• Moody’s downgraded the United States credit rating to Aa1 from AAA and revised the outlook to stable from negative on May 16. The market reaction has been relatively [...]

  • Download the 4.4.25 Dynamic Bond Market Update for advisors’ use with clients By Bill Smith, Fixed Income Trader and Portfolio Manager Fixed income performed well in Q1 2025, amid a volatile environment punctuated by an escalating trade war and uncertainty surrounding the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) efforts to reduce federal spending. For the first

  • The Federal Reserve (Fed) has lowered interest rates by 75 basis points since initiating its easing campaign, reducing the federal funds rate to 4.50 - 4.75% from a multi-decade high of 5.25 - 5.50% in September. During this period, inflation has ticked up slightly, and the [...]

  • It has been six weeks since the Federal Reserve (Fed) commenced its easing campaign with a 50-basis point (bps) “jumbo” cut to interest rates. Next week, an additional 25 bps cut is widely anticipated at the November 6-7 Federal Open Market Committee meeting. While shorter bonds have largely performed as expected in this environment, longer maturities across major fixed income indices have seen yields spike higher [...]

  • As we enter a new Federal Reserve rate cut cycle, historical trends reveal that fixed income tends to perform well over the duration of the rate cycle, with the exception of short-term securities and cash. The timing of fixed income investing in a rate cycle is less important than the allocation itself [...]

  • If bond investors felt a bit whipsawed this month, that's not a surprise as bond yield volatility increased, especially at the beginning of the month. At the same time, correlations between stocks and bonds are decreasing, a welcome sign for investors in search of diversification. As the Fed signals an intention to cut rates in September, investors and their advisors can benefit from [...]