The signs are everywhere – inflation is on the move. The economy has been humming on the heels of the tax cut, labor markets are tight, and the consumer remains optimistic. I think these factors, combined with pricing pressures from wages and tariffs, are all contributing to the firming inflation we’ve been seeing – and […]
Recent remarks by President Trump make one thing clear: he is not a fan of higher interest rates. In an impromptu press conference after walking off Air Force One on October 10th, the president remarked that the “Fed has gone crazy,” adding that he believed it was a mistake to tighten monetary policy, i.e., to […]
When the U.S. and global equity markets took a steep dive in the week of October 8, the headlines were a chorus of replayed fears: Interest rates are moving higher too fast! The Fed is in danger of making a major policy error! Technology valuations are too high! Global trade is in trouble! We’ve heard […]
The S&P 500 and global markets took a steep drop significantly this week, declining -3.26% and -2.41% (ACWX), respectively on Wednesday alone. Stocks were led down by the technology giants, with the Nasdaq falling an even further -4.08%.[1] Many clients and readers are concerned, understandably, but I want to put those concerns to rest. The […]
The S&P 500 notched a stout +7.2% gain in the third quarter, in spite of bubbling trade disputes, rising interest rates, and concerns about currency and debt in the Emerging Markets. Q3 marked the S&P 500’s best quarterly performance in nearly five years (Q4 2013).[1] In my view, the bullish outlook for stocks – and […]
The trade dispute between the U.S. and China grew last week, as the Trump administration enacted 10% tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports and China retaliated immediately with 10% tariffs on $60 billion of U.S. goods. For those keeping score out there, the U.S. has now levied tariffs on over $250 billion worth of […]
10 years ago last week, on September 15, 2008, Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy. At the time, few investors, analysts, or investment professionals fully understood the extent of damage the Lehman event would ultimately cause. The S&P 500 fell by -28% in just 22 days, and the index ended up losing more than half its […]
The next big market crisis will be caused by…. The short answer, unfortunately, is that no one can say for sure. But, we do have insight and a strong opinion about what will not cause the next crisis: toxic subprime loans and over-leveraged banks, whose downfall ultimately brought global financial system to its knees in […]
