3 Things You Need to Know This Week | Trump UK Visit, Central Banks, Year-End Planning

Transcript

Hello, and welcome to 3 Things You Need to Know this Week— our regular series designed to help you sift through the noise across financial media and understand what really matters for markets. To stay up-to-date with our latest market insights, subscribe to our YouTube channel or visit fisherinvestments.com. And with that, here are three things you need to know this week. First, a look at President Trump's visit to the United Kingdom. This week, President Trump will travel to the UK to meet with King Charles. As usual, the president's visit is likely to generate much media attention. When world leaders meet, we think investors should sift through what is (and isn't) relevant to markets and focus on actual policies rather than personalities or dramatic headlines. During this visit, many expect tariffs to be on the agenda. We're now about five months past President Trump's Liberation Day, reciprocal and blanket tariff announcement and reciprocal tariffs have been in place for a month. Despite initially dropping after the announcement, global stocks were up 16% since April 2nd. And remember, the United Kingdom was the first country to strike an initial trade deal with the United States. While it's impossible to predict whether any material policy agreements will emerge from the state visit, we encourage investors to remain level-headed and avoid making reactionary short-term investment decisions. Notably, political uncertainty has already eased since April. Similar to Trump's first term in office, markets are once again adapting to his administration's unusual style. This suggests tariff talk is unlikely to surprise markets at this point. Next, major central bank meetings. This is set to be a busy week for monetary policy, with announcements from the central banks of the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Japan. The US Federal Reserve, also known as the Fed, will likely dominate headlines, although the others may announce cuts or even a hike in the case of Japan. But investors are waiting anxiously for news on whether and how much the fed might cut rates this week, which many deem important to the economy and stocks. Recent jobs and inflation data has made many investors uneasy, with some calling for central banks to cut rates to help support the economy. We think this overstates the impact central banks have on the economy. Policy rate changes don't guarantee a particular economic outcome. Take the last few years, for example, when the Fed and other central banks aggressively raised rates in 2022 and 2023, many feared a big recession— but that didn't happen. So, why would holding rates steady this week or cutting more slowly, subtly weaken the economy? Now, we're not ruling out a recession this year. One remains possible. But to us, the last few years demonstrate the central bank rate cuts aren't critical for markets or the economy to continue growing. Finally, some year end financial planning considerations. Fall is here, which means it's a great time to take another look at your finances and make any necessary adjustments before the year ends. This is especially important for things that could have tax implications such as Roth conversions, required minimum distributions and charitable contributions. If you started a new job, retired, gotten married or divorced, or purchased a new home in 2025, you may want to reevaluate your financial goals as well as your investment time horizon. Now is a good time to discuss those changes with your financial advisor. If you're newly retired or about to retire, or if you have major expenses on the horizon, such as funding long-term care, your primary purpose for investing may have shifted to generating cash flow. You'll also want to consider your time horizon. Think about how changes to your family situation, such as marriage or grandkids, which may lengthen the time your money needs to work. These are just a few considerations to get you started. Reaching out to your financial advisor or tax professional now can help you get ahead of the curve as 2026 approaches. And that's it for this episode of 3 Things You Need to Know this Week. For more of our thoughts on markets, check out This Week in Review, released every Friday. You can also visit fisherinvestments.com. Thanks for tuning in and don't forget to hit like and subscribe!