Money Life With Chuck Jaffe Daily Podcast

Peter Crane, president of Crane Data -- which publishes the Money Fund Intelligence newsletter tracking the performance of money market mutual funds -- says that high interest rates should have investors thinking about where to park and protect their cash, and to treat their cash holdings as an asset rather than an after-thought in the investment plan. He also discusses the likely path of money fund rates based on the Fed's moves. In The Book Interview, Victor Haghani, co-author of "The Missing Billionaires: A Guide to Better Financial Decisions," discusses how bad financial choices have wiped out countless family fortunes that would have grown massive had they just been managed smartly. In the Market Call, George Villere, co-manager of Villere Equity and Villere Balanced funds, talks small- and mid-cap investing.

Tom Samuelson, chief investment officer at Vineyard Global Advisors, says that the market is showing signs of breakdown, and while you can still find one or two indicators that are positive, the bearish signs are out and suggesting that there's a downturn coming, though he thinks the decline will stop short of being a "hard landing." Also on the show, Roraj Pradhananga, director of research at Veris Wealth Partners, a sustainable investment firm, talks about how current global conflicts are impacting markets, notably the energy sector, and how that is impacting the sustainable, renewable energy companies versus the fossil-fuel companies. Plus, Lester Jones discusses the results of the Business Conditions survey released Monday by the National Association for Business Economics, and Chuck answers a listener's question about how to bring money lessons to Halloween for a family that doesn't get trick-or-treating traffic so that they can't replicate Chuck's "cash or candy" holiday celebration.

Brij Khurana, fixed income portfolio manager at Wellington Management, says he expects the Federal Reserve to pause in its rate hiking cycle at its meeting this week, though that doesn't mean there won't be another rate increase at the next meeting if conditions warrant it. And under current conditions, Khurana says he is frequently asked why to go with bonds when cash can generate nice returns in bank certificates of deposit, to which he notes that bond prices are cheap right now, making this an ideal time to consider lengthening maturities as the Fed is looking at moving to the next phase of the rate cycle. Also on the show, Greg McBride talks about the latest BankRate.com study showing that Americans know they need to save more for emergencies, but are actually saving less, particularly when inflation is factored in, Kyle Guske, investment analyst at New Constructs, puts a mutual fund whose manager has been a guest on the show many times, into "The Danger Zone," noting that it has a high preponderance of d

Adam Hetts, global head of multi-asset at Janus Henderson Investors, says the economy is somewhere between a soft and hard landing, but that anyone expecting a mild recession should watch for it to last about nine months, but with the market bottoming out typically a few months before the recession ends, investors will want to stay the course through the bear market trough, rather than moving into cash to get the high current yields and play defense. With lower expected stock returns and improved bond returns, Hetts says riding out a balanced portfolio should provide both safety and growth potential. Also on the show, Cheryl Pate of the Angel Oak Financial Strategies Income Term Trust says the banking industry's wild ride since the failure of Silicon Valley Bank in March has created a strong opportunity for bank debt to outperform moving forward, Natalie Trevithick of Payden and Rygel discusses the investment-grade corporate bond market ad when investors will want to start pursuing longer-duration bonds, and

Larry Adam, chief investment officer at Raymond James, says he expects a recession at the start of next year, but he's not nervous about it because much of the damage is already priced in and the downturn is likely to last six months, rather than the 10 months of an average recession. Moreover, with the stock market typically bottoming four to six months before a recession ends, Adam says investors may want to be buying in while the downturn is in mid-swing. Adam currently favors technology, energy, health care and financials. Tom Lydon, vice chairman at VettaFi, brings back a long-running fund powerhouse as his ETF of the Week, Chuck answers a listener's question about inflation-protected savings bonds -- with the new I-bond inflation rate having just been announced --  and absolute-value manager Brian Frank of the Frank Value Fund talks stocks in the Market Call.

David Goerz, chief executive officer at Strategic Frontier Management, says it seems "like we're muddling along at zero and sometimes we're in recession and sometimes we're not." It feels like a recession, he notes -- and it has had almost all of the key statistics at various times -- but without the unemployment issue or any big stock market correction. Goerz expects lower growth for the market moving forward, and urges safety and defense in building portfolios now. Also on the show, Tracey Spivey of the business tax services group at KPMG discusses how investors who have benefited from higher interest rates and leaned into the better yields available from fixed income investments are setting themselves up for an unpleasant tax surprise  next year; plus Daniel Dusina, director of investments at Blue Chip Partners, talks brand-name companies in the Market Call.

Money Life wraps up the 20 interviews of FinCon. A gathering of financial content creators and fin-tech entrepreneurs held in New Orleans last week - with Benjamin Nadelstein of Monetary Metals talking about how to generate yield on your gold holdings, Logan Smyth of the TRADR Market Analytics app on technical analysis, Kalilah Reynolds discussing the ups and downs of the Jamaican Stock Market, Jenni Sisson on how inflation is hitting the foot soldiers of the home front, and Joe Saul-Sehy of the Stacking Benjamins on the good and bad of financial content creation in today's tough economic environment.

It's the third day of interviews taped at FinCon in New Orleans -- an annual gathering of financial content creators -- and one big focus of the conversations is inflation. That will be a big part of conversations today, when the interviews start with Jen Smith of the Frugal Friends podcast, moving into a chat with Scott Carson from The Note Closers Show and -- after a break to talk personal finance with David Zaegel from the Retire With Confidence podcast --  inflation is a big part of the talk with John Blizzard, head of CDValet.com, a site that helps consumers with certificates of deposit. The show concludes with conversations with Clifton Corbin, a financial educator and author of "Your Kids, Their Money," and Paula Pant of the Afford Anything podcast, who discusses why so many Americans are upset over inflation and financial conditions at a time when they actually have it pretty good.

It's Day Two of Money Life at FinCon, and Chuck again explores the rich tapestry of the financial world talking about the business of podcasting with Virginia Elder of Podcast Abundance, improving the financial awareness and habits in the Hispanic culture with financial educator Dario Martinez of Sal de la Olla, stock investing with CPA Mark Roussin -- the "Dividend Seeker" on YouTube -- the financial difficulties and differences of America's service men and women with Lacey Langford of the Military Money Show, and the ways that taxes can impact and delay retirement with "FITaxGuy" Sean Mullaney. Plus, John Cole Scott of Closed-End Fund Advisors and the Active Investment Company Alliance reviews a rough third quarter in closed-end funds in The NAVigator.

Money Life goes to the Fin Con Expo this week, with Chuck in New Orleans at the annual gathering of financial content creators, which is a mix of bloggers, podcasters, freelance writers, fin tech companies and forward-thinking financial minds, and you will hear from Preston Yadegar of Shareholder Vote Exchange (a company helping investors sell the votes on their shares), David Edey of the Executor Help podcast, Anthony Rushing of First Loan HELOC (which is working to help investors use credit lines to replace mortgages to save on home ownership and interest costs), and fraud expert Kathy Stokes of AARP. Plus, every Thursday starts with the ETF of the Week, and Tom Lydon of VettaFi does something he has not done in the history of Money Life, namely pick a fund that is NOT an ETF, though it has aspirations -- and hopes -- of being one someday.

For years, Chuck has offered the kids in his neighborhood a chance to pick cash or candy, to decide between a trade or a treat. Every Halloween, however, Chuck tweaks the game, making a few subtle changes to keep things interesting for him and the kids. This year, he is changing something he never expected to change, ever, and he talks about how Halloween will work at his house -- and maybe yours if you follow suit -- come Oct. 31. Plus, Andrew Krei, co-chief investment officer at Crescent Grove Advisors, talks about how the higher-for-longer rate environment -- coupled with the narrow stock market -- has given investors an opportunity to reposition and rebalance portfolios to play defense while being compensated with better yields, but he does warn that there may be more maneuvering to do once rates start to fall again. Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree discusses record credit-card rates and the alarming number of lenders now issuing cards with a 29.99 percent rate or higher. In the Market Ca

John Kosar, chief market strategist at Asbury Research, says the stock market hit a key support level at the beginning of October, which typically has been triggering market rebounds. As a result, he sees current conditions as a "low-risk, high opportunity" place to put money to work in the market now. Mary Ryan, senior wealth advisor at The Vanguard Group, discusses the firm's research showing that investors who have the option of contributing to a health-savings account can goose their long-term investment returns by prioritizing the HSA, rather than thinking of it solely as a savings account to pay for medical costs. She suggests that savers turn to HSAs higher in their priority list for savings, just behind getting the free money of an employer's matching monies, but ahead of additional retirement-plan contributions and Roth IRAs. Plus, Allison Hadley covers a survey by AllStarHome.com on the financial impacts of living at home or in their hometown, and Gerry Frigon of Taylor Frigon Capital Management ta

Craig Callahan, founder and chief executive officer at ICON Advisers and the ICON Funds, says that he's not seeing the overpricing you'd expect at a market peak or the bargains visible in typical market bottoms, so he expects the market to "drift higher" over the next six to nine months. But those gains will be led by different stocks and sectors than what drove the market to gains earlier this year. Callahan says the market has turned since May 31, with energy leading, and economically sensitive areas like financials have been strong too; "that really narrow market that we didn't think made sense, it ended May 31st" he said. "We're in a new market now." Also on the show, Kyle Guske, investment analyst at New Constructs revisits a stock that has been in the Danger Zone for years, but that has rebounded well this year to set up the next round of troubles, John Cabble of J.D. Power discusses the firm's latest look into payment patterns and looks at the deteriorating credit situation for most Americans, and Bob

Brian Andrew, chief investment officer at Johnson Financial Group, sees more potential negative economic outcomes than positive ones, ranging from a likely recession to possible stagflation, which should keep investors cautious but looking for opportunities in the year ahead. While he worries about the troubles ahead -- particularly with two wars in the world right now -- Andrew says he does not expect a deep global recession, but something more isolated and affecting some pockets of the market -- like interest-rate sensitive businesses -- harder than the rest. Also on the showm,  harder than others. Roxanna Islam of VettaFi discusses how ETFs that buy closed-end funds have held up in a year when closed-end funds have delivered high yields but low total returns and seen widening discounts. Dan Passarelli, founder/chief executive, Market Taker Mentoring says the market is currently stuck between its 50 and 200 day moving averages, which makes movement hard to determine but which is creating short-term volatili

Nate Thooft, chief investment officer at Manulife Investment Management, says that the strength of domestic stocks has been such that they are overpriced relative to international issues, which is why he has been light on U.S. equities of late. Thooft expects equity conditions to change at some point in the next year as a recession sets in, bringing with it "value destruction" that . Once that happens and there's been some "value destruction," it will be time to be more excited about stocks, but particularly the domestic issues. Also on the show, Tom Lydon, vice chairman at VettaFi, makes an active-income strategy his ETF of the Week, Matt Brannon discusses research from Clever Real Estate showing that one in four Americans is falling deeper into credit-card debt each month, and Clark Kendall, president of Kendall Capital Management, talks stocks in the Market Call.

Ron Sanchez, chief investment officer at Fiduciary Trust Company International, says that stock valuations are running high right now, making it that "the compensation for equity isn't nearly as good as it has been for the better part of a decade," which has made fixed-income investments look like a better bargain. Moreover, while Sanchez is calling for a soft landing economically and believes that the Federal Reserve is done raising interest rates, it is creating opportunities for bond investors now. Jeff Muhlenkamp, portfolio manager at the Muhlenkamp Fund does the Market Call, noting that the fund has put some money to work in the six months since he was last on the show, but explaining why he's not fully invested now and doesn't expect to be for a while, and noting that individual investors might follow his lead. Plus, Russel Kinnel, director of manager research at Morningstar, discusses research showing how money flows into or out of funds after changes are made to the firm's medalist and star ratings,

Patrick Luce, economist at ITR Economics, says that current economic trends are building a storm that will result in a depression in the 2030s, and a small recession next year, but he notes that investors should treat the 2024 decline as a buying opportunity, positioning themselves for the market to pick up before the big trouble comes in the next decade. And while Luce sees that big event damaging portfolios, he notes that prepared investors will build portfolios leading up to it, and be positioned to profit as the market rebounds out of it long-term. Will Rhind, chief executive officer at GraniteShares, returns to the show to discuss single-stock ETFs and the various flavors of them -- long, short and leveraged -- that his firm has unleashed and how investors should approach them. Also, Steven Benna of travel-insurance company Squaremouth discusses how travelers are expecting trip costs to be higher next year, and why those higher prices are not just about global inflation, and forensic accountant Tracy Co

Alan Gayle, president of Via Nova Investment Management, says that the current negativity around the bond market has hidden "the opportunity [longer-term investors] have been waiting for," noting that government and investment-grade corporate bonds are now delivering the kind of yield that -- after years of bonds paying nothing -- can help achieve long-term income goals. Gayle does not believe a recession is happening soon, but as consumers lose strength -- and they have since the start of the year -- and the impact of rising rates eventually hurt economic growth rates, the likelihood of trouble late next year or beyond increases. Also on the show, economist Jack Kleinhenz discusses the latest Outlook Survey from the National Association for Business Economics -- released today -- showing that less than half of the surveyed economists expect a recession now. Plus David Trainer of New Constructs puts a stock in the Danger Zone that he thinks is due for a big miss during the upcoming earnings season, and Janet

Matt Gertken, chief strategist, global and U.S. political strategy at BCA Research, says that higher levels of leadership uncertainty lead to lower stock prices, and that the peak polarization in U.S. politics has taken the government's eyes off the ball when it comes to the actions of Russia and China, which could lead to policy mistakes and real costs on Americans in the global marketplace. Gertkin explains that the political gridlock is not all bad news for investors, noting that it restricts how far either side can go in blowing out the budget, but says that a recession is likely to lead to one party being swept into control. Jerremy Newsome of Real-Life Trading says the market's recent pullback "is a healthy rotation on the general broader uptrend of the markets," meaning that declines are buying opportunities because the market has room to run higher and is showing signs that it will, although much of that continuing rally may still be in mega-cap names. In The NAVigator segment, Robert Bush, director o

Steve Rick, chief economist at TruStage, expects the economy to slow in 2024 -- resulting in "a growth recession" rather than a traditional full-blown economic meltdown -- likely staving off a major stock market decline. Rick says he has heard from more nervous bank and credit union top dogs who are scared about economic conditions than at any time in his 30 plus year career and he worries that a slowdown in lending could be a trigger for something bigger and worse than he currently expects. Also on the show, Tom Lydon, vice chairman, VettaFi make a managed-futures fund his pick for ETF of the Week, Chuck talks the $1.2 billion Powerball jackpot from Wednesday night and why the lump-sum payment was one of the lowest any big-prize distributions in years, plus Brian Drubetsky -- manager of the Cullen Small Cap Value Strategy fund -- talks small- and mid-sized stocks in the Market Call.