(Washington)

Many advisors seem to be confused about the new SEC fiduciary rule proposal, and we can commiserate. While the rule is called a new fiduciary rule, by all accounts, it really is not. While it does compel additional disclosures to clients and efforts to minimize them, it does not try to eliminate conflicts entirely. It has no best interest contract, and no capacity for clients to sue advisors they are unhappy with. It also has no uniform standard for brokers and advisors and maintains the distinction.

FINSUM: This rule is very different than many were expecting. Perhaps its biggest impact will be in reforming and restricting who can use the word broker, which in our opinion does a great deal to make the market more transparent to clients.

(New York)

The ten-year Treasury rose to just above 3% for the first time in years yesterday, possibly signaling the start of a new era for fixed income. Therefore, one would be forgiven for thinking the bond market drove the big losses in stocks yesterday. However, the opposite may be true, as for the first time in a while, it seems that worries over earnings and new measures of investor sentiment sent the market sharply downward. In a total reversal from January, investors are now very bearish on the market according to economic surveys. This news appeared to spook investors and then in turn disturb the bond market.

FINSUM: Yesterday might be the start of a poor cycle, where stocks and bonds take turns scaring one another to steeper losses. Perhaps that is just a manifestation of a changing cycle.

(New York)

If anything is becoming clearer in financial markets, especially after yesterday, it is that rates and yields are bound to rise. Thus many might be worried about how to protect their clients from the changing market. Barron’s has some suggestions. The key is to hold a fixed income portfolio for several years, a minimum of six, and to make sure to reinvest proceeds in higher yielding bonds. To achieve the targeted five-year maturity sweet spot, consider Vanguard’s intermediate Treasury fund, while also mixing in some Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS) to provide further protection.

FINSUM: This seems like a good strategy for a long period of gradual rate hikes.

(Seattle)

Amazon is starting a new service. For the last year, the company has been trying to convince consumers that letting the company’s delivery people in their homes via a special service was a good idea. Now Amazon is taking that one step further with the launch of a program to deliver packages to customers’ cars. Like the home deliveries, and broadly under the same program, named Amazon Key, Amazon’s delivery people will deliver packages to cars parked in publicly available areas. The car will be unlocked by an OnStar (or similar) service and relocked after the delivery is completed.

FINSUM: We think this could be a very convenient feature for many people and may be an enticement to get more consumers to sign up.

(Chicago)

There has been a lot of consternation over the last week about whether the Vix is being manipulated. In one incident last week, the Vix jumped significantly with no corresponding move in the stock market. The culprit apparently was a large options trade deeply out the money which shocked the benchmark. Following an investigation, the Cboe says that it was not market manipulation, but rather an order imbalance that caused the jump in the VIx’s measure. Speaking on whether the move amounted to market manipulation, the Cboe commented that “We reiterate that we believe these claims are without merit”.

FINSUM: Whether or not the market was being gamed, the bigger question is whether the the way the Vix is calculated is too fragile/sensitive. If a single trader with a moderately sized order can move the Vix this much, what does it say about the index?