According to Investopedia, “all stocks around the world tend to rise in the long term.” They cite as evidence the performance of major common stock averages for a wide range of developed countries over the last 100 years. For example, selected data for U.S. markets point to a 10.2% average return for the S&P 500 … Continued
Nearly everyone agrees that job growth is essential to economic progress. Those who want something, from voters (votes) and/or government (tax breaks and other subsidies), tend to buttress their arguments with the promise of new jobs. Be careful, new jobs aren’t always “net” new jobs. Investors and taxpayers might want to take a closer look … Continued
A minimum wage is the lowest remuneration that employers can legally pay workers, a concept that remains controversial. Proponents tend to argue that increasing the minimum wage reduces poverty, while opponents believe that increases in the minimum wage reduce employment opportunities. This debate continues and is unlikely to be resolved. The federal minimum wage of … Continued
This concept was the basis for the statement “a rising tide lifts all boats” which, according to Wikipedia, is the idea that an improving economy will benefit all participants, and that economic policy, particularly government economic policy, should focus on broad economic efforts. The phrase is commonly attributed to John F. Kennedy, who used it … Continued
The day after the election, the S&P 500 index rallied about 2.2%. If you had $100,000 invested in the S&P 500 index, your portfolio would have appreciated $2,200 on that day. On the other hand, the yield for a current 5-year brokerage CD is 0.5%. If you invest $100,000 in this CD, the total return … Continued
In our blog of 9 Oct 2020, (Productivity: The Key to Economic Growth), we commented on the importance of productivity, defined as economic benefit per worker. Historically, the U.S. has done a relatively good job regarding productivity. Moreover the increasing adoption of direct human/robotic interaction, as discussed in our blog of 15 Oct 2020, (Cobots), … Continued
Copyright © 2024 - Sigma Investment Counselors