George Hosfield, CFA, discusses Ferguson Wellman's quarterly strategy titled, "Inflation's Flame Flickers," which addresses the narrow market leadership, the impact of higher interest rates on inflation and how assets are priced at this stage of the economic cycle.
George Hosfield, CFA, discusses the firm's quarterly strategy titled "Stalemate," which highlights the Fed's ongoing battle to tame inflation along with our views on the health of the banking industry and capital market expectations for the balance of the year.
Director and Chief Investment Officer George Hosfield, CFA, discusses the Fed raising interest rates, peaking inflation and our view on equities and volatility across all asset classes in our Investment Strategy titled, “Balancing Act.”
As autumn dawned this week, investors witnessed the first move by a developed market’s central bank to raise interest rates since the COVID-19 pandemic began. No, the Fed didn’t raise rates. Rather, it was Norway’s central bank that moved its short-term interest rate target off the zero bound, citing improved economic activity that no longer justifies such monetary policy accommodation.
Led by a 3.8 percent gain in emerging markets, global equities sustained their upward march this week. The S&P 500 returned 1.4 percent and again flirts with an all-time high. 10-year U.S. Treasury yields fell seven basis points as soft inflation data weighed on expectations for future interest rate hikes. The Fed continues to grapple with conflicting signals in an attempt to balance the dual mandate of maximizing employment and stabilizing prices.
