Market MakeHer Podcast

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About Us 🌚🌞

Market MakeHer is an investing education podcast taught by a 15-year finance expert to her friend who is a beginner investor. Our mission is to demystify the stock market and make financial literacy accessible to all self-directed investors! We believe that investing is for everyone and that's why we break down complex investing topics (from "Her" perspective), show you free tools/resources on our podcast, and offer a ton of free educational content on our ⁠website⁠!

Important Disclosures:

Market MakeHer podcast is unsponsored at the time of recording.

Tools and resources mentioned are for informational and educational purposes only. Remember, investing involves risk, and there's always a potential for losses when investing in securities.

Market MakeHer LLC provides educational content and resources, but we are not registered financial advisors and do not provide personalized investment advice. Consult with a licensed financial advisor before making any investment decisions.

36. Refresher: We are Paying Attention to Bonds Again May 17, 2024

Show notes

The bond market has always been relevant, but it hasn't mattered as much since the Great Financial Crisis (GFC) - that's when the housing market collapsed in 2008. When we have a financial crisis, there is a fiscal policy response and monetary policy response to stimulate the economy. Right now we are in restrictive fed territory, they have raised rates to levels not seen since the GFC. Now the big market question is: when will they lower rates? If they do it too soon, it will reignite inflation, too late, it will tip us into a recession. The Fed's action affect the front end of the curve... when they lower and raise rates. WHICH AFFECTS YOU. (and that HYSA). You need to understand the yield curve and what de-inversion would mean.

Is The Fed going to tip us into a recession? What does that even mean? We've been seeing your questions around this and more after our recent episodes on the FOMC meetings.

Let's revisit how the yield curve works so we can all understand how the stock market and bond market is affected by The Fed's actions and what an inverted yield curve means for your money.

*This episode was recorded back in November 2023, so some things mentioned are related to that month, but overall still relevant to what's happening now.*

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https://www.bls.gov/ooh/fastest-growing.htm

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Important Disclosures:

Market MakeHer podcast is unsponsored at the time of recording. Tools and resources mentioned are for informational and educational purposes only. Remember, investing involves risk, and there's always a potential for losses when investing in securities.

35. What Is CPI, PPI & PCE Price Index (Indices) in Fed Speak - Decoded May 10, 2024

Show notes

Come with us as we leap through the gallows and levitate down WallStreet. 🔮 Today we're discussing the most recent FOMC Press Conference led by the Hawkish Fed Chairman, Jerome Powell, and what it all means when he talks about the CPI & PCE Price Index. There's also a quick SMU (stock market update).

New Vocabulary Word: Tapering

Tapering is a monetary policy used by the Federal Reserve to phase out or reduce the number of assets purchased each month. Listen for more info.

Inflation Is Still Too High, When Are Interest Rates Getting Cut?

Remember in Episode 30 when we talked about how The Fed is projecting to cut rates 3 times this year (and how that's good for getting loans and lower CC interest rates, but bad for our HYSA)? Well now the Federal Reserve is not confident enough in the data to cut those interest rates just yet. They're being left at 5.25-5.5% (for the banks, but then we will still be seeing higher loan rates).

The Fed's Dual Mandate

Papa Powell stated that maximum employment and stable inflation at 2% is still the objective.

So what is inflation at right now?

CPI 3.5% YoY (reported in April, for March) Core is at 3.8% https://www.bls.gov/charts/consumer-price-index/consumer-price-index-by-category-line-chart.htm
PPI 2.8% YoY (reported in April, for March) Core is at 2.1%
https://www.bls.gov/charts/producer-price-index/final-demand-12-month-percent-change.htm

PCE 2.7% YoY (reported in April, for March) Next release May 31st Core is at 2.8% YoY https://www.bea.gov/news/2024/personal-income-and-outlays-march-2024

Low Unemployment Rates & Labor Demands

The Fed also said unemployment rates are low and there are labor demands, but in which industries? We know a lot of people struggling to find jobs in marketing and tech right now, so which industries have labor demand? Here are 2 tools to help you find out:

https://www.bls.gov/ooh/most-new-jobs.htm

What is PPI and CPI in Fed Speak?

In Episode 15 we explained PPI & CPI:

PPI: producer price index = is the perspective of the seller

CPI: consumer price index = is the perspective of the buyer

Methodology and definition: https://www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cpi/data.htm
Latest report: https://www.bls.gov/charts/consumer-price-index/consumer-price-index-by-category.htm#

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About Us 🌚🌞

Important Disclosures:

Market MakeHer podcast is unsponsored at the time of recording.

Tools and resources mentioned are for informational and educational purposes only. Remember, investing involves risk, and there's always a potential for losses when investing in securities.

34. Investing Jargon, Demystified 🔮✨ The Top 20 Terms You Need to Know - In Order Apr 26, 2024

Show notes

There's a loooot of jargon in the financial world. And it can seem overwhelming or like it's a language that was intentionally made to keep you in the dark, but Jess has been shining light on all this lingo since the beginning, and we've realized the jargon is actually pretty easy to grasp once it's explained to you in a logical, compounding way.

Compounding Knowledge 🧠✨

Just like your money compounds with interest, your investing knowledge compounds by starting off with the basic terms and building upon them. We'll take you through about 20 terms today (and we'll probably make a cute worksheet for you as well).

It's In The Name!

It's true, most of these jargony terms are self-explanatory and the answer is literally "in the name" for a lot of them.

We start with the basic stock market terms you need to know and build upon them. You gotta know what capital is before you understand market cap, capital appreciation and capital gain, for example. ;)

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Important Disclosures:

33. Current State of the Stock Market + Q&A (Pt. 2) Apr 19, 2024

Show notes

Questions on questions: Y'all submitted sooo many questions we had to make this Q&A a two-parter.

Be sure to follow us and subscribe to our email newsletter (all links at the bottom) to keep up with all the stock market happenings!

But First, A Quick SMU!

We also get a quick Stock Market Update from Jess Inskip. This investing rollercoaster we're on has been a bit of a dooziie this past week - what's happening? Remember, we're buckled in for the ups and downs! You know Jess is going to tell us in Swiftie speak every chance she gets...

AI: I can still make the whole place shimmer

The Dollar: I'm on my vigilante sh*t again

Oil: I'll be the actress staring in your bad dreams

The Fed: It's a cruel summer

Answering Your Questions:

Dalia asked a question from our What are mutual funds and ETFs? (Episode 04): Can you talk more about those fees behind index funds? Also, I’m wondering where exactly the money that a fund returns comes from. Is it an interest, companies’ profits or something else?
@maljones asked a question from What Are Preferred Stocks (Ep. 07): Are preferred stocks also called options? Are they the same thing or different concepts?
Jane Smith Carson asked: Other 'educators' talk crap about picking stocks, your advice makes me feel more confident to diversify my own portfolio. ETF. Re: step 1, what are some other fin-ed resources and podcasts you like? Check out: Napkin Finance by Tina Hay (book); Mad Money Podcast by Jim Cramer (first 10 minutes is stock market updates for self-directed investors); BOA global research (dry podcast but informative); Compound and Friends (podcast); Money with Katie (podcast); Fresh Invest (podcast); The Bid (BlackRock podcast produced by our friend @iamsteviemanns); the Fred website for economic data.
@Yankees asked: I see so many posts about less and less people buying homes why are prices still going up?
Carrie Nicholson asked: My son will be entering the work force soon. How can I set him up for financial success?
Anonymous: Dividend Stocks – what are they, how do they work?

-----------------------

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About Us

Important Disclosures:

Market MakeHer podcast is unsponsored at the time of recording.

Tools and resources mentioned are for informational and educational purposes only. Remember, investing involves risk, and there's always a potential for losses when investing in securities.

32. Q&A: Answering All YOUR Questions (keep 'em coming) Apr 12, 2024

Show notes

We're back, we had to take a week off because, if you didn't know, Jess is the sun and Jessie is the moon - we had to eclipse. 🌚🌞

First, a quick market update for April 11, 2024 about CPI and PPI!

Then we get to allllll your questions, yes, even questions from our very early episodes (told ya we'd get to them eventually 😅).

Questions we answer in this episode:

@lukodaian asked - can you please explain Dow [indice] points, S&P 500 points, and how they are calculated? what does it really mean?
@beyza asked a question from our last Episode (31) on CD Ladders - When you say the rates are annual, looking at 5.35% for 3 month period, does that mean i will be getting 5.35% at the end of that period or will it actually be less?
@tinaremlinger asked - I would like to know how I go about gifting stocks or buying stocks for my children.
Jane Smith Carson asked about Portfolio diversification! Should I diversify by sector? How do I add bonds in my brokerage account? Are Bond ETFs a good idea? Also she asked Jess what her favorite Taylor Swift song and album is 🙃
Mags asked - I’ve seen discourse about how BlackRock, Vanguard, State Street, etc. have too much market share! I would love to hear thoughts. And the best ways for young adults to build wealth, should we use AI investors, and is Social Security dead?

We help educate you on how the stock market works, so that you can make informed decisions on what to do with your money. Keep the questions coming! 💙💜

-----------------------------------------------

Still Have More Questions or a Comment?

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Join the Money Coven⁠ ⁠⁠FB Community⁠⁠⁠

👀 Watch us in action on our⁠ ⁠⁠YouTube Channel⁠⁠⁠ 👀

About UsMarket MakeHer is an investing education podcast taught by a 15-year finance expert to her friend who is a beginner investor. Our mission is to demystify the stock market and make financial literacy accessible to all self-directed investors! We believe that investing is for everyone and that's why we break down complex investing topics (from "Her" perspective), show you free tools/resources on our podcast, and offer a ton of free educational content on our ⁠website⁠!

Important Disclosures:

Market MakeHer podcast is unsponsored at the time of recording.

Tools and resources mentioned are for informational and educational purposes only. Remember, investing involves risk, and there's always a potential for losses when investing in securities.

31. Edu-action: How To Build a Brokerage CD Ladder Mar 29, 2024

Show notes

In the last episode (Ep. 30) of the Market MakeHer Podcast, we discussed how “The Fed” projects to cut interest rates 3 times by end of year. Hopefully, this means lower inflation, but it also means lower interest rates on your High Yield Savings Accounts as well.

Where can we stash our cash with higher interest rates for longer? Brokerage CDs!

One option is Brokerage CDs (certificate of deposit). This option is good especially if you have a very low risk tolerance and want to do something more than a HYSA that is a tad bit higher on the risk pyramid (Ep. 29), but still low-risk overall and locks in these higher yields we're currently seeing for a little bit longer.

We’ll teach you how to potentially lock in higher interest rates on your cash for longer with a Brokerage CD. You’ll also learn how to build a CD ladder! Watch the video on Spotify or our YouTube channel for visual how-tos. Otherwise, we’ll guide you through it with our words. 🎧🌚🌞

What is a regular CD?

CD = Certificate of Deposit (you normally see these at your bank or credit union where they offer you a decent interest rate on locking up a certain amount of cash with them for a certain amount of time, but did you know your brokerage firm can show you way more Bank CD options throughout the world and their current yields? Why only look at what your bank offers when you can see what 100s of banks are offering all at once!)

🔮 Takeaways:

CD laddering is a low-risk strategy for parking cash and locking in higher interest rates.
Brokerage CDs offer the advantage of a higher interest rate negotiated by the brokerage firm.
Building a CD ladder involves structuring investments in different timeframes to ensure regular cash flow.
Reinvesting and auto roll options allow for continuous investment and higher interest rates.
Understanding the difference between T-bills, T-bonds, T-notes, and CDs is important for making informed investment decisions.
Remember to keep your emergency fund separate - you don't want to lock up emergency money in a cage (or you can and just pay a penalty fee to get it out).

👩🏼‍🏫👩🏻‍🏫Edu-Action™

We’re starting our “edu-action series" where we show you exactly how-to do these different self-directed investing methods for yourself. Remember, even if you’re self-directed, you can ALWAYS call up your brokerage firm to have them help walk you through doing any of things for FREE. And investing is personal, so we’re not giving you advice, duh. We aim to empower you with tons of knowledge to help you come to the best strategy for your personal financial needs. 😉

Still Have More Questions or a Comment? 🙋🏾‍♀️🙋🏻🙋🏼‍♀️🙋🏽‍♂️🙋

Holla @ us on:

Subscribe to our newsletter

Join the Money Coven⁠ ⁠⁠FB Community⁠⁠⁠

👀 Watch us in action on our⁠ ⁠⁠YouTube Channel⁠⁠⁠ 👀

About Us

Market MakeHer is an investing education podcast and LLC with a mission to demystify the stock market and make financial literacy accessible to all self-directed investors! We believe that investing is for everyone and that's why we break down complex investing topics (from "Her" perspective), show you free tools/resources on our podcast, and offer a ton of free educational content on our ⁠website⁠!

Important Disclosures:

Market MakeHer podcast is unsponsored at the time of recording.

Tools and resources mentioned are for informational and educational purposes only. Remember, investing involves risk, and there's always a potential for losses when investing in securities.

30. FOMC Meeting, Interest Rate Cuts & Inflation (aka Jess Watched The Fed Press Conference So You Don't Have To) Mar 22, 2024

Show notes

The FOMC (aka "The Fed" aka The Federal Reserve) had a press conference on March 20, 2024 where they talked about federal reserve rates remaining unchanged, but there's 3 projected interest rate cuts by end of year.

What does this mean for our High Yield Savings Accounts interest rates, mortgages, credit cards, loans, and the economy?

What's going on with unemployment and inflation?

What are balance sheets and what is this balancing act that The Fed is responsible for?

Is good news good news? Or is good news bad news? Or is bad news good news? (i.e. is a spike in unemployment good news? this and other thoughtful words from Jess ✨)

🎧 In the last episode, we talked about the balancing act the FOMC has to do between maximum employment and price stability. Basically, making sure prices are stable (interest rates on housing

🔮 We first mentioned The Fed back in Episode 6 when we discussed who they are, what they do, and why do we care. But we're still giving you a refresher today. And we've definitely mentioned them a few more times since then along with the things referenced in these episodes:

Ep. 13 The Business Cycle and Recessions

Ep. 15 Inflation Explained

Ep. 18 The Yield Curve

🌞 Jessica Inskip's Takeaways

Listen at the end for all of Jess' amazing takeaways of the FOMC meeting! Check out her TikTok for her Powell-Points

🧠 Terms/Jargon/Things To Remember

✨⁠FOMC⁠ = Federal Open Market Committee (not a government branch), responsible for managing the U.S. monetary policy, which you can read about in that FOMC link.

✨Fed Chairman = Jerome Powell (who we like to call "Papa Powell"

✨Dot Plot = thoughts about what's going to happen on a dot plot chart, but you know what's better? This FedWatch CME Tool that shows you probabilities of when interest rates might down (this chart can change at any time). We'll do a TT/Reel on how to read this and it will be in our email.

The Fed's Toolkit:

✨Interest Rate Policy

Definition: Adjusting the federal funds rate to influence economic activity.

Impact on borrowing, spending, and inflation.

✨Forward Guidance (Word of Mouth)

Definition: Communication strategy about the future path of monetary policy.
Its role in shaping expectations and market reactions with words (Swifties could probably de-code Fed speak like pros)

✨Quantitative Tightening (QT) and Quantitative Easing (QE) - This Is Where The "Balance Sheet" Comes In

QE Definition: Buying securities to inject money into the economy.
QT Definition: Selling securities or letting them mature without reinvestment to remove money from the economy.

🔮Still Have More Questions or a Comment?

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🤓Important Disclosures:

29. Investment Risk Tolerance, HYSA Interest Rates and Fed Balancing Act Mar 15, 2024

Show notes

What's your investment risk tolerance? (check out the risk pyramid below)

How are you diversifying your investments in your portfolio? Are the interest rates on our high yield savings account coming down?

What should we do with our cash to make sure it's out-pacing inflation?

Figure Out Your Risk Tolerance

There are lots of quizzes you can do at your brokerage firm or even government sites that help you figure out your risk tolerance for your personal situation.

The higher the risk the higher the reward, BUT, remember that also means there's a higher risk to lose your money. Diversifying is key. 😉

Risk Pyramid

High Risk - On Top

Medium Risk - Middle

Low Risk - On the Bottom

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High Risk Investments = Alternative Assets (Options, Futures, and Crypto is the most risky thing you can do with your money)

Medium Risk Investments = Fixed Income (government debt, corporate debt, real estate, blue chip stocks, growth stocks, etc.)

Low Risk Investments = Cash, Cash Equivalents (T-Notes, HYSA, Bonds, Money Markets, etc.) and you can get ETFs or Mutual Funds that have bonds and low-risk securities in them.

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The Fed Balancing Act

Peak of inflation was 9.1% and now we're at 3.2% inflation rate. The Fed's target is always 2% YOY (year over year). It's good to understand how The Fed can change the stock market and the bond market when they raise or lower inflation, as well as how that changes your interest rates.

Think About Your Strategy

What are your plans for your money? How long are you going to keep excess cash or savings in a HYSA or different type of account? What's your plan for having your money out-pace inflation? This is what investing is alllll about!

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