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First and foremost, as people are thinking about positioning their portfolio, there's been a fair bit of uncertainty early August. We tried to rally back. Now, early September, some of that uncertainty is re-entered into the equation. So how can people guard against what's known as the September effect in their portfolio?

Great to be with you, Brad. And yes, there is, uh, certainly a lot of questions out there, more questions than answers right now. We've got a presidential election ahead of us that is way too close to call for both the, the highest seat in the country as well as the congressional races, races that exist out there. So that is certainly weighing on people's minds. Fed uncertainty is a, is a big question as well. And so what we have seen is a fair amount of volatility seeping back into markets again. We've had a pretty dramatic drop in interest rates, um, that really got underway in that period you mentioned in August. And despite the fact that we've tried to move rates a little bit higher since then, we haven't really accomplished that. And that goes back to more of the fed uncertainty than anything else. For the elections themselves, they are weighing on equity markets. There are a lot of questions about the policies and plans coming from either side of the aisle. And so as long as we continue to have that, we anticipate that there will be a decent amount of equity market volatility right up until the day of the election. So right now, it's best to stay pretty close to neutral, um, in equity markets and fixed income, and be ready with dry powder for those opportunities as they present themselves. They will present themselves. We still believe that the US economy is in pretty decent shape, yes, decelerating, but decent shape. So sit tight and, and look for those opportunities to buy dips.

And so where are those strongest opportunities that, uh, people should be keeping the pen and pad ready for?

Sure. I think tech technology has certainly been a huge part of the equity markets for quite some time now, and we don't see that going away. So we think you have to be prepared to move on dips in technology. Healthcare is another area of the market that we expect to see a decent amount of activity in and some opportunities in going forward. And then financials, you know, we're, we're hearing right now about the Bosto 3 expectations and what that might look like. And so financials do have some, some legs to them to possibly perform well going forward. For the fixed income markets, this is a time where you want to be as neutral as possible in duration. Um, spreads have moved fairly tight across a number of different sectors in the market. And so, you know, we're looking again for opportunities there, especially if we see rates soften at all, as maybe there's some disappointment, um, that comes from the Fed next week.

And so with that in mind, I mean, we've been looking across the five, the 10, the 30, and we just tossed that up on screen here for the Fed and in all of the conversation that has certainly swirled around whether or not it should be 50 basis points or 25 basis points, should the depth of the first cut here to initiate the cycle be at top of minds of fixed income investors, or should it be the terminal rate that they should be paying close attention to?

Ultimately, it should be the terminal rate, but this Fed has gotten everyone laser focused on data and data drives that decision for that September 18th vote, and then what happens from then going forward. And so being so data dependent, it's very difficult to look out further and have a projection. The Fed is still determined that they are going to get to their 2% target. That is not something we agree with. We actually think they're going to continue to struggle to get there. And at some point, they're going to have to realize and possibly move up the expectation for what is normal inflation in this country. Should that happen, then that obviously has implications for where the terminal rate will settle in. We're not a believer that 50 basis points is the right move next week. I mentioned the economy is in pretty decent shape. Yes, it is decelerating, but right now third quarter expectations are for two and a half percent GDP growth. That's pretty decent by any measure. So we do not have an economy that is falling out of bed. It is getting softer, softer in spots and weakening a little bit, but that's manageable. And that's why 25 basis points, we think is the right move at this next meeting and possibly a pause at the November meeting. I think elections are weighing on the Fed's mind. And not that they are political, but this is about the uncertainty created in this particular election cycle and especially around policy, what that could mean for monetary policy going forward.

Yeah, certainly the Fed does like to make sure that they seem as a political as possible and ultimately kind of leaning into that dual mandate. But since you mentioned the political spectrum that we are faced with every four years in the general elections, should investors position their portfolios differently based on who's elected president in November?

You know, it, it's tempting to do that, but the reality for our country is that, yes, the, the seat of the presidency is the highest in, in the land, but they can only do so much on their own and the makeup of Congress is what matters much, much more. And so we have an election right now for the presidency that is too close to call by statistical standards. It's a dead heat. And then you look at the makeup of Congress, and right now it does look like the Republicans are set to take the Senate and possibly even the house in the most recent survey I saw. So that's going to be a little bit interesting as we progress here through these next two months because the idea of one party controlling Congress is something that we haven't seen in a little while. That does have some implications going forward. But those are the types of things that matter. Yes, obviously, whoever sits at the helm is very important, but the entire makeup of the presidency plus Congress is really how we'll shape policy. And so that's why it's so hard to position for anything right now because Kamala Harris can talk about all the different things she would like to do, but if she doesn't have the support of Congress, she's not going to get very far. And I can say the exact same thing about Donald Trump.

Cindy Balu, who is the Conning CIO of North America, great to have you here with us today. Thanks so much for the time.

Great to be here. Thank you.

Certainly.