Posts Tagged ‘market cycle’
It’s February – What Are You Expecting?
Market participants just can’t get enough of the reasons why markets are doing whatever it is they’re doing right now. The current narrative is all about CPI data… It’s guessing if the Fed will raise rates by 25 basis points or 50 bps… Or it’s all the talk about a hard landing, soft landing, or…
Read MoreInternational Stocks Continue to Outperform U.S.
At Avalon, Relative Strength remains our preferred way to analyze the markets and is the main driver of our portfolio strategy, so today we’ll remind you of what we see as the bigger picture. On the basis of absolute momentum, International Equity and Emerging Markets remain the two top-ranked asset categories. Despite the rallies in…
Read MoreWhat Can Dow Theory Tell Us About Today’s Market?
Today, I’m going to give you one of the oldest measures of the market and economic health I know… it’s one of the originals, as a matter of fact. Dow Theory is one of the oldest techniques in market analysis and was created by Charles Dow in the 1880s, yet it’s just as relevant today…
Read MoreIs Bad News Good News?
If there’s anything I’ve learned in my 30-plus years of following the markets, it’s that the market is going to do what the market is going to do. Those who try to make sense of it will surely give up in despair at some point because there will be a time it defies conventional logic.…
Read MoreHere’s How the “January Barometer” Is Reading
On this last day of January, U.S. stocks are up around 5% month-to-date ahead of the Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates Wednesday. This has been the strongest start since 2019 and the 16th best in the last 95 years… Does a strong start lead to a good year for U.S. stocks? Here are a…
Read MoreLet’s Focus On Understanding the Markets Right Now
Is recession around the corner? Will inflation spike as China reopens? Will the Fed stop raising rates in ‘23? We can talk all day about what might happen. And sure, it’s reasonable to say that rising interest rates are not conducive to growth assets or that the longer rates remain high the more damage could…
Read MoreA Better Use of the 200-Day Moving Average
On Monday, the S&P 500 index closed above the 200-day moving average. This kind of news always gets a lot of attention from investors… but is it justified? The 200-day moving average is a commonly used technical indicator in stock market analysis used to smooth out fluctuations in stock prices over a certain period. It…
Read MoreHere is the Key Factor to Successful Diversification
This week, the Commerce Department released a number of data series that were HIGHLY recessionary. Retail Sales clocked in at -1.1% month-over-month, Industrial Production came in at -0.7% month-over-month, and Manufacturing Production registered -1.3% month-over-month. We just saw one of the worst two-month declines in retail sales since the Global Financial Crisis and the covid…
Read MoreThese Tax Code Changes Could Affect Your Retirement Accounts This Year
Today, I’m going to step away from my work focusing on markets and investments to talk to you about something that will likely impact many of you. As a Certified Financial Planner, CFPⓇ I keep my eye on any major developments in the planning world, just in case something comes along that I think you…
Read MoreThere Are Reasons to Be Optimistic About the Market
Last year was a challenging year for the stock market, with all kinds of economic and political uncertainties causing significant volatility. But as we begin this new year, it’s important to keep a long-term perspective and not get swayed by short-term market fluctuations. Technical analysis is a helpful tool in this regard because it allows…
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