The Independent Market Observer

Brad McMillan, CFA®, CFP®

Brad McMillan, CFA®, CFP®, is managing principal, wealth management, and chief investment officer at Commonwealth. As CIO, Brad chairs the investment committee and is a spokesperson for Commonwealth’s investment divisions. Brad received his BA from Dartmouth College, an MS from MIT, and an MS from Boston College. He has worked as a real estate developer, consultant, and lender; as an investment analyst, manager, and consultant; and as a start-up executive. His professional qualifications include designated membership in the Appraisal Institute, the CFA Institute, and the CAIA Association. He also is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ practitioner. Brad speaks around the country on investment issues and writes for industry publications, as well as for this blog.
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Recent Posts

Do We Need Negative Interest Rates in the U.S.?

September 12, 2019

I am working on my talk for Commonwealth’s upcoming National Conference, all about interest rates in the new world. The tagline is going to be “Less Than Zero.” Yesterday, I got an endorsement (sort of) from the president, who tweeted that the Fed should lower rates to zero or even below. Clearly, I got the hot topic right this year!

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Appearance on CNBC’s Power Lunch, September 11, 2019 [Video]

September 11, 2019

Today I appeared on CNBC’s Power Lunch to discuss this year’s IPO market. Listen in to learn more.

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Monthly Market Risk Update: September 2019

September 11, 2019

My colleague Sam Millette, senior investment research analyst on Commonwealth’s Investment Management and Research team, has helped me put together this month’s Market Risk Update. Thanks for the assist, Sam!

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Economic Risk Factor Update: September 2019

September 10, 2019

My colleague Sam Millette, senior investment research analyst on Commonwealth’s Investment Management and Research team, has helped me put together this month’s Economic Risk Factor Update. Thanks for the assist, Sam!

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Will Passive Investing Blow Up the Markets?

September 6, 2019

I don’t normally link to scary stories in the media. But one in particular has generated a number of questions from advisors, clients, and even employees here at Commonwealth.

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A Look Back at the Markets in August and Ahead to September 2019

September 5, 2019

August was a tough month pretty much across the board, with politics rocking markets around the world. So, what should we expect for September? Let’s take a closer look.

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Market Thoughts for September 2019 [Video]

September 4, 2019

August was a tough month for markets, with fixed income the only bright spot. There was a lot of volatility, with markets down between 4 percent and 6 percent on three occasions. What drove the declines? Politics. The U.S.-China trade war heated up, and the Fed and the White House sparred over rates. Still, the economy remained solid—with consumer confidence high and strong job growth.

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Is Consumer Confidence More Fragile Than It Looks?

August 29, 2019

Yesterday, we discussed business confidence and concluded that it is better than the headlines suggest. Today, we are going to look at the even more important level of consumer confidence—and whether it may be considerably weaker than it appears.

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On the Brink? How to Monitor Business Confidence for Recession Risk

August 28, 2019

Yesterday, I talked about what I am keeping an eye on, business and consumer confidence, and why I think they are important. Today and tomorrow, I want to talk about how I plan to do that.

Business confidence is leading the headlines right now. With the trade war and the general economic slowdown around the world, U.S. business is reported to be suffering. That seems to be true, but is that suffering bad enough to affect the economy as a whole?

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Why I’m Watching Business, Consumer Confidence

August 27, 2019

All right, going on vacation was a mistake. The market started dropping just before we left and has recovered upon our return. Sorry about that. Now that I am back, though, we can be confident that the market will keep rising. Right? Right?

Maybe not, but the real issue here is not whether the market will keep rising—that is a consequence, not a cause—but whether confidence, which has kept the economy expanding and the market rising, will persist.

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