Janet Yellen and the Case of the Missing Inflation
Low unemployment and rising wages usually leads to higher inflation, but so far inflation has remained relatively low. Click HERE to read a New York Times article on what might be causing this and how the Federal Reserve is reacting.
Economic Conditions and Earnings Matter More Than Politics
With the intense focus on every word coming out of Washington DC, its hard to know what to focus on. In Nuveen’s Weekly Investment Commentary, they suggest Economic Conditions and Earnings Matter More Than Politics–a point of view worthy of consideration. To view Nuveen’s entire article, please click HERE.
What To Do After Drop in Equity Markets
This week we saw a significant drop in the U.S. and Global equity markets. To those of you that I have spoken to recently, this should come as no surprise. Earnings for U.S. companies have been declining, quarter over quarter for more than a year and in spite of this, stock prices had been increasing, Read more ➝
Is Angela Merkel Europe’s Economic Bully?
As all eyes are focused on Greece and how they will resolve their debt crisis, attention is rightly turning to Germany, Europe’s economic heart and the driving force behind a push for greater Greek austerity, even in the face of 25% unemployment and clear stagflation. This July 9th article from Bloomberg Businessweek points out that Read more ➝
How the Feds Influence Interest Rates; Explained
Anyone watching the evening news has likely heard about the pending increase in interest rates by the Federal Reserve bank. But what exactly are they doing. This article from the Los Angeles Times does a great job explaining the tools at the Federal Reserve’s disposal and how they influences broader interest rate environment. To view Read more ➝
Mortgage Rates Top 4% in Test for Housing
Mortgage rates extended above the 4% threshold last week in concert with an increase in the yield on on the 10 year treasury. Investors are demanding high yields on the 10 year treasury as they anticipate an increase in the Federal Funds rate. Time will tell what impact these higher mortgage rates will have on Read more ➝
College Graduation. A Time For Optimism.
I recently attended my daughter’s college graduation ceremony and can say, if you are ever feeling down and blue about the future, swing by a college commencement ceremony. The graduates’ accomplishments and speeches are so uplifting, they will surely recalibrate your optimism. And why shouldn’t they be optimistic. For them, the consequences of failure are Read more ➝
May Newsletter-Has the low-hanging fruit been picked?
Each year I attend the annual conference of the Investment Management Consultants Association (IMCA), a group made up of some the brightest Investment professionals in the country. Collectively, IMCA members advise a broad cross section of investors, from the largest pension plans and ultra-high net worth individuals to Millennials and Gen X’rs who are just Read more ➝
Case-Shiller: Home prices continue steady march upward
This week the Los Angeles Times reported that home prices continue to rise here in Southern California and elsewhere in the Nation. Denver and San Francisco lead the pack with 10% and 9.8% year-over-year growth rates. The LA metro area came in at 5.8%. This bodes well for the overall US Economy since housing prices Read more ➝
