9-1-26 What Should You Expect From a Financial Planner?

Roberts saw data-center construction supporting Texas manufacturing activity, while an economic composite of about 100 indicators had risen substantially. He said stronger economic activity could translate into higher corporate earnings, although Dell and Palo Alto Networks' earnings were expected to have less market-wide impact than earlier major reports.

The episode presented AI as a potential two-stage inflation story: capital spending, which Roberts said represents about 15% of GDP, could initially add to inflation, while later productivity gains could become disinflationary. Employment data, revisions, CPI, and PCE readings were expected to influence whether the Federal Reserve hikes rates in September, with markets roughly split 50-50.

Technology weakness was weighing on the broader market because of the sector's large index weight, even as healthcare and energy were performing better. Roberts also warned that additional dollar strength could pressure emerging-market equities and precious metals, including gold.

Roberts argued that taxable-account investors should prioritize capital preservation over avoiding gains taxes when managing portfolio risk. He illustrated the drawdown issue with an index rising from 100 to 200: a 50% decline would erase the gain by returning the index to 100, while taxable investors may use loss offsets and other tax techniques to mitigate the consequences.

Portfolio risk management can be implemented gradually rather than through an all-at-once transition, but separately managed accounts holding 300 to 400 stocks may closely resemble a broad S&P 500 portfolio and make restructuring complex. Roberts said a financial plan can identify which changes require immediate attention first.