Earnings season kicked off with a bang, and U.S. stocks added 2% to recent gains this week. Utility and Technology names led the way higher, while Energy stocks lagged.Investors celebrated some positive economic data from around the globe. For example, U.S. December home starts were reported at the highest in 13 years. Additionally, Chinese industrial … Continue reading Earnings Season
U.S. stocks may frustrate investors looking to buy at lower prices. The S&P 500 Index’s performance on a total-return basis, including reinvested dividends, in post-World War II election years shows as much. Retreats of 10% or more, sing a commonly used threshold for corrections, occurred only half of the time during those years. They include … Continue reading Looking for Lower Prices
Biggest S&P 500 heavyweights bring back memories of 1999 Companies that carry the most weight in the S&P 500 Index are getting heavier. Alphabet Inc., Google’s owner, joined with Amazon.com Inc., Apple Inc., Facebook Inc. and Microsoft Corp. account for 16.6% of the S&P 500’s value, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Their share surpassed … Continue reading Memories
Median US homebuyers age in 1981 was just 31. Today it is 47 The rise since the financial crisis is particularly noteworthy. This is driven by an aging population, affordability, higher student debt levels, and tighter mortgage lending standards for young people and individuals with lower credit scores. All these forces have also contributed to … Continue reading Median Homebuyers Age
Mystery Buyer Makes Huge Options Bet on Gold Hitting $4000 Last Wednesday an unknown person or hedge fund bought 5,000 options on gold hitting $4,000 an ounce by June 2021. On Wednesday, an unknown buyer made a $1.75 Million Options Bet That Gold Would Triple to $4,000. The gold options market saw $1.75 million in … Continue reading Gold Options
Visualizing interest rates throughout history... Loaning money out used to be riskier, but as the chart shows, governments have lent out more and more money than ever, decreasing rates, spurring economic activity and confidence in the financial markets. Have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving!
Want to know why the biggest U.S. milk producer, Dean Foods, filed for bankruptcy this week?
For U.S. consumers the view of their financial status might just be getting better.
The ‘4 percent rule’, ‘Multiply by 25’ rule and ‘Cash Reserve’ rule. If you haven’t heard of these rules, don’t worry! I’ll explain. Multiply by 25 The ‘Multiply by 25’ rule estimates how much money you need to retire worry free. Here’s how it works: multiply your annual expenses by 25. For example: if you … Continue reading Rules to Make Your Money Last
Job growth was a modest 128,000. The unemployment rate ticked up to 3.6%. Revisions added 95,000. Initial Reaction The core reading was a bit better than expected. The Econoday consensus was 90,000 in a range of 50,000 to 155,000.Manufacturing lost 36,000 jobs vs a consensus of 50,000.Job revisions were positive.Hourly earnings were weak.
