You've lived through 90 days of financial headlines and speculation of what's to come. Enjoy a few minutes of thoughtful reflection with our Q1 2017 Market Review. This report features world capital market performance and a timeline of events for the past quarter. It begins with a global overview, then features the returns of stock and bond asset classes in the US and international markets. Our Market Reviews are updated quarterly and always available on our Home Page. … [Read more...] about Q1 2017 Market Review Posted
A Look Back at 2016
Every year brings its share of surprises. But how many of us could have imagined that 2016 would see the Chicago Cubs win the World Series, Bob Dylan receive the Nobel Prize in Literature, Donald Trump elected president, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average close out the year a whisker away from 20,000? The answer is very few—a lesson that investors would be wise to remember. Click HERE to read DFA's latest brief, "A Look Back at 2016," and learn how truly difficult it is … [Read more...] about A Look Back at 2016
Q4 2016 Market Review Posted
You've lived through 90 days of alarming financial headlines and wild speculation of what's to come. Enjoy a few minutes of thoughtful reflection with our Q4 2016 Market Review. Included is the 2016 Annual Market Review. This report features world capital market performance and a timeline of events for the past quarter and total year 2016. It begins with a global overview, then features the returns of stock and bond asset classes in the US and international markets. Our Market Reviews are … [Read more...] about Q4 2016 Market Review Posted
Ten Reasons to be Cheerful
Do you ever listen to the news and find yourself thinking that the world has gone to the dogs? The roll call of depressing headlines seems endless. But look beyond what the media calls news, and there also are a lot of things going right, including: The world's biggest economy, the US, has been recovering. Unemployment has halved in six years from 10% to 5%. (1) Over the last 25 years, 2 billion people globally have moved out of extreme poverty, according to the latest United Nations … [Read more...] about Ten Reasons to be Cheerful
When 9% CDs Roamed the Earth
By Anthony Tanner, CFA SWP Guest Contributor My first job on "the Street" was an unpaid internship at Dean Witter Reynolds during my senior year at St. Louis University. The year was 1983: The Dow had just crossed 1,200 points, the Prime Rate was 11.50%, and bank CD rates averaged 9%. Just let that sink in for a minute. 9% CDs! I remember it so well. It was my job to cold-call prospects for brokers with my script hawking 9% CDs: "Good evening, Mr. or Mrs. John Q. Public. I hope … [Read more...] about When 9% CDs Roamed the Earth
Out of the Matrix: Part 2
It's a great big world out there. At Scottsdale Wealth Planning, we build well diversified, global portfolios as the cornerstone of our long-term wealth plans. And each spring when the latest Dimensional Funds Matrix Book is released, our commitment to this approach is further confirmed. In today's video, DFA VP Joel Hefner uses Matrix Book data to illustrate the importance of global diversification and discipline by comparing the historical performance of US and emerging markets stocks over … [Read more...] about Out of the Matrix: Part 2