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.”
The Federal Reserve’s independence is a cornerstone of U.S. financial stability. It underpins confidence in Treasury markets, the world’s deepest and most liquid, and supports the U.S. dollar’s role as the global reserve currency. Recent actions and statements from the White House, however, have stirred a debate over that independence and prompted a reasonable investor question: Will markets react to politics, or will they continue to focus on the data?
Our initial U.S. economic outlook has generally played out as expected this year: continued (albeit slower) economic growth, persistent inflation, interest rate hikes and increased market volatility. However, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was an unexpected significant development that further elevated market volatility and dampened the global economic outlook.
Some while ago as I was preparing for my first solo overseas flight, I told a friend in the aviation industry that I disliked turbulence; the stomach-churning drops and swings were too sudden and unpredictable for my appetite.
