Posted by: thepinetree on 09/16/2010 05:10 PM
Updated by: thepinetree on 09/16/2010 10:51 PM
Expires: 01/01/2015 12:00 AM
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Weekly Market Update Week of September 13, 2010~by Donna M. Stevenson of Pacific West Financial Group
Copperopolis, CA...THE MARKETS: After taking one giant step back on Tuesday followed by three baby steps forward on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, U.S. stocks managed to rise into positive territory for the second straight week. Although September is traditionally the worst performing month of the year for equities, stocks have been on the mend so far as reports on the labor market, manufacturing, and business activity have been better than expected. Recent economic reports are confirming that while the rate of economic recovery has slowed, it's still on a positive trajectory...
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The President also agrees with this sentiment as expressed by his words Friday at a nationally televised news conference. "While the economy is growing again...the hole in the recession left was huge and progress has been painfully slow," he said. Over the last week, Obama has rolled out a series of new proposals, including a six-year, $50 billion plan to rehabilitate the nation's transportation infrastructure and provide jobs. He also called for federal income tax rates to return to their pre-Bush levels for the 2-3% of Americans who earn more than $250,000 – a move that will bring in $700 billion to the US treasury, Obama said. Critics argue that while $700 billion is a hefty sum, it is hardly enough to close the fiscal gap, and is likely to do more harm than good as the nation’s highest income earners curtail their spending.
In the week ahead, readings on retail sales, industrial production, jobless claims, and consumer prices should help give direction to the markets. And with November elections fast approaching, politics are also in play. Currently, all three indexes are hovering around what analysts consider to be key levels, and are likely to meet continued resistance until more economic numbers come in positive. At this point, most people accept that the recovery is going to be slower than expected. What they are looking for is further confirmation that it is expanding rather than contracting.
Key things to watch this week:
Monday – Treasury Budget
Tuesday – Retail Sales, Business Inventories
Wednesday – Industrial Production, Empire State Manufacturing Survey
Thursday – Producer Price Index, Jobless Claims, Philadelphia Fed Survey
Friday – Consumer Price Index, Consumer Sentiment
Notes: All index returns exclude reinvested dividends, and the 5-year and 10-year returns are annualized. Sources: Yahoo! Finance, Google Finance, Barron’s, djindexes.com, MSCI Barra. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Indices are unmanaged and cannot be invested into directly. N/A means not available.
HEADLINES:
The Greek government is planning no new austerity measures as part of efforts to pull the country out of debt and might even exit international supervision earlier than expected, the prime minister said Sunday. George Papandreou said Greece was on track to meet targets for reducing its deficit by nearly 40% this year.
China's major economic indicators picked up in August after slowing for several months, data issued over the weekend show, an unexpected rebound that could help prospects for global growth.
Michael Barr, assistant treasury secretary for financial institutions, and Edward DeMarco, acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency will testify on Capitol Hill next week on the future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Barr and DeMarco will appear before the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets on September 15.
Work on the ultimate seal of BP's troubled gulf oil well will begin sooner than expected, officials said Friday. The 'bottom kill' procedure, in which the well is filled with mud and cement, will start this weekend – closing for good the well that spewed 4.9 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.
Donald Trump offered Friday to purchase the site of the proposed mosque near Ground Zero in order to end the national controversy. His bid includes $4.8 million, the amount that businessman Hisham Elzanaty paid for the two-building site, plus a 25% premium. But Elzanaty's lawyer, Wolodymyr Starosolsky, blasted the offer as a publicity stunt and told The Post that his client "found this letter somewhat laughable."
QUOTE OF THE WEEK:
“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
RECIPE OF THE WEEK:
Spicy Shrimp Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients:
1/2 cup picante Sauce
1 tbsp. lime juice
1 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 tsp. minced fresh ginger root
1/8 tsp. garlic powder or 1 small clove garlic, minced
1 lb. cooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 medium carrots, shredded (about 1/2 cup)
12 lettuce leaves
Directions:
1. Stir the picante sauce, lime juice, cilantro, ginger root and garlic in a medium bowl. Add the shrimp and carrots and toss to coat.
2. Dip the lettuce leaves briefly into hot water to soften. Dip the lettuce leaves into cold water and drain them on paper towels. Spoon 1/4 cup of the shrimp mixture into the center of each lettuce leaf. Fold the lettuce leaves around the filling. Secure with toothpicks, if desired.
GOLF TIP OF THE WEEK:
Grip Check
After you have hit the ball, can you bring your club back down from your follow-through position and address another ball without readjusting your grip? If you can't hit the next ball without resetting your hands, then your grip is less than it could be. Ben Hogan could hit dozens of successful shots in a row without ever regripping or even readjusting his fingers. A good grip ideally provides a constant and stable connection to the golf club. Genuine accuracy and consistency are not possible with a fluid, flimsy grip.
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Securities offered through Pacific West Securities, Inc. Member FINRA/SIPC.
Sources:
Marketwatch
The Wall Street Journal Online
Barrons
CNN Money
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=11616036
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703897204575487350817633606.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6893KR20100910
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/sep/11/nation/la-na-oil-spill-20100911
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/trump_offers_to_buy_zero_site_aB9wuDb1z1bICX6Zb3IAUN
Investing involves risk including the potential loss of principal. No investment strategy can guarantee a profit or protect against loss in periods of declining values.
The Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities considered to be representative of the stock market in general.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a price-weighted average of 30 significant stocks traded on the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq. The DJIA was invented by Charles Dow back in 1896.
The MSCI EAFE Index was created by Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) that serves as a benchmark of the performance in major international equity markets as represented by 21 major MSCI indexes from Europe, Australia and Southeast Asia.
The 10-year Treasury Note represents debt owed by the United States Treasury to the public. Since the U.S. Government is seen as a risk-free borrower, investors use the 10-year Treasury Note as a benchmark for the long-term bond market.
Google Finance is the source for any reference to the performance of an index between two specific periods.
Opinions expressed are subject to change without notice and are not intended as investment advice or to predict future performance.
Past performance does not guarantee future results.
You cannot invest directly in an index.
Consult your financial professional before making any investment decision.
These are the views of Platinum Advisor Marketing Strategies, LLC, and not necessarily those of the named representative or named Broker dealer, and should not be construed as investment advice. Neither the named representative nor the named Broker dealer gives tax or legal advice. All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however, we make no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. Please consult your financial advisor for further information.
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