Posts by Scott Sarber, CEO | Sr. Wealth Advisor

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…

2021 has started out in a positive direction for global stocks as a large number of people have been vaccinated, the economy continues to open up, and additional government stimulus has been provided. Large companies represented by the S&P 500 Index gained 6.17% for the quarter. Small companies represented by the Russell 2000 increased 12.7%…

Global markets have continued to recover from the panic of the initial COVID-19 pandemic as the anticipated vacines begin to be distributed.  The U.S. presidential election seems to be finalized, and that is one less thing the markets have to be uncertain about.  Markets consider uncertainty as a risk factor, and the more uncertain things are, generally…

Global markets have continued to recover from the COVID-19 Pandemic.  Large companies represented by the S&P 500 Index have continued to outperform almost everything else and gained 8.93% for the quarter, and are up 5.57% YTD. Small companies represented by the Russell 2000 increased 4.93% for the quarter, but are still down 8.7% YTD.  International stocks represented…