When the U.S. and Israel launched joint military operations against Iran last Saturday, traders initially showed remarkable restraint. That changed as the week wore on, however, and hostilities intensified rather than resolved....
February brought many developments to capital markets. For well-diversified investors, it was another strong month: global stock markets outside the U.S. rose – some sharply – and bonds also rallied....
Capital markets have a long history of looking past geopolitical events. An initial (and often sharp) risk-off reaction is typically followed by recovery as investors return to focusing on fundamentals....
Markets started the week on a shaky note with tariffs and a potential AI/jobs apocalypse dominating the story line....
The last 12 months have sprayed a firehose of change at investors, consumers and businesses alike....
We’re barely two-thirds of the way into Q4 2025 earnings report season, yet a bevy of market-moving revelations have already surfaced. Traders acted quickly to adjust individual stock/sector prices for potentially revised realities, prompting more......
Let’s be honest – there aren’t enough adjectives to describe how wild and wooly the headlines have been in the past 12 months....
After a year of seemingly constant market and economic uncertainty, investors might assume we’ll see more of the same this year....
We generally equate January with a fresh start, but instead the major themes from 2025 carried forward....
Douglas Porter Chief Economist, BMO Capital Markets
Douglas Porter has over 30 years of experience analyzing global economies and financial markets. As Chief Economist at BMO Financial Group, he oversees the macroeconomic and financial market forecasts and co-authors the firm’s weekly flagship publication, Focus. As a respected commentator on economic and financial trends, he is regularly quoted in the national press and often interviewed on radio and television. For Doug’s latest views on the economy, read his commentary Talking Points