Posts by Scott Sarber, CEO | Sr. Wealth Advisor

The first half of 2023 has proven to be the highest performing half year for financial markets since 2018, which of course predates the economic, social, and political disruptions brought about by the COVID pandemic. Stocks extended their rally in the second quarter, being boosted by cooling inflation, the prospect of a shift in monetary…

The first quarter of 2023 both started and ended positive for global stocks, but there was some “excitement” along the way.  On March 8th, cryptocurrency bank Silvergate Capital announced it would wind down and liquidate its assets.  At the same time, Silicon Valley Bank experienced financing difficulties.  As a result, depositors became nervous and began…

Every year on New Year’s Day, I look at Google Trends and reflect on what people searched for during the year.  For me, it provides time to reflect on just how many things happened during the year, how fast topics of interest changed, and what kind of information people looked for.  In 2021, searches were dominated by…

The 3rd quarter of 2022 started out strong, with the S&P 500 Index climbing almost 15% from the end of June to the middle of August.  Then, the Federal Reserve indicated they might have to be more aggressive with interest rates to respond to the rising inflation numbers.  The markets around the globe took this as bad news…

The 2nd quarter of 2022 was mostly negative for stocks and bonds as the markets reacted to the highest inflation rates since the 1980s.  The Federal Reserve has responded to the rising inflation numbers by increasing the Federal Funds Rate by 0.5% in May, then another 0.75% in June to set the target rate between…

2022 has started out mostly negative for both the global stock and bond markets, as the economy responds to increasing prices and the conflict in Ukraine.  Rising prices started well before the Russia/Ukraine conflict as strong demand for products was met with a simultaneous shortage of supply for almost everything.  A simple economic concept illustrates that when quantity…

Every year on New Year’s Day, I look at Google Trends and reflect on what people searched for during the year.  For me, it gives me time to reflect on just how many things happened during the year, how fast topics of interest changed, and what kind of information people looked for.  It certainly does not come…

For the first time in over a year, the stock market seemed to pause from negative pressure. Inflation and interest rates are rising, there are continuous supply chain issues, the Federal Reserve has indicated it will taper their asset purchasing program, the nation is reaching the debt ceiling (imagine that), there are debates about how…

Not only has it been hot outside with temperatures well in excess of 100 degrees Fahrenheit here in the Tri-Cities, but the global stock markets have been pretty hot as well. The major stock indexes have continued to show positive rates of return as the economy continues to open and businesses increase production to meet…