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The CPA and CMA designations cater to distinct professional focuses within the accounting and finance fields. A CPA is often seen as the gold standard for public accounting, emphasizing auditing, tax, and regulatory compliance. This certification is highly regarded for roles that require a deep understanding of financial reporting and external auditing. CPAs are frequently employed by public accounting firms, government agencies, and corporations that need to ensure their financial statements adhere to strict regulatory standards.

On the other hand, the CMA designation is tailored for professionals who aim to excel in management accounting and strategic financial management. CMAs are trained to analyze financial data to inform business decisions, focusing on internal processes and performance management. This makes the CMA particularly valuable for roles in corporate finance, strategic planning, and management consulting. Companies looking to optimize their internal financial operations and drive business strategy often seek out CMAs for their expertise in cost management, budgeting, and financial analysis.

The educational and experiential requirements for these certifications also differ. To become a CPA, candidates typically need to complete 150 semester hours of college education, which often includes a bachelor’s degree in accounting or a related field. Additionally, CPAs must pass the Uniform CPA Examination and meet specific state licensing requirements, which usually include a certain amount of professional experience.

In contrast, the CMA certification requires a bachelor’s degree in any discipline, two years of relevant work experience, and passing the two-part CMA exam. This flexibility in educational background can make the CMA more accessible to a broader range of professionals.

MORE: https://www.becker.com/blog/cpa/cma-vs-cpa-the-difference-between-cpa-and-cma

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DAILY UPDATE: TikToc, Walgreens & Hindenburg Research All Down as Markets Blast Off

Posted on January 18, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

MEDICAL EXECUTIVE-POST – TODAY’S NEWSLETTER BRIEFING

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Essays, Opinions and Curated News in Health Economics, Investing, Business, Management and Financial Planning for Physician Entrepreneurs and their Savvy Advisors and Consultants

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WASHINGTON — The US Supreme Court on Friday delivered a blow to TikTok by upholding a law that could potentially lead to the video-sharing social media platform being banned in the United States. The justices in an unsigned opinion with no dissents rejected a free speech challenge filed by the company, meaning the law is set to go into effect on Sunday as planned. The bipartisan law requires China-based TikTok owner ByteDance to divest itself of the company by Sunday, the day before President-elect Donald Trump is to take office. If no sale takes place, the platform used by millions of Americans will in theory be banned.

Legendary short seller Nate Anderson announced this week that he is shutting down his firm, Hindenburg Research, due to extreme job stress. With only 11 employees, Anderson took gargantuan swings at companies—and their billionaire leaders. Hindenburg published deeply researched reports about companies it believed were overvalued and rife with corruption. It got its big break when it shorted electric truck-maker Nikola in 2020, calling the company an “intricate fraud.” Regulators took note, and it led to three fraud convictions for Nikola founder Trevor Milton.

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US stocks jumped on Friday amid a tech stock revival as investors assessed a week of key data and earnings reports alongside potential policy shifts under a Trump administration.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained 0.8% while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 1%, coming off a losing day for the major gauges. The tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite (^IXIC) put on 1.5% as Nvidia (NVDA) and Tesla (TSLA) shares nudged back into the green.

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit against Walgreens (WBA), one of the nation’s largest pharmacy chains, alleging widespread prescription drug practice violations. According to the DOJ, Walgreens improperly dispensed millions of prescriptions from August 2012 to the present day that either lacked “legitimate medical purpose” or were otherwise invalid.

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HFR INVESTMENTS: Two Indices

Posted on January 16, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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HFRX Equity Hedge Index serves as a daily-priced proxy for alternative strategies that maintain positions long and short, primarily in equity and equity derivative securities.

HFRX Fixed Income – Credit Index serves as a daily-priced proxy for alternative strategies that provide exposure to credit strategies. Credit strategies refers to a wide range of sub-strategies and may include corporate, sovereign, distressed, asset-backed, capital structure arbitrage, and other relative value approaches. Strategies may also include and utilize equity securities, credit derivatives, commodities, or currencies.

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DAILY UPDATE: Dow Up While NASDAQ Drops

Posted on January 15, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

MEDICAL EXECUTIVE-POST – TODAY’S NEWSLETTER BRIEFING

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The Producer Price Index, which tracks price changes companies see at a wholesale level, rose 3.3% over last year, up from 3% in November but less than economists expected. It rose 0.2% over the previous month, also less than expected. The report lays the groundwork for Wednesday’s heavily anticipated CPI print.

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US stocks closed mixed Tuesday as investors took in the first of two key inflation reports this week, which showed prices rose less than expected in December. Also in focus was a report that the incoming Trump administration could hike tariffs more gradually to ease inflationary pressures.

Investors will now turn their attention to Wednesday morning’s update on consumer prices, which are expected to remain sticky as the Federal Reserve continues its inflation fight.

On Tuesday, the benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) finished the trading day about 0.1% higher, while the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite (^IXIC) dropped around 0.2% following a bumpy session on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) moved roughly 0.5% higher to cap off back-to-back winning days for the blue chip index.

Visualize: How private equity tangled banks in a web of debt, from the Financial Times.

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EXTENDED Equity Strategies

Posted on January 13, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Extended equity strategies attempt to provide better returns than possible with long-only investments.

An example of an extended equity strategy is a 130/30 portfolio, which gets its designation from taking a 130% long position and a 30% short position. In practice, this would mean $100mm invested in stocks that are viewed as attractive. Next, the manager would borrow and sell short $30mm of unattractive stocks. Then the manager uses the proceeds from the short sale to buy an additional $30mm of attractive stocks. This results in a portfolio that has 130% long and 30% short exposure to stocks, or “extended” exposure to equities relative to a long-only, 100% stock portfolio.

Nevertheless, it’s important to point out that here is the risk of theoretical unlimited amount of loss with short selling, (i.e. the price of the short-sold stocks increases; the long position can only go down to $0).

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NOTIONAL Value

Posted on January 12, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Notional Value is the face value or principal amount that an investor holds of a debt security.

This value is not subject to market pricing.

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DEMAGOGUES: Value and Growth Stocks

Posted on January 12, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

SPECIAL REPORT

By Vitaliy Katsenelson CFA

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About Value & Growth Demagogues

You can listen to a professional narration of this article on iTunes & online.

I have a problem with both growth and value demagogues.

Growth demagogues will argue that valuation is irrelevant for high-growth companies because the price you pay for growth doesn’t matter. They usually say this after a very extended move in growth stocks, where these investors look like gods that walk on water. They call value investors “accountants.”

The price you pay matters (this is not a new message). As we’ve discussed in the past, if you bought great, high-growth companies near the end of the Nifty Fifty bubble in the 1960s or near the end of the dotcom bubble in the 1990s, it took more than a decade to break even (after first struggling through double-digit losses).

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CREDIT: Much About Agreements!

Posted on January 11, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Credit analysis is a form of financial analysis used primarily to determine the financial strength of the issuer of a security, and the ability of that issuer to provide timely payment of interest and principal to investors in the issuer’s debt securities. Credit analysis is typically an important component of security analysis and selection in credit-sensitive bond sectors such as the corporate bond market and the municipal bond market.

Credit default swap index (CDX) is a credit derivative, based on a basket of CDS, which can be used to hedge credit risk or speculate on changes in credit quality.

Credit default swaps (CDS) are credit derivative contracts between two counterparties that can be used to hedge credit risk or speculate on changes in the credit quality of a corporation or government entity.

Credit quality reflects the financial strength of the issuer of a security, and the ability of that issuer to provide timely payment of interest and principal to investors in the issuer’s securities. Common measurements of credit quality include the credit ratings provided by credit rating agencies such as Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s. Credit quality and credit quality perceptions are a key component of the daily market pricing of fixed-income securities, along with maturity, inflation expectations and interest rate levels.

Credit Rating Agency (CRA) is a company that assigns credit ratings for issuers of certain types of debt obligations as well as the debt instruments themselves. In the United States, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) permits investment banks and broker-dealers to use credit ratings from “Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organizations” (NRSRO) for similar purposes. As of January 2012, nine organizations were designated as NRSROs, including the “Big Three” which are Standard and Poor’s, Moody’s Investor Services and Fitch Ratings.

Credit rating downgrade, by a credit rating agency (Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s or Fitch) means reducing its credit rating for a debt issuer and/or security. This is based on the agency’s evaluation, indicating, to the agency, a decline in the issuer’s financial stability, increasing the possibility of default. A downgrade should not to be confused with a default; a debt security can be downgraded without defaulting. And, conversely, a debt issuer can suddenly default without being downgraded first–credit ratings and credit rating agencies are not infallible.

Credit ratings are measurements of credit quality provided by credit rating agencies. Those provided by Standard & Poor’s typically are the most widely quoted and distributed, and range from AAA (highest quality; perceived as least likely to default) down to D (in default). Securities and issuers rated AAA to BBB are considered/perceived to be “investment-grade”; those below BBB are considered/perceived to be non-investment-grade or more speculative.

Credit risk is the inability or perceived inability of the issuers of debt securities to make interest and principal payments will cause the value of those securities to decrease. Changes in the credit ratings of debt securities could have a similar effect.

Credit Risk Transfer Securities (CRTS) are unsecured obligations of the GSEs (Government Sponsored Enterprises). Although cash flows are linked to prepays and defaults of the reference mortgage loans, the securities are unsecured loans, backed by general credit rather than by specified assets.

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CHINA: Central Bank Ceases Bond Buying as Sell-Off in US Treasury Bonds Stokes Wage Inflation and Wall Street Begins Tanking

Posted on January 10, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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China’s 10-year bond yield plunged to a record low this month, while the Chinese currency [yuan] traded in Hong Kong on Wednesday hit its weakest against the U.S. dollar in more than a year.
The People’s Bank of China is “trying to cool down the market by suspending government bond buying,” said Larry Hu, chief China economist at Macquarie.
Cite: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/15/chinas-bond-market-intervention-reveals-financial-stability-worries.html?&doc=108084603

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And, the U.S. economy added a much larger-than-expected total of new hires last month, adding more upward pressure to wage inflation and likely stoking a further selloff in U.S. Treasury bonds.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics said 256,000 new jobs were created last month, well ahead Wall Street’s 164,000 forecast and the down-wardly revised 212,000 reading from November.

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Finally, Wall Street’s major averages are tumbling today as investors digested the hotter than expected jobs report. Early on and the S&P 500 (SP500) was -1.7%, the NASDAQ Composite (COMP:IND) was -2.2%, and the Dow (DJI) was -1.3%.

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SUSTAINABILITY Defined

Posted on January 9, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Sustainability focuses on meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. There are many different approaches to Sustainability, with motives varying from positive societal impact, to wanting to achieve competitive financial results, or both.

Methods of sustainable investing include active share ownership, integration of ESG factors, thematic investing, impact investing and exclusion among others.

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DAILY UPDATE: Today’s Industry Closures as Markets Flatten

Posted on January 9, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

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National Day of Mourning?

Mail: The National Postal Mail Handlers Union has said that the U.S. postal service will pause its operations on Thursday. UPS and FedEX pickup and delivery services are expected to be available, and UPS Store and FedEX office locations will be open too.

Stock market: The NASDAQ is set to close all of its equities and options markets to mark the national day of mourning on Thursday. It’s also set to mark the late president’s death with a moment of silence at 9.20 a.m. E.T. The bond market is set to close at 2 p.m. E.T. following a recommendation from the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association.

Banks: As the national day of mourning isn’t a federal holiday, many businesses, banks, and services will be open. But it’s worth checking local store hours before going out.

US stocks were mixed on Wednesday as investors absorbed a report that President-elect Donald Trump is considering declaring a national economic emergency to pave the way for proposed tariffs. Meanwhile, minutes from the Federal Reserve’s December meeting showed “many” officials supported a gradual pace of interest rate cuts in 2025.

CITE: https://tinyurl.com/2h47urt5

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) closed up more than 0.1% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) added 0.25%, or about 100 points. The tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite (^IXIC) closed just below the flat line.

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury yield (^TNX) hovered at 4.7% ahead of a crucial December jobs report set for release on Friday morning.

Visualize: How private equity tangled banks in a web of debt, from the Financial Times.

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EARNED INCOME: Defined

Posted on January 8, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

Cite: https://www.irs.gov/credits-deductions/individuals/earned-income-tax-credit/earned-income-and-earned-income-tax-credit-eitc-tables

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What Counts as ‘Earned Income’?

The IRS defines earned income as money you get for working, including the following:

Wages
Commissions
Bonuses
Tips
Honorariums for speaking, writing or taking part in a conference or convention
Self-employment income

Income that doesn’t qualify includes:

Taxable pension payments
Interest income
Dividends
Rental income
Alimony
Withdrawals from Roth IRAs or other non-taxable retirement accounts
Annuity income
Welfare benefits
Unemployment compensation
Worker’s compensation payments
Social Security income.

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MONEY Supply in Circulation

Posted on January 4, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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MONEY SUPPLY: The amount of money in circulation. The money supply measures
currently (1985) used by the Federal Reserve System are:

 M 1 – Currency in circulation + demand deposit + other check-type deposits. 35
 M2 – M 1 + savings and small denomination time deposits + overnight repurchase
agreements at commercial banks + overnight Eurodollars + money market mutual
fund shares.
 M3 – M2 + large-denomination time deposits (Jumbo CDs) + term repurchase
agreements.
 M4 – M3 + other liquid assets (such as term Eurodollars, bankers acceptances,
commercial paper, Treasury securities and U.S. Savings Bonds)

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DAILY UPDATE: Dental and Medical Record Data Breaches as Stocks Jump!

Posted on January 4, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

MEDICAL EXECUTIVE-POST – TODAY’S NEWSLETTER BRIEFING

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Nvidia stock (NVDA) led gains among the “Magnificent Seven” tech stocks to start the new year after a group-wide sell-off in the last days of 2024. Shares of the AI chip-maker rose 4.5% Friday after gaining roughly 3% the prior day.

Stat: 18. That’s how many dental data breaches there were in the US in 2024. (Becker’s Dental + DSO Review)

CITE: https://tinyurl.com/2h47urt5

Quote: “If your credit card gets compromised, your bank will alert you, cancel it and send you get a new one. But your medical records have a long lifespan. They can be misused without detection for long periods of time, because it’s harder to identify malicious activity. That makes them very valuable.”—Geetha Thamilarasu, associate professor at the University of Washington Bothell, on why hackers want healthcare information (the Wall Street Journal)

That upswing followed a 4% dip between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve as megacap tech stocks dropped across the board in the absence of a “Santa Claus” rally, where the stock market typically enjoys a surge between December 24th and January 2nd. Tesla (TSLA) stock plunged nearly 13% over that time frame, while Amazon (AMZN) and Microsoft (MSFT) dropped more than 4%. Meanwhile, Meta (META) and Google (GOOG) fell just under 4%, and Apple (AAPL) dropped 3%.

Even with its December decline, Nvidia shares still ended 2024 up more than 150%. Wall Street analysts have remained bullish on the stock, estimating shares will rise to roughly $173 over the next year from their current level of $138, according to Yahoo Finance data.

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IRS: Revenue Agent V. Revenue Officer

Posted on January 3, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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What is a Revenue Agent?

IRS revenue agents are unarmed, civil agency employees that are skilled auditors who typically conduct in-person field audits. These are normally scheduled at the taxpayer’s home, place of business or accountant’s office where the organization’s financial books and records are located.

What is a Revenue Officer?

IRS revenue officers are unarmed civil agency employees whose duties include visiting households and businesses to help taxpayers resolve their account balances. Their job is to collect taxes that are delinquent and have not been paid to the IRS and to secure tax returns that are overdue from taxpayers.

The IRS currently has about 2,300 revenue officers working cases across the country. Revenue officers educate taxpayers on their tax filing and paying obligations and provide guidance and service on a wide range of financial issues to help the taxpayer resolve their tax issues. They also ensure taxpayers are aware of their rights under the law and provide them with quality customer service.

Confirming if it’s the IRS

Revenue officers and revenue agents are unarmed and carry two forms of official credentials with a serial number and their photo. Taxpayers have the right to see each of these credentials and can also request an additional method to verify their identification.

Remember, taxpayers should know they have a tax issue before these visits occur since multiple mailings occur. And, IRS-CI special agents are the only armed IRS personnel and always present their law enforcement credentials when conducting investigations.

Cite: https://www.irs.gov

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OUTCOME: Bias

Posted on January 3, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Outcome bias is judging a decision based on its result rather than the quality of the decision at the time it was made.

It’s like saying a bad poker play was smart because you won the hand. Or, a bad stock picker or financial advisor was good because the price went up!

According to psychologist and colleague Dan Ariely PhD, this bias ignores the process and focuses solely on the outcome. It’s why we celebrate lucky breaks and criticize thoughtful risks that didn’t pan out.

So, the next time you’re evaluating a decision, focus on the reasoning behind it, not just the end result.

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CULTURE: Donation Dependency

Posted on January 2, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Anonymous

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When you keep donating without thinking it through, people can start relying on those donations more than building their own sustainable solutions. It can feel nice to help, but constant aid might discourage local initiatives. You want people to grow and thrive on their own, not just depend on outside help.

This is known as donation dependency.

Sometimes, consistent aid can become a crutch instead of a stepping stone. Communities may stop exploring ways to solve their own problems if help is always coming in from elsewhere. Encouraging self-reliance is crucial in ensuring your help leads to long-term benefits.

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ANTHEM Splits with SCRIPPS Health

Posted on January 2, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Anthem Blue Cross and Scripps Health will part ways impacting thousands of patients.

Scripps Health and Anthem Blue Cross officially just parted ways on January 1st, 2025, leaving about 125,000 patients uncertain of what their healthcare and insurance will look like in 2025.

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K SHAPED: Economy and Recovery

Posted on January 2, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Understanding the K-shaped Economy

According to Olivia Voltaggio, in a V-shaped economy, things go down but then bounce back for everyone. In a K-shaped economy, the overall economy might go down. Only some parts of it recover, while others keep struggling.

In a K-shaped economy, people’s financial situations vary widely. Not everyone faces the same struggles. Lenders and financial institutions need to be flexible with strategy. They need to understand the different challenges their customers are dealing with.

Navigate with caution: The gaps in economic recovery highlight the importance of taking a careful, strategic approach.

How did we end up with a K-shaped recovery in 2024?

Inflation-driven price increases seem to be getting more stable. But, they may not reach the goal set by the government until 2026. This has made things more expensive for regular families.

For example, people with student loan debt had to start paying it back in October 2023. This was after a pandemic-induced grace period. Student loan repayment made budgeting harder. Borrowers might need to spend more on average than expected. For young adults (Gen Z), it could be even more.

Finally, more people are using credit cards because things are getting more expensive. Some are struggling to pay their credit card bills on time.

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DAILY UPDATE: Markets Down Closing Out Year!

Posted on January 1, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

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US stocks slipped Tuesday, closing 2024 with an uncharacteristic down note after a roaring year of trading. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) fell 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) dropped just below the flatline, while the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite (^IXIC) led the losses at 0.9%.

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Despite the sour final stretch, the benchmark S&P 500 closed 2024 up 23%, according to Yahoo Finance data. The tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite gained almost 30%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted a more modest 13% win. The S&P’s annual gain roughly matches 2023’s performance, logging the highest consecutive back-to-back annual gain in nearly 30 years.

https://www.amazon.com/Comprehensive-Financial-Planning-Strategies-Advisors/dp/1482240289/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8u0026amp;qid=1418580820u0026amp;sr=8-1u0026amp;keywords=david+marcinko

Visualize: How private equity tangled banks in a web of debt, from the Financial Times.

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LUCAS Paradox

Posted on December 31, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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The Lucas Paradox occurs when capital is not flowing from developed countries to developing countries despite the fact that developing countries have lower levels of capital per worker, and therefore higher returns to capital.

According to Wikipedia, economic theory predicts that capital should flow from rich countries to poor countries, due to the effect of diminishing returns of capital. Poor countries have lower levels of capital per worker – which explains, in part, why they are poor. In poor countries, the scarcity of capital relative to labor should mean that the returns related to the infusion of capital are higher than in developed countries.

In response, savers in rich countries should look at poor countries as profitable places in which to invest. In reality, things do not seem to work that way. Surprisingly little capital flows from rich countries to poor countries. This puzzle was famously discussed in a paper by Robert Lucas PhD in 1990.

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CHINA: Li Keqiang Index

Posted on December 31, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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The Li Keqiang Index was created in 2010 by The Economist and measure’s China’s economy using three indicators: railway cargo volume, electricity consumption and bank loans.

The index is seen as an alternative to official gross domestic product numbers released by the Chinese government.

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OPEN / CLOSED: Today and Tomorrow?

Posted on December 31, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Is the Stock Market Open or Closed on New Year’s Eve?

Bond markets will close early at 2 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday, while the New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ Stock Market will hold regular hours from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern. Over-the-counter markets, where securities trade over a broker-dealer network rather than a major exchange, will keep normal hours.

Is the Stock Market Open or Closed on New Year’s Day?

Both the U.S. bond and stock markets will be closed in observance of New Year’s Day. Over-the-counter markets will be shut, too.

What About International Markets?

Foreign exchanges, such as the London Stock Exchange, the Euronext Paris, the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong, the Shanghai Stock Exchange, and the Tokyo Stock Exchange, will be closed on Wednesday, January 1st.

Will Banks and Post Offices Be Open?

Federal Reserve banks and United States Post Service locations will be closed in observance of New Year’s Day.

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WALL STREET HONORING: Jimmy Carter!

Posted on December 30, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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The stock market may close next month to honor Former President Jimmy Carter, who died yesterday at his home in Plains, Georgia, at the age of 100.

Carter, the 39th and longest-living U.S. president, was honored with a moment of silence earlier today at the New York Stock Exchange (ICE) and the NASDAQ (NDAQ).

When he is laid to rest in January, Wall Street will likely take a break.

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PHANTOM: Income Tax on TIPS

Posted on December 28, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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“Phantom Tax” or “Phantom Income” for direct owners of Treasury inflation-protected securities (TIPS) TIPS adjust their principal values and interest payments for inflation. As with other directly owned Treasury securities, TIPS principal, including the inflation adjustments, is not paid back to investors until the securities mature.

However, the principal adjustments are taxed by the IRS as income in the year in which they occur, even though no actual payments are made in those years to investors who own TIPS directly. This is why this income is called “phantom income” and the tax on it is known as the “phantom tax.”

Investors can avoid the phantom income/tax issue for TIPS by holding TIPS in tax-deferred retirement accounts. Mutual funds and Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) typically take the “phantom” factor out of TIPS ownership by distributing the principal adjustments as taxable dividends.

As with direct ownership of TIPS, the tax consequences of these distributions by mutual funds and ETFs can be reduced by holding TIPS-owning instruments in tax-deferred retirement accounts

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STOCK MARKET TRAPS: Overbought Bulls and Oversold Bears

Posted on December 27, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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What Is a Bull Trap?

A bull trap, according to James Chen, is a false signal, referring to a declining trend in a stock, index, or other security that reverses after a convincing rally and breaks a prior support level. The move “traps” traders or investors that acted on the buy signal and generates losses on resulting long positions. A bull trap may also refer to a whipsaw pattern. Read: “Bull Trap.”

What is a Bear Trap

The opposite of a bull trap is a bear trap, which occurs when sellers fail to press a decline below a breakdown level.

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PCE: Personal Consumption Expenditures

Posted on December 27, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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PCE or the Personal Consumption Expenditures (“PCE”) price deflator—comes from the Bureau of Economic Analysis’ quarterly report on U.S. gross domestic product—and is based on a survey of businesses and is intended to capture the price changes in all final goods, no matter the purchaser.

Because of its broader scope and certain differences in the methodology used to calculate the PCE price index, the Federal Reserve (“the Fed”) holds the PCE deflator as its preferred, consistent measure of inflation over time.

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DAILY UPDATE: Medicare Tele-Health Out as DJIA Finishes Up a Tad

Posted on December 27, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

MEDICAL EXECUTIVE-POST – TODAY’S NEWSLETTER BRIEFING

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Absent Congressional action, beginning January 1sy, 2025, the statutory limitations that were in place for Medicare telehealth services prior to the COVID-19 PHE will retake effect for most telehealth services.

This means most telehealth visits will not be covered by Medicare in 2025, unless Congress acts by the end of December 2024.

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(Reuters) -The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed fractionally higher on Thursday, stretching its winning streak to five sessions despite light trading volumes and rising U.S. Treasury yields weighing on some of the dominant technology megacaps.

While the NASDAQ Composite and the S&P 500 were broadly unchanged, the indexes both finished slightly in negative territory. This snapped the NASDAQ’s four-session run of higher closes, and ended the S&P 500’s own run at three sessions.

On a day of few catalysts, investors responded to yields on U.S. government bonds inching higher, including the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note hitting its highest since early May at 4.64% earlier in the session. And, a strong auction of seven-year notes early in the afternoon though helped yields come off slightly, with the 10-year note at 4.58% in late-afternoon trade.

Higher yields are traditionally seen as negative for growth stocks, as it raises the cost of their borrowing to fund expansion. With markets increasingly dominated by the megacap technology stocks known as the Magnificent Seven, crimping their performance – especially in lieu of other market catalysts – will put downward pressure on benchmark indexes.

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The S&P 500 slipped 2.45 points, or 0.04%, to 6,037.59 points, while the NASDAQ Composite lost 10.77 points, or 0.05%, to 20,020.36. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 28.77 points, or 0.07%, to 43,325.80.

Six of the megacaps fell, with Tesla leading decliners with a 1.8% fall. The outlier was Apple, rising 0.3% and continuing to edge closer to becoming the first company in the world to hit a market value of $4 trillion.

Visualize: How private equity tangled banks in a web of debt, from the Financial Times.

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CORPORATE EARNINGS: Per Share, Yield and EBDITA

Posted on December 26, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

DEFINITIONS

By Staff Reporters

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Earnings per share (EPS): The portion of a company’s profits allocated to each outstanding share of its common stock. It is as an indicator of a company’s profitability.

Earnings yield: Earnings per share for the most recent 12 months, divided by the current market price per share; it is the inverse of the price to earnings (P/E) ratio.

EBITDA: Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) is an approximate measure of a company’s operating cash flow.

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TRUST: Deferred Sales

Posted on December 26, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

DEFINITION

By Staff Reporters

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A deferred sales trust (DST) is an advanced tax strategy that allows investors to delay capital gains taxes on the sale of assets that have significantly risen in value, such as real estate or businesses. By selling the asset to a trust, the seller can receive payments over time, spreading out tax liabilities and allowing the profits to grow tax-deferred.

For example, a business owner may sell their company to a DST, avoiding a large tax bill upfront and instead receive income over multiple years. However, DSTs can be complex, and there are often fees involved in setting up and maintaining the trust.

Now, let’s point out some of the pros and cons of Deferred Sales Trusts.

One potential positive feature of using an installment sale to defer your capital gains taxes rather than a 1031 exchange is that installment sales don’t come with the same strict guidelines that govern 1031 exchanges. In particular, in light of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, 1031 exchanges are restricted to real property, whereas Deferred Sales Trusts and other installment sale arrangements can be used to defer capital gains for any kind of asset.

Conversely, the IRS has provided little to no guidance on how to defer taxes using an installment sale.

The basic rationale behind why you don’t receive capital gain is that you are not profiting immediately from the sale made with a Deferred Sales Trust. Given this rationale, there are various constraints on how a Deferred Sales Trust must be organized so that no capital gains taxes are in fact realized.

The third party to whom you transfer your asset generally cannot be a “related person” to you, such as a family member or a corporation in which you hold an interest. Except in special circumstances, if you attempt to set up a Deferred Sales Trust with a related person it will be viewed as a “sham trust” made just for the purposes of avoiding capital gains taxes, and will not be protected by the provisions in Section 453.
As with the 1031 exchange, you, the seller, cannot at any point in the transfer of your asset be in constructive receipt of the proceeds from the third party’s sale of that asset. To successfully defer capital gains taxes, either the third party or the trust of which they are trustee must be the only party which receives cash in the sale of the transferred asset. This includes receipt of a bond which is payable on demand.

This has been a general, informal introduction to Deferred Sales Trusts. As always, before attempting to carry out any important financial decision, investors should consult with a qualified tax or legal advisor regarding the specifics of their situation.

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HFR INVESTMENTS: Two Credit Indices

Posted on December 25, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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HFRI Fund of Funds Composite Index invests with multiple managers through funds or managed accounts. The strategy designs a diversified portfolio of managers with the objective of significantly lowering the risk (volatility) of investing with an individual manager. The Fund of Funds manager may allocate funds to numerous managers within a single strategy, or with numerous managers in multiple strategies. The investor has the advantage of diversification among managers and styles with significantly less capital than investing with separate managers. The HFRI Fund of Funds Index is not included in the HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index.

HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index is a global, equal-weighted index of over 2,000 single-manager funds that report to HFR Database. Constituent funds report monthly net of all fees performance in U.S. Dollar and have a minimum of $50 Million under management or a twelve (12) month track record of active performance. The HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index does not include Funds of Hedge Funds.

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SECTOR ALLOCATION: Mutual Funds

Posted on December 25, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Sector allocation in an equity or fixed-income context refers to a portfolio managers’ decision to invest in a particular broad market sector or industry.

A sector allocation or breakdown can help an investor observe the investment allocations of a mutual or other fund. Fund companies regularly provide sector reporting in their marketing materials. Sector investing can influence investments in the fund. A fund may target a specific sector such as technology, or seek to diversify among many sectors.

Some funds may have restraints on sector investments. This may occur with environmental, social, and governance (ESG) focused funds. These funds seek to exclude industries or companies that their investors consider undesirable for various reasons such as tobacco producers or oil exploration companies.

The ultimate sector allocation decision is likely to combine macroeconomic views with judgments about inter-sector and intra-sector relative values, among other reasons.

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NOMINAL YIELD: Calculation

Posted on December 24, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

DEFINED

By Staff Reporters

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Nominal yield, for most bonds and other fixed-income securities, is simply the yield you see listed online or in newspapers. Most nominal fixed-income yields include some extra yield, an “inflation premium,” that is typically priced/added into the yields to help offset the effects of inflation.

Real yields, such as those for TIPS, don’t have the inflation premium. As a result, nominal yields are typically higher than TIPS yields and other real yields.

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MAASTRICHT Treaty

Posted on December 24, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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The Maastricht Treaty, signed February 7th, 1992, in Maastricht, the Netherlands, created the European Union (EU) and led to the creation of the euro(€); the single currency adopted by most EU member states.

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CHRISTMAS EVE GIFTS: Keeping Up with the Jones

Posted on December 24, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Feeling the Pressure to “Give”

By Rick Kahler MS CFP®

Are you feeling any pressure this Christmas season to give, give, give? Keeping up with the Joneses all year is hard enough. It gets even worse during the holidays, when we feel pressured to keep up, not just with the Joneses, but also with the expectations others, and ourselves, put on Santa Claus.

Some Christmas shoppers overspend on gifts and end up paying off credit card bills for months. Others drive themselves crazy trying to find exactly the right gifts for the right people. Others hate the whole idea of shopping so much that they find it hard to enjoy the season.

If you fit into any of these categories, the cause may be your money scripts. The unconscious beliefs about money that we all hold are especially likely to kick in this time of year. We are surrounded by expectations and pressures about “ideal” holiday celebrations with the perfect gifts, the perfect decorations, and the perfect foods. As a result, we are especially vulnerable to making money decisions blindly in response to beliefs we don’t even realize we hold.

You may be one of those who regularly end up spending significantly more on gifts than you intended to. You may impulsively buy additional, unbudgeted gifts for people you’ve already bought presents for. You may not even try to set holiday spending limits. You may overspend on things for yourself while you’re Christmas shopping.

If any of these are true for you, you may have some unconscious beliefs about money that drive you to overspend. See whether any of the following money scripts might fit for you:
“The more you spend, the more love you show.”
“It takes the joy out of giving if you pinch pennies.”
“It’s the season for giving lavishly, not for being a Scrooge.”
“If I don’t buy just the right gifts, people won’t like or respect me.”
“I need to give my kids more than I got when I was a child.”
“More gifts and more spending will make the holidays okay (and make my guilt go away).”
“It’s tradition. Everyone expects (whatever) from me.”
“I do so much for everyone else; I deserve something for myself, too.”

It’s also possible you may go to the opposite extreme and be a Grinch when it comes to the holidays. If you hate Christmas shopping, grumble about the holiday being so commercialized, and look forward to January, it’s possible you may hold some money scripts that drive you to underspend. Your beliefs may be similar to the following:

“It’s wrong to spend money except on necessities.”
“You aren’t a spiritual or religious person if you spend too much money.”
“Christmas shouldn’t be about money.”
“It’s wrong to spend money on luxuries when poor people are suffering.”
“It isn’t good for kids to get too much.”
“My kids shouldn’t have more than I had when I was a child.”

Christmas Wreath

If you’d like to change some aspects of what you do and how you feel about holiday spending, you may find it useful to take a closer look at your own beliefs about the season. One way to begin this is to quickly write answers (short statements are best) to the following questions: What do I believe about money and each of the following? Christmas? Family celebrations? Presents? Giving? Spending? Receiving?

Assessment

You may uncover some money scripts similar to the ones listed above. Learning why you tend to overspend or under spend this time of year won’t instantly change what you do. Yet understanding what is behind your pattern of holiday spending is an important way to start becoming a more conscious Christmas shopper.

Conclusion

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EUROPEAN UNION Paradox

Posted on December 22, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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The European Union Paradox is the perceived failure of European countries to translate scientific advances into marketable innovations.

The root of this issue remains debated: is it due to the scientific output being distant from the cutting-edge, or is it because the European innovation system lacks the capacity to harness the potential of groundbreaking research?

And so, this study reveals that, compared to similar European research, the European Research Council has a similar probability of being cited in patents, although it garners a larger number of patent citations. Moreover, patents that do draw upon ERC research are often of superior quality, measured by forward citations.

Compared to similar European research, inventive activities arising from ERC science are predominantly housed within universities and public research organizations. In absolute terms, however, US organizations, especially US companies, still lead in deriving the greatest benefit from ERC science.

Cite: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4635463

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PRIMARY MARKETS: Exchange Traded Funds

Posted on December 22, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

BY: http://www.MarcinkoAssociates.com

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Primary Market: The primary market is also part of the stock market but differs from the secondary market because it only sells newly issued stocks.

Primary Market for Exchange Traded Funds: The primary market is where ETF shares are created and redeemed amongst ETF issuers and authorized participants. This is where the underlying basket of securities that make up an ETF is created. Shares of ETFs are made in large batches called Creation Units—usually 25,000 to 600,000 ETF shares are created at a time through this process.

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STOCK INDEX: Hang Seng

Posted on December 21, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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The Hang Seng Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization-weighted stock market index and the main indicator of overall market performance in Hong Kong. It launched in 1969.

The Hang Seng Index (HSI) tracks and records daily changes in the largest companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and serves as the primary indicator of overall market performance in Hong Kong. Its’ 82 constituent companies represent about 58% of the capitalization of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

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FREDDIE MAC: (FHLMC-Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation)

Posted on December 20, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Freddie Mac (FHLMC-Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation)

Freddie Mac is a GSE [government-sponsored enterprise] established by Congress. It’s similar to Fannie Mae with a publicly owned corporate structure. (Freddie Mac’s stock (FRE) trades on the New York Stock Exchange.) These two giant GSEs increase liquidity in the U.S. mortgage market by purchasing mortgages from lenders, then typically repackaging (securitizing) the debt and reselling it to investors, helping to create a “secondary” market for mortgages.

The GSEs’ main purpose is to assure that mortgage money is available for borrowers. But they don’t lend money directly. Instead, they purchase mortgages from “primary” lenders like mortgage companies, banks, and credit unions. That allows the primary lenders to replenish their funds and lend more money to home buyers. The GSEs finance their mortgage purchases by issuing mortgage-backed securities (MBS) and other debt instruments (often referred to as agency debt, even though, technically, the GSEs aren’t government agencies). GSE debt is considered to have relatively high credit quality based on its implicit government backing, reinforced by what happened during the Financial Crisis in 2008.

Since Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were placed into government conservatorship in September 2008, the government has pledged to support any shortfall in the balance sheets of the two GSEs. The U.S. Treasury has said it will ensure that both GSEs can maintain a positive net worth and fulfill all of their financial obligations. This statement of support lends credence to the very high credit ratings of MBS and other debt issued by Fannie and Freddie.

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BONDS: Revenue

Posted on December 20, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

DEFINITION

By Staff Reporters

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Revenue bonds are one of the biggest sectors in the municipal debt market.

Unlike a general obligation (GO) bond, revenue bonds are not backed by a municipal issuer’s taxing authority. Instead, interest and principal are secured by the net revenues (tolls, fees, or other charges tied to usage) from the project or facility being financed.

Revenue bonds are issued to finance a variety of capital projects, including construction or refurbishment of utility and waste disposal systems, highways, bridges, tunnels, air and seaport facilities, schools and hospitals.

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AUSTERITY: Financial Measures

Posted on December 19, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

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Austerity Financial Measures describe official actions (typically taken under duress) by financially challenged governments (those that are under the threat of otherwise not being able to meet all of their obligations to debt holders and other creditors) to reduce the amount of money they spend, freeing more of it for paying off liabilities.

Austerity measures commonly involve deficit cutting, reduced spending, and cuts in government benefits and services provided. They are considered a “necessary evil,” along with revenue-raising measures, for bringing government budgets back into financial balance.

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FOMC: Cuts Interest Rates

Posted on December 18, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

BREAKING NEWS!

By Staff Reporters

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The Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point just now, delivering relief for borrowers at the central bank’s last meeting before President-elect Donald Trump takes office next month. The central bank predicted fewer rate cuts next year than it had previously indicated, however, suggesting concern that inflation may prove more difficult to bring under control than policymakers thought just a few months ago.

The move marked the third consecutive interest rate cut since the Fed opted to start dialing back its fight against inflation in the fall. The FOMC has lowered interest rates by a percentage point in recent months.

However, the Fed’s forecast said it anticipates only a half a percentage point of rate cuts next year and another half-percent cut in 2026.

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DAILY UPDATE: PBMs and Healthcare A.I. as All Major Market Indexes Drop

Posted on December 18, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

MEDICAL EXECUTIVE-POST – TODAY’S NEWSLETTER BRIEFING

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Essays, Opinions and Curated News in Health Economics, Investing, Business, Management and Financial Planning for Physician Entrepreneurs and their Savvy Advisors and Consultants

“Serving Almost One Million Doctors, Financial Advisors and Medical Management Consultants Daily“

A Partner of the Institute of Medical Business Advisors , Inc.

SPONSORED BY: Marcinko & Associates, Inc.

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Daily Update Provided By Staff Reporters Since 2007.
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Stat: 97%. That’s how many healthcare leaders think A.I. will become important in healthcare over the next five years.

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Pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) are once again under pressure from federal leaders. A group of Democratic and Republican congresspeople proposed legislation that would attempt to prevent pharmacies from also owning PBMs. The three largest PBMs—CVS Health’s Caremark, Cigna’s Express Scripts, and UnitedHealth Group’s Optum Rx—currently operate pharmacies and administer more than 80% of the prescriptions in the US, and officials have linked this practice to drug price increases.

CITE: https://tinyurl.com/2h47urt5

US stocks fell across the board on Tuesday, with the Dow logging its biggest losing streak in 46 years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) finished the session down roughly 0.6%, registering its ninth straight day of losses. The last 9-day losing streak for the Dow was Feb. 1978. Prior to that, the index suffered an 11-day losing streak in 1974 and another in 1971.

The other major indexes dropped in tandem on Tuesday, with the benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) falling around 0.4% and the NASDAQ Composite (^IXIC) losing about 0.3% after the tech-heavy index closed at a record high on Monday.

Visualize: How private equity tangled banks in a web of debt, from the Financial Times.

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BBD: The Buy-Borrow-Die Tax Strategy for Physicians

Posted on December 17, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

DR. DAVID EDWARD MARCINKO MBA MEd

By Staff Reporters

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Here’s how the Buy, Borrow, Die strategy works step-by-step:

Step 1. Buy Assets

This step, broadly known as the accumulation phase, is about acquiring or creating valuable assets. It’s the most critical step taken by wealthy individuals to secure their wealth. Billionaires, for instance, often created startups that eventually turned into massive corporations. The asset here is the company they’ve established.

However, this isn’t the only way to accumulate assets. For professionals like doctors and lawyers, this phase involves securing a high-paying job and buying assets that have the potential to appreciate over time—like stocks, real estate, and private capital. Once an individual reaches a substantial level of wealth, they can leverage these assets in interesting ways using the next step of this strategy.

Step 2. Borrow Against Your Assets

This where the assets you’ve acquired are used as collateral to borrow money—all without triggering a taxable event.

Suppose you’ve got a robust stock portfolio. You can then take out a Securities Backed Line of Credit (SBLOC). This kind of loan lets you tap into the value of your portfolio without having to sell off any assets and subsequently paying capital gains taxes. What makes SBLOCs attractive to lenders is the relative ease with which the securities can be seized and sold, making them a low-risk lending option.

The ceiling for such a loan is usually around 50% of your portfolio’s value. However, we often caution against borrowing more than 25% of your account balance, especially for long-term loans. This will provide a cushion against stock market volatility, much like what we experienced in 2022 and 2023.

Borrowing against assets isn’t limited to stock portfolios either. Let’s say you own a home and have built up a certain amount of equity in it. You could opt for a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC), using your home as collateral. Banks tend to favor real estate-backed loans due to their stability compared to the fluctuating value of stocks.

Step 3. Die and Pass Your Wealth On

The final step in the strategy is where the proverbial tax baton is handed off to the next generation.

Under the existing tax code, when you pass away, your heirs receive a “stepped-up basis” on the assets they inherit from you. This means that their cost basis—the original amount paid for an asset—is stepped up to the market value of the asset at the time of your death. Meaning once you have passed away, your heirs would be able to sell the assets without having to pay taxes on the capital gain. Imagine you had purchased a building 20 years ago for $1 million and over the years, the value of that building increased to $2.5 million. If you were to pass away at this point, your heirs would inherit the building with the stepped-up cost basis of $2.5 million. This implies that if they decide to sell the property at this valuation, they wouldn’t owe any capital gains tax. This is because for tax purposes, their gain is calculated from the $2.5 million, not the original $1 million.

By utilizing this loophole, families can pass on their wealth without incurring a hefty tax bill. This is why many wealthy families set up trusts – it’s a way to manage and pass on their wealth at a stepped-up cost basis.

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ACTIVE: Transparent Exchange Traded Funds

Posted on December 17, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

DEFINITION

By Staff Reporters

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Active transparent ETFs: Daily disclosure of portfolio holdings is an attribute of traditional index-based Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).

Active transparent exchange traded funds are actively managed by a portfolio manager or team of managers. As with index-based ETFs, their portfolio holdings are disclosed daily.

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EXPECTED: Breakeven Inflation Rate

Posted on December 16, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Measure of Expected Inflation

By Staff Reporters

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The breakeven inflation rate is the difference between the nominal yield (usually the market yield, which includes an inflation premium) on a fixed-income investment and the real yield (with no inflation premium) on an inflation-linked investment of similar maturity and credit quality.

So, if inflation averages more than the breakeven rate, the inflation-linked investment will outperform the investment with the nominal yield.

Conversely, if inflation averages below the breakeven rate, the investment with the nominal yield will outperform the inflation-linked investment.

Breakeven inflation rates are also considered useful measures of inflation expectations—higher breakeven rates represent higher inflation expectations (and higher relative prices for inflation-linked investments), while lower breakeven rates represent lower inflation expectations (and lower relative prices for inflation-linked investments).

Therefore, ideally, investors want to purchase inflation-linked investments when breakeven rates are relatively low because that’s typically when prices are also relatively low.

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COMMODITIES: Futures and Intensity Types

Posted on December 16, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

By Staff Reporters

DEFINITIONS

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Commodities: Commodities are raw materials or primary agricultural products that can be bought or sold on an exchange or market. Examples include grains such as corn, foods such as coffee, and metals such as copper.

Commodity Futures: Agreements to buy or sell a specific amount of a commodity or financial instrument at a particular price on a stipulated future date related to basic raw materials such as precious metals and natural resources.

Commodity Intensity: Commodity intensity refers to commodity usage per unit of economic growth. An emerging, more manufacturing-based economy will usually be more commodity intensive in terms of its growth than will a more developed, service-oriented economy.

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FINANCIAL: Rule of 20 Defined

Posted on December 15, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

A Dimensionless Number

By Staff Reporters