Market commentary: Q1 2021
Stock Markets Stocks continued to climb in the first quarter and these results are signaling a robust economy ahead. Markets have made a dramatic rebound since the sharp fall in the first quarter last year. Look at the returns over the past twelve months in the chart to the right. Also note that stocks traded […]
Market commentary: Q4 2020
Stock Markets Results over the past quarter are consistent with positive expectations due to the introduction of vaccines in November. Small company stocks and Real Estate markets have snapped back but not enough to bring the past year’s Real Estate returns into positive territory. Over longer periods, domestic stock markets have outpaced international and emerging […]
Market commentary – January 2020
Stock Markets Stocks were up nicely this quarter except for Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT) which is quite a turnaround from last year’s fourth quarter. The one-year numbers including REITs, are well above what it is reasonable to expect over the long run but are necessary from time to time to make up for the […]
Market commentary – october 2019
Stock Markets It was generally an off quarter for stocks, except for Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). The year-to-date numbers look good. Recent periods show variability among individual markets as well as within various time periods – REITs continue to do well, no doubt reflecting declining interest rates. One theme running throughout the past ten […]
Market commentary – april 2019
Stock Markets Stocks rebounded nicely. Tech stocks (FANGs – Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, Google) after leading the way down in last year’s fourth quarter (off 22%) led stocks back up (up 23%). A global stock portfolio earned about 12% this quarter and domestic stocks continued in the forefront. Looking past this quarter, non-domestic markets have fallen […]
Market commentary – july 2019
Stocks for this quarter maintained the above-average trend in the year-to-date numbers. The primary market drivers are the Fed activities and the status of tariff discussions with China and Mexico. As the prospects for reduced interest rates and resolution of the tariff negotiations wax and wane, stocks move up and down. The graph below shows […]
Market commentary – april 2019
Stock Markets Stocks rebounded nicely. Tech stocks (FANGs – Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, Google) after leading the way down in last year’s fourth quarter (off 22%) led stocks back up (up 23%). A global stock portfolio earned about 12% this quarter and domestic stocks continued in the forefront. Looking past this quarter, non-domestic markets have fallen […]
Quarterly market commentary – january 2019
Stock Markets December’s market reminds us that risk is real – even after the uptick at the end of the month, a global stock portfolio is down about 15% for the quarter and 12% for the year. Technology stocks (Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Netflix), which have been driving the market to new heights […]
Market commentary – October 2018
Stock Markets For the last quarter, stocks are up except for Emerging Markets, which were close to flat. Domestic stocks are seemingly shrugging off the uncertainties of increasing interest rates, trade wars and tariffs. Year to date, an Emerging Market stock portfolio would be down almost 9%. It is not surprising that today’s uncertainties […]
Market commentary – july 2018
Stock Markets Returns from various stock market indices over several periods ending June 30, 2018 are shown to the right. Here are a few highlights: Domestic stocks continue to lead the way. REITs were up nicely for the quarter, but non-domestic stocks were down. Due to political turmoil and the specter of a trade war, […]