June 2020 Financial Markets Summary The economic data and news continue to be overwhelming and devastating. The national unemployment rate recently soared to a post-World War II high of 14.7% and will inevitably continue to increase. Company earnings have been slashed and consumer spending has dropped at an unprecedented pace. Industrial production declined faster than…
May 2020 Financial Markets Summary April was a strong month for markets (in fact, the best month since January 1987) as the number of new COVID-19 cases started to plateau, prospects of a potential vaccine improved and plans to reopen economies were laid out. However, we wanted to look at this through a longer-term perspective. …
April 2020 Financial Markets Summary The first quarter was a tale of two halves for both the markets and our daily lives. In the markets, the first month and a half started well with 2-5% gains across most asset classes. Investors’ biggest concerns seemed to be the trade tensions with China, slowing global growth,…
Market March Madness This is typically one of my favorite times of the year as we see the start of spring, the Masters and the famed NCAA March Madness. I’m glad to see the trees budding and the grass greening, but the sporting events have been replaced by the coronavirus and Market Madness. Volatility…
There is an old adage on Wall Street: the market goes up the escalator and down the elevator. Stock gains tend to be small, relatively steady things accumulating over years like we have experienced since the start of the bull market in March, 2009. Stock declines tend to be much quicker as markets respond…
March 2020 Financial Markets Summary Stock markets around the world were rocked during the last week of February. Prior to this past week, markets had been fairly resilient to the coronavirus concerns with the S&P 500 breaking its all-time high on February 17th. However, everything changed when a rising number of infections in Europe caused…
February 2020 Financial Markets Summary The month of January ended on a sour note with the global stock markets pulling back from their highs by 3%-4% within the last week. Much of this was due to growing concerns around the rapidly spreading coronavirus and its potential global economic impact. Vanguard suggests that China’s prompt…
January 2020 Financial Markets Summary As we turn the page to 2020, let’s pause to review this eventful past decade. Domestic stock markets performed quite well coming off the depths of the financial crisis. According to Goldman Sachs, the trailing 10-year annual return for the S&P 500 ranked in the 94th percentile of all…
December 2019 Financial Markets Summary Last month we discussed how the consumer has really driven the economy in 2019. Based on the recent sales data, the consumer doesn’t appear to be slowing at all. According to the Wall Street Journal, “shoppers increased their spending by 16% over the five-day shopping period between Thanksgiving and Cyber…
November 2019 Financial Markets Summary October was another strong month for markets around the world with the S&P 500, developed international and emerging markets all up over 4%. This now brings large cap domestic stocks up +21.1%, developed international +16.8% and emerging markets +10.4% for the year. Technology and real estate continued to lead the…
October 2019 Financial Markets Summary The Federal Reserve’s stated dual mandate is for price stability and maximum sustainable employment. Price stability is a 2% inflation target, while maximum employment means keeping the unemployment rate as low as possible. The Federal Funds Rate (the rate banks charge each other for overnight lending) is the main tool…
September 2019 Financial Markets Summary Just as kids starting going back to school in Central Ohio, we noticed a slight increase in stock market volatility. The S&P 500 experienced at least a 1% move higher or lower during 11 out of the 22 trading days in August, with the three most severe at -2.6%,…
August 2019 Financial Markets Summary It’s hard to believe that August is here already! The kids will be going back to school and football season is just around the corner. The football buzz this summer seemed to be all about the Cleveland Browns and their offseason changes. This lit a fire under the fan base…
July 2019 Financial Markets Summary Happy Independence Day! As we turn the page to the second half of 2019, we pause to review a few facts about the 4th of July holiday. When John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin were signing the Declaration of Independence in 1776, there were only an estimated 2.5…
June 2019 Financial Markets Summary May was a tough month for global markets as investors grappled with tariff concerns, slowing global growth and an inverted yield curve. Domestic stocks fell by 6-8% during the month but were still up 8-10% year-to-Date (YTD) as of May 31st. The bond market has been signaling some concern. Traditionally,…
