Portfolio

BlackRock sees U.S. growth coming this year. Hays Advisory sees profits for U.S. manufacturing as the currencies of emerging markets strengthen. Raymond James says the markets are making a low and will turn up. Barclays doesn¡¯t expect to see more Fed stimulus. But Glenmede sees increased risk of a U.S slowdown.

A number of areas of growing strength in the retail and commercial real estate market point to continued improvement in the U.S. economy, according to a report from real estate research and consulting firm Maximus Advisors.

A new report from Morningstar looking at May’s fund flows adds further evidence that investors are growing less enchanted with equities in favor of more conservative assets.

When financial services leaders are no longer confident, where does that leave the rest of us?

Financial advisers and investors may want to heed some cautionary words from several economists at the Wharton School who think that the country's current economic recovery will remain a sluggish affair and, whenever it does stabilize, it will likely mark the beginning of a "new normal" that's less robust and prosperous than prior cyclical peaks.

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index increased 0.8% in May to 114.7 (2004 = 100), following a 0.4% decline in April and a 0.7% increase in March. The largest contributions came from the interest rate spread, consumer expectations and housing permits.

The New York City Transitional Finance Authority Wednesday will competitively bid $300 million of building aid revenue bonds, including $100 million of taxable qualified school construction bonds.

In anticipation of the U.S. dollar's declining value, many investors are busy adjusting their portfolios to get more exposure to other major currencies. But a new research report from Merk Investments suggests that they may not be nearly as diversified as they need to be.

BlackRock’s iShares exchange-traded fund division has launched the iShares Floating Rate Note Fund (ticker: FLOT), its first floating rate fund.

Overall, hedge funds had generally positive performance numbers since January. But May numbers, when isolated, told a much different story.