Market Update – January 18, 2010
The January Effect This is an anomaly where the stock market rises during the first week of January. The explanation to why this occurs is that those investors that sold off in late December to capture gains/losses in their portfolio reinvest those assets back into the market at the beginning of the following year. The […]
Market Update – January 8, 2010
The New Year 2009 ended up being a very good year for the US stock market. And yesterday’s gains provided an optimistic beginning to the New Year. While we welcome the positive stock market, we recognize the potential risks and remember very acutely just how quickly such gains can be derailed. However, we believe we […]
Market Update – December 15, 2009
Death of the Euro??? Almost every day you read an article or hear a story about the fall of the dollar. We believe there is a greater story occurring across the pond: the possibility of the euro collapsing. We believe for this reason we are starting to see the US dollar strengthen as money starts […]
Are We in a Bubble?
Mark and I remember March of 2000 when several individuals called to inquire about our opinion of Cisco – during the two days when it was the largest company in the United States based on market capitalization. When we asked these individuals if they knew what Cisco did, not one of them could tell us. […]
Market Update – November 17, 2009
Getting back to work With the unemployment rate at its highest rate in 25 years, many are asking if things will get better. The answer is yes. In some sectors it is already getting better. According to Forbes magazine, there are some businesses actually hiring: Sub-Zero has just added 165 people; Bank of America has […]
Market Update
As you may know, consumer spending makes up almost 70% of the US economy. If you look on the surface of the latest monthly retail sales report, the negative 1.5% drop gives a bearish sentiment. However, after looking deeper into the numbers, we find that after accounting for the termination of the cash for clunkers […]
Dow over 10,000
The run in the stock market continues in October. Cash on the sidelines, better than expected earnings announcements and money market yields close to 0% is causing investors to look at the stock and bond markets for higher returns. Many people are still sitting on the sidelines – $3.4 trillion in cash – still worried […]
Market Update – October 1, 2009
The economy doesn’t have to be this bad!!! The rate of unemployment for the young is the highest it has ever been, overall unemployment is near 10% and many economists talk about a jobless recovery. The sad news is it doesn’t have to be this way. In addition, Mark and I have boys graduating from […]
Market Update – September 15, 2009
Bonds, not Stocks, Suffer more with Inflation A few weeks ago, we mentioned in our market update that we are not overly concerned with inflation at this time. The reasons include the massive deleveraging occurring in the U.S., a lack of upward pressure on wages and falling real estate prices, all of which are offsetting […]
THOR's Market Update August 5, 2009
The Market As you will see from your July statement, the stock market over the past few weeks has produced positive returns in your account. Some of the old stock market adages such as the “January effect”, “don’t fight the Fed”, etc., have fallen by the wayside. If you had bought into the “sell in […]