Should you own international stocks? Serious investors will always have an allocation to stocks of companies outside of the U.S. After all, the U.S. represents less than 25% of total world GDP. And nearly 80% of the publicly traded companies in the world are foreign companies. Even accounting for size, U.S. companies make up just …
Today’s housing market is absolutely a “seller’s market”. Demand is strong. Supply is weak. So the seller has all of the leverage. Our chart of the month shows a completely different supply and demand story in the job market. Supply is abundant The April Job Opening and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) released in June came …
The daily price movement of Bitcoin is now quoted almost as widely as the Dow, S&P, and the NASDAQ. While there are more than 1,000 cryptocurrencies available, Bitcoin is the best known. In many ways, Bitcoin is to cryptocurrency what Kleenex is to facial tissues. Everyone is talking about Bitcoin. But here are three things …
Each month, Purdue University conducts a phone survey of 400 U.S. agricultural producers about the expected future value of farmland. They use this data to compile and monitor the Long-Term Farmland Value Expectations Index (chart below). In March, this index rose back to its highest level on record, indicating a positive long-term outlook for the …
Just over a year after the global economy closed for business, countries are in various stages of reopening. News headlines cite more openings than closings. More and more people are getting vaccinated and feeling comfortable being out and about. Cushman and Wakefield, a commercial real estate company, has an interesting interactive global map that measures …
The January 2021 reading of the Producer Price Index (PPI) saw its largest monthly increase since early 2009. Producer prices represent the cost of goods or services that will ultimately be bought by consumers. So, it makes sense that we will be feeling those higher costs soon. Most experts expect inflation to make a comeback …
On 11/9 the first significant news about a soon-available coronavirus vaccine hit the headlines. Since that time, we’ve seen stellar performance from equity markets, but a dramatic shift in the driver of stock market returns. No longer is Big Tech the only winner. (In the above chart, Top 5 S&P 500 includes Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, …
Nearly 200 years ago, the U.S. was debt-free. Our then-President, who thought buying something on credit was like “black magic”, decided to pay off the national debt. And he did it. In today’s world, most of us couldn’t imagine ourselves or our country being debt-free. Andrew Jackson is a testament to the power of making …
The Covid-19 pandemic is without question the defining event of 2020. Right? After all, it’s a “once in a generation” event that took a human and economic toll that was unimaginable to many just a year ago. So, you might be surprised to hear that coronavirus is NOT what investors are most afraid of this …
You hear it every day if you are paying attention to the news. Your neighbors and coworkers are likely talking about it (over Zoom, of course). And, if you are being honest with yourself, you probably believe it’s true. The Stock Market Is on Fire! (Yes, even despite this recent volatility.) We are witnessing what …
