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@theMarket: Fed Backs Away from More Interest Rate Cuts
By Bill Schmick,
10:45AM / Saturday, December 21, 2024
The Federal Open Market Committee cut interest rates again on Wednesday and reduced the number of interest rate cuts next year. That decision dismayed investors and triggered a run for the exits in the stock market. Will this government Grinch decision ruin the chances of a Santa Claus rally?   Wall Street labeled the central bank move a "hawkish cut." Prior to the meeting, most investors were expecting that the Fed would pause after this month's rate cut of 25 basis points. Given that events unfolded as expected, why did the Dow lose over 1,000 points in two hours?   Inflation is the short answer. You may recall in last week's column I

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@theMarket: Stocks Shrug Off Rising Inflation
By Bill Schmick,
11:40AM / Saturday, December 14, 2024
New highs continue as equities ignore the inflation data and focus instead on the prospects of the next administration. Wall Street consensus is that the upside in stocks should continue at least until the new year.   As a contrarian investor, I often disagree with the consensus view but not this time. Last week I explained how global money flows usually support the markets and create the Santa Claus rally. This period of good cheer and higher prices should extend into mid-January.   This week, the most recent data on inflation confirmed my fears that we have not seen a bottom in inflation. Back in September, I predicted that inflation would begin to rise again,

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@theMarket: The Santa Claus Rally and Money Flows
By Bill Schmick,
03:49PM / Friday, December 06, 2024
Each year from roughly the end of the second week of December through the second week in January the stock market rises most of the time. This year, expect a similar occurrence.   There are plenty of explanations for why this occurs. Many believe it is simply the good cheer the holidays bring to the markets. Others point to the additional spending triggered by holiday shopping, while some argue it is because institutional investors buy stocks before going on their Christmas break.    For me, it comes down to the flow of funds in and out of financial markets. Every year, for many reasons the flow of funds into the financial markets increases at the end and

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@theMarket: Holiday Cheer Lead Stocks Higher
By Bill Schmick,
03:49PM / Friday, November 29, 2024
Scott Bessant at Treasury, threats of day-one tariffs on trading partners, and calls for another end-of-year rally buoyed markets. It is a seasonally bullish time for the equity markets with Christmas around the corner.   By now, you have probably heard that hedge fund manager Bessant will take the reins at the U.S. Treasury in January. Markets cheered that news. Most market participants believe Bessant is the man best suited for that post. Investors hope he will be market-friendly and a voice of moderation in the new Trump administration.   But before Bessant or anyone else gets carried away with the idea that Trump has lost that loving feeling he has for

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@theMarket: Stocks Should Climb into Thanksgiving
By Bill Schmick,
01:57PM / Friday, November 22, 2024
Last week, traders made profits from the Trump trade. This week they reversed their positions. I expect further upside into the Thanksgiving holiday.   The market's performance was even more impressive considering the disappointing earnings from the number one AI player, Nvidia. The semiconductor giant reported stellar third-quarter earnings this week, but they were just not good enough to keep the stock's upside price momentum going.   Company management said supply chain issues reduced the growth rate in sales to the slowest in seven quarters. All that means, in my opinion, is that revenue will be boosted down the road when the bottlenecks are

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