04 Oct 2013

Posted at 11:06h in The Friday Brief by
Here we sit, once again in fiscal crisis as our leaders fail to lead by compromise. Both Democrats and Republicans risk potential political backlash if they fail to find a way forward before the government runs out of money and technically defaults on its debts.

27 Sep 2013

Posted at 12:40h in The Friday Brief by
It's Friday, and another week is ending; the 39th week of the 13th year of the new millennium to be precise. As we enter the fourth quarter of the year we might ask; are we 39 weeks closer to our goals, or have we simply repeated a weekly cycle 39 times only to find we are still in the same place?

20 Sep 2013

Posted at 14:37h in The Friday Brief by
Mr. Bernanke and his Federal Open Market Committee surprised markets this week by declining to begin tapering their monthly purchases of $45 billion in US Treasuries and $40 billion in mortgage bonds. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said markets shouldn’t have been surprised by the decision because the FOMC members have repeatedly said the decision to slow, or taper, would be “data dependent.” A nearly 1.5% jump in stocks on top of the no-go Syria rally of nearly 5% definitely implies surprise.

13 Sep 2013

Posted at 14:42h in The Friday Brief by
Rapidly rising stock markets are the most challenging times for financial advisors who truly care about their client's long-term well being. This latest market rally is no different  as it has prompted a number of calls from clients asking if they should be more aggressively invested to avoid missing out on the rally. Frankly, I’ve always suspected that my answer fell short of satisfying them. Now I know why.