by Mark Chandik | Mar 5, 2024
Weekly Market Commentary What is consumer spending? Loosely defined, consumer spending is the ‘stuff’ we buy. It is the goods and services we purchase. It is groceries, clothes, entertainment, health care, auto repair, insurance, appliances, utilities, wireless...
by Mark Chandik | Feb 20, 2024
Weekly Market Commentary The road to price stability was never expected to be a straight line. The latest numbers show that the road isn’t even paved. Investors hit an unexpected pothole after the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported January’s Consumer...
by Mark Chandik | Jan 22, 2024
Weekly Market Commentary Economists have been warning for quite some time that Fed rate hikes will slow economic growth. Whether it results in a soft landing, which is the preferred outcome for investors, or a hard landing (recession), the rate hikes would be expected...
by Mark Chandik | Jan 16, 2024
Weekly Market Commentary Investors eagerly anticipate the government’s monthly release of the CPI (Consumer Price Index). Why? Inflation affects everyone, and investors are no exception. The Federal Reserve’s efforts to curb inflation led to a bear market in 2022....
by Mark Chandik | Dec 28, 2023
Weekly Market Commentary Mortgage rates have soared, and home sales are down sharply. Conventional wisdom would suggest that prices should be down. But housing prices have defied expectations, rising to record heights and locking first-time buyers out of the market....
by Mark Chandik | Dec 18, 2023
Weekly Market Commentary The meeting held by the Federal Reserve last week was the most consequential gathering of central bankers this year. The Fed held the fed funds rate at 5.25 – 5.50% as expected, but in so many words, the Fed pivoted on its rate stance. No...
