Conversations with Commerce Trust

Given the current interest rate environment and historically high yields, fixed income markets may present opportunities for investors looking to diversify an investment portfolio. We discuss the fixed income opportunities we see in 2024 in a new episode of the Conversations with Commerce Trust podcast, hosted by Chief Investment Officer David Hagee.

Find all of our Podcasts at: https://www.commercetrustcompany.com/research-and-insights/podcasts

Investors’ preference for technology has reshaped the S&P 500 Index, with technology-oriented stocks now comprising nearly 50% of the index’s weighting. With artificial intelligence (AI) poised to be the next revolutionary innovation, this segment looks likely to remain a key driver of performance in 2024.

Technology-oriented stocks, or companies with a heavy reliance on technology to drive growth, represent a range of companies that span across multiple sectors within the stock market. Until a few years ago, most of these companies fell under the information technology sector in the S&P 500 before changes were made to even out the weightings in the index’s other sectors.

In a new episode of the Conversations with Commerce Trust podcast, Chief Investment Officer David Hagee discusses the significance of technology within equities with Don McArthur, Director of Equity Research at Commerce Trust.

The U.S. national debt exceeded $34 trillion dollars, while the federal deficit was $1.7 trillion for fiscal year 2023. How sustainable are these fiscal imbalances, and what does this mean for investors? In a new episode of the Conversations with Commerce Trust podcast, Chief Investment Officer David Hagee, examines the U.S. debt load, the deficit and how it all translates to the broader financial markets with Brent Schowe, our Director of Investment Research at Commerce Trust.

Members of the Commerce Trust investment management team discuss our economic and market insights for 2024.

With 2023 winding down, now is an ideal time for investors to assess their wealth management plan. In the latest episode of Conversations with Commerce Trust, podcast host and Chief Investment Officer David Hagee is joined by Commerce Trust Directors of Portfolio Management Tara McConkey and Tim Michel, to discuss how recent economic and market activity could factor into year-end investment strategies for high-net-worth investors.

Read our companion piece on the importance of portfolio rebalancing as part of a healthy wealth management approach, potential tax advantages and how often one should rebalance. https://www.commercetrustcompany.com/news-and-insights/2023/why-portfolio-rebalancing-makes-sense

Rising geopolitical tensions are contributing to uneasiness around the world. Yet the markets have remained surprisingly calm. Why? In a new podcast episode hosted by Chief Investment Officer David Hagee, David and his guests Commerce Trust’s Scott Colbert, Chief Economist and Director of Fixed Income Management and KC Mathews, our Chief Market Strategist, examine market reaction to geopolitical crises.

(You can subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, or Stitcher, get the RSS feed, or listen via the media player above.)

Global stock markets have experienced solid returns for much of 2023. What might investors see for the rest of year? We examine the equity markets with Commerce Trust’s Chief Market Strategist, KC Mathews, in our latest episode of the Conversations with Commerce Trust podcast, hosted by Chief Investment Officer David Hagee.

Over the past 25 years, women’s attitudes on investing have evolved considerably. In a new episode of the Conversations with Commerce Trust podcast, host and Chief Investment Officer David Hagee welcomes Cathy Arshadi, Director of Financial Management for Commerce Trust, to discuss the role of women in investing, including how women investors tend to outperform their male counterparts and where room for improvement remains. We also encourage you to check out our companion piece, which examines investing from a woman’s perspective.

Will we or won’t we enter a recession in 2023? We share our economic and market forecasts for the rest of the year in a new episode of the Conversations with Commerce Trust podcast, hosted by Chief Investment Officer David Hagee.

One of the most reliable indicators of economic forecasting is the yield curve. It is a perfect 10 for 10: every recession since 1955 has been preceded by an inversion. Currently the yields of the 10-year and 2-year Treasury bills have been inverted for 11 months. Is a recession looming in the near term, and if so, how severe will it be? We discuss the yield curve inversion in our latest episode of Conversations with Commerce Trust. We also encourage you to download our companion piece to the podcast, examining what makes this yield curve inversion unique.  

Lastly, Chief Investment Officer David Hagee provides an overview on the debt ceiling standstill and what’s at stake should the U.S. default on its debt obligations.