Robert Burns, father of fourteen and writer of Auld Lang Syne, once said, “There is no such uncertainty as a sure thing.” Was he ever right! Here are a few sure things: · The Federal Reserve intends to reduce economic stimulus by tapering quantitative easing (QE). · Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke plans to retire.… Click for more / Podcast Player>
During periods of strong market performance, like the one we’ve experienced since the end of last year, it’s important to remember that markets ebb and flow over time. Since December 31, 2012, the Dow Jones Industrial Index has gained 9.9 percent and the Standard & Poor’s 500 added 8.8 percent. Last week, the Dow reached… Click for more / Podcast Player>
It was a bumpy week for stock markets. Early on, markets in many countries were negatively affected by the outcome of Italian elections. Italy’s anti-establishment Five-Star Movement, led by comedian Beppe Grillo, won about one-fourth of the votes in both the country’s upper and lower houses. Markets lost value as investors anticipated political gridlock could… Click for more / Podcast Player>
The Markets Like Canadian geese migrating in anticipation of winter, stock markets moved south last week in anticipation of monetary tightening. Minutes from the January Federal Reserve Open Market Committee meeting were released mid-week. After reviewing them, many analysts decided that quantitative easing may begin to taper off before the end of the year. Not… Click for more / Podcast Player>
Weekly Market Commentary from Guide Rock Capital – February 18, 2013 Stocks delivered mixed performance last week. The Dow Jones Industrials and NASDAQ Indices moved lower while the Standard & Poor’s 500 and Russell 2000 Indices moved higher for the week. Stocks were helped by positive economic news in the United States, including modestly positive… Click for more / Podcast Player>