|
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WEEKLY QUOTE
“It
is equally offensive to speed a guest who would like to stay and to detain
one who is anxious to leave.”
- Homer
WEEKLY TIP
The
start of the year is a nice time to calculate your net worth. Compile a list
of the assets you own and their value; then subtract liabilities (your debts)
to figure it out. You may be surprised to learn how wealthy you are.
WEEKLY RIDDLE
It
can be measured even though it lacks length, width or height. What is it?
Last week’s riddle:
All about but unseen, can be captured but can’t be held, has no
throat but can be heard. What is it?
Last week’s answer:
The wind.
|
December 30,
2014
THE ECONOMY IS BOOMING
Looking
at two vital indicators, it becomes hard to draw any other conclusion. In its
final estimate, the Commerce Department put Q3 growth at 5.0% – the best
quarterly GDP since Q3 2003, following a 4.6% expansion in Q2. Consumer
spending was up 3.2% in the third quarter, business investment up 8.9%. Speaking
of personal spending, the latest Commerce Department figure on that was also
impressive – a November gain of 0.6%, complemented by a gain of 0.4% in
personal income. Growth and household spending may not be quite as notable in
December or Q4, but the recovery is definitely in full swing.1,2
GREAT GROWTH DOESN’T SPUR FALL
HOMEBUYING
Existing home sales fell for only the second time in eight
months in November, and the decline was sharp: the National Association of
Realtors announced a 6.1% slip. New home purchases fell 1.6% last month
according to the Census Bureau, marking their first down month since July.3
CONSUMER SENTIMENT HOLDS STEADY
At 93.6, the University of Michigan’s last consumer
sentiment index reading of 2014 was a tiny bit below expectations.
Economists polled by MarketWatch had forecast the final December index to
come in at 93.8, unchanged from a month earlier.2
THE DOW TAKES IT TO ANOTHER LEVEL
It cleared 18,000 during an abbreviated market week,
settling Friday at 18,053.71 thanks to a 1.55% gain across 3½ trading days.
Weekly advances also came for the Nasdaq (1.23% to 4,806.86) and S&P 500
(0.88% to 2,088.77). By Friday afternoon, oil prices had sunk under $55 in
after-hours trading on the NYMEX; crude lost 3.51% on the week. Gold rallied
Friday to trim its 5-day loss to 0.23%; on the COMEX, the yellow metal was at
$1,194.40 at week’s end.4
THIS WEEK: Nothing
major is scheduled on Monday. Tuesday, the Conference Board’s final consumer
confidence index of 2014 arrives along with the October edition of the
Case-Shiller home price index. On Wednesday, investors will parse the latest
initial claims figures and the November pending home sales report from the
NAR; U.S. bond markets should close at 2:00pm EST, but the NYSE and NASDAQ will
each have a full trading day. Wall Street closes Thursday for New Year’s Day,
along with most foreign financial markets; China, however, will present its
December factory PMI. Friday sees the release of ISM’s December manufacturing
PMI and two key foreign PMIs tracking the Chinese service sector and eurozone
manufacturing.
Sources: online.wsj.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 12/26/145,6,7,8
Indices
are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into
directly. These returns do not include dividends. 10-year TIPS real yield =
projected return at maturity given expected inflation.
|
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«RepresentativeDisclosure»
This material was prepared by MarketingPro,
Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party,
nor their affiliates. This information has been derived from sources believed
to be accurate. Please note - investing involves risk, and past performance
is no guarantee of future results. The publisher is not engaged in rendering
legal, accounting or other professional services. If assistance is needed,
the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.
This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice
and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty.
This is neither a solicitation nor recommendation to purchase or sell any
investment or insurance product or service, and should not be relied upon as
such. All indices are unmanaged and are not illustrative of any particular
investment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a price-weighted index of 30
actively traded blue-chip stocks. The NASDAQ Composite Index is an unmanaged,
market-weighted index of all over-the-counter common stocks traded on the
National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System. The
Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities
considered to be representative of the stock market in general. It is not
possible to invest directly in an index. NYSE Group, Inc. (NYSE:NYX) operates
two securities exchanges: the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) and NYSE
Arca (formerly known as the Archipelago Exchange, or ArcaEx®, and the Pacific
Exchange). NYSE Group is a leading provider of securities listing, trading
and market data products and services. The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc.
(NYMEX) is the world's largest physical commodity futures exchange and the
preeminent trading forum for energy and precious metals, with trading
conducted through two divisions – the NYMEX Division, home to the energy,
platinum, and palladium markets, and the COMEX Division, on which all other
metals trade. Additional risks are associated with international investing,
such as currency fluctuations, political and economic instability and
differences in accounting standards. This material represents an assessment
of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to
be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results. Past
performance is no guarantee of future results. Investments will fluctuate and when
redeemed may be worth more or less than when originally invested. All
economic and performance data is historical and not indicative of future
results. Market indices discussed are unmanaged. Investors cannot invest in
unmanaged indices. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal,
accounting or other professional services. If assistance is needed, the
reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.
Citations.
1 - tinyurl.com/mg2sl49 [12/23/14]
2 - marketwatch.com/economy-politics/calendars/economic [12/23/14]
3 - investing.com/economic-calendar/ [12/23/14]
4 - markets.on.nytimes.com/research/markets/usmarkets/usmarkets.asp
[12/26/14]
5 - markets.wsj.com/us [12/26/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=12%2F26%2F13&x=0&y=0
[12/26/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=12%2F26%2F13&x=0&y=0
[12/26/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=12%2F26%2F13&x=0&y=0
[12/26/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=12%2F24%2F09&x=0&y=0
[12/26/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=12%2F24%2F09&x=0&y=0
[12/26/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=12%2F24%2F09&x=0&y=0
[12/26/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=12%2F27%2F04&x=0&y=0
[12/26/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=12%2F27%2F04&x=0&y=0
[12/26/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=12%2F27%2F04&x=0&y=0
[12/26/14]
7 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield
[12/26/14]
8 -
treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll
[12/26/14]
|
Tuesday, December 30, 2014
Economic Update for the week of December 30th, 2014
Tuesday, December 23, 2014
Economic Update for the week of December 23rd, 2014
|
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WEEKLY QUOTE
“A
well-informed mind is the best security against the contagion of folly and of
vice.”
- Ann Radcliffe
WEEKLY TIP
As
Wall Street is having a good year and the Dow and S&P are hovering near
record highs, your portfolio might have a larger allocation to stocks right
now than your investment plan stipulates. You may want to rebalance it for
2015 with the goal of lessening exposure to risk.
WEEKLY RIDDLE
All
about but unseen, can be captured but can’t be held, has no throat but can be
heard. What is it?
Last week’s riddle:
Brothers and sisters, I have none, but this man's father is my
father's son.
Last week’s answer:
My son.
|
December 23,
2014
ONE WORD TURNS STOCKS AROUND
That
word was “patient,” and it was found in the Federal Reserve’s December 17
policy statement. The Federal Open Market Committee again pledged to take “a
considerable time” to raise interest rates in the absence of easing, but
added that it would also be “patient” in making a move. At the central bank’s
final press conference of 2014, Fed chair Janet Yellen noted that several
FOMC meetings might pass without any increase in the benchmark interest rate.
Investors celebrated: the Dow soared 288 points Wednesday and another 421
points Thursday.1,2
LOWER PRICES FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Inexpensive gasoline makes life easier for consumers, and its effect was
felt in the Consumer Price Index. The CPI’s 0.3% November retreat was its
largest monthly pullback in five years. Less inflation pressure gives the Fed
less incentive to adjust the federal funds rate.1
HOUSING STARTS, BUILDING PERMITS
DECLINE
Was it the weather? That could have been one factor for the
1.6% November dip in groundbreaking measured by the Commerce Department.
Building permits were down 5.2% last month. November’s decrease snapped three
straight months of housing starts at a million-per-year pace, something
unseen since early 2008.3
A LITTLE PATIENCE GOES A LONG WAY
A long way toward righting the stock market, that is. Thanks
largely to the Fed’s reassuring policy statement, the DJIA rose 3.03% across
five days to settle at 17,804.80 Friday. Major weekly gains were also logged
by the S&P 500 (3.41% to 2,070.65) and NASDAQ Composite (2.40% to 4,765.38).
How about oil? Light sweet crude for January delivery climbed 4.4% on the
NYMEX Friday, closing at $56.52. Gold lost 2.2% across five days on the
COMEX, settling Friday at $1,196.00.4,5
THIS WEEK: Wall
Street considers November existing home sales numbers Monday. Tuesday, the
federal government’s final estimate of Q3 growth arrives along with the
University of Michigan’s final December consumer sentiment index, reports on
November new home buying, consumer spending and hard goods orders and an earnings
announcement from Walgreen’s. Wednesday being Christmas Eve, the NYSE and
NASDAQ will wrap up trading at 1:00pm EST and the bond market will likely
close an hour later. All U.S. financial markets will be closed Thursday for
Christmas Day. Friday is a standard trading day on Wall Street; investors
will consider new factory output, consumer spending and inflation data from
Japan.
Sources: online.wsj.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 12/19/146,7,8,9
Indices
are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into
directly. These returns do not include dividends. 10-year TIPS real yield =
projected return at maturity given expected inflation.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Please feel
free to forward this article to family, friends or colleagues.
If you would like us to add them to our distribution list, please reply with their address. We will contact them first and request their permission to add them to our list. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
«RepresentativeDisclosure»
This material was prepared by MarketingPro,
Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party,
nor their affiliates. This information has been derived from sources believed
to be accurate. Please note - investing involves risk, and past performance
is no guarantee of future results. The publisher is not engaged in rendering
legal, accounting or other professional services. If assistance is needed,
the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.
This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice
and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty.
This is neither a solicitation nor recommendation to purchase or sell any
investment or insurance product or service, and should not be relied upon as
such. All indices are unmanaged and are not illustrative of any particular
investment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a price-weighted index of 30
actively traded blue-chip stocks. The NASDAQ Composite Index is an unmanaged,
market-weighted index of all over-the-counter common stocks traded on the
National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System. The
Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities
considered to be representative of the stock market in general. It is not
possible to invest directly in an index. NYSE Group, Inc. (NYSE:NYX) operates
two securities exchanges: the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) and NYSE
Arca (formerly known as the Archipelago Exchange, or ArcaEx®, and the Pacific
Exchange). NYSE Group is a leading provider of securities listing, trading
and market data products and services. The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc.
(NYMEX) is the world's largest physical commodity futures exchange and the
preeminent trading forum for energy and precious metals, with trading
conducted through two divisions – the NYMEX Division, home to the energy,
platinum, and palladium markets, and the COMEX Division, on which all other
metals trade. Additional risks are associated with international investing,
such as currency fluctuations, political and economic instability and
differences in accounting standards. This material represents an assessment
of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to
be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results. Past
performance is no guarantee of future results. Investments will fluctuate and when
redeemed may be worth more or less than when originally invested. All
economic and performance data is historical and not indicative of future
results. Market indices discussed are unmanaged. Investors cannot invest in
unmanaged indices. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal,
accounting or other professional services. If assistance is needed, the
reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.
Citations.
1 - tinyurl.com/ohagdrr [12/19/14]
2 - money.cnn.com/2014/12/18/investing/stocks-markets-fed-oil/ [12/19/14]
3 - bloomberg.com/news/2014-12-16/housing-starts-in-u-s-exceed-1-million-pace-for-third-month.html
[12/16/14]
4 - markets.on.nytimes.com/research/markets/usmarkets/usmarkets.asp
[12/19/14]
5 - proactiveinvestors.com/companies/news/58941/gold-up-01-at-1196-wto-jumps-44-to-settle-at-5652-58941.html
[12/19/14]
6 - markets.wsj.com/us [12/19/14]
7 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=12%2F19%2F13&x=0&y=0
[12/19/14]
7 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=12%2F19%2F13&x=0&y=0
[12/19/14]
7 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=12%2F19%2F13&x=0&y=0
[12/19/14]
7 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=12%2F18%2F09&x=0&y=0
[12/19/14]
7 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=12%2F18%2F09&x=0&y=0
[12/19/14]
7 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=12%2F18%2F09&x=0&y=0
[12/19/14]
7 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=12%2F20%2F04&x=0&y=0
[12/19/14]
7 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=12%2F20%2F04&x=0&y=0
[12/19/14]
7 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=12%2F20%2F04&x=0&y=0
[12/19/14]
8 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield
[12/19/14]
9 -
treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll
[12/19/14]
|
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
Economic Update for the week of December 15th, 2014
|
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WEEKLY QUOTE
“Anger
makes dull men witty, but it keeps them poor.”
- Queen Elizabeth I
WEEKLY TIP
A
credit card’s 0% APR interest is not necessarily set in stone. A missed
monthly payment may lead to it being rescinded.
WEEKLY RIDDLE
Brothers
and sisters, I have none, but this man's father is my father's son. Who am I
talking about?
Last week’s riddle:
Olivia throws a softball as hard as she can, and even though it
doesn’t touch anything and nobody touches it, the softball comes right back
to her. How is this possible?
Last week’s answer:
She throws it straight up in the
air.
|
December 15,
2014
AMERICANS BUY MORE, SENTIMENT INDEX
SOARS
Commerce
Department data showed retail sales jumping 0.7% for November – the best
monthly advance recorded in a year. More good news came from the University
of Michigan – its initial December consumer sentiment index came in at 93.8,
way up from 88.8 at the end of last month. The improvement may reflect relief
at falling gas prices as well as added belief in the economy.1
WHEN WILL OIL HIT BOTTOM?
Last week saw the International Energy Agency lower its
estimates for 2015 global oil demand, and so NYMEX crude for January delivery
finished Friday’s trading day at just $57.81 a barrel. At Friday’s close, oil
was down 12.94% MTD and 25.90% over the past 30 days. COMEX gold futures, on
the other hand, were up 4.75% MTD and settled at $1,222.50 Friday.2,3
WHOLESALE PRICES DIP
The Producer Price Index is yet another indicator affected
by cheap oil. It
declined 0.2% in November, taking the annualized gain
down to 1.4%. The core PPI was flat last month and up 1.8% in a year.1
CRUDE PRICES DRAG DOWN STOCK PRICES
Bears freely roamed Wall Street last week, with a major
selloff occurring Friday. In fact, December 8-12 represented the worst week for
the Dow since 2011. The 5-day losses across the major indices were severe:
DJIA, 3.78% to 17,280.83; S&P, 3.52% to 2,002.33; NASDAQ, 2.66% to
4,653.60.2,4
THIS WEEK: On Monday,
VeriFone reports Q3 results. Tuesday offers a report on November housing
starts and building permits and earnings from Darden Restaurants. Wednesday
is busier: the Federal Reserve makes a policy statement, the November CPI and
the latest euro area CPI arrive, and Carnival, Oracle, FedEx, General Mills
and Jabil Circuit report earnings. Thursday, earnings from Rite Aid,
Winnebago Industries, Nike, Accenture, Red Hat and ConAgra Foods complement a
new report on initial jobless claims. Friday, BlackBerry reports earnings.
Sources: online.wsj.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 12/12/145,6,7,8
Indices
are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into
directly. These returns do not include dividends. 10-year TIPS real yield =
projected return at maturity given expected inflation.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Please feel
free to forward this article to family, friends or colleagues.
If you would like us to add them to our distribution list, please reply with their address. We will contact them first and request their permission to add them to our list. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
«RepresentativeDisclosure»
This material was prepared by MarketingPro,
Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party,
nor their affiliates. This information has been derived from sources believed
to be accurate. Please note - investing involves risk, and past performance
is no guarantee of future results. The publisher is not engaged in rendering
legal, accounting or other professional services. If assistance is needed,
the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.
This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice
and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty.
This is neither a solicitation nor recommendation to purchase or sell any
investment or insurance product or service, and should not be relied upon as
such. All indices are unmanaged and are not illustrative of any particular
investment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a price-weighted index of 30
actively traded blue-chip stocks. The NASDAQ Composite Index is an unmanaged,
market-weighted index of all over-the-counter common stocks traded on the
National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System. The
Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities
considered to be representative of the stock market in general. It is not
possible to invest directly in an index. NYSE Group, Inc. (NYSE:NYX) operates
two securities exchanges: the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) and NYSE
Arca (formerly known as the Archipelago Exchange, or ArcaEx®, and the Pacific
Exchange). NYSE Group is a leading provider of securities listing, trading
and market data products and services. The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc.
(NYMEX) is the world's largest physical commodity futures exchange and the
preeminent trading forum for energy and precious metals, with trading
conducted through two divisions – the NYMEX Division, home to the energy,
platinum, and palladium markets, and the COMEX Division, on which all other
metals trade. Additional risks are associated with international investing,
such as currency fluctuations, political and economic instability and
differences in accounting standards. This material represents an assessment
of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to
be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results. Past
performance is no guarantee of future results. Investments will fluctuate and when
redeemed may be worth more or less than when originally invested. All economic
and performance data is historical and not indicative of future results.
Market indices discussed are unmanaged. Investors cannot invest in unmanaged
indices. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other
professional services. If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to
engage the services of a competent professional.
Citations.
1 - investing.com/economic-calendar/ [12/12/14]
2 - proactiveinvestors.com/companies/news/58785/dow-drops-over-300-pts-to-end-worst-week-in-3-years-58785.html
[12/12/14]
3 - money.cnn.com/data/commodities/ [12/12/14]
4 - markets.on.nytimes.com/research/markets/usmarkets/usmarkets.asp
[12/12/14]
5 - markets.wsj.com/us [12/12/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=12%2F12%2F13&x=0&y=0
[12/12/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=12%2F12%2F13&x=0&y=0
[12/12/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=12%2F12%2F13&x=0&y=0
[12/12/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=12%2F11%2F09&x=0&y=0
[12/12/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=12%2F11%2F09&x=0&y=0
[12/12/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=12%2F11%2F09&x=0&y=0
[12/12/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=12%2F13%2F04&x=0&y=0
[12/12/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=12%2F13%2F04&x=0&y=0
[12/12/14]
6 -
bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=12%2F13%2F04&x=0&y=0
[12/12/14]
7 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield
[12/12/14]
8 -
treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll
[12/12/14]
|
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