Weekly Market Commentary December 15, 2014 The Markets Ouch! It was no fun to be an investor last week. The week prior, a commentary in The Wall Street Journal’s blog, MoneyBeat, offered this insight: “Falling oil prices are thought to be good for stocks because they stimulate consumer spending and hold down inflation. The lower costs support economic growth, boost corporate earnings, and lessen pressure on the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates. The stock market loves that mix.” That was not the case last week. A selling spree, sparked in part by concerns related to energy, led to virtually every major world stock index (every one that Barron’s follows, anyway) moving lower. The single exception was the Shanghai Composite and that was flat. It seems the International Energy Agency’s prediction that demand for energy would grow more slowly in 2015, combined with the fact supply of some resources has been growing, addled investors and they sold everything but the kitchen sink. Even industries that may be helped by lower energy costs – consumer goods, consumer services, health care, and others – lost value. In the United States, stock markets delivered their worst performance in more than three years, according to Barron’s. Have investors lost sight of the fact the United States has a consumption-driven economy? The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis reported personal consumption – how much Americans are spending on goods and services – was 70 percent of gross domestic product (the value of all goods and services produced) in the United States during the third quarter of 2014. Lower energy prices tend to put more money in the pockets of consumers so they can spend more and that can help the economy grow. In fact, U.S. News reported, “…approximately every penny decline in the price of a gallon of gasoline translates to about $1 billion in additional disposable income for American households.” It’s interesting to note consumers – a group that overlaps with investors in a Venn diagram – are more confident than they have been in almost eight years, according to data released by the University of Michigan and cited by Barron’s. WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD? The good news is most analysts expect economic growth in the United States to continue. The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, The Federal Reserve, and the International Monetary Fund all have forecast gross domestic product growth in the United States at 2.5 to 3.0 percent for 2015. That’s not quite as good as the 7 percent growth forecast for China or the 6.5 percent growth estimated for India, but it’s decent for a developed nation with a mature economy. There are factors that could hurt the economic outlook in the United States. Economists participating in The Wall Street Journal’s Economic Forecasting Survey said a negative global event was the biggest threat to U.S. economic growth followed by slower global growth. Three of the risks The Economist believes could keep companies from operating at target profitability during 2015 include: • Deflation in the Eurozone: “A Japanese-style stagnation in the euro zone would have profoundly negative implications for global demand, especially at a time when growth in the emerging markets is also softening.” • Spillover from Syria’s Civil War: “…The prospect of [ISIS] diverting its energies from Iraq and into Syria and its neighbors (such as Lebanon and Jordan) could prompt an uptick in oils political risk premium once more.” • Escalation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict: “…The recently imposed trade restrictions have not only plunged Russia into recession, but also contributed to sinking industrial output in Germany… further sanctions could see Russia cutting off natural gas sales to Ukraine or the European Union (as is currently already reportedly occurring with supplies to Poland)… [these acts] would no doubt have a deleterious impact on the [Euro] regions economic recovery.” There are also factors that could improve the outlook. The Wall Street Journal’s survey found economists believe tightening labor markets, higher wages, better consumer spending, and low energy prices could support U.S. economic growth during 2015. Weekly Focus – Think About It “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of individual stars in the world, but if they dont play together, the club wont be worth a dime. --Babe Ruth, American baseball player Best regards, Mac Miller Robyn Walker P.S. Please feel free to forward this commentary to family, friends, or colleagues. If you would like us to add them to the list, please reply to this e-mail with their e-mail address and we will ask for their permission to be added. Securities offered through LPL Financial, Member FINRA/SIPC. * * This newsletter was prepared by Peak Advisor Alliance. Peak Advisor Alliance is not affiliated with the named broker/dealer. * Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the monetary value of all the finished goods and services produced within a country’s borders in a specific time period, through GDP is usually calculated on an annual basis. It includes all of private and public consumption, government outlays, investments and exports less imports that occur within a defined territory.. * The Standard & Poors 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities considered to be representative of the stock market in general. * The DJ Global ex US is an unmanaged group of non-U.S. securities designed to reflect the performance of the global equity securities that have readily available prices. * The 10-year Treasury Note represents debt owed by the United States Treasury to the public. Since the U.S. Government is seen as a risk-free borrower, investors use the 10-year Treasury Note as a benchmark for the long-term bond market. * Gold represents the London afternoon gold price fix as reported by the London Bullion Market Association. * The DJ Commodity Index is designed to be a highly liquid and diversified benchmark for the commodity futures market. The Index is composed of futures contracts on 19 physical commodities and was launched on July 14, 1998. * The DJ Equity All REIT TR Index measures the total return performance of the equity subcategory of the Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) industry as calculated by Dow Jones. * Yahoo! Finance is the source for any reference to the performance of an index between two specific periods. * Opinions expressed are subject to change without notice and are not intended as investment advice or to predict future performance. * Past performance does not guarantee future results. * You cannot invest directly in an index. * Consult your financial professional before making any investment decision. * To unsubscribe from the Weekly Market Commentary, please click here, or write us at 2660 Electric Rd, Suite C, Roanoke, VA 24018. Sources: blogs.wsj/moneybeat/2014/12/08/falling-oil-prices-the-good-and-the-bad/ (or go to peakclassic.peakadvisoralliance/app/webroot/custom/editor/12-15-14_WSJ-Falling_Oil_Prices-The_Good_and_the_Bad-Footnote_1.pdf) online.barrons/articles/markets-plunge-as-oil-panic-spreads-1418444287?mod=BOL_hp_we_columns (or go to peakclassic.peakadvisoralliance/app/webroot/custom/editor/12-15-14_Barrons-Markets_Plunge_as_Oil_Panic_Spreads-Footnote_2.pdf) online.barrons/mdc/public/page/9_3063-economicCalendar.html (Click on “U.S. & Intl Recaps,” then “Equities fall on oil’s slippery slope”) (or go to peakclassic.peakadvisoralliance/app/webroot/custom/editor/12-15-14_Barrons-Equities_Fall_on_Oils_Slippery_Slope-Footnote_3.pdf) research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/graph/?g=hh3 usnews/news/articles/2014/10/14/cheaper-gas-means-not-so-cheap-consumer projects.wsj/econforecast/#qa=1418236930332 economist/news/economic-and-financial-indicators/21636055-output-prices-and-jobs (or go to peakclassic.peakadvisoralliance/app/webroot/custom/editor/12-15-14_TheEconomist-Output_Prices_and_Jobs-Footnote_7.pdf) ny.frb.org/newsevents/speeches/2014/dud141201.html imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2014/update/02/ wsj/articles/economists-see-strong-growth-in-2015-1418321062?mod=rss_economy (or go to peakclassic.peakadvisoralliance/app/webroot/custom/editor/12-15-14_WSJ-Economists_See_Stronger_Growth_in_2015-Footnote_10.pdf) gfs.eiu/Article.aspx?articleType=gr&articleid=2622 gfs.eiu/Article.aspx?articleType=gr&articleid=2623 gfs.eiu/Article.aspx?articleType=gr&articleid=2624 brainyquote/quotes/quotes/b/baberuth125974.html?src=t_sports Important Attachments Market_Commentary_12-15-14_PAA Market_Commentary_12-15-14_PAA.doc Robyn Walker LPL Financial 2660 Electric Road, Suite C, Roanoke, VA 24018-3530 Map office: (540) 345-5200 robyn.walker@lpl
Posted on: Mon, 15 Dec 2014 18:21:42 +0000
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