Money Life with Chuck Jaffe

Allison Schrager, author of 'An Economist Walks Into a Brothel ... ' joins Chuck in a discussion about risk and how poorly most people evaluate is when it comes to decisions. Also, Tom Lydon of ETFTrends.com has the ETF of the Week, Terry Jones of Investor's Business Daily discusses how investor optimism turned away from peak levels in May, Michael Gayed of The Lead-Lag Report gives his technical take on the market, Guy Benstead of the Cedar Ridge Unconstrained Credit Fund discusses the bond market, and Chuck celebrates his borthday!

Michael DiCecco, an asset finance expert with Huntington Commercial Bank, is worried that the transportation and trucking sector could be headed for a recession, and if that sector slows down, it has the potential to lead the rest of the economy into a downturn. Also on the show, Jeremiah Riethmiller and Steve Tresnan of HighTower Advisors discuss very different ways to use fixed-income as an equity hedge now, at a time when traditional bond strategies are less effective than in the past, and Stephen Mathai-Davis of Quantamize does a super-sized Market Call with two helpings of 'Hold It or Fold It,' one covering ETFs and a second for stocks.

Cam Harvey, senior advisor to Research Affiliates and Duke University professor, said that the inverted yield curve model that he discovered -- and which has correctly called major recessions dating back through history -- is poised to trigger at the end of June, a sign that recession is about 12 months off. Also on the show, Chuck takes a question about insurance, Jason Hargraves of InsuranceQuotes.com discusses the value and usefulness of credit-card travel protection, and Malcolm Polley of Stewart Capital Advisors talks stocks and 'business-perspective investing' in the Market Call.

Michael Mullaney, director of global markets research at Boston Partners, said that he expects the Federal Reserve to make one rate cut before the year is over, a move that he expects will help to drive the market higher, but despite that potential move to the upside, he recommended that investors get increasingly defensive, looking for high-quality names with stronger balance sheets. Also on the show, Greg McBride of Bankrate.com discusses his site's most-recent study, David Trainer puts a popular brand-name stock in the Danger Zone, and Matt King of King Wealth Advisors covers stocks and ETFs in the Market Call.

Dan Zanger of ChartPattern.com said that while he sees plenty of weakness and many bearish technical indicators, he believes the market is headed up barring some sort of significant interest-rate policy or political change. Zanger said he expects the Standard and Poor's 500 to reach 3,300 by year's end, after just barely holding at its current support level of roughly 2,800. Also on the show, Jason Browne of Alexis Invests said that the market has been going through a bear market within a secular bull market, and he said the bear -- which no one wanted to acknowledge -- is nearly done, leaving the market poised for an upturn as the rest of the bull market plays out. Beyond those two extended interviews, Chuck also talks with author and financial planner Clark Kendall about his new book 'Middle-Class Millionaires.'

Sandy Rufenacht of the Aquila Three Peaks High Income Fund, said that a flat credit quality curve -- one that seems to be confusing real junk from safer high-yielding investments -- could turn dangerous if the stock market and the economy get into trouble. He warned that investors need to temper their expectations in high-yield bonds, and prepare for potential trouble ahead. Also on the show, Chuck discusses the legacy of the late John Neff, legendary manager of the Vanguard Windsor fund, it's all Greek to Tom Lydon of ETFTrends.com with the 'ETF of the Week,' Mike Foy of J.D. Power discusses Americans' retirement confidence levels, and tactical money manager Michael Ball of Weatherstone Capital Management covers ETFs in the Market Call.

Janet Brown, chief executive at the FundX Investment Group and publisher of the No-Load FundX newsletter, said in the Market Call that fundamentals 'still look decent,' which has meant that the market has only started to move away from the large-cap growth story that has driven the bull run towards more defensive funds, value-oriented funds and small- and mid-cap funds, but she expects that trend to grind on as the market slows down. Also on the show, Jeremiah Riethmiller and Steven Tresnan of HighTower Advisors discuss how to read and interpret economic data and current headlines, Ted Rossman of Bankrate.com discusses the potentially negativei mpact of closing old credit-card accounts and, in a rebroadcast, Craig Callahan of ICON Advisors talks about the market and how it stands below fair value right now.

Chuck tackles an audience question about a purported retirement investment pitched as a 7702 plan and he points out why this insurance contract generally is a bad idea for consumers, how it is sold in misleading ways and why it's not all that it's cracked up to be. He also talks with author Ken Honda, whose new book 'Happy Money: The Japanese Art of Making Peace With Your Money' is out today, discusses changing long-term mutual fund track records with William Frank of Markov Processes International, and revisits a recent Market Call interview with Justin Carbonneau of Validea.

Lacy Hunt, chief economist at Hoisington Investment Management, said that both the domestic and global economies are becoming increasingly frail, raising the risk of recession occurring sooner rather than later. He fears that slower growth will not be able to sustain positive momentum, noting that too many key economic indicators are showing danger signs. Also on the show, Greg McBride of Bankrate.com discusses Americans' greatest financial regret, author John Quiggin discusses his book 'Economics in Two Lessons,' and Kyle Guske of New Constructs puts a small-cap mutual fund in the Danger Zone.

Kristina Hooper, global market strategist for Invesco, said that while she does think the market is facing potential troubles as the economy slows down, she does not anticipate either a recession or a bear market now, just because the market has pulled away from recent highs. Also on the show, Benjamin Bailey of the Praxis Impact Bond Fund said investors should not be stretching for yield right now and should be as defensive in their fixed-income portfolio as they are being with equities. Author Jean Chatzky discusses her book, 'Women With Money,' which used conversations about money and investing to help tackle the issues that stand between individuals and financial success, and John Busby of BroadbanNOW talked about a survey showing that summer is the best time to change Internet service and save.