2018 Market Review January 2019 After logging strong returns in 2017, global equity markets delivered negative returns in US dollar terms in 2018. Common news stories in 2018 included reports on global economic growth, corporate earnings, record low unemployment in the US, the implementation of Brexit, US trade wars with China and other countries, and a flattening US Treasury yield curve. Global equity markets delivered positive returns through September, followed by a...

  2018 Market Performance It’s a wrap! 2018 market performance numbers are now available for the fourth quarter and the year. Today, we share Dimensional Fund Advisor’s latest Quarterly Market Review, along with its 2018 Annual Market Review. We hope you’ll use these summaries to reinforce the importance of staying with your own financial goals and risk tolerances, no matter how terrible one year of returns may seem. Please pay special attention to “Why Should You...

The One Constant 1.  The One Constant in the Stock Market (A Wealth of Common Sense, Ben Carlson, 12/11/2018) Ben Carlson, always with the best charts and words of wisdom. “I’ve used this chart before but it’s worth reposting because we all need reminders during a market correction that they’re perfectly normal and should be expected: The average intra-year drawdown since 1950 is -13.3%. And more than half of all calendar year drawdowns have...

Why Should You Diversify? December, 2018 When international stock returns lag, investors may feel tempted to double down on their home market. Historical data suggests the long-term benefits of diversifying globally. For more, visit this week's Dimensional Post Why Should You Diversify or click here for a PDF version. Click image to enlarge SAGE Serendipity: The "Best of 2018" lists are coming out.  Here we've curated a list of lists; a place to start and maybe pick-up...

As we covered in our last post, one of the best ways to avoid falling prey to cybercriminals is to “think before you click” within incoming emails, to avoid reacting to an increasing abundance of phishing scams arriving in your inbox. Once you’re in the habit of watching for suspicious subject lines before even opening an email, how can you further differentiate legitimate queries from phishing most foul? BE ON HIGH ALERT...

As it turns out, a timeless technique for managing your temper is equally excellent advice for safeguarding your online security in today’s fast-paced world. Just as we’re advised to “count to ten” in the heat of an argument, it’s increasingly imperative to “think before you click” on incoming emails, to avoid falling for email phishing scams on the rise. After all, we’re all human; none of us is immune from occasionally...

We are trapped in the “Never-Ending Now,” consuming only social media content created within the last 24 hours 1.  The Never-Ending Now (David Perell, 11/13/2018) “You are what you consume. End of story. Here’s Tim Wu writing in The Attention Merchants: ‘Any and all information that one consumes—pays attention to—will have some influence… As William James observed, we must reflect that, when we reach the end of our days, our life experience will equal what we have...

Three incredible time lapses to watch on past and future trends 1. Trends & Time Lapses (A Wealth of Common Sense, Ben Carlson, 11/11/2018) Forward-looking population distribution in the U.S. How stock market valuations have changed by country since 2007 The change in the top 10 countries by GDP every year from 1960 to 2017 ‘Buy and Hold’ (and Rebalance) is still your best bet – here’s why  2. Why You Should Stick With ‘Buy and...

Midterm Elections—What Do They Mean for Markets? NOVEMBER 01, 2018 For the upcoming midterms, commentators are likely to offer opinions on who will win and what impact the vote will have on markets. Looking at returns since 1926 shows that months when midterm elections took place did not tend to have returns that different than any other month. OPEN PDF: Midterm Elections—What Do They Mean for Markets SAGE Serendipity: If you don't need the latest...

Investing Stuff: A Matter of Perspective (Sam Ro, Managing Editor of @YahooFinance) Same chart, two lenses pic.twitter.com/JfoOyRF1VI — Sam Ro (@bySamRo) October 26, 2018   The Psychology of Sitting in Cash, Part Deux (A Wealth of Common Sense, Ben Carlson, 10/28/2018) Some considerations for those who are sitting on a big pile of cash or are thinking about raising cash now that we’re in the midst of another correction.  Calendar Years are Arbitrary (The Belle Curve, Blair Duquesnay,...