Investing with Insight
At Appleton, we value active engagement and interaction with financial advisors and clients. Investing with insight helps us meet client objectives. And by sharing our economic and market perspectives, we foster deeper relationships. Here’s what we’re talking about this month.
Categories
Appleton Market Minute – September 2026
A series of short discussions aimed at sharing insight and perspectives concerning the municipal and taxable fixed income markets. In this episode we take a closer look at the municipal bond market, current yield levels, and potential opportunities for investors navigating today’s landscape.
Review and Outlook
"September’s month-end spike in Treasury yields was certainly dramatic and is covered in length elsewhere in this update. The longer-term setup for the move deserves attention, however..."
"August was bookended by two very different jobs reports that ultimately did little to change the prevailing “low-fire, low-hire” narrative. July’s labor report was bad, with a net loss of 23k jobs falling well short of expectations for a gain of +82k, coupled with significant downwards revisions..."
"The past month brought a suite of positive inflation releases. Inflation was expected to have improved in the month of June, and releases met or exceeded expectations. Falling energy prices during what proved to be a temporary lull in Iran hostilities were the main driver, but there were some interesting details as well; in particular, CPI inflation saw an unexpected drop in rental costs, and wireless phone services were one of the larger detractors..."
Economic and Market Commentary
"Headline inflation came in a tenth better than expected at +0.2% with core in line at +0.3%. Annualized inflation rates in turn fell to +2.4% and +2.5%, respectively. The market seized on this report as further progress in the “last mile” fight against inflation; longer rates fell modestly, and the futures market began pricing in about a 50-50 possibility of a third Fed Funds Rate cut before year-end..."
Quarterly Perspectives
Q3
"The Greek physician Hippocrates is eternally associated with the directive that physicians must seek to heal or at least do no harm. In a very different context, as wealth managers, we strive to help clients achieve their long-term financial goals, the pursuit of which is facilitated by avoiding self-harm..."
Q2
"Human nature often drives us to project forward what has most recently occurred, a phenomenon known as recency bias. Placing too much emphasis on the immediate past can distort our perception of the future. Behavioral finance tendencies of this nature are pervasive, and the last several years offer a good example..."
Q4
"Psychological barriers often present financial planning challenges and managing one’s emotions can be a key ingredient in achieving long-term success. This dynamic typically considers factors such as accepting risk as an inherent element of return and in finding a balance that makes your personal asset allocation strategy effective..."
Muni Credit Conditions and Higher Rate Environment