Market update: February markets ended with a whimper. Equity markets declined and interest rates resumed their climb both reversing trends from January. Economic uncertainty continues with the glass half full or half empty depending on what data you look at. Consumer spending as well as consumer confidence are slowing. Late payments on auto loans and credit card debt are increasing. Inflation indicators are reading higher than markets were expecting. On the other side, the employment...
Market update Inflation continues to be a major concern for markets. With the end of February 2023 in sight, this month brought a reversal of the gains of January. Good economic news on employment, GDP growth, continued consumer spending has overshadowed increasing layoffs concentrated in technology, continuing increases in wholesale prices as well as the still high consumer price inflation numbers lead markets to lean towards more Federal Reserve rate increases for longer with higher...
The department of labor released the latest inflation numbers today and they were persistently high but not quite as bad as they could have been. Markets see-sawed in the morning this week moving from down close to 1% to all 3 indexes in positive territory after about an hour of trading. Market averages continued to be volatile all day ending mostly negative. Trying to figure out this economy is impossible. Catherine Rampell has a column...
Blueprint for an emergency: Nothing like a health event to put this in the spotlight. Here is an aid to begin a cheat sheet as to what to have on deck in an event where: -Your partner becomes ill and is hospitalized -A child becomes ill and is hospitalized -Death of a spouse -Death of a child Ask yourself: What do I need to have in place if my spouse becomes disabled and cannot work...
Newsletter 143 All in one day. Fed announcement of a Fed Funds rate expected increase of ¼% but lower than the previous 4 increases of ½%. Kevin McCarthy House speaker travels to the White House to discuss raising the Federal Debt ceiling and Federal government spending. Market response to the Fed Funds rate increase was very positive. All market averages have been on a roll since the start of 2023 with the SP500 increasing over...
Newsletter 142 Stealth market moves higher. So far 2023 has a major equity average moving higher by anywhere from 1-4%. Yes, portfolio values are rebounding after a brutal 2022. There are still major economic and political issues lurking in 2023 including inflation, recession, interest rates, the Federal Reserve, federal debt limits, funding the federal government and of course the most dangerous category: other . Markets seem to become sanguine about all of the preceding concerns...
Newsletter 141 For SAS Clients: TD Ameritrade Institutional 1099s are now available online at www.advisorclient.com . Instructions: Login at www.advisorclient.com Navigate to the “Documents” tab. Then choose “Tax Documents” from the left-hand side tab options. Market Now: Stocks edge higher with both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq recording largest weekly gains in over 2 months. Big banks were showing gains and driving up markets. Banks are topping analysts' expectations indicating that banks are assuming larger...
A Big Hello to 2023! As we go into the new year with these big ideas of starting new goals and finishing old tasks, I think it's a good reminder that being in the now is the most important - working on small tasks just to get through our days is awesome work. This also plays into our idea of what this year brings financially - we plan and we adjust, and we plan again...
Happiest Wishes into the Holidays & New Year The SAS team is taking some time for family, holidays, and celebration between Christmas and New Year's so be aware that we will have limited access and give us some time to respond to any needs for the next week. We will check emails periodically and would appreciate holding any non-emergency issues for the New Year. A great big thank you to our clients and especially the...
Another tough week for markets as the Federal Reserve meeting announcement increased the Fed funds rate by ½% but, that was lower than the three previous meetings where rates were increased by ¾%. So, the rate of increase has slowed but the terminal rate or the rate at which the Fed estimates will achieve its goal of slowing inflation is higher at about 5.25%. Timing by the Fed is estimated into 2023 continuing the rate...
Market Now: Consumer increase in spending is slowing down. At least it is growing at a slower rate than last month, says the credit card issuers. Remember the trend is more important than the absolute number. Reflecting recession fears, stocks have been declining this week and the yield curve inversion is steepening at the same time. The Fed meets next week with expectations of a ½ point increase instead of the last 4 meetings increase...
It's recovery time from the big holiday dinner. Time with family and friends contributes to happiness. Of course, it can depend on your relationship with your family. We see a continuum of quality and closeness among our clients in relationship with their families. Sometimes families test our patience and bring out lifelong struggles to the table. We had a wonderful, fun Thanksgiving with a couple of close friends with great food and company. The most...
