Morningstar Conference 2012

There are no small topics at the 2012 Morningstar Investment Conference. On June 20-22, fund industry luminaries--including Jeremy Grantham, Will Danoff, Mason Hawkins, Dan Fuss, Bill Bernstein, and Michael Hasenstab--will convene in Chicago to weigh in on the eurozone crisis, the retirement income challenge, as well as the prospects for equities, bonds, and cash in light of current market volatility, anemic bond yields, and 10 years of lackluster real returns for equity investors.

Morningstar moderators will host sessions on a range of topics. Director of personal finance Christine Benz will zero in on the challenges today's retirees face. Director of alternative fund research Nadia Papagiannis will focus on managed futures, and Tom Idzorek, the newly named president of Morningstar's global investment management division, will weigh in on diversification in a non-normal world. Other sessions will cover investments across the capital structure; equity valuations (good, bad, and ugly); dividend and moat strategies; emerging-markets stocks, bonds, and currency; risk and reward in tech stocks; and key themes in muni bonds. (Click here to see the full agenda.)

If you couldn't make it to this year's conference, you can still play along at home. Morningstar.com will provide plenty of coverage, including on-the-spot blogs and video reports, featured here. Be sure to bookmark this page and return again over the next week, as even more reports will be posted. 

Keynote
Grantham: We're in the Mother of All Paradigm Shifts
The GMO chief investment strategist argues that the world is in the midst of a great paradigm shift driven by explosive population growth and its corresponding pressure on natural resources.

• Grantham on Avoiding the Pitfalls of Career Risk
• GMO Return Forecasts Point Overseas

Europe
Hasenstab: No Armageddon in Europe
Markets are being too short-sighted about the European crisis, as recent stress may actually stir policymakers to enact meaningful change, says the Templeton Global Bond manager. (video)

Value Mangers Find Europe Attractive
Longleaf's Mason Hawkins, FPA Crescent's Steve Romick and Leuthold's Doug Ramsey all see value in slices of the equity world today.

Don't Count the Euro Out Yet
Rumors of the euro's demise are greatly exaggerated, said Jim Adams, Arthur F. Thurnau Professor at the University of Michigan, in a keynote speech at Morningstar's Investment Conference Friday.

Bonds
Fuss: Taking a Cautious Approach on Europe
Geopolitical concerns surrounding a eurozone breakdown are a far greater risk than market volatility, says Loomis Sayles Bond manager Dan Fuss. (video)