As of last Friday’s market close, the top 10 stocks in the S&P 500 accounted for 90% of the index’s year-to-date gains.While market breath has been narrow and returns have been highly concentrated, the rally has broadened out relative to May, when the S&P 500’s 10 largest names accounted for all of the year-to-date gains.… Read More
12 Estate Planning Must-Dos
Many of you already have estate documents, probably executed many years ago. You need an estate attorney to look over your documents every 10 years or so. Here are a dozen points to review.
1. Do you have a will and powers of attorney for health care and property?… Read More
One is based on personal experiences and the other is grounded in theories
As the digital age reshapes traditional norms, a dramatic shift in the sources of financial advice is emerging among young investors. Betterment, a leading online investment company, recently surveyed 1,200 investors from Gen Z to baby boomers about their preferred sources of financial information.… Read More
A word about recessions.
Are we still going to see one this year?
Let’s discuss.
Why did so many people think a recession was coming?
Inflation and interest rates, primarily.
Historically high inflation has cast a pall over the economy since early 2021.1
In response, the Federal Reserve has raised interest rates rapidly to bring inflation back down.… Read More
Last week’s employment report painted a nuanced picture of the labor market. While job openings and payroll gainscame in below expectations, wage growth surprised slightly to the upside. This prompts the question: Will wages revertto their previous easing trend? The answer may hinge on how corporations react to the evolving macroeconomicenvironment.… Read More
At their July meeting, the Fed hiked rates by 25bps, as widely expected, to a range of 5.25%-5.50% and deliveredsomewhat dovish messaging. While statement language kept the door open for further rate hikes, commentary fromChairman Powell emphasized continued data dependency in policy decisions.… Read More
In recent weeks, markets absorbed a lot of news pertaining to both sides of the Fed’s mandate, full employment andinflation. In June, payroll job growth declined, the unemployment rate ticked down from 3.7% to 3.6% and wagegrowth remained at 4.4% y/y, neither adding to, nor diminishing, fears of wage inflation.… Read More
The stock market (S&P 500 index) is up nearly 17% for the first half and has proven surprisingly resilient despite numerous challenges. These include ongoing recession worries, instability in regional banks, and high inflation.
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On-The-Mark_-The-_Artificial_-Magic-in-the-Stock-Market-Rally-July-2023
The Financial QuarterlyAfter a strong start to the year, stocks shrugged off bank woes, debt ceiling gridlock, and recession jitters to turn out a powerful Q2 performance.1Is the bear market finally over? Will we see more volatility ahead?Let’s take a look at what happened in Q2 and what might be in store for Q3.Looking… Read More
June’s CPI report showed gathering disinflation with headline CPI rising 0.2% m/m and 3.1% y/y on a seasonallyadjusted basis, well below peak inflation of 8.9% y/y a year ago. This trend is not unique to the U.S.: the OECD reportedsoftening inflation in most major economies to 6.5% y/y in May, the lowest level for global inflation since December2021.… Read More