AT&T (T) honcho Randall Stephenson landed a complimentary insult from the chief executive of the United States two weeks ago when he announced he was standing down at 59. Randall Stephenson, the CEO of heavily indebted AT&T, which owns and presides over Fake News @CNN, is leaving, or was forced out. Don’t tell the president, but Stephenson will not be crying into his face mask after he leaves.

“I think one of the biggest stories we’ve seen, particularly from last year or so, has been flows into fixed-income products. It feels like folks are starting to understand that market, and the market continues to evolve,” Ryan Ludt, Global Head of ETF Capital Markets and Index Relations, Vanguard, said at the Inside ETFs conference. According to XTF data, Vanguard fixed-income ETFs attracted $34.6 billion in net inflows in the past year. Among its most popular bond ETF plays, the Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF (BND A) attracted $9.9 billion in inflows over the past year. BND provides investors with broad exposure to U.S. investment-grade bonds and can act as a core component in any long-term investment strategy, helping investors produce reliable income. The Vanguard Total International Bond Index Fund ETF Shares (BNDX A-) also brought in $9.6 billion in inflows over the past year. BNDX seeks to track the performance of a benchmark index that measures the investment return of international non-U.S. dollar-denominated investment-grade bonds. Additionally, the ETF includes a U.S. dollar currency hedge to limit the harmful effects of foreign exchange or forex swings. Additionally, the Vanguard Short-Term Government Bond ETF (VGSH A) saw $3.4 billion in net inflows. VGSH tracks short-term Treasuries, which provides in a portfolio carrying very little interest-rate and credit risk. While this fund will not generate spectacular results, it will deliver consistent returns and provide strong downside protection.

Inside the ETF asset flow of 2019.

The fund that tracks the Nasdaq-100 Index has marked a key milestone.

Vanguard’s Rich Powers on lagging advisor adoption of ETFs that don’t fall into the “low-cost core” category.

Bond mutual and exchange-traded funds can react very differently in times of market volatility, even when they own the same securities. That’s a problem. Here’s why.

These ETFs won/lost maximum assets in the fourth quarter.

A new ETF is the first to offer access to sukuk, Islamic finance-compliant instruments similar to lease agreements.

Building wealth is essential to accomplish a variety of goals, from sending your kids to college to retiring in style. But establishing a solid financial foundation will also help you survive stock market corrections and bear markets, recessions, health emergencies and other setbacks.Our plan outlined here covers every aspect of your financial life, from investing to insurance to building credit. Most of our advice is basic, because a strong foundation sets you up to reach your financial goals. If you're just starting out, these fundamentals should stay with you throughout your wealth-building journey, although they will likely evolve along with your situation. Even if you have been practicing sound financial principles for decades, all of us can use a refresher every now and then. See Also: Money Moves to Make Right Now in the Wake of the Coronavirus Outbreak

Treasury yields moved higher following the announcement of a “phase one” deal agreed to in principle between the U.S. and China on Thursday. However, what yields will do in 2020 will depend on who you ask.

Bond ETFs have enjoyed one of their best years yet, attracting higher investment interest than the equity ETF side this year. Fixed-income ETFs, which only make up a slice of the overall ETF universe, have for the first time brought in more money inflows than the stock ETF side after investors funneled $191 billion into bond ETFs over the first 10 months of the year, compared to the less than $158 billion that flowed into equity ETFs, the Financial Times reports. “Adoption rates have accelerated noticeably as more investors have realised that fixed income ETFs can provide efficient solutions to some of the liquidity challenges of cash bond markets,” Deborah Fuhr, co-founder of ETFGI, told the Financial Times.

As the stock market continues to take a beating, nervous investors look to bond mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for protection and sanity. After all, fixed income typically provides regular cash and lower volatility when markets hit turbulence.And the markets are absolutely hitting turbulence. For instance, between Feb. 19 and March 10, not only did the S&P; 500 experience a historically rapid loss of 14.8% - it experienced a dramatic rise in volatility, too, hitting its highest level on that front since 2011, says Jodie Gunzberg, chief investment strategist at New York-based Graystone Consulting, a Morgan Stanley business. The index's losses and volatility have escalated even more since then.Bonds offer ballast - "not only downside protection but also moderate upside potential as investors tend to seek out the safety of U.S. government and investment-grade corporate bonds amid stock market uncertainty" - says Todd Rosenbluth, senior director of ETF and mutual fund research at CFRA, a New York-based investment research company.Bond prices often are uncorrelated to equities. Stocks typically do well in periods of economic growth, whereas bonds typically do well in periods of declining economic activity, Gunzberg says."Even though the current 30-day correlation has risen between stocks and bonds, the correlation between the S&P; 500 and the S&P; U.S. Aggregate Bond Index is still negative," she says. "Bonds are strong diversifiers, with the exception of high yield (junk), when added to a portfolio of equities throughout different economic scenarios." Indeed, junk debt has been punished severely of late.Here are 12 bond mutual funds and bond ETFs to buy. These funds offer diversified portfolios of hundreds if not thousands of bonds, and most primarily rely on debt such as Treasuries and other investment-grade bonds. Just remember: This is an unprecedented environment, and even the bond market is acting unusually in some areas, so be especially mindful of your own risk tolerance. SEE ALSO: The 25 Best Low-Fee Mutual Funds to Buy in 2020

With the Federal Reserve keeping rates unchanged in its latest interest rate policy decision, it might be unclear what investors should do when it comes to interest rates in 2020 as 2019 winds down. However, if one were to follow the herd, then diving into bonds irrespective of what the Fed does in 2020 is the way to go.

The heightening worries around the coronavirus outbreak are making high-yielding fixed-income investments a potential bait.

Investors poured money into U.S. equities and investment-grade bond ETFs in January.

Some mutual funds are more appropriate than others for core bond holdings. Credit risk and expense ratios for mutual funds can impact investor returns.

We ask issuers and advisors what impact the ETF rule is having on them and their clients.

The stock market plunge need not be devastating, if investors are reasonably diversified. But diversification has fallen out of fashion. Here’s a few ways to hedge your bets.

Did your bond ETFs act as a shock absorber in this market turmoil?

We ask issuers and advisors what's keeping them up at night this year.