We have received a number of questions from clients on what we can expect with the new Administration in Washington. Potential tax increases have been the number one question from clients over the past week. We see fiscal stimulus coming in two parts, with the first package focused on income replacement which can pass by the end of February. The second package, which will likely be considered mid-year, is a more complicated legislative vehicle, focused on long-term structural changes to the US e… View More
After one of the craziest weeks I can ever remember, Equity markets surged higher on expectations that Washington DC is poised to deliver more financial stimulus. The Senate runoff races in Georgia were both won by Democrats and they have been promising $2000 stimulus checks to a large portion of the U.S. population. As a result, inflation expectations and a potential rise in economic activity fueled the S&P 500 index to a 1.59% gain last week. Cyclicals led the way as Energy, Materials, and… View More
Happy New Year! As 2021 gets underway, we want to start this morning by highlighting just how rare last year’s price action was. The March S&P low (2192) undercut the prior year’s low (2444), and last week’s year-end close (3756) was above the prior year’s high (3248)… we can find only 3 other examples in the last 90+ years where such is also the case (1935, 1982, and 2016). While hardly a robust sample, the S&P was up double-digits in the year following these past observation… View More
Treasury Yields dropped slightly over the course of the week on increased Covid-19 worries. On Monday, a reported more transmissible mutation of the novel coronavirus in the United Kingdom led to further lockdowns in the country and concerns across the world that the pandemic would worsen. Governments across Europe were closing travel from the U.K. due to the new strain, but France did say they would open their borders for those who have tested negative. However, experts still believe that the v… View More
There is plenty of weaker global news, including a new lockdown in London this weekend. A package of weaker economic data looks to have finally broken the stalemate on U.S. fiscal policy. Additional stimulus from D.C. appears imminent, sizeable, and front-end loaded for 2021. We’ve revised up our near-term U.S. real GDP estimate, including moving 1Q into positive territory (+3.0% q/q A.R.), and continue to look for an economic surge by mid-2021. The “19” in COVID-19 stands for 2019, markin… View More