Here’s our latest collection of interesting articles from around the web.
(We’re posting the weekly Roundup a day early because a new issue of the SMI newsletter will be released online tomorrow.)
A very good year in the stock market (Ben Carlson, A Wealth of Common Sense). Most of the time, at least one sector gets shellacked even when the rest of the market is up. But this year (so far), every sector in the S&P is doing fine.
Are we in a melt-up? (Nick Maggiulli, Of Dollars and Data). A melt-up is a "sustained and often unexpected improvement in the investment performance of an asset or asset class."
The potency of commodities as an inflation hedge (Vanguard). "Recent Vanguard research suggests that commodities stand apart as a vehicle for hedging against unexpected inflation."
How low can fund fees go? (Morningstar). From 2016 through 2020, the average expense ratio for passive funds dropped 12%, and the average fee for active funds dropped 11%.
Gundlach: We’re running our economy ’like we’re not interested in maintaining global reserve currency status’ (Yahoo). "We are setting the stage for us to, unfortunately, experience the consequences of our actions," says billionaire bond investor Jeffrey Gundlach.
Hospitals and insurers didn’t want you to see these prices. Here’s why. (The New York Times via The Salt Lake Tribune). Pricing information, now required to be made public, shows hospitals charge patients wildly different amounts for the same basic services.
The 5 easiest money-saving phone calls (Robert Farrington, The College Investor). This article will whet your appetite for Matt Bell’s helpful piece in our September issue titled, "Save Money Just By Asking."
’Easy money’: How international scam artists pulled off an epic theft of Covid benefits (NBC News). Distressing? Yes. Surprising? No.
The good steward (Joe Kesler, Humble Dollar). "The good steward sees all of life as an opportunity to be wise with the resources he or she has been given."
Money reveals our priorities (Leo Sabo, Christian Stewardship Network). What we spend our money on is a clear indication of what we value most.
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