Our speaker today was Jeff Kuhlman. He is a senior VP with the investment manager solutions group at First Republic Private Wealth Management. He joined First Republic in 2010 after serving in the US Army as a Korean linguist. Jeff is a member of the CFA Society of Los Angeles where he is on the board and also chairs the ESG Advisory Council. He earned his B.S. from Santa Clara University and an MBA from UCLA.

Jeff gave us some background on the CFA Society. Their members are Chartered Financial Analysts and there are 170 thousand worldwide and 150 chapters. The Los Angeles chapter was founded in 1931 and is the 4th largest. They specialize in portfolio management and strive for high ethical standards.

Investment topics included an analysis of inflation. There is increased attention due to the amount of money in the infrastructure bill and whether it is inflationary. Most concerning is hyper inflation which has a negative effect on the value of the dollar and spending habits. The government measures inflation by tracking the costs of housing, food, and clothing.

Jeff explained Transitory inflation. We are seeing it in the price of lumber and other commodities that are effected by high demand and limited supply. He also pointed out deflationary events, such as the price of Lithium which is used in batteries and TVs. As technology improves its use, the products come down in price, such as flat screen TVs. Another example was housing which has gotten much more expensive due to strong demand and a shortage of new homes.

Gold and Bitcoins have been promoted as a hedge to inflation, but have their drawbacks. Gold can be quite volatile in price, and bitcoins are having a difficult time gaining traction as an acceptable currency in business transactions.

Jeff closed by answering some questions, and letting us know that we can get more information on the CFA Society by going to their website: CFLA.org.