by Mark Chandik | Mar 23, 2026
Against the backdrop of the war, the Federal Reserve met last week and decided to hold its key rate—the fed funds rate—unchanged at 3.50–3.75%. The decision was completely expected. What jolted investors was Fed Chief Jay Powell’s hawkish tone. First, let’s define two...
by Mark Chandik | Mar 17, 2026
A quick trip to fill up the gas tank is a painful reminder that prices at the pump have jumped over the last couple of weeks—Figure 1—due to supply concerns. There are fears that higher prices will exacerbate inflation and hurt the economy, as cash that might have...
by Mark Chandik | Mar 9, 2026
What is the efficient market theory? Textbooks have been written to fully explain the theory. But if we can sum it up in one sentence: Assets, such as stocks, reflect all publicly available information. It is a foundational principle of finance. You might be...
by Mark Chandik | Mar 2, 2026
Over the weekend, global markets were shaken by significant geopolitical developments, as the US and Israel carried out coordinated strikes on Iran that resulted in the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader. Iran responded with missile strikes, which escalated tensions and...
by Mark Chandik | Feb 24, 2026
The government shutdown proved to be a far greater drag on the economy than earlier estimates indicated. On Friday, the U.S. BEA reported that fourth-quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the largest measure of economic output, grew at a 1.4% annualized pace. This...
