WSJ Wealth Adviser Briefing: Low Interest Rates, Slick Oil Trading, Tennis Travel Chaos

Can't wait to get back to wining and dining clients and prospects? Don't hold your breath: It could be a year or more before it's physically and emotionally safe to do so. And by the time it is, the world will have grown used to doing things differently, says Mark Tibergien, the recently retired chief of the registered investment adviser custody business at BNY Mellon's Pershing unit.

"Digital engagement will probably be the new norm over wining and dining, " he says. "The pandemic revealed there are some more efficient means of connecting with clients, and sometimes more effective."

As Covid-19 rages on, there's no such thing as waiting out the storm, Tibergien and other industry leaders say. Business practices -- ranging from how advisors and clients interact to how money is moved to the way firms hire -- are either evolving at an accelerated pace or are likely to do so. Barron's Advisor asked some of the sharpest folks in the business to weigh in on how the industry is likely to change long-term.

Below, some of the best analysis and insight from WSJ writers and columnists, the Dow Jones Newswires team and occasionally beyond, on investing, the wealth-management business and more.

CORONAVIRUS OUTLOOK:

Drugmakers Race to Build Covid-19 Vaccine Supply Chains: Supply shortages, specialized handling and tight transportation capacity will make it harder to distribute hundreds of millions of vaccine doses.

PLANNING & INVESTING

What the History of Very Low Interest Rates Can Tell Investors: The plunge in real interest rates is bad news for stocks, if historical relationships between the two hold.

MARKET TALK

From Dow Jones Newswires

Financial markets are pricing for a vigorous economic recovery in the U.S. after the 2Q trough, but the recovery could be much bumpier, says ING's Chief International Economist James Knightley, noting rising virus fears, jobs being lost and incomes being squeezed as unemployment benefits run out. "A renewed spike in cases is forcing state Governors to backtrack on reopening plans, which is closing businesses, with workers losing their jobs. At the same time, the $600 a week unemployment benefit boost to 30-million plus claimants has effectively ended and will likely be replaced with something much smaller in size," he says. Knightley expects economic data to disappoint markets over the next couple of months, starting with next week's payrolls number. (xavier.fontdegloria@wsj.com)

The Swiss franc and the Japanese yen are emerging as "more attractive" alternatives to the dollar as safe-haven assets, ING says. "With the possibility of grim U.S. economic and pandemic prospects starting to weigh on USD now, both CHF and JPY may be looking at more gains vs the greenback," ING FX strategist Francesco Pesole says.

BUSINESS & PRACTICE

Slick Oil Trading Helps Royal Dutch Shell and Total: Bankers love to talk about their trading operations, oil companies less so. Yet these little-discussed businesses rode to the rescue of Royal Dutch Shell and Tota l in the second quarter.

IMPACT INVESTING

McDonald's Makes Diversity Pledges: McDonald's is pledging to boost racial diversity throughout its operations. The burger giant says it will reduce barriers to hiring underrepresented populations across the company, increase spending on minority suppliers and advertising and boost the recruitment of diverse store owners. "What can we do to go from a respected company to an admired company," CEO Chris Kempczinski says during an hour-long company video broadcasted to thousands of operators, suppliers and employees globally as part of a virtual event. McDonald's didn't announce targets to the diversity pledges, saying it would make specific goals in coming weeks. It will track its progress annually, company executives say.

TALKING POINTS

Black Entrepreneurs Urged to Seize the Moment Despite Difficulties: For Black entrepreneurs, now is the moment to pursue the attention of investors and consumers, despite the turmoil from the pandemic, small business advisers say.

TRAVEL & LIFESTYLE

Paris or New York? Travel Chaos May Force Tennis Players to Choose: Unresolved border restrictions and quarantine requirements could hamper athletes' ability to play the U.S. Open and the French Open.

ADVISER CALENDAR

- Texas Institutional Real Estate Investor Forum/ Sept. 3/ Austin, TX

- Private Wealth Management Summit/Sept. 14-16/ Napa, CA

- Impact Investing Forum/ Oct. 5-6/ West Palm Beach, FLA

- Private Wealth California Forum/ Oct. 15/ Los Angeles, CA

- Family Office & High Net Worth Annual Conference/ Oct. 27/ NYC

ABOUT US

The Wealth Adviser Briefing covers topics of interest to wealth managers, financial planners and other advisers. The content is curated by the Dow Jones Newswires team using articles from the Newswires, Barron's, MarketWatch and The Wall Street Journal. The briefing is delivered to subscribers by email each workday morning at 6:30 a.m. ET. You can sign up here for email delivery.

For more information about our services for financial professionals, please visit our website.

We welcome feedback. Please email newsletters@dowjones.com or contact Dwight Oestricher at dwight.oestricher@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 31, 2020 06:00 ET (10:00 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.