Yearly Archives: 2017
November 2017 Economic Dashboard

(click image to enlarge) There’s an old stock market indicator that suggests that the direction of fund flows—money going into and out of mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs)—is a contrarian predictor of future stock market returns. In other words, individual investors are really bad at timing and typically buy when they should be selling… Read More »
October 2017 Economic Dashboard

(click image to enlarge) With the stock indices setting new records on what seems like a daily basis many investors find themselves wondering if this is just the calm before the next storm. It can be hard to commit to the market when many pundits are predicting the next bear market is just right around… Read More »
September 2017 Economic Dashboard

(click image to enlarge) The daily drumbeat of warnings that a bear market or crash is imminent, and one calamity or another awaits investors, reminds us to heed Samuel Clemens’s advice about herd mentality: “Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.” Investor sentiment (also known… Read More »
August 2017 Economic Dashboard

(click image to enlarge) North Korea has dominated the headlines lately, with the Labor Day weekend being no exception. At just 33 years old North Korean’s leader Kim Jong-un has proven to be quite unpredictable. Luckily it’s not our job to hypothesize about what actions he’ll take and therefore what military action, if any, should… Read More »
July 2017 Economic Dashboard

(click image to enlarge) Stocks continued their upward march in July (both the Dow 30 and S&P 500 have recorded over 30 new highs this year). The broader-based S&P 500 has ten industry sectors among 505 component stocks. Would you believe only three of the ten sectors have outperformed the entire index return in 2017?… Read More »
June 2017 Economic Dashboard

(Click image to enlarge) As we pass the halfway point of the year we once again wonder if the years really do fly by faster as we get older, while the kids are wondering why school seems to start earlier and earlier each year. It’s also a time for celebration though as July 4th calls… Read More »
May 2017 Economic Dashboard

(Click image to enlarge) Here in Indy the month of May is mostly about one thing, the Indianapolis 500. As part of the auto-racing triple crown (the Monaco Grand Prix and 24 Hours of Le Mans being the other two), it’s something drivers aspire to win. Winning the race, or even just finishing for that… Read More »
April 2017 Economic Dashboard

(Click image to enlarge) Spring is officially here and it apparently brought the post-election market rally to a halt. On March 1st the S&P 500 hit an all-time high of 2,401, an 11% increase from Election Day. Since then the rally has stalled, having declined about 3% before recovering and finishing April within 20 points… Read More »
March 2017 Economic Dashboard

( Click image to enlarge ) U.S. stocks continued to hit all-time highs during the first quarter, as optimism is high the economy will enter a faster phase of growth. Central to this theme is the new administration and Congress will enact legislation that will spur government spending (notably defense, homeland security and infrastructure), while… Read More »
February 2017 Economic Dashboard

( Click image to enlarge ) In 2002 New England came out of nowhere as underdogs to win their first Super Bowl title. In a season that included the September 11th terrorist attacks and a rapidly-deflating Dot-com bubble, America united around a team fittingly called the Patriots. Fast forward 15 years and those same Patriots… Read More »
January 2017 Economic Dashboard

( Click Image to enlarge ) It finally happened! After flirting with the elusive 20,000 level for six weeks the Dow Jones Industrial Average finally crossed the mark at the end of January. Networks plastered the number all over their broadcasts and traders created hats, but what does it all really mean? Frankly, not a… Read More »