The Newly Exciting World of Cash Alternatives
Over the previous decade, it didn’t matter much whether you left cash at the bank or put it in a money market fund, CD, Treasury, or under your mattress.
Today, though still modest, savings account rates are at their highest level since the Great Recession. Meanwhile, yields on cash alternatives have skyrocketed.
Investing in Bonds
It was the worst three month stretch for bonds since 1980. The Bloomberg Barclays Aggregate bond index fell 6%. The index yields about 2.5%, meaning it lost over two years of expected income in a quarter. Add in high inflation, and bonds had a dismal start to the year.
2021 Year-End Summary
Lesser challenges have derailed past bull markets. And yet, we’re thirteen years into the post-Great Recession uptrend. All but three of those years have featured double-digit S&P 500 returns. The last three years have been the best run since the late 1990s.
What a wonderful time to be an investor, right?