perspectives

MAY 16, 2024

In April, nominal home values increased for a 13th straight months while "real" home values rose for the first time in 8 months. Last month's ZHVI came in at $358,734, up 0.52% from the previous month and up 4.34% from one year ago. However, after adjusting for inflation, the real figures are 0.10% month-over-month and -1.34% year-over-year.

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Wealth Management

MAY 16, 2024

Thursday, June 20, 2024 | 4:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time

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Advisor Perspectives

MAY 16, 2024

The JPMorgan Chase & Co. chief executive officer said significant price pressures are still influencing the US economy and may mean interest rates will be higher for longer than many investors are expecting. Dimon cited costs linked to the green economy, re-militarization, infrastructure spending, trade disputes and large fiscal deficits.

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Economy 59

Speaker: Joe Buhrmann, MBA, CFP®, CLU®, ChFC® Senior Financial Planning Practice Management Consultant eMoney Advisor

During an era of evolving consumer preferences, the banking sector is undergoing a profound shift. As customers continue to broaden their perspectives, banking professionals must support their customers' financial wellness by providing holistic financial advice that aligns with individual goals and circumstances. Without adapting, financial institutions will find that loyalty may crumble amid uncertainty.

Financial Advice

Calculated Risk

MAY 16, 2024

Today, in the Calculated Risk Real Estate Newsletter: Single Family Starts Up 18% Year-over-year in March; Multi-Family Starts Down Sharply YoY A brief excerpt: Total housing starts in April were above expectations, however, starts in February and March were revised down. The third graph shows the month-to-month comparison for total starts between 2023 (blue) and 2024 (red).

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Advisor Perspectives

MAY 16, 2024

The latest Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index remained in positive territory for a fourth straight month, however activity weakened overall. In May, the index fell to 4.5 from 15.5 in April, coming in below the forecast of 7.7. The six-month outlook inched down to 32.4.

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Manufacturing 59

Advisor Perspectives

MAY 16, 2024

Industrial production was flat in April, coming in lower than the expected 0.1% growth. Compared to one year ago, industrial production is down 0.4%.

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