Money Life with Chuck Jaffe

Lynette Zang, chief executive officer at Zang International, says that between inflation and other concerns, investors need to be more heavily invested into gold to protect their savings and the value of the time they put in to build their financial nestegg. Zang says there is enough uncertainty in the global economy and the international banking system to make real assets an appropriate store of value for hedging risks, thoguh she also cautions against investing in precious metals in any way other than holding the physical metal itself.
Author Jobert Abueva discusses "The Janus Plan: A No-Resolutions Path to Begin Your Year with Intention" Janus, the ancient Roman god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, and endings is always depicted with two opposite faces, one looking forward to the future and the other looking back at the past. Abueva says that kind of multi-directional approach is central to achieving goals and changing the course of your life for the better. While the new year creates a good time for that kind of planning, Abueva says it can be successful at any time of the year, provided there is follow-through on the plan. 
 Jennifer White, senior director, banking and payments intelligence at J.D. Power discusses the firm's latest research showing that Americans' financial health may not be sustainable. The overall share of consumers who say monthly expenses feel less affordable than they did six months ago is steady at 43% but people who classify themselves as vulnerable and stressed are the most likely to say their usual monthly expenses are less affordable.

Michael Kelly, portfolio manager and global head of multi-asset at MetLife Investment Management, says the artificial-intelligence evolution has broad implications but has to this point been narrow in terms of how many companies it has impacted. That's a sign of how early into this cycle the economy is, and as the impact of A.I. starts to broaden, it will spill over into nearly everything else and will power the market higher through concerns and doubts. His advice is to buckle up and ride through the concerns and troughs, recognizing that shifts will occur but they will only slow progress, not stop it.
Deana Healy, vice president of financial planning and advice at Ameriprise Financial, discusses the latest results from the firm's "Flying Solo: Navigating Financial Autonomy" study, which found that while 89 percent of widowed Americans feel financially confident, 58 percent still wish they had someone to share financial decisions with. Well over 80 percent of respondents said they expect to remain financially solo, and that they would keep their finances separate even if they entered another relationship, but also said they have financial concerns about aging alone.
Plus, Chuck answers a listener's question about President Trump's proposal to give all Americans $5,000 if Republicans hold control of Congress in the midterm elections, but focuses his answer on how $5,000 is an achievable short- to mid-term savings goal for anyone who believes a check would be helpful but who doesn't think they wil be getting the money from the government.

Bryant VanCronkhite, senior portfolio manager at Allspring Global Investments, says that with the economy at full-employment levels, he expects the Federal Reserve to shift its focus back to inflation, but he says the central bank is boxed in when it comes to making moves. As a result, he thinks new Fed chair Kevin Warsh will rely on new data to re-define inflation measures and come away with a new target higher than the traditional 2% level, which won't make consumers feel better but will calm a market worried about what the Fed might do in trying to cut inflation.  VanCronkhite says he sees the artificial-intelligence evolution affecting different market-cap zones wildly differently and discusses how he prefers to play A.I. across all sectors and more.
Yelena Maleyev, senior economist at KPMG Economics discusses the October 2026 Outlook Survey released Monday by the National Association for Business Economics, which found that growth and inflation expectations are up, and that economists expect one more interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve this year, before rate moves are put on hold through 2027.  Maleyev — who chairs the NABE Outlook Survey Committee — said that, on average, the economists see a tightening of monetary policy, but not a weak economy, they see the Fed as not reaching its inflation targets until at least 2028, but at least some of that is that the artificial intelligence build-out will spur both growth and inflation.
Beth Kobliner, author of the 1990s best-selling book "Get a Financial Life: Personal Finance For Your Twenties and Thirties," discusses her revised and updated book and how personal finance has changed over three decades, and whether technological advancements have helped or hurt the youngest wage-earners. She notes how "frictionless finance" tends to make money more mindless, and makes it easier for consumers to dig a hole from which it's a struggle to climb out. As a result, among the updates to her book was guidance on avoiding the effortless spend and being more mindful of where the money is going and how it gets there.

Marta Norton, chief investment strategist at Empower, expects a "grind it out" market for the rest of the year, setting up for "normalization" on earnings that keeps markets moving forward but at a slower pace in 2027. Norton says there is "less of a margin of safety" for valuation and for fundamentals, "which doesn't necessarily mean the market sells off, but it means maybe some of the momentum disappears." Norton also discusses rising fixed-income yields; she doesn't expect them to keep pushing higher, but just to stay near current levels for longer, raising costs of borrowing and making the growth environment more challenging. Norton also notes that anything that makes the artificial-intelligence evolution "look like more of a belly flop than a perfect 10 dive" would be "incredibly disruptive" to both the A.I. trade and the U.S. economy.
Vijay Marolia, chief investment officer at Regal Point Capital, looks ahead to the bull market's fourth birthday this week, and discusses the surprising chances that it will celebrate another anniversar next year; he also looks at current inflation numbers and how improvement in the inflation rate won't make consumers feel any better, and looks at why 2027 will be a pivotal year for the market, and explains why he will be focused more on revenue grwth than earnings strength in the year ahead.
David Trainer, founder and president of New Constructs, puts companies likely to miss third-quarter earnings in The Danger Zone, but singles out Coherent Corp. as a stock where the numbers appear to make a miss — and a subsequent reckoning on the market — look inevitable. Trainer makes it clear that while the headlines are focused on artificial intelligence, companies hiding earnings problems through accounting tricks come in all shapes and sizes, and from all industries, with the only real question being how long they can continue to use accounting rules to mask their true financial condition.

Brandon Thurber, chief market strategist at Regions Asset Management, says that despite a prevailing sense of nervousness, the market can remain on its upswing, and is likely to see a pickup after mid-term elections and lasting at least through the first quarter of 2027. With interest rates on the rise, Thurber says the market's potential for growth hinges largely on the power of earnings, but he notes that earnings estimates are surprisingly stable, which should set up a constructive tailwind for the market. In addition, while he acknowledges the market's concern over rising bond yields, he says the reason for those increases is crucial, because if strong economic growth is driving rates up, "that continues to be a fairly constructive backdrop for risk assets."
Legendary technical analyst Martin Pring of Pring Research, says the statistics suggest that "the economy down the road will look pretty nice," leading to "an expanded expansion" that can continue while rates are rising. Pring, who has published Intermarket Review since 1984, says that the economy is currently in "Stage Four of the cycle, when bonds are bearish, commodities are bullish and stocks are bullish." He expects the Fed's recent hikes to be the first of as many as six increases over the next year-plus, noting that creating a recession is how he expects central bankers to break inflation. Until that happens, however, he notes that "Trend trumps everything," and he will continue to be invested while the bull market remains intact.
Nathan Shetty, chief investment officer at SEI, says that alternative investments have been de-emphasized by the media and investors amid the raging success of traditional equities, but says that sticky inflation and unpredictable interest rates are creating opportunities for investors to use alternatives to complement equity strategies, mitigate risk and achieve true diversification. Shetty notes that as he watches current market trends, he is "not anti-A.I., but pro-productivity," looking past the A.I. eco-system to the businesses that benefit from the evolving technology.