Last week, equities were positive as mega-cap technology stocks led the way with a slew of strong quarterly earnings announcements. The S&P 500 index rallied 1.5% while the Nasdaq Composite index was up 3.5%. Looking ahead to next week, Bloomberg expects 133 names in the S&P 500 index to announce quarterly results. As earnings season continues, equity markets look to learn more about how much COVID shutdowns are harming U.S. companies. U.S. real GDP plunged in 2Q, falling at a post-war… View More
The S&P 500 Index declined 27 basis points last week after three straight weeks of gains. The index is currently up 3.82% in July which has helped push it back into positive territory for 2020 after the February-March steep market decline. Equities were up early in the week, but reversed course on Thursday with information technology, consumer discretionary, and communication services being the hardest hit sectors. Negative jobs data, along with increasing COVID-19 cases causing a decline in… View More
As we get closer to the election, the political landscape is heating up. President Trump is defending his administration's handling of Covid-19 and focusing on how strong the economy was pre-COVID-19 as well as how it's recovering post-COVID-19. Joe Biden is sharing his plans for sweeping reforms in Energy, Healthcare, and Education. In order for Biden to implement the changes he is outlining, he will have to raise taxes across the board. Given the state of the economy, it's interesting to be s… View More
A recurring question we hear is, "How can the market continue to move higher with all of the new documented cases of Covid-19?" We believe currently available data provides valuable insight into why stocks may keep pushing higher, suggesting we may be able to balance the scales between health risks and economic risks. The first and second chart highlight that despite the increase in daily reported cases of Covid-19, the death rate has continued to drop. Chart 1: Further, the data shows us t… View More
From depressed levels from the Corona virus, we are continuing to see some very large economic growth rates. The manufacturing PMI returned to expansion territory in the U.S., rising to 52.6 in June with a surge m/m in the new orders component (a leading indicator). The Conf Board survey of consumer confidence rose to 98.1 in June, with increases m/m in both the present situation & expectations components. The present situation survey reflects recent improvements in the U.S. labor market. Th… View More