2017 will go down in the record books as a “bull market” year. The bulls took charge the day after election day, keeping the bears on the defensive throughout 2017. After a prolonged period of sluggish growth, 2017 was marked by synchronized global expansion across all major economies. Every major index, whether representing stocks, bonds or commodities recorded a positive return for the fourth quarter. As we noted all year in our quarterly summaries, the steady advance of stock markets and modestly positive bond market returns resulted in a favorable environment for well diversified portfolios.
For much of the year, improving economic fundamentals fueled bullish sentiment, sparking 71 closing daily highs for the Dow – READ ON