A historic February
This will be a historic February in several ways. This month we will have four of every day of the week. That means in February there are four Mondays, four Tuesdays, four Wednesdays, and so on. This will not happen again for another 823 years. Also we are seeing historic economic growth trends both here and abroad.
Strong January US market
The US market was up in January. Typically, a positive January leads to a positive year. If the market goes down in February, that doesn’t mean it won’t go back up in later months and make up for it. Last January was historically the worst January ever. This year the market was down the last four trade days of January but that didn’t lead to a down month. There was enough market momentum to get us through those days.
Forward looking for economic growth
At the end of January we saw the Jobs report. In spite of the actual numbers, what we focus on is the wages attached to those jobs. In this way we are more forward looking than most of the data which is backwards looking. If people are making more money, they will spend more money which will lead to GDP growth. The wage growth was a little slow at 0.1% so we really haven’t seen the market lead to economic growth yet. We also have to keep in mind that, historically, the markets trade back in February. So far, February has been very strong.
Economic growth abroad
The past few months everyone has been focused on the US election. What has been ignored is economic growth overseas in Europe and Asia. Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, revealed his research which discovered that, in the past three years, China has used more cement than the US has used in the last one hundred years . This is just one way we are starting to see economic growth internationally as well as in the United States.
We hope this information helps you see that economic growth trends are alive and well. We will keep you updated in the coming weeks. You can also connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Keep sending us your comments and questions.
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Greg Powell, CIMA
President/CEO
Wealth Consultant
Email Greg Powell here
Bobby Norman, CFP®, AIF®
Senior Vice President
Wealth Consultant
Email Bobby Norman here
Trey Booth, CFA®, AIF®
Vice President
Senior Vice President
Email Trey Booth here
Fi Plan Partners is an independent investment firm in Birmingham, AL, serving clients across the nation through financial planning, wealth management and business consulting. Fi Plan Partners creates strategies in the best interest of their clients using both fee based investing and transactional investing.
The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. All performance referenced is historical and is no guarantee of future results. All indices are unmanaged and may not be invested into directly.
Economic forecasts set forth in this presentation may not develop as predicted.
No strategy can ensure success or protect against a loss.
Stock investing involves risk including potential loss of principal.
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