The Federal Reserve increased interest rates by a quarter point on Wednesday, firmly in line with market expectations while also affirming that the banking system is “sound and resilient.” The move represents a careful balancing of risks for the central bank, continuing its fight against inflation while also seeking to assure Americans that their banking system is safe following the…
Corporate bond funds can be separated into two distinct categories: investment grade and below investment grade. The former generally have a credit rating of BBB or higher but have lower yields. The latter have much higher yields but take on greater default risk with lower credit ratings. They’re commonly called high-yield, or “junk,” bonds. Compared to investment-grade corporate bonds, Treasury…
The days of the internal combustion engine are numbered. Growing concerns around greenhouse gas emissions have sparked a shift in the automotive industry to the production of electric vehicles, or EVs. This rapidly expanding industry is currently locked in a battle for market dominance between three types of companies. On one side, dedicated EV manufacturers like Tesla Inc. (ticker: TSLA), Lucid Group Inc.…
The global artificial intelligence industry is expected to grow from $59.6 billion in 2021 to $422 billion by 2028, according to Zion Market Research. Virtually every industry is being disrupted by AI, automation and robotics. Whether it be machine learning, smart applications and appliances, digital assistants, or autonomous vehicles, companies that aren’t investing in AI products and services risk becoming obsolete.…
Consumers around the world are all too familiar with inflation by now. With inflation expected to stay elevated throughout the year, the Federal Reserve is taking a more aggressive stance to tighten monetary policy by moving to increase interest rates and tame the sustained rise in prices. The Fed raised the interest rate for the fourth time this year in July, representing the largest…
What stocks has Warren Buffett bought and sold lately? Each quarter, all fund managers with at least $100 million in assets must publicly disclose their stock holdings to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission via Form 13F, giving investors a rare peek behind the curtain of some of the world’s largest and most successful hedge funds. One of the most…
Real estate investment trusts, or REITs for short, are popular investments for a few reasons. For starters, as real estate companies they have large property portfolios with tangible values that can’t be devalued overnight by a new competitor or a change in consumer tastes. Also, they are a special class of investment that gets preferential tax treatment in exchange for…
Look to high-yield ETFs for a hedge against declines. In 2022, the stock market has been incredibly volatile and rising interest rates have created a lot of uncertainty around bonds as well. That means many investors have gone “risk off” as they wait for the dust to settle. However, selling everything and hiding out in cash is not always the best bet. Not only do you have to…
Both strides and setbacks have punctuated the quest for federal legalization of cannabis in the U.S. So far, 38 states have legalized marijuana for medical use. The recreational use of marijuana is legal in 19 states plus the District of Columbia and Guam, and the U.S. House of Representatives in April passed legislation to legalize marijuana at the federal level for the…
You’ve probably heard of stock market sectors, but do you know what they are? Stock sectors are split into categories that consist of companies that operate in different areas of business. There are 11 stock market sectors that make up the entire stock market, according to the Global Industry Classification Standard. The performance of these sectors varies depending on the nature of…