By Kyle Tetting
Despite an incessant focus on the debt ceiling conversation and what appeared to be a surprisingly optimistic response by markets in recent weeks, actual progress on the matter has been slow. As I write this, there remains some time before the likely June 1 deadline. But, as with most market-related observations, by the time you read it, much of it could be dated. As a result, our current dependence on politicians has investors aiming their portfolio away from some risk that we aren’t even sure is out there.

By Kyle Tetting
It’s hard to argue with the year-to-date success of the vast majority of investment categories. As I write this on April 26, broad measures of stocks like the S&P 500 had gained more than 6% with only a few trading days left in April. Similarly, less volatile measures like bonds have added half as much or more. While the gains are encouraging, I am struck by how pessimistic many of the headlines remain. “Markets climb a wall of worry,” the saying goes, and that seems especially true now, though investing from a place of worry is tough.

By Kyle Tetting
The most common question as we turn to the new year is what to expect in the year to come. That’s a logical question, even more so in the wake of the challenges we faced in 2022. However, any answer to the question comes with a major caveat. For starters, 2022 was exceptional for how closely the calendar year encapsulated the market decline.

By Kyle Tetting
If anything taught me directions growing up, it was the countless trips to visit family around the holidays. With one exception, I tended to have a good sense of where we were going and how to get there. As we survey the economic landscape entering another holiday season, there’s an interesting parallel between my formative years and the current environment.

The Federal Reserve Board is the world’s most influential central bank, yet most investors know little about its mission or its tools. Dave Sandstrom explains in a MONEY TALK VIDEO with Kyle Tetting. […]

In the 2022 Investment Outlook Seminar, a Money Talk Video, Kyle Tetting and Bob Landaas explain the circumstances that brought about the current conditions, what investors might expect ahead and how they should be managing their wealth in the meantime. The video includes discussions with Steve Giles, Dave Sandstrom, Kendall Bauer and Paige Radke.

By Kyle Tetting
The 2022 Jackson Hole Economic Symposium left a mark on investors. With inflation raging, the annual roundup in Wyoming, sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, offered little new information. But one word in particular captured investors’ attention.

By Kyle Tetting
Stock prices move quickly, but fundamentals change slowly. These day-to-day price movements are largely a popularity contest while long-term market direction is a math lesson. Expectations for continued strong earnings growth point to meaningful opportunities for stocks ahead as stock prices tend to mirror that longer-term earnings growth. Patience remains the challenge, counting on appropriate balance to ride out the current storm. But patience, “staying the course” we often say, isn’t about inaction. It’s about small but necessary course corrections to ensure we remain true to the plan.

Stock market sell-offs of 10% are neither unusual nor predictable. In a MONEY TALK VIDEO, Paige Radke talks with Kyle Tetting about how long-term investors can ready themselves for the inevitable. […]

In a MONEY TALK VIDEO, Dave Sandstrom talks with Kyle Tetting about how the breadth of participation offers insight into market trends. […]

By Kyle Tetting
Like all recoveries, questions persist about what comes next. With four solid quarters already in the books since the recession ended, comparisons will get harder. While it’s not a foregone conclusion that economic growth moderates anytime soon, the easiest comparisons are behind us.

By Kyle Tetting
The notion of fear and greed itself is familiar to most. But recent fears of missing out are stoked by the break-neck pace at which things are changing. Investors want to know if they’re holding that stock they read about or if they’re invested in that area that’s been making strides. Such wondering isn’t new, though the question of what to do next is popping up more as stock markets set new records and bond yields remain low.