Posted by:
Comments:
Post Date:
- Stocks were mixed last week. We saw global markets (represented by the MSCI All Country World Index) down -0.1% and domestic stocks (represented by the S&P 500 Index) up 0.4%. Trailing the pack were international developed, emerging markets, and U.S. small companies, which were all negative for the week.
- Corporate earnings season is upon us and analysts expect that growth will be the highest in a decade. According to FactSet, Q2 earnings are expected to rise nearly 70% for S&P 500 companies. This is due to vaccine rollout and economic reopening, along with depressed earnings from the early part of the pandemic last year.
- At the end of the first quarter, we had seen U.S. bond yields pushing 1.7%. At points during last week, the 10-year bond yield had fallen down below 1.30% as investors bought Treasury bonds. Concerns over rising inflation and rapid economic growth pulled back.
- With OPEC countries at odds over production, oil prices finally retreated for a week as they fell down to around $73/barrel.
- The big report this week will come on Thursday when the export and import prices report comes out from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. All eyes will be on the Consumer Price Index and whether it can maintain its recent increases.
- I’d like to leave you with the final line we’ve used since we started these commentaries back at the very height of market volatility in March 2020. Always remember that we create financial/investment plans not for the easy times, but to prepare for the tough ones.
Financial planning and Investment advisory services offered through Diversified, LLC. Diversified is a registered investment adviser, and the registration of an investment adviser does not imply any specific level of skill or training and does not constitute an endorsement of the firm by the SEC. A copy of Diversified’s current written disclosure brochure which discusses, among other things, the firm’s business practices, services and fees, is available through the SEC’s website at: www.adviserinfo.sec.gov. Diversified, LLC does not provide tax advice and should not be relied upon for purposes of filing taxes, estimating tax liabilities or avoiding any tax or penalty imposed by law. The information provided by Diversified, LLC should not be a substitute for consulting a qualified tax advisor, accountant, or other professional concerning the application of tax law or an individual tax situation. Nothing provided on this site constitutes tax advice. Individuals should seek the advice of their own tax advisor for specific information regarding tax consequences of investments. Investments in securities entail risk and are not suitable for all investors. This site is not a recommendation nor an offer to sell (or solicitation of an offer to buy) securities in the United States or in any other jurisdiction.