Sometimes boring is good!

Please take a minute to watch me try and spice up a very boring video which provides an economic update. As you’ll hear in the video, sometimes boring is a good thing, especially after the historically tumultuous December and January we witnessed in the markets.

In terms of the status quo moving forward, essentially both the global and US economies are poised for slow and steady growth barring a black flag political event. Arguably the most decisive reason for this slower growth rate is that we’ve seen in these weeks leading up to the Masters at Augusta National, the US Federal Reserve has decided to work on its golf game instead of raising interest rates 😉 Their very patient approach to raising interest rates as of late (1/3 the historical pace) has helped allow our late cycle expansion economy to continue its trend upwards.

Please see https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.foxbusiness.com/markets/dow-sp-500-having-worst-month-since-1931-as-grinch-hits-wall-st.amp and https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cnbc.com/amp/2019/01/31/the-best-january-in-30-years-could-mean-good-things-for-the-stock-market-in-2019.html in reference to the video statements regarding December  2018 and January 2019 market comparisons across the history of the markets.

The information contained in this report does not purport to be a complete description of the securities, markets, or developments referred to in this material. The information has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but we do not guarantee that the foregoing material is accurate or complete. Any opinions are those of Beth Kraszewski and not necessarily those of Raymond James. Expressions of opinion are as of this date and are subject to change without notice. There is no guarantee that these statements, opinions or forecasts provided herein will prove to be correct. Investing involves risk and you may incur a profit or loss regardless of strategy selected. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Future investment performance cannot be guaranteed, investment yields will fluctuate with market conditions. There is an inverse relationship between interest rate movements and fixed income prices. Generally, when interest rates rise, fixed income prices fall and when interest rates fall, fixed income prices rise. International investing involves special risks, including currency fluctuations, differing financial accounting standards, and possible political and economic volatility.