Quarterly Commentary Q1 2022: Inflation, Interest, and Stocks
This report includes current and past portfolio returns and current positions as of March 31, 2022.
During the first quarter of 2022, the Russia-Ukraine conflict spurred additional supply chain, energy and strategic metals supply disruptions, further accentuating inflationary pressures.
(more…)Read MoreCybersecurity Threats and Best Practices
Cybercrime and fraud are serious threats that can compromise your identity, personal property, and assets. This criminal activity committed by hackers targets your computer, computer network or networked device in pursuit of digital information and fraudulent profits.
(more…)Read MoreUkraine Invasion and Financial Markets
Global markets appear to be responding in line to the risks associated with the Ukraine-Russia conflict. This assumes no recession, no widespread cyber warfare, no direct military conflict among great powers, and no major financial markets contagion. While unlikely, if any of these do occur, global stock markets and credit-sensitive fixed-income could decline noticeably from current levels.
(more…)Read MoreEconomic and Investment Outlook for 2022
This year we once again focus on the main questions investors are asking coming into 2022: Will the coronavirus be vanquished? What does this mean for people, businesses and investors? Secondarily, is inflation really transitory or longer-term? Are stock and bond markets overvalued?
Quarterly Commentary Q4 2021: Effects of Omicron on Portfolio Returns
Portfolio results for the last quarter of 2021 were characterized by widely divergent returns across various asset classes. The emergence of the more contagious Omicron coronavirus variant resulted in “recovery” and “value” stock sectors underperforming in the fourth quarter, after doing well earlier in the year. Small-cap and micro-cap U.S. stocks (Russell indices) returned 2.1% and lost 2.7%, respectively, over the last quarter. Conversely, growth stocks (S&P 1500 growth) did well with a 13.0% quarterly return. The growth-centric S&P 500 also had a strong quarterly return of 11.0%.
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