Last week, the Federal Reserve (Fed), led by Chair Jerome Powell, announced its decision to keep the federal funds rate unchanged at 4.25–4.5%, marking the fourth consecutive meeting without a rate adjustment. Powell emphasized a cautious, data-driven approach, citing uncertainty over inflation, labor market trends, and the economic impact of President Donald Trump’s tariffs. Despite recent cooling in inflation, with core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) at 2.5% in April, the Fed remains wary of persistent price pressures and is in no rush to cut rates, projecting only two potential reductions in 2025. 

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During times like these when geopolitical headlines can be unsettling for investors, we at LPL Research like to remind ourselves of one of our key investing principles. Markets have always faced challenges —ranging from geopolitical conflicts and economic downturns to natural disasters, political upheaval and health crises. These events often trigger short-term volatility and shake investor confidence. However, historical data shows that stock markets have demonstrated a tendency to comeback after each crisis and rise over the longer time horizons. This patten underscores the importance, for strategic investors, of maintaining a long-te

It has only been about two months since the market spiraled into the April 8 correction low. The fall from grace was sharp and painful, as the S&P 500 went from a record high of 6,144 on February 19 to the April 8 correction closing low of 4,983, marking a peak-to-trough drawdown of 18.9%. Peak panic and peak policy uncertainty triggered indiscriminate selling, as the administration’s reciprocal tariff announcement created "sell now, ask questions later" sentiment among most investors. To the surprise of many, the Treasury market failed to attract any safe-haven flows amid the chaos, pushing yields substantially higher acr

Hedge funds are back in investors’ playbook, but not all hedge funds are feeling the love.

According to Hedge Fund Research (HFR), the hedge fund industry saw a net inflow of $12.6 billion for the first quarter of 2025, following 2024’s net inflows of $10.5 billion. The revived interest was brought by political uncertainties, global divergence with U.S. exceptionalism fading, and heightened market volatility. With the inflow, total global hedge fund capital rose to a record level in the first quarter of 2025, ending the quarter with an estimated assets under management (AUM) of $4.53 trillion. This was the sixth conse