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In the past, central banks were able to push short-term interest rates below zero with negative deposit rates but they had limited influence on longer-maturity bonds. When the financial crisis hit in 2007, all this changed, revealing a new unconventional monetary policy that included buying bonds. Since then, central banks have supported pricing by...

Most people typically don’t think about exchange rates unless they are heading out of the country. Exchange rates have been very much top-of-mind during the past year. The U.S. dollar has strengthened, while many other leading world currencies have fallen. The new equilibrium has the potential to affect economic growth and inflation around th...

In 2012, Pershing issued a wake-up call to the industry by publishing Women Are Not a ‘Niche’ Market, an advisor guide that called for greater attention to the needs of women investors. Since then, financial services companies have ratcheted up their marketing efforts to reach women, and many financial advisors have made a concerted eff...

This article takes a look at the current market conditions and how a strong U.S. dollar has weakend the supply and demand surplus of oil.Some takeaways include: Oil prices could remain depressed for a prolonged period, as some petro states have the ability to weather low prices. Should energy woes continue to spill over into stock and bond mar...

2014 began much the same way as investors fervently hid from interest rate volatility. The previous year’s significant rate decline surprised nearly every market participant and commentator. However, during 2014, 30-year Treasury bond yields fell 1.22 percent and provided a total return of more than 29 percent. As interest rates slid to near ...

This strategic white paper illustrates asset flow, industry trends, performance and benchmarking highlights within the hedge fund industry for the fourth quarter.

This executive summary examines economic data for the U.S. Economy, Global Economy, Bonds, U.S. Equity Market, International Financial Markets and the state of Alternative Investments for the second Quarter of 2014.

This commentary presents the issues that will impact on the financial markets in the third quarter of 2014. Some highlights include: The EconomyU.S. poised for stronger growthEnergy prices a risk to the outlook PolicyDesynchronized monetary policy aheadPolicy has compressed yields on income vehicles around the world ...

This financial markets monitor illustrates the state of the economy for the fourth quarter in 2014.

This commentary provides a scorecard analysis and a number of portfolio takeways for first quarter, 2015.

Effective Board oversight demands information that is current and relevant. However, the natural gaps that exist between what management communicates to the board and what the board needs to know, often creates inefficiencies and ineffectiveness of oversight. This report tackles these issues of disconnect between management and the board and offers...

There are a number of trusts that can be customized to the needs of an investor, but each trust has its own advantages and disadvantages. This simple guide works to illustrate any concerns that an investor might have about tax consequences, withdrawal powers, the three-year rule and more by looking at the pros and cons of seven different popular ty...

There are no easy answers when it comes to prenuptial agreements, but understanding the fundamentals will help ensure that the agreement is ultimately fair to all parties, achieves the family’s objectives, and will withstand any future challenge. This article provides tips, advice and a number of options when it comes to setting up a pr...

The efficient markets hypothesis says that financial markets incorporate all available information in real time to price securities competitively, eliminating opportunities to earn excess return. The Nobel Committee split its 2013 prize for Economic Sciences between proponents of both sides of the market efficiency debate. For investment practition...

Life insurance can play an important role in helping achieve the legacy and financial objectives of an individual or family—especially those with significant taxable estates and illiquid assets such as privately held businesses and real estate. For those who have assets that exceed the federal estate tax-exemption thresholds—$5,430,000 ...