Published August 18, 2017
Stocks took a potentially nasty turn this week. Whether that turn leads into a sharper decline will be the question facing investors in the month of September – historically known for providing its share of upset. (more…)
Trump
Risk Rises
Published April 14,2017
This week brought the return of geopolitical concerns to the stock market. The volatility “fear” index spiked in the wake of the U.S. bombing of Syria, deployment of a U.S. warship to the waters off North Korea, and tougher talk from the Trump Administration toward Russia. It’s been a good six months since the stock market has found anything to worry about. (more…)
Catalysts for Market Rally Come into Question
Published March 24, 2017
The post-election rally has been built on President Trump’s ability to implement his tax reform and infrastructure building agenda, with heavy emphasis on the tax reform. Recent events have caused the market to get nervous about the ability of the Trump agenda to be carried out. First, tax reform was not pursued as the primary objective with Congress. Instead, healthcare reform, specifically reforming the Affordable Care Act aka Obamacare, became the first order of business. This put the success of passing the healthcare reform as a first test of Trump’s ability to get his agenda through Congress. (more…)