Clark Center Forum

The past year has been good for those who happen to hold US equities. The S&P 500 is up by almost 30% over the last twelve months and by around 7.5% so far this year. Which given that March only just started is a very strong return indeed. Investment commentary though, and the opinion pages […] 

 

This Finance survey examines (a) With some measures of concentration by market capitalization within broad US stock market indices at an all-time high, investors seeking a well-diversified passive equity portfolio should consider alternatives to market-cap-weighted indices.

  

This US survey examines: A tolling program for New York City is out for public consultation with proposed charges on vehicles entering the central business district of Manhattan summarized here: https://new.mta.info/document/129191 (a) The proposed tolls on vehicles entering the central business district of Manhattan are likely to lead to a substantial reduction in traffic congestion in the targeted area; (b) The proposed tolls on vehicles entering Manhattan are likely to lead to a substantial increase in traffic congestion just outside the central business district, above 60th Street, in the outer boroughs and New Jersey 

For both the real economy and for financial markets there are few variables as important as the Fed Funds rate. The pricing of stocks and bonds, the direction of the housing market and corporate hiring and investment plans are all ultimately affected, to a greater or lesser degree, by the decisions the Federal Open Market […] 

For more than two years inflation has dominated the macroeconomic policy discussion on both sides of the Atlantic. Few would have expected this as late as 2019. At that point, a decade after the financial and banking crisis of 2007-2009, most discussion of inflation in policy and academic circles – and especially in the Eurozone […] 

Almost two years on from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, launched on the 24th February 2022, the fighting continues. The extent and future of Western support for Ukraine, together with questions around the effectiveness of the sanctions regime on Russia, continue to be live political issues in the United States and in parts of Europe. This […] 

This Finance survey examines (a) Tesla shareholders are likely to benefit substantially from the decision by the Delaware Court of Chancery to void Elon Musk's $56 billion remuneration package 

This European survey examines (a) The economic and financial sanctions against Russia are substantially limiting its ability to wage war on Ukraine; (b) In the absence of continuing flows of Western economic aid, Ukraine's wartime economy will be substantially compromised 

This US survey examines (a) The economic and financial sanctions against Russia are substantially limiting its ability to wage war on Ukraine; (b) In the absence of continuing flows of Western economic aid, Ukraine's wartime economy will be substantially compromised