News

None of us has ever lived through anything like what we’re experiencing with COVID-19. Dimensional Founder David Booth shares what he’s observing and why it gives him hope.

This report features world capital market performance and a timeline of events for the past quarter. It begins with a global overview, then features the returns of stock and bond asset classes in the US and international markets. The report also illustrates the impact of globally diversified portfolios.

A historical account of past downturns and recoveries can present a better picture of potential market performance. These slides by Morningstar show all of the major downturns and corresponding recoveries since the Great Depression:

Movements in the Dow are often communicated in units known as points, which signify the change in the index level. Investors should be cautious when interpreting headlines that reference point movements.

This report features world capital market performance and a timeline of events for the past quarter. It begins with a global overview, then features the returns of stock and bond asset classes in the US and international markets. The report also illustrates the impact of globally diversified portfolios.

Sweeping legislative tax or retirement reforms typically happen only once every decade or so, but the final weeks of 2019 brought the second major piece of legislation in the past 24 months, as the SECURE Act was signed into law on December 20, 2019. Its provisions go into effect on January 1, 2020. The three most notable provisions affecting most investors are: 1) the increase in the age of RMDs (required minimum distributions) from retirement plans from age 70 ½ to age 72, 2) the elimination of the IRA contribution restriction at age 70, and 3) the elimination of the ability for a non-spouse beneficiary to withdraw retirement funds over his or her lifetime. All funds from an inherited IRA must now be distributed to non-spouse beneficiaries within 10 years of the IRA owner’s death (this rule applies to inherited funds in a 401(k) account or other defined contribution plan, too). There are some exceptions to this rule, though. Distributions over the life expectancy of a non-spouse beneficiary are allowed if the beneficiary is a minor child of the deceased account owner (until the child reaches the age of majority), a disabled or chronically-ill individual, or a beneficiary who is no more than 10 years younger than the deceased account owner. Please click on the following link for a summary of the Act: