Possible Warning Signs From Last Weeks’ Celebration
November 11, 2024 Good morning, The stock market seemed to cheer Donald Trump’s victory last week. The bond market did not. On Wednesday, the S&P 500 Index (SPX) surged +2.5%, the best day after the election since at least 1928. Long-term Treasury’s dropped -2.3% in price, the 10th worst day after an election. On the week, […]
Same Story I’m Afraid
November 7, 2024 Good morning, As a lifetime student of markets, the early seminal lesson I learned at the foot of a master technician (Alan Shaw) 40 years ago gets played out in real-time in markets over and over again; “The best predictive tool of a market’s future is the market itself.” Translated, the market […]
Client Testimonials – Frank Corrado, CPA, CFP®, RLP®
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Investment Commentary – November 18, 2024
Market Observations Economic data continues to show signs of resilience, and inflation remains on a moderating path, providing room for further easing over time. U.S. data is holding up, confirming soft landing as inflation, while “sticky” appears to be in the range of the Fed target. European growth remains modest where manufacturing lags, especially in […]
Economic Commentary – November 18, 2024
A dearth of important economic news combined with the growing gravitational pull of Thanksgiving and end-of-year holiday planning — Why isn’t Thanksgiving this week? Is it still 2024?— will continue to drive the economic debate into the fantasy-land speculation about policies not yet even partially formed, let alone detailed. Although President elect Trump’s comments about […]
Wealth Planning Commentary – November 18, 2024
The Best Ways to Gift this Holiday Season As the holiday season approaches, many are considering year-end gifting to family members and friends. We recommend connecting with your wealth manager so to discuss gifting plans. This provides ample time to evaluate and select the most effective strategies to ensure all gifts are executed promptly. Some […]
Market Note: Trump’s Second Term– What It Means for the Economy and Markets
November 15, 2024 – Perhaps the biggest surprise of the 2024 election was that Americans woke up the next day to find the presidential race called. After the prolonged and contentious experience of the 2020 vote count, and with polls showing this election as extremely close, there was widespread relief in a clear outcome. The […]
Dynasty 529 Plans Can Build Generational Wealth
November 12, 2024 Leveraging these college-savings plans for tax-free growth combats rising education costs but families must keep up with IRS developments. As published in Rethinking65 By Mallon FitzPatrick A 529 plan is arguably one of the most powerful vehicles for funding higher education in the United States. These plans come in two varieties: prepaid […]
Wealth Planning Commentary – November 11, 2024
Post-Election Tax Planning Republicans will control the Senate and the Oval Office next year and are only a few seats shy of gaining control of the House. As a result, the personal income tax landscape is likely to shift. During his campaign, President Trump promised to reduce income taxes in various ways, from extending the […]
Economic Commentary – November 11, 2024
It is admittedly difficult currently to find economic analysis that is not tinged with unwarranted political commentary. As Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell stated in his press conference last week (in paraphrase), there are no models to run because there are no policies to yet model. However, the lack of data — or even reasonably […]
Investment Commentary – November 11, 2024
What Caught Our Attention Last Week? Election sparks risk-on positioning. The Fed cut rates. China stimulus disappoints. The US stock market jumped for joy that the election results were definitive, thus averting a contested election. Stock investors also embraced anticipated policies promoting tax cuts and deregulation. Concerns about tariffs and bigger federal deficits haven’t weighed […]
FOMC Commentary – November 7, 2024
By Jeanette Garretty, Chief Economist Today, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) of the Federal Reserve announced a 25 bps Fed Funds rate cut, resetting the target Fed Funds rate to 4.5-4.75%. This represents a full 75 bps reduction in short term rates since the Fed began to move monetary policy to a more “neutral” […]