12 Mar 2010

Posted at 16:47h in The Friday Brief by
The American consumer is coming back. Sales at US retailers grew a surprising .3% in February according to a Commerce Department report released this morning, but the two previous months were revised downward. Excluding autos, February sales rose .8%, also surpassing expectations. Economists expected sales to fall .2% due to bad weather across the country.

05 Mar 2010

Posted at 16:49h in The Friday Brief by
The US economy continues to blaze new paths to recovery. The week’s economic reports demonstrate how the world’s largest economy can grow even in the face of enduring impediments. With unemployment near 10%, housing prices in decline for the first time in recent memory, and confidence near all-time lows, the consumer is showing signs of life. The manufacturing and non-manufacturing sectors of the economy are coming back with improving signs of strength. Recovery is young and weak, but difficult to deny.

26 Feb 2010

Posted at 16:52h in The Friday Brief by
Today’s news from the government comes as welcome relief after a week of sub-par economic reports. The economy’s fourth quarter expansion of 5.9%, higher than initially reported, ranks as the best performance in six years, according to the Department of Commerce. The government’s initial estimate last month was 5.7%, where economists pegged the quarter’s growth. But the group most surprised is undoubtedly the US consumer whose dour mood unsettled investors earlier this week. 

12 Feb 2010

Posted at 16:55h in Briefs about our Process, The Friday Brief by
The recent 8.2% dip in stock indices from their January 15th peak provides an opportunity for reflection. While market declines in general are not pleasant, one can understand investors are understandably squeamish after the 37% drop in 2008 and the peak-to-trough drop of 57% from October ‘07 to March ‘09. But ever since stock markets began, values have dropped then recovered only to go on to new heights. Our purpose today is not to predict the market’s next move, but to objectively examine its nature and demonstrate why worrying about the dips is needless and avoidable.