Investments

The Discover U.S. Spending Monitor, a daily poll of 8,200 consumers tracking their confidence in the economy and spending intentions, recorded its largest one-month decline in June, falling 4.4 points from 89.5 to 85.1—indicating that the majority of Americans believe the economy and their own personal finances are worsening.

Wells Fargo Funds Management has launched the Wells Fargo Advantage Dow Jones Target 2055 Fund, a target-date fund benchmarked against the Dow Jones Target 2055 Index and sub-advised by Global Index Advisors, State Street Global Advisors and Wells Capital Management.

J.P. Morgan Asset Management has been selected as the investment manager for New York’s $1.9 billion 529 college savings plan. After completing the extensive request for proposal process, J.P. Morgan said, negotiations will now begin on the details of the seven-year agreement.

Exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, have become increasingly popular among investors because they're more liquid and tax efficient than mutual funds and give them exposure to stocks, bonds and commodities they otherwise might not be able to access.

The wind is at the back of alternative energy and it has a sunny future that investors should prepare to capitalize on. That’s the word from Anna Davydova, portfolio manager of the Fidelity Select Environment and Alternative Energy Fund.

As the economy falters amid recent market volatility and mixed labor reports, second quarter employee confidence related to job security, pay raises and the job market has retreated to levels last seen in the height of the recession, according to a survey of 2,203 adults by Glassdoor.

The number of dividend increases rose 32.5% in the second quarter of 2011 to 444, up from 335 in the second quarter of 2010, Standard & Poor’s Indices said.

S&P Indices this week said 444 publicly traded firms increased their dividend payouts in the second quarter, a 32.5% increase from the 335 companies that bolstered shareholders' balances in the year-ago quarter.

Assets in U.S.-listed exchange-traded funds and exchange-traded notes rose 39% from a year ago to $1.098 trillion at the end of June, up from nearly $788 billion at the end of June 2010, the National Stock Exchange said.

Porfolio Rethink has introduced seven new indexes that it says are alternatives to the 19th-century Standard & Poor’s 500 and Dow Jones Industrial average. Today, the company says, companies are global and investors are much more sophisticated.

The wind is at the back of alternative energy and it has a sunny future that investors should prepare to capitalize on. That’s the word from Anna Davydova, portfolio manager of Fidelity Select Environment and Alternative Energy.

In a major sting operation by a joint task force involving the Securities and Exchange Commission’s South Florida Regional Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Miami and the FBI, an alleged scheme involving several penny stock promoters and several CEOs of microchip companies has been exposed, with fraud charges filed against the principals.

Portfolio Rethink has introduced seven new indexes that it says are alternatives to the 19th-century Standard & Poor’s 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average. Today, the company says, companies are global and investors are much more sophisticated.

Following an announcement from The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) in January that it ordered Charles Schwab & Company, Inc., to pay $18 million to repay investors in its YieldPlus Fund after investment losses, a FINRA Arbitrator awarded damages, attorney’s fees and other costs to a couple invested in the fund.

When it comes to sovereign risk ratings, it could be a case of "out of Greece and into the fire" as venerable credit-rating agency Standard & Poor's this week joined Moody’s in issuing a sobering warning that Italy could be the next European nation in line for a downgrade.

BlackRock favors U.S. growth stocks and quality U.S. bonds. GMO recommends cash rather than other forms of “tail-risk” protection. In Russell survey, bullish sentiment for U.S. large cap growth stocks dropped but still a majority view. Barclays expects that central banks will ignore recommendation by Bank of International Settlements to act against inflation.

Guinness Atkinson Asset Management has launched the Renminbi Yuan & Bond Fund, which it says is the first traditional open-end mutual fund to invest directly in bonds denominated in the Chinese currency, Renminbi.

First Trust Advisors is planning to launch the First Trust ISE Cloud Computing exchange-traded fund on Nasdaq on Wednesday, which it says is the first ETF focused on cloud computing.

Rising oil prices, $14 trillion in federal debt, the near shutdown of the government and a slowing global economy resulted in "horrible" results for equity funds in the second quarter, said Tom Roseen, head of research services at Lipper, during his company's preliminary performance report on equity funds in the second quarter of the year.

American investors are in risk-aversion mode and are not likely to get out of that funk until interest rates start rising. That’s the fundamental conclusion of Morningstar senior stock analyst Greggory Warren.