Much churn but no progress in US stocks until the budget impasse is settled. The gist of the conflict is that Obama administration wants tax increases AND spending cuts to accomplish deficit reductions.
Read MoreUS stocks approached the March 16th levels that marked the YTD low, and also the start of year values. Given that stocks peaked 6 weeks earlier with a YTD rise of 9.0%, our clients have called wondering if this slide marked the start of another financial meltdown.
Read MoreOn February 18th David Edwards of our firm appeared on Bloomberg Radio's "The Hays Advantage" with Kathleen Hays. On that date, US stocks peaked at the highest levels of 2011, exactly doubling the 13 year low of March 9th, 2011.
Read MoreWhy the US employment situation matters more than any other indicator right now. Once a month on the first Friday, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics releases the "Unemployment Situation" for the previous month.
Read MoreAs the first 5 days of January go, so goes January! As January goes, so goes the year! That's the theory, anyway. US stocks gained 1.2% in the first week of the new year, on top of the 6.7% gained last month.
Read MoreAll year long, a distinguished parade of experts soberly explained to investors why stocks were too risky
Read MoreIf you went off on safari in September 2008 and had no media contact until yesterday, a quick check of your portfolio and you'd conclude that nothing happened while you were gone.
Read MoreUS stocks gained 8.9% in September (best September result in 71 years) and 11.3% for the quarter (5th best quarter of the last 10 years.) As stocks rise, our clients are actually becoming more fearful.
Read MoreWhat to make of the last three months? Stocks hit a peak for the year on April 23rd with a YTD gain of 9.8%. Over the next 10 weeks, stocks fell 15.6%.
Read MoreUS stocks lost 8.0% in the month of May, and dropped 1.5% on the year. European markets are down 0.2-8.4% YTD, and Asian and South American markets are down 1.4-11.2% on the year.
Read MoreTwo weeks ago, we wrote, "with US stocks up an incredible 79.5% from the March 9th, 2009 low, a pause or even a pullback is to be expected. Our forecast for the S&P 500 for all of 2010 is only 8%, so reason enough to be cautious 4 ½ months into the year."
Read MoreThe S&P 500 is up 8.5% YTD and matching the level last seen September 15th, 2008, the date that Lehman Brother filed for bankruptcy.
Read MoreThe S&P 500 rallied 73.2% from the March 9th, 2008 low through the recent peak and declined 6.9% since January 19th. This is a normal correction and similar to the 7% decline we saw last June 15th-July 10th.
Read MoreOn Tuesday, January 19th, US stocks reached the highest level since September 30th, 2008, a sixteen month high. For the rest of the week, stocks declined 5.1%, reminding investors of the dark winter of 2008-9, when stocks seemed prepared to drop to zero
Read MoreFor 2009, the S&P 500 gained 26.5%, the Dow Industrials gained 22.7%, the NASDAQ gained a phenomenal 45.4% and Barclays Aggregate Bond index gained 6.1%.
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