News

Investors were grappling with a lot of uncertainty at this time last year. Covid infection rates remained elevated. With inflation still clocking in at 6%-7%, interest rates seemed poised to march ever higher. Abroad, Europe was struggling with sky high gas prices while the war in Ukraine raged on. Against this backdrop, investment strategists largely […]

In our line of work we are privy to a lot of preconceptions surrounding estate taxes. Some of these ideas make sense, while many are outdated, overlook the added nuance of state taxes, or misunderstand the impact of gifting. Note: an estate lawyer is the ultimate source for good information! Many people who began estate […]

ESG investing – the practice of incorporating Environmental, Social, and Governance considerations into investment decisions — has been stirring up a lot of debate and emotions. At least in the mainstream press, it can seem like ESG went from investment darling to reviled failure in a very short time. But that is glossing over a […]

Our annual office chocolate recipe competition was back to in-person this year after going virtual during the pandemic. Entries ranged from above-average execution of Swedish classics (nice thumbprints, Sven!) to avant-garde, meta-culinary experiences (chocolate-covered pickles…thank you, Art). But the winning recipe was the clear standout, and our champion is not from the old guard, but […]

After living five weeks in Zhoushan, my verdict is life there is very convenient and comfortable. Home ownership is widespread. For the vast majority of people, a “home” is an apartment in a high-rise complex consisting of 10 to 20 towers. Our apartment is in an 11-tower complex, each tower 10 to 15 floors. Doing […]

In addition to living on the China coast in Zhoushan, Xin and I travelled over 2,200 miles inland by train, bus, and car. This is the equivalent of going from New York City to Salt Lake City. We got as far west as Xi’An and as far north as Yan’An, the headquarters of the Communist […]

SPOILER ALERT: I cannot add anything meaningful to what is being reported by the Western press on the Chinese economy. But I can confirm what is being said. Business is weak, the manufacturing index is down, exports are lagging, and private investment has declined by a quarter since 2020. There are two important things to […]

My wife Xin and I recently spent five weeks in her hometown in China, 180 miles south of Shanghai. Zhoushan is a series of islands now connected to the mainland by modern bridges and high speed expressways. The population is small by Chinese standards, only 700,000 residents. Zhoushan is a major fishing port and best […]

The shift to electric vehicles has been impressive. In the first half of this year, approximately 14% of light vehicle sales globally were either Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) or Plug-in Hybrids (PHEV). Leading the pack of adopters were a mix of Scandinavian countries like Norway, and China. U.S. car buyers are also warming to BEV/PHEVs. […]

The pandemic profoundly changed U.S. labor markets. Between March and April of 2020, a total of 20.5 million people left their jobs – the largest one-month drop since the Bureau of Labor Statistics began its employment survey in 1939. The labor market has since recovered. The unemployment rate today stands near a record low of […]

In recent newsletters we covered the concept of “lock-in”, the trend of people staying in their homes purchased with historically low interest rates to avoid facing higher rates and an extremely unaffordable housing market. Lock-in has contributed to the lack of affordability by gumming up housing turnover, reducing available inventory, and putting upward pressure on […]

Are you wealthy? Bloomberg recently wrote, “Billionaires know they are,” and “Low-wage workers are very well aware that they aren’t.” But how about the people in between? Charles Schwab’s 2023 Modern Wealth Survey asked 1000 people between ages 21 and 75 what it took to be wealthy in the U.S., and the average number was […]