02 Jul 2009

Posted at 16:48h in The Friday Brief by
Stocks posted their best quarter since 2003 as the second quarter came to an end. Stocks held on to the majority of their increase as the S&P 500-stock index finished the quarter up 15% and the year up 1.8%. As investors who missed the rally buy on dips, the vast majority feel the best is behind until the economy can prove it is up to expectations. The next big test is corporate profits for the second quarter which will be released in the coming weeks. They must match or beat analysts’ projections to sustain stock prices at current levels.

19 Jun 2009

Posted at 14:22h in The Friday Brief by
After trading in a narrow range from the beginning of June, stocks took a 3.7% dive on Monday and Tuesday as investors focused more on the disappointing economic news than on positive. However, the down days were on relatively light volume and there was little selling conviction evident.

08 May 2009

Posted at 16:20h in The Friday Brief by
Since the exaggerated stock market lows of early March, investors have been overjoyed by recent Good news that the trends in earnings, housing, jobs, and the economy may be slowing in their descent. They are glimmers of light in an otherwise dark reality. But this is a Bad Recession, the worst since the Great Depression, and it is unique in numerous ways. Finding remedies that don’t make matters worse poses hugely daunting challenges for government officials. And the Ugly truth is they have bent and even broken good faith promises, contracts, and even the Constitution in the name of remedy. The effects of these broken trusts, the exponential explosion of federal debt, and unprecedented spending on social programs that will not end after recovery will have major and unintended consequences on our future economy.

24 Apr 2009

Posted at 16:36h in The Friday Brief by
After six weeks of market gains, we stalled at the beginning of this one. Leading economic indicators released on Monday indicated no clear signals of improvement which promptly sent the S&P 500 down 4.3%. It appeared that investors had lost their willingness to look beyond the bad news toward the possibility of economic recovery. But optimism returned on Tuesday with a significant rally on comments from Treasury Secretary Mr. Geithner that most banks were sufficiently capitalized. Market strength continued throughout the week as one earnings or economic report followed another with enough positive insight to stoke the bulls. State Street's institutional investor confidence index jumped 10 points in April to 79.6. The report, which analyzes trading volumes, said monthly flows into U.S. stocks are in the 98th percentile.