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Market Outlooks
Weekly Market Compass: The economy may not truly turn the page until spring
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It might be 2021, but it doesn’t feel like a new year in many parts of the world. We haven’t yet turned the page on all the difficulties of the past year, so it seems like we are stuck in 2020. Or as my colleague aptly put it, this is just Dec. 49, 2020.
Alternative Investments
Gimme shelter
Demand for houses is likely to remain strong, pushing up prices and benefitting builders.
Market Outlooks
Weekly Market Compass: Seven reasons I expect a powerful US economic recovery in 2021.
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I periodically walk into stores to get a sense of how the US economy is doing. This past weekend I walked into a car dealership in my area. I chatted with a car salesman who has worked in the industry for more than 50 years. He shared that this is a very strange economic environment — car purchases have increased (he had already sold four cars that day), but so have the number of people stopping by to see if there are any job openings, who say they’ve been out of work for six or nine months.
Market Outlooks
Weekly Market Compass: Stocks were hit last week in the face of inflation fears, but I believe it was a temporary adjustment to a rise in rates.
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Last week was what I would call a “Rip Van Winkle” week. Set in the colonial days of America, Rip Van Winkle is the story of a man who, sick of his wife, decides to go for a hike in the mountains with his dog. He meets a group of strange men who offer him an unusual drink, causing him to fall asleep.
Market Outlooks
Weekly Market Compass: As Israel leads the way in COVID-19 vaccinations, events such as concerts and theater performances return after an 11-month ban
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When I was in business school back in the late 1990s, I found that one of the most heavily used — and effective — teaching tools was the case study. Learning from what other companies and industries did or didn’t do was incredibly helpful in gaining understanding and insight.
Market Outlooks
Weekly Market Compass: Bitcoin has gained credibility over the past three years, but I believe its use as a currency, a diversifier or an inflation hedge is a bit off the mark.
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The last time I wrote about bitcoin was back in December 2017. Back then there was a lot of excitement around bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies because both the Chicago Board Options Exchange and CME Group had begun offering bitcoin futures. Investors were excited about this opportunity, sending up the price of a single bitcoin thousands of dollars higher over the several previous weeks.
Market Outlooks
Weekly Market Compass: As we enter a new lunar year, the Fed reiterates its stance on inflation and stimulus.
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We have just begun a new lunar year — the Year of the Ox. I think we are all happy to have said goodbye to the Year of the Rat — although I suppose we should have known this last lunar year was going to be bad because the Year of the Rat is traditionally considered to be a year of turbulence in which change or disaster can happen. Interestingly, the rat and the ox have an unusual relationship.
Market Outlooks
Weekly Market Compass: Has "irrational exuberance" gotten the better of markets?
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Well, let me try to answer that question based on my own experience. I entered the financial services industry in late 1995, a bright-eyed and eager runaway from the practice of law. Not soon afterward, I listened intently to a historic speech by then-Federal Reserve Chair Alan Greenspan, who suggested that the stock market was exhibiting “irrational exuberance.
Market Outlooks
What to do about interest rates in 2021
See how historically low rates impact your wallet now.
Market Outlooks
Chart of the week: Adding fuel to the stock fire
Although the "meme stocks" have been dominating the news with their meteoric rise, don’t forget that the entire US market is at all-time highs.
Market Outlooks
Weekly Market Compass: Market speculation hit a new level this week with GameStop, and the Fed threw cold water on inflation concerns.
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The Federal Reserve (Fed) met last week and, as I expected, Fed Chair Jay Powell reassured markets that it doesn’t have a trigger finger when it comes to inflation. In his press conference following the meeting, Powell showed concern that the economic recovery had moderated and stressed that it was more dangerous to do too little than to do too much to support the economy (a sentiment echoed by US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen last week as well).
Market Outlooks
Weekly Market Compass: The next few months could be a slog for these economies
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What a week — both the S&P 500 and NASDAQ Composite Indexes reached all-time highs last Thursday, but we also saw a reversal of the rotation from growth/defensives to cyclicals in both European and US markets.