Good morning. Readers might not need me. At least not for much longer. Pressed for time this morning (as I am on days I teach), I asked ChatGPT5 to help write my article … so I reviewed and adopted the following four paragraphs … but did make some adjustments. Still, I was impressed by its response and repeat that people who have not tried this (which can be found on openai.com) should attempt it just once … and be prepared to be amazed. November is off to its usual show-off start, with global equity markets trying to live up to their reputation as Wall Street’s favorite month. After a solid October, futures point toward another green open as investors decide, once again, that maybe things aren’t quite as bad as some news channels recently suggested. Seasonality is doing its best impression of a security blanket. The big macro backdrop is still the Federal Reserve, which just delivered another quarter-point rate cut, while hinting that this might be the last one of 2025. In classic Fedspeak, Chair Powell essentially said, “We’re done… unless we’re not,” as policymakers squint through incomplete data and a foggy outlook. Markets seem happy enough with that ambiguity. Stocks are getting an extra lift from a US-China trade truce that has dialed down tariff anxieties … at least for the moment. When two of the world’s largest economies stop throwing tariff darts at each other, risk assets tend to breathe a little easier, and that’s exactly what we’re seeing in global indices today. Okay … enough of that … but what really concerned me over the weekend were reports of the amount of people affected by the halt of certain benefit programs. Sure, Facebook is rife with stories of individuals abusing and taking advantage of a system in dire need of better policing, but there are too many innocents … including children … who will feel the effects of the cutoff. And with Thanksgiving nearing I am facing a high degree of guilt thinking of a table filled with food while so many might be in need. Food banks are struggling to keep with demand … are of utmost importance to communities … and can easily be located. Just saying. My final comment today is near and dear to my heart … as I was an ETF analyst for many years and see that a growing number of mutual fund companies are including ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds) in their offerings … as per the last article below. While each has advantages in different circumstances it is good to see the industry realization that one size doesn’t fit all … … which I discover every time I look in my closet. Have a great day, Joseph G. Witthohn, CFA Have any questions? Please contact info@teamemerald.com
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