Clean Yield Insights
Q1 2022 Market Update: A Fragile Market Meets War and Inflation
War in Ukraine’s Impact on Investment Markets
Does the upending of the post-World War II geopolitical order alter our investment strategy? Yes, but not how you might think. We’re still extraordinarily negative toward global stock markets but much more enthusiastic… Read More >
Stock Market “Corrections” and “Bear Markets”
The stock market (as measured by the S&P 500 index) is down sharply since the start of the year. We thought we would use this moment to clarify some of the terminology and nuances of market downturns.
Amid a long… Read More >
Q4 2021 Market Update: Herd Immunity?
We can sum up 2021 quite simply: Covid, Covid, Covid … and the S&P 500 stock market index hit a record high (more than 70 times). But let’s look “under the hood” and assess prospects for 2022.
This year might… Read More >
Night School December 2021: Inflation
Inflation is in the news every day. We see it first-hand at the gas station, the grocery store, and elsewhere. It clearly has captured the attention of both the public and investors. The number of Google searches for “stagflation” (a… Read More >
Q3 2021 Market Update: Market Anatomy and Today’s Diagnosis
Many stock market observers focus on “fundamentals.” They eagerly scrutinize the latest economic report or company earnings results. Market participants quickly (over)react to the latest news. Yes, the economy and corporate profits are important to future returns, but investor psychology… Read More >
Night School Summer 2021: International Investing
For many years, most U.S. investors invested only in U.S. companies on U.S. exchanges. And why not? The United States was the dominant economy, had the most important stock market, and the most sought-after currency. Its financial markets were the… Read More >
Q2 2021 Market Update: Signs of a Top
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
George Santayana
There seems to be a widespread lack of a historical perspective among investors today. This is particularly common in the late stages of a market mania. People… Read More >
Q1 2021 Market Update: Caution: Slippery Road Ahead
Why caution at a time like this? The COVID vaccine rollout is far exceeding expectations, the federal government is pumping trillions of dollars into the economy, consumer and investor confidence levels are high, and the Federal Reserve has set short-term… Read More >
Night School: Company Performance vs. Stock Performance
Surely a successful company results in a successful stock market investment. Not necessarily. At its simplest, the stock market – or any market – reflects the intersection between demand and supply. The more intensely participants want to buy, the higher… Read More >
Q4 2020 Market Update: The Amoral Market
There are times when it is discomfiting to be in this business. This is one of them. In a year of misery for millions and constitutional democracy in this country at its most perilous moment since the Civil War, financial… Read More >
Q3 2020 Market Update: Political Parties, the Economy, and Financial Markets
We are all riveted by COVID-19 and by the presidential election. Nothing else seems to matter. We claim no insight on either, but as investors who respect history and who relish debunking conventional wisdom and market myths, we would like… Read More >
Night School: Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
Even casual followers of economic and financial news sense that GDP is critically important to economists, investors, and policymakers. What is it, and why is it so important?
According to the International Monetary Fund, “GDP measures the monetary value of… Read More >