Mountain Money Blog
The market’s first quarter performance (S&P 500 Index down 4.3%; globally diversified balanced portfolios down less than 1%) have taken a back seat next to what happened in the following week. Trade War Erupts But the big news happened after the end of the quarter, on Wednesday April 2 (so called “Liberation Day”), when President […]
Unless you live under a rock, you couldn’t help but notice that the US equity market has taken a beating in the last few weeks. As of this writing, the S&P 500 (total return) Index is down 8% in the last month and 5% year-to-date. The hardest hit stocks have been the previously market leading […]
The S&P 500 (total return) Index rose 25% in 2024. That came on the heels of a 24% gain in 2023. Resulting in the best consecutive two-year increase since 1997/1998 – the heart of what turned out to be the tech bubble. US Large Cap stocks trounced every other asset class. (Except for maybe Bitcoin […]
Despite an 8.5% swoon at the end of July and into August, the S&P 500 (Total Return) Index gained 5.89% in the 3rd quarter and is ahead by 22.08% for the year. Almost every asset class has been in on the action. Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) gained 16% for the quarter, fueled in large […]
The investing year is half over – and at least half full. The S&P 500 (Total Return) Index gained 4.28 % in the second quarter on top of the first quarter’s 10.56 % increase; bringing the gain for the first half to 15.29 %. Once again, the market was led by large cap technology stocks […]
During Donald Trump’s first year in office, Congress passed the Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA). It was the broadest tax package in decades. Due to an obscure Senate rule most comprehensive changes to the tax code expire – or “Sunset” – after ten years. Astonishingly, the TCJA is due to expire on […]
For the most part, 2024’s first quarter markets performed exceptionally well. The S&P 500 (Total Return) Index gained 10.56% — on the heels of 2023’s stellar gain of 26.29% The market continues to be led by high tech growth stocks; contributing further to concentration and overweight in highly valued companies. But not by as wide […]
2023 began on the heels of one of the worst years both stock and bond markets have seen. Here is a bleak reminder: Beginning in March of 2022, to combat rising inflation, the Fed hiked interest rates seven times. By October of this year the 10-year Treasury yield had topped 5% for the first time […]
The first half stock market rally stalled in the 3rd quarter. The S&P 500 (Total Return) Index fell 3.27%, reducing its YTD return to 13.07%. Overall, value stocks continue to underperform. But lost less (1.91%) than growth stocks in the quarter. Overseas, developed market stocks lost 3.8%, while emerging markets fell 1.54% Commodities gained 4.71% […]
Led by a handful of big technology stocks (and defying most expectations), the S&P 500 (Total Return) Index gained 8.74% in the quarter and is up 16.89% YTD. These gains have led socks into “bull market” territory – up 20% from its previous low reached on October 14, 2022. Large Growth is up a whopping […]
