Keep (Stimulus) Hope Alive: The US stock market continued to rebound from September’s correction. Vanguard Total US Stock Market (VTI) posted its second straight weekly gain with a 4.1% surge at the close of this week’s trading (Oct. 9). The fund, at 177.32, is now within shouting distance of its record close (180.50) on Sep. 2. Once again, the lesson seems to be: ignore the downside because it never lasts.

Index-based investing is often seen as a benchmark for active strategies, and rightly so. But what’s easy to overlook is the fact that indexing also represents an investment strategy, one with a particular set of pros and cons that can compliment active strategies.

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