by NovemAdmin | Oct 3, 2024 | commentary
THE MARKETS The Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500 Index hit a new all-time high last week. The S&P 500 has had quite a year. Despite a sharp downturn in August when investor confidence was ruffled by concerns about economic growth, the Index was up about 20...
by NovemAdmin | Sep 25, 2024 | commentary
THE MARKETS Rates moved lower and stocks moved higher. In 2022, the United States Federal Reserve (Fed) began raising interest rates as it battled high rates of inflation. That year prices rose 8 percent, as measured by the Consumer Price Index. In 2023, prices...
by NovemAdmin | Sep 20, 2024 | commentary
THE MARKETS There was a lot of good news last week! Inflation continued to trend lower. The Consumer Price Index showed that inflation was 2.5 percent year over year (yoy) in August. That’s lower than economists had expected, and a significant decline from July’s 2.9...
by NovemAdmin | Sep 11, 2024 | commentary
THE MARKETS Investing in September can be like biting into a jelly doughnut and finding boiled cabbage—full of unwelcome surprises. “History suggests September is the worst month of the year in terms of stock-market performance,” reported Isabel Wang of Morningstar....
by NovemAdmin | Sep 6, 2024 | commentary
THE MARKETS After gyrating wildly throughout the month, major U.S. stock indexes finished August higher. Despite a lot of uncertainty and some dramatic ups and downs, the Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500 Index rose 2.3 percent in August, while the Dow Jones...
by NovemAdmin | Aug 28, 2024 | commentary
THE MARKETS The near future is more predictable than the distant future. Last year, the St. Louis Federal Reserve explored the accuracy of recession forecasts. They found that short-term predictions about whether there would be a recession in the subsequent quarter...