Time to Yield on Yield-Chasing

The jobs report is the latest in a recent string of weak economic data. The U.S. economy is clearly weak and the recovery is struggling to gain any sort of traction. Listening to earnings reports from some of the economically sensitive companies such as Caterpillar (CAT) does not offer a lot of hope for a quick recovery. The Federal Reserve has told us rates will remain low because of economic weakness for a very long time. While I understand the need for low rates to save the economy (and keep the larger banks in business), I am frankly surprised we are not seeing a seniors revolt. Those trying to live off their investments have a serious problem in this age of zero interest rate policy.

If you retired 10 years ago, you could have locked up some fixed income investments that offered a safe and relatively high yield. Today this is not the case. Treasury and CD yields area below 3% and corporate bonds are not much better if you are sticking to quality issues. Savers are forced to be investors, a role many are not comfortable with when it comes to their retirement nest egg....473 more words left in this article. To read them, just click below and try Real Money FREE for 14 days.

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