Word on the Street

The stock market has seen some wild swings in the bear market of 2022. The S&P 500 had its worst start to the year since 1970, dropping 21% the first six months. Since entering a bear market in early June, investors have been waiting for a sign the downturn is over. That sign is capitulation, [...]

Government data shows the U.S. economy shrank the first six months of 2022. With slowing growth, a bear market and ever-tightening Federal Reserve monetary policies, recession warning signs are flashing in many areas of the economy. Current conditions have experts debating whether the U.S. is heading toward a recession or is already in one. At [...]

For just the second time in modern history, the Federal Reserve started quantitative tightening in June to draw down its unprecedented $9 trillion balance sheet. The central bank’s assets on hand have more than doubled since the start of the pandemic. “I would just stress how uncertain the effect is of shrinking the balance sheet,” [...]

With persistent inflation at its highest level in 40 years and warnings of an economic slowdown, experts are sounding the alarm over an economic calamity. We’re not talking about recession but rather stagflation — a phenomenon that concerns economists and central banks alike. Definition Stagflation is an economic event where rising prices meet a slowing [...]

There’s little to gain from towering inflation, but the Series I Bond is one silver lining. With the cost of living up 8.5% from one year ago, any money making less than that return is a losing investment. But the I bond is a virtually risk-free investment that now pays nearly 10% interest. Definition A [...]

When it comes to the stock market, there have been a lot of “worsts” in 2022, from the worst January since 2009 to the worst quarterly decline in two years. Now, with interest rates skyrocketing, inflation at a 40-year high and experts predicting increasing likelihood of recession in the next two years, investors are looking [...]

The Federal Reserve is hiking the federal funds rate multiple times in 2022 in an attempt to depress 40-year-high inflation. The move is meant to reverse easy monetary policies put in place at the start of the pandemic. From March 15, 2020, to March 16, 2022, the Fed’s target interest rate was set to “near [...]

One of the most painful possible economic sanctions against Russia amid the Ukraine invasion is cutting off the country from the SWIFT financial system. In late February, the U.S., E.U., and other allies announced suspending selected Russian banks from SWIFT, essentially blocking them from international transfers. Across the political aisle in the U.S., politicians are [...]

From Alex Rodriguez to former President Donald Trump, it seems everyone has been getting in on one of Wall Street’s hottest fads: the SPAC. It stands for Special Purpose Acquisition Company, and while the concept has been around for decades, the market for SPACs exploded over the past two years. Critics warned in early 2021 [...]

The word ‘taper’ has been on the lips of nearly everyone on Wall Street this year. After months of speculation, the Federal Reserve announced it does plan to taper its monthly asset purchases. “It is time to taper, we think, because the economy has achieved substantial further progress toward our goals,” Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell [...]