August 30, 2021 In a speech last week, Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Jerome Powell confirmed that the United States economy has made substantial progress toward the Fed’s maximum employment and price stability goals. His words helped grow recent equity market returns and, consequently, the Fed is likely to slow, and eventually stop, the bond purchases

August 23, 2021 The Markets Last week, markets were shaken by a potent cocktail of central bank tapering and economic growth concerns – mixed with coronavirus and a splash of new Chinese privacy law. On Wednesday, the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee Meeting minutes were released. They confirmed the Fed could begin tapering –

U.S. GDP in June was nearly $23 trillion, a difficult number to comprehend. Twenty-three trillion dollars would cover Rhode Island, Delaware, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Jersey, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maryland, West Virginia, and part of South Carolina.

August 9, 2021 The Markets Are we there yet? For months, investors have wondered when the Federal Reserve (Fed) might begin to “normalize” its policies, a process that will, eventually, lead to higher interest rates. Last week, a better-than-expected unemployment report – showing a gain of almost a million jobs – sparked speculation about whether

August 2021 U.S. Markets Last month, the stock market posted a solid gain, overcoming investors’ fears of higher inflation and an increase in COVID-19 cases. The Dow Jones Industrial Average picked up 1.25 percent, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 2.27 percent. The Nasdaq lagged, climbing 1.16 percent. A Wall of Worry Climbing