Historically, homeownership has been viewed as a conservative path to building wealth.  However, the recent housing bubble, that saw values peak in 2006 and not fully recover until some ten years later, gave pause to the idea that owning your home is the best option.  For most people, a home is both an investment and shelter.  … Continued

Week of March 18, 2024 Last week brought more troubling news (news, as in multiple cases of cause for concern) for the iconic plane maker, Boeing.  The stock price, trading near its 52 week low in an otherwise rising market, forces investors to take notice of how once dominant companies can so easily go off … Continued

Week of March 11, 2024 From the website www.goodreads.com: “We find that whole communities suddenly fix their minds upon one object, and go mad in its pursuit; that millions of people become simultaneously impressed with one delusion, and run after it, till their attention is caught by some new folly more captivating than the first.” … Continued

But you can’t make it drink.  This old proverb may be applicable to the current state of demand for electric vehicles (EVs).  After an initial surge of enthusiasm, fueled in part by Tesla’s success in the face of limited competition, unsustainable subsidies and strong initial demand by early adopters, realism seems to be setting in. … Continued

Week of March 4, 2024 On June 1, 2022, the CEO of Chase Bank – Jamie Dimon – warned employees of the bank to “brace yourself” for an economic hurricane.  This caused quite a stir among government policy makers, investors and consumers given the powerful role that the bank played – and plays – in … Continued

Week of February 26, 2024 Two noteworthy developments came into sharp focus last week with noteworthy, long-term, global repercussions. The first – the wonder called artificial intelligence (AI) as exemplified by the dramatic business success of Nvidia, the chipmaker powering AI and which announced its most recent financial results. The second – the death of … Continued

It is generally understood that most developed countries have, to varying degrees, problems with homelessness, labor shortages and immigration.  Governments, at all levels, have sought to find solutions, and many have considered some form of universal basic income.  We have discussed this in a series of blogs posted over the last several years. Ben Henwood, a … Continued

Week of February 19, 2024 The January 2024 PPI and CPI both came in hotter than expected, and the CPI gains were led by the 6% rise in shelter costs.  Paradoxically, the rise in interest rates engineered by the Fed to quell inflationary pressures, had the opposite effect as higher interest costs on mortgages of … Continued

According to Wikipedia, this is an aphorism which means insistence on perfection often prevents the implementation of good improvements.  It might seem that the administration’s pause on approvals of new LNG exporting projects, if not eventually withdrawn, may prove to be a good example of this. The pause, implemented under pressure from the climate lobby, … Continued

Week of February 12, 2024 We have changed our China Signal from Yellow to Red. The Shanghai Composite stock index is down by about 50% over the last three years. Geopolitical Futures, a global forecasting service, recently wrote that “Beijing will have to address … a much more potent challenge that affects its long-term economic … Continued

In light of the heightened interest in threats to international navigation, you might be interested in our blog “Freedom of the Seas” from May 2013. All comments and suggestions are welcome. Tamika Hall & Walter Kirchberger, CFA

Week of February 5, 2024 As US encounters with Iranian proxy militias – Hamas, Yemeni Houthis, and Hezbollah to name a few – have become more frequent, so too has the likelihood of a direct conflict with Iran, something the Biden Administration is trying to avoid.  The Houthis have made it more difficult and much more … Continued