(New York)

The stock market has been on one of the most historic recoveries in market history, but…see the full story on our partner Magnifi’s site

(New York)

Roblox (RBLX) the children's hybrid social media/video game platform received nothing…see the full story on our partner Magnifi’s site

(Silicon Valley)

Consumers spent more at online stores last year than the previous year by a staggering $900 billion…see the full story on our partner Magnifi’s site

(New York)

Retirement has never been so insecure. Part of the appeal of annuities has been as a strategy to offset the decline in pensions. Yet, if you dig deeper there is another good utility for annuities that some retirees and pre-retirees are using: as a bridge to getting social security. Many lower income retirees hit a wall where they only have tens of thousands to low hundreds of thousands of dollars when they turn 60. The issue is that if the claim Social Security early, they can grossly lower their income versus waiting a few years. Given that the average 60 year-old male right now is expected to live to 88, the difference of $500 a month really adds up. Accordingly, in this situation an annuity—such as an immediate annuity—can work very well, as it buys time for retirees to defer taking Social Security.

FINSUM: This strategy can make a ton of sense, but it takes some convincing as most retirees don’t want to part with their money even if they know it will give them more security.

(New York)

Despite the big losses in Treasuries, high yield bonds have been doing well, and according to Fidelity that seems likely to continue. Advisors could be forgiven if they are wondering “how?”. The answer is that the big reason bonds are losing is interest rate risk, and it so happens that high yield bonds have some of the lowest interest rate risk around because of their higher coupons and shorter terms. According to Adam Kramer, who managers Fidelity’s Strategic Income Fund, “an economic recovery may be on the horizon and the Fed may avoid tightening monetary conditions for some time”, which he says means the high yield market “could offer investors the best of both worlds in 2021”.

FINSUM: High yield bonds have the lowest exposure to the market’s major risk at the moment and also the upside of an economic recovery. The picture is bright.