Portfolio

After the stock market wiped away so many investors' wealth over the past two years, and amid disagreements among economists whether the recovery is sustainable, investors remain on sidelines—even though stocks are up 69% from their March 9, 2009 lows.

Assets held in domestic exchange-traded funds increased last month, but couldn’t quite keep pace with the Standard & Poor’s 500.

The company has already partnered with the city of San Francisco to offer wealth management services to its residents through direct mailings in their water and electric bills.

Bucking their overall skepticism or outright distrust of financial services companies, 90% of Americans trust the advice their financial planners have been giving them amid the financial turmoil of the past two years, according to the First Command Financial Behaviors Index.

When going through a divorce, having just any financial advisor won't do. People need a planner who specializes in the subject and can help clients navigate the difficult emotional and financial terrain ahead.

While financial advisers have been relying on internal wholesalers more heavily since the financial downturn, they are also finding those contacts not as accessible or responsive as they would like.

The top Republican tax-writer in the Senate yesterday warned colleagues that provisions in the House-passed jobs bill that offer high subsidy rates for Build America Bond-type programs would allow Wall Street banks to pocket more in underwriting fees.

Do Buyers Prefer Passive or Active?

While financial advisers have been relying on internal wholesalers more heavily since the financial downturn, they are also finding those contacts not as accessible or responsive as they would like, according to the latest installment in Financial Research Corp.’s Advisor Insight Series, “Wholesaler Effectiveness.” FRC concluded that fund companies may be underestimating and spreading this valuable resource too thinly.

Jackson National Life Insurance announced it achieved record sales and deposits of $15.2 billion and record profit of $670 million in 2009. Sales and deposits were 8% higher than 2008, and net income increased from a net loss of $1 billion in 2008, primarily due to the positive impact of movement in non-operating derivative holdings and hedging practices for its annuities.