Markets in Focus

What’s the main driver of inflation in this economy? It’s not monetary policy, says James Camp, CFA, Managing Director of Fixed Income and Strategic Income at Eagle Asset Management. James joins Matt Orton, CFA, to unpack the long-term structural trends shaping income investing, today’s striking lack of volatility in bond markets, why he believes fixed income has a long-term edge over cash, and what’s behind the current favorable prices and generous yield ratios in municipal bonds.

Equities have set new record highs each week, but will a government shutdown – and the absence of key economic data – change their trajectory? Chief Market Strategist Matt Orton, CFA, and Market Strategy Research Associate Joey Del Guercio, CFA, discuss why corporate earnings may take on more importance and where investors can find ballasts for their portfolios.

Chief Market Strategist Matt Orton, CFA, asks Steven DeSanctis, managing director and head of small- and mid-cap equity strategy at Jefferies, about the second-order effects of lower interest rates on small-cap companies and how major indices tracking these companies have changed. They also discuss what increased retail investor activity means for the small-cap universe and consider the importance of torque – when only a few companies have great balance sheets, it’s important to identify those that will improve over time. 

Chief Market Strategist Matt Orton, CFA, and Market Strategy Research Associate Joey Del Guercio, CFA, discuss what’s dominating investor psyches: How September cuts from the Fed could affect the investment landscape. Meanwhile, although major hyperscalers with cash on their balance sheets may remain unaffected by interest rate changes, the big winners in artificial intelligence (AI) are facing ever-climbing expectations.

Chief Market Strategist Matt Orton, CFA, sits down with Jim Furey, CFA, founder of small-cap specialist Furey Research Partners, to pinpoint exactly what’s shaping today’s small-cap dynamics. Furey reveals the subtle yet powerful ways interest rates influence smaller companies, explores where the ongoing low-quality rally could head next, and highlights sectors he believes look attractive—and which he’s actively avoiding—as market conditions evolve.

What’s driving the interest in emerging markets and international investing? Kevin Carter, Founder & Chief Investment Officer of EMQQ Global, joins Chief Market Strategist Matt Orton, CFA, to explore how the falling dollar and other factors have been drivers of the emerging markets rally and the interesting opportunity this presents for investors to diversify.

As Chief Market Strategist Matt Orton, CFA, and Market Strategy Research Associate Joey Del Guercio, CFA, look at the first earnings announcements issued after “Liberation Day,” they consider how risk sentiment is holding up and what happened to the divergence between hard and soft economic data from earlier in the year.

Matt Orton, CFA sits down with Ed Mills, managing director and Washington policy analyst at Raymond James, to break down the policy catalysts most likely to move markets.

Chief Market Strategist Matt Orton, CFA, and Market Strategy Research Associate Joey Del Guercio, CFA, delve into how to calibrate the case for global equities. They also explore what the conflict between Israel and Iran could mean for oil— and everything else —alongside Matt’s takeaways from his recent trip to India, submersible drones and the evolution of military spending, what Treasuries can do that gold can’t, and more.

Are rising risk asset prices the result of long-term allocation changes or short-term trades? Matt Orton, CFA, and Joey Del Guercio, CFA, talk about debt downgrades, risk asset prices, and whether bond market disruptions are caused by structural flows or genuine increases in the costs of capital. They also discuss the expansionary effects of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and possibly the most important — but also most overlooked — catalyst for growth in U.S. markets.