,Weekly Market Commentary THE WEEK IN REVIEW: May 14-May 20 Dancing on the debt ceiling As talks come down to the wire (again), the debt ceiling limit debate continues to loom over the markets and economy. You could barely turn around last week without hearing all the dire predictions of what could happen if we…

Weekly Market Commentary THE WEEK IN REVIEW: May 7-May 13 Inflation numbers tick down — but is it enough for Fed? New inflation data came in last week. The consumer price index (CPI) came in at 4.9% year over year in April, just slightly under the 5.0% reading from March. It’s not much, but it…

Weekly Market Commentary THE WEEK IN REVIEW: April 30-May 6 Fed makes another move – is it the last? The Federal Reserve raised rates another 25 basis points (0.25%) last week, taking the federal funds rate to the 5.00%-5.25% range. It’s the 10th increase in 14 months, and rates are at their highest levels since…

Weekly Market Commentary THE WEEK IN REVIEW: April 23-29 GDP reading signals the economy is slowing The first reading of first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) was released last week, coming in lower than the forecasted 2.0% at 1.1%. The mild winter in most of the U.S. led to a temporary surge in consumer spending in…

Weekly Market Commentary THE WEEK IN REVIEW: April 16-22 Markets are muted as we await the Fed It almost feels as if it’s the middle of summer for markets. After the major dustup from the Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank situations and the government’s subsequent actions, markets seem to have calmed down and are…

Weekly Market Commentary THE WEEK IN REVIEW: April 9-15 Inflation recedes a bit more than expected The latest inflation numbers are in — and they’re better than expected. The consumer price index (CPI) report was released last week, revealing prices went up 5% year over year in March. It’s the slowest pace since May 2021,…

Weekly Market Commentary THE WEEK IN REVIEW: April 2-8 Employment numbers are a mixed bag The first week of the new quarter was a short one for investors, as markets were closed on Good Friday. The closure meant traders weren’t around to react to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) nonfarm payrolls report for March,…

Weekly Market Commentary THE WEEK IN REVIEW: March 26 – April 1 2023 is 25% done Goodbye, Q1 and hello, Q2. After dropping in early March, markets ended the month — and the first quarter — on an upward swing. Boosting the market’s mood: A key gauge of U.S. inflation rose last month but by…

Weekly Market Commentary THE WEEK IN REVIEW: March 19 – March 25 Fed bumps rates another 25 basis points while banks continue to make markets nervous The Federal Reserve raised interest rates at last week’s meeting by another 25 basis points (0.25%), bringing the federal funds rate to 4.75%-5.0%. This was the ninth increase since…

Weekly Market Commentary THE WEEK IN REVIEW: March 12 – March 18 Are there cracks in the banking system’s foundation? To say lots has been happening in the U.S. banking system over the past two weeks is quite the understatement. First Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank were closed by regulators. Then fissures appeared over…