Market Performance - U.S. stocks experienced an upward trend, with the Nasdaq Composite increasing by more than 1% on Wednesday [1] - The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 0.57% to 49,814.98, while the Nasdaq gained 1.25% to 22,860.17, and the S&P 500 increased by 0.84% to 6,900.97 [1] Sector Performance - Energy shares saw a gain of 1.6% on Wednesday [1] - In contrast, real estate stocks experienced a decline of 1.2% in trading on Tuesday [1] Economic Indicators - U.S. durable goods orders fell by 1.4% month-over-month in December, following a revised gain of 5.4% in November [2] Commodity Prices - Oil prices increased by 4.2% to $64.93, while gold rose by 2.3% to $5,020.40 [3] - Silver prices surged by 6.2% to $78.120, and copper rose by 2.7% to $5.7965 [3] European Market Performance - European shares were higher, with the eurozone's STOXX 600 rising by 1.19%, Spain's IBEX 35 Index increasing by 1.35%, and London's FTSE 100 gaining 1.23% [4] - Germany's DAX rose by 1.12%, and France's CAC 40 climbed by 0.81% during the session [4] Asian Market Performance - Asian markets closed higher, with Japan's Nikkei gaining 1.02% and India's BSE Sensex increasing by 0.34% [5]

Core Viewpoint - U.S. stocks are underperforming compared to foreign rivals, prompting investors to explore potential bargains both overseas and domestically [1] Group 1 - Investors are encouraged to consider whether there are discounted stocks available in the U.S. market, similar to those found in international markets [1]

Core Insights - Investors added $165.4 billion to U.S.-listed ETFs in January 2026, a decrease from December's record but still significantly higher than January 2025's $107 billion [1] Group 1: ETF Inflows - International equity ETFs led the inflow rankings with $68.2 billion, surpassing the $42.7 billion that flowed into U.S. equity ETFs [2] - The iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG) attracted $8.8 billion in January, with a year-to-date gain of 8.3%, compared to a 2.2% gain for the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) [3] - VOO remains the most popular ETF overall, gathering $16.3 billion in January [3] Group 2: Fixed Income ETFs - U.S. fixed income ETFs saw inflows of $36.6 billion, while international fixed income ETFs attracted $15.6 billion [4] - Bond performance has been muted, with the Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF (BND) and the Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond ETF (VCIT) both up about 0.2% year to date [4] Group 3: Commodity ETFs - Commodity ETFs pulled in $4.3 billion in January, primarily due to demand for gold, with the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) gathering $2.6 billion in inflows [5] - In contrast, silver ETFs faced significant outflows, with the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) losing $2.9 billion in January [6] Group 4: Smaller Stocks - The Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF (RSP) gained $4.4 billion in January, benefiting from the outperformance of smaller stocks over large caps in 2026 [7] - RSP is up 3.8% year to date, nearly double the gain of the market-cap-weighted S&P 500 tracked by VOO [7]

Core Viewpoint - The recent decline of the dollar, which has fallen over 10% since early 2025, does not necessarily indicate a downturn for U.S. stocks, as historical data shows an inconsistent relationship between the dollar and equity performance [1]. Group 1 - The dollar's depreciation may lead to overreactions among investors regarding its impact on the stock market [1]. - Historical trends suggest that a weaker dollar does not consistently correlate with lower stock prices [1].

Core Insights - U.S. stocks had a strong performance in 2025, with the S&P 500 increasing by 16.4%, despite a significant drop in March and April [1] - International stocks outperformed U.S. stocks, with the MSCI World ex USA index rising by 32.6% due to a weakening dollar and shifts in investment strategies influenced by trade policies [1] - The S&P 500 has shown impressive total returns of 26.3% and 25% in the two preceding years, with an average annual return of 14.8% since 2009, significantly above its historical average [5] Investment Performance - The S&P 500's stock prices have increased at more than double the rate of cumulative earnings-per-share growth since 2009, leading to a high forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of nearly 22 times forward earnings expectations [6] - The cyclically adjusted price-earnings (CAPE) ratio, developed by economist Robert Shiller, has surpassed 40, a level not seen since the dot-com bubble, indicating potential overvaluation in the market [7] Future Outlook - Shiller forecasts muted returns for the S&P 500 over the next decade, predicting average annual nominal returns of only 1.5%, which may not keep pace with inflation [8] - Investors are encouraged to consider whether international stocks can maintain their momentum and continue to outperform in 2026 and beyond [3]

Market Overview - U.S. stocks showed mixed performance, with the S&P 500 declining by approximately 0.1% on Wednesday, while the Dow increased by 0.02% to 49,012.75 and the NASDAQ fell by 0.10% to 23,792.17 [1] - Energy shares experienced a gain of 0.7%, while health care stocks decreased by 0.5% [1] Commodity Market - In commodity trading, oil prices rose by 0.9% to $62.92, gold increased by 4.1% to $5,290.30, silver saw a rise of 6.7% to $113.065, and copper rose by 0.8% to $5.9085 [3] European Market - European shares were down, with the eurozone's STOXX 600 falling by 0.68%, Spain's IBEX 35 Index down by 0.99%, London's FTSE 100 decreasing by 0.37%, Germany's DAX down by 0.25%, and France's CAC 40 dipping by 0.87% [4] Asian Market - Asian markets closed higher, with Japan's Nikkei gaining 0.05%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index increasing by 2.58%, China's Shanghai Composite rising by 0.27%, and India's BSE Sensex up by 0.60% [5] Economic Indicators - The volume of mortgage applications in the U.S. decreased by 8.5% from the previous week during the week ending January 23 [6] - U.S. crude stocks fell by 2.296 million barrels in the week ended January 23, contrasting with market expectations of a 1.75 million-barrel increase [2][6]

Core Viewpoint - The Dow Jones Industrials and the S&P 500 experienced a slight decline on Friday [1] Group 1 - The Dow Jones Industrials edged lower [1] - The S&P 500 also saw a decrease [1]

Core Viewpoint - The CIO of Crossmark Global Investments anticipates that inflation will persist at elevated levels for another year [1] Group 1 - The expectation of sticky inflation suggests ongoing challenges for the economy and investment strategies [1]

Core Viewpoint - All 11 sectors in the S&P 500 closed lower on Wednesday, indicating a broad market decline, although the index remains close to a record high [1] Sector Performance - The decline affected all sectors, suggesting a widespread negative sentiment across the market [1]

Core Insights - The S&P 500 has experienced a gain of 17% year-to-date, indicating a strong performance in the U.S. equity market [1] - However, this growth has been surpassed by an overseas index, suggesting that international markets may be performing better than the U.S. market [1] Group 1 - The S&P 500's year-to-date gain is 17% [1] - An overseas index has outperformed the S&P 500, highlighting potential investment opportunities in international markets [1]