The Weekly Update Week of May 28th, 2024 By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF® Last week’s stock performance was mixed, following investors’ reaction to the Fed’s May meeting minutes, while a handful of mega-cap tech companies created a buzz with their news. Market Splits Stocks began trading in a narrow band last week. Still, mega-cap tech names rallied in anticipation of the Q1 corporate report from a key company that makes semiconductors for artificial intelligence (AI). The enthusiasm lifted the Nasdaq to fresh records. Federal Reserve news mid-week unsettled investors, who reacted to Fe ..read more

The Weekly Update Week of May 20th, 2024 By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF® Stocks notched a solid gain last week in a mega-cap, tech-led rally bolstered by positive inflation news. Dow 40,000 The week began quietly as market averages traded in a tight range, awaiting fresh inflation news. On Tuesday, markets rose steadily throughout the day after digesting a mixed wholesale inflation report. The next day, a cooler-than-expected Consumer Price Index (CPI) report sparked a broad-based rally as the upbeat news raised investors’ hopes for a rate cut. The Nasdaq Composite and Standard & P ..read more

The Weekly Update Week of May 13th, 2024 By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF® Stocks notched a solid gain last week as rate-cut expectations paced the rally as the Q1 earnings season wound down. Stocks Climb Steadily Monday opened with stocks picking up where they left off the prior Friday. Stocks were still basking in the afterglow of fresh jobs data, which eased investor concerns of an overheating economy. That and reports of a possible Middle East ceasefire fueled Monday’s rally.1 Stocks hung out in a narrow trading band Tuesday and Wednesday, yawning at the sparse economic news and a ha ..read more

The Weekly Update Week of May 6th, 2024 By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF® Stocks notched a solid gain last week, rallying behind upbeat earnings, a dovish Fed, and mixed economic data. Stocks Pop, Drop, Then Rally Markets began the week with an upward bump as positive news from some mega-cap tech companies outweighed disappointing updates from other tech names. The tone quickly changed on Tuesday as higher-than-expected Q1 wage growth triggered inflation and interest-rate anxiety—just as the Federal Open Market Committee kicked off its third meeting of the year. Each of the three major a ..read more

The Weekly Update Week of April 22nd, 2024 By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF® Stocks fell for a third straight week, as Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s mixed but upbeat message could not offset the anxiety caused by the Middle East conflict. Stocks Retreat Markets began the week rattled by further escalation in the Middle East over the weekend. A bit of good news punctuated an otherwise sour Monday, as a stronger-than-expected retail sales report showed consumers were spending despite rising inflation. On Tuesday, remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell indicated a shift in thinking—from being con ..read more

The Weekly Update Week of April 15th, 2024 By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF® Stocks fell last week as investors sorted through conflicting inflation reports and assessed geopolitical tensions. Inflation Spooks Markets On Wednesday, the March Consumer Price Index (CPI) report rattled markets, revealing that inflation accelerated slightly more than expected. Bond yields rose, and stocks retreated in response, as investors feared the news could influence the Fed’s rate decision. The 10-year Treasury yield had its highest intraday jump in three years. Markets rallied Thursday as investors we ..read more

The Weekly Update Week of April 8th, 2024 By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF® Stocks dropped last week as investors focused on “what’s next” for interest rates after mixed comments from multiple Fed officials. Fed Officials Weigh In Stocks struggled out of the gate again last week, ending Monday and Tuesday in the red on concerns that recent economic data could derail the Fed’s plan for short-term rates. The markets recovered Wednesday through Thursday morning when weekly jobless claims were better than expected. But stocks fell broadly Thursday afternoon following mixed comments from mult ..read more

The Weekly Update Week of April 1st, 2024 By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF® Stocks were narrowly higher for the week as investors digested mixed economic news about consumer confidence. All three of the major averages posted gains for Q1 2024. Stocks Finish Strong Markets slipped for the first half of the four-day week as investors took a breather after the prior week’s gain. Conflicting economic news on Monday and Tuesday contributed to the slide. New home sales in February slipped 0.3 percent over the prior month but increased by 5.9 percent from the prior year. Durable goods orders—ev ..read more

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The Weekly Update Week of March 25th, 2024 By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF® Stocks posted their best week of the year, sparked by news that the dovish Fed decided to keep rates steady and signaled three rate cuts were still possible this year. Stocks Bounce Back As widely expected, the Fed left rates unchanged at the conclusion of its two-day meeting. But somewhat less expected, the Fed signaled its inclination to cut interest rates three times this year—each time by a quarter percentage point. That was a positive surprise for some, who worried that recent hot inflation reports would ca ..read more