Two-Sided Risk in Tomorrow’s Jobs Report
By John Lau April 6, 2023 – Sunday will be Easter. And Easter is a time to reflect on all the blessings in one’s life and to appreciate what one has. I am especially thankful for my family (Helen, Matt, and Jessica), for a great team at work, and for the partners I can collaborate […]
The S&P 500 Starts the Year with Gains Despite Continued Uncertainty
By John Lau April 3, 2023 – The S&P 500 ended the first quarter of 2023 with a solid gain as hopes for an economic “soft landing” and the Fed signaling that their historic rate hike campaign is coming to an end helped offset two rate increases and the biggest bank failures since the financial […]
Avoiding Retirement Withdrawal Taxes Can Be Tricky
March 27, 2023 – Managing Director, and Principal John Lau CPA,CFP was featured in Financial Advisor Magazine to discuss ‘Avoiding Retirement Withdrawal Taxes Can Be Tricky.’ “Other considerations include the sale of a residence in the former state, how much the taxpayer needs to withdraw from retirement accounts, life expectancy and the presence of children […]
Markets & Fed Moves
March 24, 2023 – Let’s talk about what’s going on in markets and the economy after the recent bank failures. Quick recap: Over the last few weeks, several banks have collapsed under the pressure of bad management, high interest rates, portfolio losses, and a run of depositor withdrawals. Since then, regulators, governments, and other major […]
What the Bank Failures Mean for Markets?
By John Lau March 14, 2023 – Over the weekend, three major U.S. banks failed, and the Fed announced a new lending facility to shore up the banking sector; investors are being painfully reminded of 2008 and are wondering 1) What’s happening? 2) What does it mean for them and their accounts? 3) Is this […]
What Now? The Positive & Negative Path for the Market in 2023
By John Lau March 1, 2023 – Stocks continued to decline last week amid increasingly hawkish Fed policy expectations while economic data pointed towards stagflationary trends emerging and retail earnings disappointed. The S&P 500 fell 2.61% in February and is now up just 3.40% YTD (S&P 500 was up 6.18% in January). Stocks dropped in […]
An Update to My Positive/Negative Path of the Market in 2023
February 24, 2023 – On February 14, I did a live presentation at the San Mateo Public Library with my co-presenter Matt Lau, CFP® on the topic “The Positive and Negative Path for Markets in 2023”. At that presentation, I shared seven variables to watch for clues of which way the market is leaning this […]
Post-Fed Market Analysis and Outlook
By John Lau CPA, CFP® February 6, 2023 – Markets rallied last week after the FOMC meeting and Fed Chair Powell’s press conference on Wednesday because Powell did nothing to refute the market’s belief that the Fed will stop raising rates after March and will cut rates two to three times by the end of […]
eBooks
Surging Interest Rates and High Inflation Result in the Worst Year for Stocks and Bonds in Decades
By John Lau Jan 4, 2023 – Easing inflation pressures and a resolution of the fiscal turmoil in the United Kingdom fueled a strong rally in stocks and bonds early in the fourth quarter, but hawkish Fed guidance, disappointing economic data, and rising global bond yields weighed on markets in December and the S&P 500 […]
CORONAVIRUS: A Financial Survival Guide
Use In-Kind RMDs to Avoid Selling Your Retirement Account Assets
John Lau, CPA, CFP® December 19, 2022 – Are you 72 or older? If so, you must take a required minimum distribution (RMD) from your traditional IRA, SEP-IRA, or SIMPLE IRA by the end of the year. If you turn 72 this year, you can wait until April 1 of next year to take your […]