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@theMarket: Financial Markets Could See July Fireworks
By Bill Schmick,
04:05PM / Friday, June 28, 2024
The good news is that early in this coming month we should see new highs in the stock market. The bad news is that we could also see some downside as well.   The equity markets' grind higher throughout June has been achieved by fewer and fewer stocks. Most of the gains have been concentrated in ten stocks or less. There have been a few days where the other 490 stocks of the S&P 500 index managed to mark up some gains, but if you weren't in AI or Fang stocks, you underperformed by a mile.   I have mentioned this before in several of my past columns. As we push higher, a feeling of caution seeps into my bones. On the surface, there is nothing that I

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The Retired Investor: What Can Investors Expect From Coming Era of Populism
By Bill Schmick,
04:25PM / Thursday, June 27, 2024
We are in the second or third year of a new regime change, according to my calculations. If this one follows the patterns of past periods, some clues of what might occur in the years ahead are available (at least from an economic and financial point of view).   Historically, it seems that the most recent period of populism (1964-1982) can give us a better guess of how the stock market might perform. Although there have been many changes in the financial markets since then, many fundamental instruments and assets remain the same.   As for the federal government, it has enacted various laws to reign in speculation in the banking system and to protect the consumer

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@theMarket: Handful of Stocks Key to the Markets' Direction
By Bill Schmick,
03:12PM / Friday, June 21, 2024
It was a slow week for news but that didn't stop the bulls from pushing the equity markets to new highs. But the number of stocks that are pushing stocks higher are fewer and fewer.   Day after day, and week after week. the S&P 600 and NASDAQ have made a series of new highs. Under the hood, however, just about all the gains have been led by ten stocks in the technology sector. Many investors saw no end to the gains and continued to pile into the Magnificent Seven and the AI Five. The stampede has been led by everyone's favorite stock, Nvidia.   This leading semiconductor stock now boasts more than a $3.35 trillion valuation. It is now the most

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The Retired Investor: Key to America's Future Lies in Its Past
By Bill Schmick,
04:11PM / Thursday, June 20, 2024
This is year three of a 15-year period where change will occur throughout America. It won't be an easy time for any of us. Stress, conflict, dissatisfaction, economic and political turmoil. It all lies ahead, but there is a silver lining.   In the case of regime change fueled by populism, American history may not repeat itself, but it does come damn close. Throughout our history, we have seen the pendulum swing from right to left and back again as discontent and bad times (the absence of fairness, equality, and equity) alternated with boom times and capitalism (winner-take-all mentality).   The only time the pendulum broke down was during the Civil War and

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@theMarket: Inflation Down, Stocks Up & the Fed on Hold
By Bill Schmick,
03:15PM / Friday, June 14, 2024
Stocks hit an all-time high as macroeconomic data supported the view that the rate of inflation was falling, even while the economy continued to grow. However, the Fed said it wants to hold off on interest rate cuts until they get some more data.   Both the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and the Producer Price Index (PPI) for May showed cooler inflation data. CPI came in at plus-3.3 percent down from 3.4 percent in April. Prices for some household items such as gasoline and bacon declined.   The PPI went down 0.2 percent in May compared with market expectations of a 0.1 percent increase and after a rise of 0.5 percent in April. Prices for goods fell 0.8 percent, the

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