Posts by Highland
May 2023
Summary Most major indexes moved lower in May on volatile trading. With the U.S. Treasury warning that a deal would be needed to raise the debt ceiling by the first week of June to avoid a default, President Biden and House Speaker McCarthy spent most of the month haggling over various proposals before settling on…
Read MoreApril 2023
Summary In the wake of a volatile close to the first quarter of the year, April provided investors an opportunity to catch their breath. Economic data (and asset returns) were mixed during the month with investors favoring stable, established, “new economy” names, and interest rate movements were relatively subdued. U.S. GDP growth for the first…
Read MoreMarch 2023
Summary The Federal Reserve’s quest for a soft landing hit a pocket of turbulence in March, with trouble in the banking sector clouding the outlook for interest rates and economic growth. For a few banks with concentrated high-dollar depositors and mismatched asset portfolios with unrealized losses from low-yielding legacy treasury bond exposures, the pressure of…
Read MoreFebruary 2023
Summary With 2022 in the rearview mirror, a year one would like to forget, markets in January kicked off afresh with positive returns across asset classes. The first inflation news for 2023 showed a continuation of the recent easing trend, as December’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) of 6.5% marked the lowest 12-month change since late…
Read MoreReframing Our Perspective
“What I am looking for is a blessing not in disguise.” Jerome K. Jerome In response to aphorisms like “adversity builds character,” and “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” is the honest plea from 19th century humorist Jerome K. Jerome, “What I am looking for is a blessing not in disguise.” While hard to…
Read MoreJanuary 2023
Summary With 2022 in the rearview mirror, a year one would like to forget, markets in January kicked off afresh with positive returns across asset classes. The first inflation news for 2023 showed a continuation of the recent easing trend, as December’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) of 6.5% marked the lowest 12-month change since late…
Read MoreDecember 2022
Summary Markets closed out a difficult year by finishing lower in December. After a late year rally, stocks slid, with the S&P losing 5.8 percent for the month. The Federal Reserve raised rates by 50 basis points mid-month, a slight reprieve from the series of 75 basis point moves earlier in the year and bond…
Read MoreNovember 2022
Summary Stocks and bonds were broadly positive in November as inflation slowed, with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) coming in at +7.7% year-over-year and below market expectations (+8%). Treasury yields declined and stocks rallied, as investors took the positive inflation surprise as a signal that the Federal Reserve would likely begin scaling back their tightening…
Read MoreOctober 2022
Summary With macroeconomic news continuing to dominate the headlines in October, investors became comfortable with rotating back into riskier assets, pushing domestic stock indexes higher. In anticipation of another Fed rate hike in November, Treasury yields rose. Inflation (high), unemployment (low), and growth (positive) data provided a cushion for policy makers wary of causing a…
Read MoreSeptember 2022
Summary Markets concluded a volatile third quarter with another negative month. The steady drumbeat of stubborn inflation, rising interest rates, and underwhelming earnings led to selloffs across risk assets. Many major indexes were plumbing new lows for the year by the close of September. Rhetoric was not encouraging, with the Federal Reserve remaining steadfastly committed…
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