Steve Rick, chief economist at TruStage, is forecasting slightly faster economic growth for 2027 — 2.2% real GDP growth compared to about 2% this year — "so nothing great ... good, but nothing to write home about." That should be enough to keep the economy moving forward, and Rick cautions against reading too much into some negative numbers, noting that unemployment levels reflect the classic level for full employment, and that slow job growth is appropriate given workforce trends in the United States. Rick does worry how a stretched consumer could curtail spending to increase savings, which would slow the economy; if that is coupled with a stock market suffering a sell-off due to high valuations and A.I.-related tensions, that could end the bull market and economic expansion in one disappointing turn.
In the Money Life Market Call, Wasif Latif, president and chief investment officer at Sarmaya Partners — which manages the Sarmaya Thematic ETF — discusses what he sees as an ongoing commodities "super cycle" and how that has him leaning into gold, but also oil and other physical commodities, all the while largely avoiding a lot of the technology sector and getting his artificial-intelligence exposure from A.I.-adjacent plays like energy companies.
Plus, Chuck answers a question from a listener who is eligible for Social Security but hasn't taken it yet, and who is nervous about getting their money but hearing from a financial adviser that they should wait until age 70 to start collecting. Chuck's suggestion for what the listener should do goes against conventional wisdom — and is different from what he says he and Gail will do when it comes to collecting Social Security — but that's because there's no right or wrong in the decision, only what is right for each individual who has to make the choice.