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While political pundits work overtime to draw profound conclusions from Tuesday’s election results, the implications for the financial markets seem less than momentous. Election night was clearly much better for Democrats than Republicans, but this was a status quo outcome. Until the 2014 mid-term elections, the players will be President Obama, a G...

The world’s largest developed economies continue to experience modest and volatile growth as they work off excess debt accumulated over the previous decades. Global growth is unlikely to come in a straight line, due to the instability caused by excess debt and the inconsistency and cyclicality of governmental policy response. In fact, in the near-t...

Incentives, credits, and deductions within the U.S. tax system are currently in the spotlight, and most advisors are aware that unprecedented exemptions for gift and estate taxes are set to expire on December 31, 2012. Less clear, however, is how families can manage their assets to capitalize on the credits before the window closes. This article lo...

More and more states are recognizing same-sex marriage. Although marriage and its legal implications are governed by state law, for federal purposes the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) defines marriage as a relationship between one woman and one man. This inconsistency creates some tax planning challenges for same sex couples.

Advisors should protect their clients who own fine art and other collectibles from financial loss with properly executed tax and estate planning. This article highlights two recent examples of how oversights, such as defective title, create marketability challenges that may result in substantial financial consequences for collectors.

For well over a year now, investors have dreaded the US’s looming “fiscal cliff”—the combination of federal budget cuts and tax increases scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2013. Should America’s gridlocked Congress not agree on a work around, some economists, credit ratings agencies and government forecasters believe the US economy could slow ...

President Obama will head into his second term in January facing a divided Congress that looks a lot like the Congress of the last two years of his first term – with the Democrats controlling the Senate and conservative Republicans solidly controlling the House of Representatives. With the country facing immense and immediate fiscal challenges that...

Since the election, President Obama has reaffirmed his commitment to increasing marginal tax rates for upper income taxpayers while maintaining for lower income taxpayers the tax rates that have been in place since 2001. The basic theme is to reverse for upper income taxpayers the tax benefits conferred by the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconci...

The phrase is often heard that financial markets do not like uncertainty. The uncertainty surrounding the November elections in the U.S. is behind us. However, much uncertainty remains. The main sources of that uncertainty include the fiscal cliff, the need to increase the federal debt ceiling, the absolute level of the federal debt, and the regula...

In the aftermath of 2008’s “Great Recession,” businesses have been more risk averse and held larger cash reserves. This has been a mixed blessing, slowing growth while reducing the likelihood of another economic collapse.

After decades of decline, the U.S. manufacturing sector may be on the verge of a comeback. This resurgence is the result of numerous factors, including fast-growing wages in China and other emerging markets. While this developing trend should provide a modest lift to U.S. economic growth, certain industries and companies may stand to benefit more s...

While the European Union has made incremental progress in dealing with the Eurozone debt crisis, there still does not appear to be any "magic bullet" solution to the crisis. Market volatility remains likely without substantial new action from the European Central Bank.

The third quarter 2012 issue of Global Foresight focuses on emerging markets. David P. Harris, Chief Investment Officer, assesses prospects across emerging markets. Jimmy C. Chang, Senior Portfolio Manager, delves further into emerging market investment opportunities and examines the trajectory of the largest emerging economy, China. Mark Iannarell...

Choosing an executor is one of the most important decisions individuals make when preparing their will. This white paper explains the executor’s role and offers insights into how you might choose an executor for your estate.

The ongoing euro currency crisis has led to substantial declines in European asset prices. Measured relative to operating cash flow, European corporate assets are now selling at a 30% discount to the average of the rest of the world. While some portion of this differential can be explained by a weaker macroeconomic outlook, most of it is attributab...