Money Life with Chuck Jaffe

Greg Valliere, chief U.S. policy strategist at AGF Investments, says that the Federal Reserve wants the economy to run hot and is likely to let things keep rolling longer before raising rates to potentially put the brakes on. That, he says, will be well down the line, as he expects a good economy -- though not necessarily great -- for the next few quarters. He notes that a key factor will be monetary policy, but he notes that the current yield on Treasuries is a sign that the market is not fearful of an imminent breakout of inflation or rates, which is why a recession is 'not remotely imminent.' Also on the show, Dan Omstead of Tekla Capital -- which runs four health-care oriented closed-end funds -- discusses the post-pandemic outlook for biotech and healthcare investing, and Eric Lynch of the Scharf Funds talks about 'quality relative value investing' in the Market Call.

Brent Schutte, chief investment strategist for Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management, says that while worries about rising inflation and interest rates have some market observers talking about the potential for recession, he believes they're ahead of the economy right now. Schutte says the economic cycle still has room to roll -- and that the market will pick up as fears of long-term inflation in the coming few quarters. The remainder of the show has a distinct focus on income, and ways to generate and protect it in the inflationary/rising rate environment. Tom Lydon of ETFTrends.com makes a fund that pays monthly income and that has an 8 percent current yield his 'ETF of the Week,' and Renee Schaaf, president of retirement and income solutions for Principal Financial Group, talks about the pros and cons of purchasing annuities under these changing market conditions.

Zachary Karabell, president of River Twice Capital, says that short-term bottlenecks and supply-chain issues are not systemic inflation, and while he foresees inflationary spikes, he does not believe that long-term upward price pressure is about to change the broad economic picture. In a wide-ranging Big Interview, he notes that the global economy could see a series of rolling recoveries, leading to repeated cycles of good news as the world re-opens from the pandemic. Also on the show, Catherine Golladay of Charles Schwab and Co. discusses the latest 401k Participant Survey, in which Americans discuss just how much money they believe they must amass to live out their days comfortably, Chuck answers an audience question on passive investing and, in the Market Call, Bryan Koslow of Clarus Group talks about the exchange-traded funds he favors now.

Charlie Bobrinskoy, vice chairman of Ariel Investments and a noted value manager, says that he expects inflation to be more than 'transitory,' and that if prices start to rise, it could spell some trouble for growth stocks. Meanwhile, even with the markets around record-high levels, he believes there are still plenty of reasonably priced companies that should help value investors continue their recent comeback. Also on the show, Zachary Karabell of RiverTwice Capital discusses his latest book on the reclusive Brown Brothers Harriman and why it has been an American powerbroker, Alia Dudum of Lending Club talks about the firm's latest Reality Check Paycheck-to-Paycheck research, which shows that Americans are struggling to stay ahead of their bills, and Chuck talks about his latest adventures in consolidating his personal accounts.

Rick Bookstaber, chief risk officer at Fabric RQ, talks about the changing face of risk in the current market environment, running from how rising inflation and interest rates play in to how the 'gamefying' of the market and the eruption of meme stocks that have defied traditional market forces has the potential to impact all investors, even the classic buy-and-hold types who avoid hot stock plays. Also on the show, Anqi Chen, research economist at the Center for Retirement Research, discusses Americans' need for long-term care and how most people are unprepared to cope with the problem, Stan Treger, behavioral scientist at Morningstar, covers research on how few investors want cryptocurrency available in their retirement plans, Kyle Guske of New Constructs puts a Fidelity sector fund in the Danger Zone, and Chuck answers a question about non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and whether he's joining the latest investment trend.

David Goerz, chief investment officer at Strategic Frontier Management, sees trouble ahead for a market that is overvalued, with an economy that he believes is headed for trouble unless government spending is reduced and with a bond market that he finds troubling. Goerz expects the Federal Reserve to hike rates once this year, and says there will be four -- but as many as eight -- rate increases next year, with the hope being that many hikes will ultimately return the economy to normal by the end of 2023. Also on the show, Mark Newton of Newton Advisors says the market's technicals suggest a 10 percent correction is in the cards playing out right now, but that the market is likely to rebound from that into the end of the year, plus legendary activist investor Phillip Goldstein talking about the diminishing rights of shareholders in closed-end funds, and Arynton Hardy of Hardy Capital Investments talks ETFs in the Market Call.

Marko Papic, chief strategist for the Clocktower Group, says that he expects an inflation surprise to the upside -- bigger than the market forecasts -- which is likely to upset the market, adding to volatility and limiting the forward potential for stocks. It has him looking to foreign markets to generate bigger returns for the remainder of the year and potentially beyond. Also on the show, Tom Lydon of ETFTrends.com looks to the potential of blockchain with his ETF of the Week, Jacque Reardon discusses Franklin Templeton's latest Voice of the American Worker study -- which shows that people are redefining what it means to retire -- and in the Market Call, David Marcus of the Evermore Global Value fund talks about where he sees blood running in the streets to find his buys.

Joe Terranova, chief market strategist at Virtus Investment Partners, says that the market's rebound from early-pandemic lows has investors tempted into concentrated portfolios, pursuing the hot sectors and big winners, but he says the remainder of the year will be about risk, and 'reintroducing diversification by asset class, geography, equity size class and strategy.' Terranova says he is optimistic not just for the future but for the next 10 to 15 years, but he says the markets will demand that investors spread their risks around and manage their return expectations to ride it out to those long-term gains. Also on the show, Freddy Garcia of Left Brain Wealth Management says that investors should be focused on sustainable revenue growth -- rather than whether a stock fits the classic growth or value labels -- to find companies that can move forward regardless of market conditions, and Tom Plumb of the Plumb Balanced Fund and the Plumb Equity Fund talks stocks in the Market Call.

John Mousseau, chief executive officer and director of fixed income at Cumberland Advisors, says that worries about rising inflation are overblown given current conditions, and he says investors should expect higher inflation but only to the extent that it returns to pre-pandemic levels over the next year. Also on the show, Francesca Ortegren discusses a recent study done by Clever Real Estate showing how the pandemic continues to damage Americans' finances, Chuck answers a question about Section 72T withdrawals from retirement accounts, and Jason Browne of Alexis Investment Partners talks practical and tactical investing with ETFs in the Market Call.

Different analysts taking a fundamental and a technical view of the market both think that strong conditions will carry into the second half of 2021, but think returns may be muted compared to the last six months. Rusty Vanneman, chief investment strategist at Orion Portfolio Solutions, says that 'the growth rate of the growth rate' is slowing, which is likely to slow the market or at least make it more choppy. Meanwhile, Jeffrey Bierman of TheoTrade.com says the market is overbought now from a technical standpoint, which eventually should play out in a correction and heightened volatility. Also on the show, John Cole Scott, chief investment officer at Closed-End Fund Advisors and the executive chairman of the Active Investment Company Alliance, talks about the narrowing discounts in closed-end funds but warns investors not to wait for them to widen before buying, and Daniel Kline, lead advisor at 7Investing.com talks stocks in the Market Call.