Summer is moving right along and we are now into August. Hard to believe how fast it goes. This month, we're talking about inflation, the Delta variant, and the rebounding economy.
It's hard to believe that it is already July. In this month's recap, we discuss increasing company stock prices, interest rates, inflation, and asset purchases, as well as job growth.
Summer is definitely in the air, and our team hopes you're able to get outside and enjoy it. This month we are discussing rising inflation and market performance.
As we are walking into May, we would like to take a moment to thank all of those who have given so much to protect this great country as we observe National Military Appreciation Month. In addition, here are some things we feel are important to look at this month.
James Mayer and Phil Anderson have some important information to share regarding the S&P 500, the leading companies in the stock market, and vaccinations in the U.S.
Spring is right around the corner. And while that may bring rain, as I like to say, you don't have to shovel rain. So here are three things happening in February that we think are important.
Given the recent political changes, we expect there to be a mixed reaction from a policy perspective as greater stimulus spending this year will likely be accompanied by increased regulation on businesses and somewhat higher tax rates within the next few years.
With the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine, the market has clearly taken notice of the news, with stocks around the world broadly higher since November 9th, when the effectiveness rate for the first vaccine became public.
We'd like to take a minute to share what we're grateful for as we head into the new year, including each and every client, the new skills we've learned, appreciation for our communities, and new ways of living.
Whether you were worried about higher taxes or more tariffs going into the election, you have a lot less reason to be concerned today, even with worse COVID-19 news in many States the week following the elections has been positive for most stocks and slightly negative for longer term bond prices.
We think it is particularly important this year for investors to prepare themselves for some post-election volatility, especially if the results of the election are unclear for many days afterwards.
Although in many ways this has been a very unusual year, the quick rebound in the stock market is consistent with one historical pattern.
With the second quarter earnings season now underway, we are starting to get a much clearer picture of the economic damage created by COVID-19.
In our opinion, the second-quarter rally of global stocks reflects investors trying to look through the current period of economic weakness and focusing on future growth, in this lower interest rate world.