Irving Wilkinson

Well, folks, what a week. I’ve been doing this for over twenty years, and I still get a little jolt when the market decides to throw a curveball and a fastball in the same inning. This week gave us a taste of both. The major indexes posted their first winning week since the Iran conflict kicked off in late February, and the March jobs report landed this morning with a number that made half of Wall Street spit out their coffee. Let’s get into it.

Stifel Financial Corp. paid $850,000 in December 2025 to settle an arbitration claim tied to former broker Chuck Roberts. The payment increases the firm’s total legal costs connected to Roberts’ conduct to nearly $200 million in settlements and arbitration awards, according to BrokerCheck records reviewed on December 30, 2025.

The S&P 500 cleared a critical technical barrier on the first trading day of 2026, powered by renewed artificial intelligence enthusiasm and expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts, while Treasury yields spiked on fiscal concerns.