February was a case of good news is bad news, or to be more specific, good economic data was bad news for stocks and bonds. Economic data continues to point to a resilient US economy, shrugging off higher interest rates. Retail sales reaccelerated in recent months, with real (after inflation) incomes on the rise. Fourth… Read More »
Stocks rallied to start the year, with the S&P 500 climbing 6.3% in January. Bullish inflation data and a lower U.S. dollar provided fuel for the rally. The Federal Reserve slowed interest rate hikes to just a 0.25% increase on February 1st. The milder inflation data and slowing pace of interest rate hikes have led… Read More »
2022 was the year markets were reminded of the risks posed by high inflation. Unfortunately for investors, this reminder came at a cost. Higher interest rates, intended to address high inflation, had an adverse effect on stock and bond performance. Bond prices move inversely to interest rates, so as rates rise, bond prices fall. The… Read More »
US stocks rallied in November, fueled in part by better-than-expected inflation data early in the month. The S&P 500 recorded its biggest one-day gain of the year, rallying 5.5% on November 10th, following the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index (CPI) data release. While inflation remains, markets celebrated continued indications that inflation is easing…. Read More »
Stocks rebounded in October, with the S&P 500 gaining 8% and the Dow posting its largest monthly gain since 1976, up 14%. Bond markets stabilized following the U.K.’s abrupt fiscal policy turn towards less deficit-financed spending. For over a decade, bond markets rarely reacted significantly to governments borrowing heavily to fund larger deficits. With high… Read More »
