According to Wikipedia, in the United Kingdom and in some other places, the “silly season” is the period lasting for a few summer months typified by the emergence of frivolous stories in the media.
In U.S. politics and life styles, the “silly season” is the period from early summer until the first week of October of election years.
Investors might consider that the silly season is already upon us and may continue until October of 2016, just before the next presidential election. There is a large field of presidential aspirants, particularly on the Republican side, and the list seems to be growing almost daily.
With some 20 contestants from both sides of the aisle, someone is saying something silly, stupid or just plain obtuse on a daily basis. In the absence of any hard news, much of this tends to be blown out of proportion by too much media with too little substance. Investors would be well advised to take all of this with the proverbial “grain of salt” and defer any material portfolio decisions.
All comments and suggestions are welcome.
Walter J. Kirchberger, CFA®