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Market Update – Forecast: Cloudy with Showers and Thunderstorms

Over the last several months, the U.S. equity markets have staged impressive rebounds to recoup most of the losses that occurred in late February and March.  After a peak-to-tough decline of approximately 37% for the Dow, 30% for the Nasdaq, and 34% for the S&P 500, the major indexes have rallied approximately 38%, 40%, and…

Market Update – Keep the Big Picture in Mind

Over the last several weeks we have seen a dramatic turn of events in the financial markets. After a relatively calm start to 2020, the current environment has been characterized by uncertainty, fear, nervousness, and high volatility surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak and its resultant impact on the economy and financial markets. Despite our best efforts…

Congratulations! Top Ranked Finish in CFA® Finance Forecasting Competition

Raskob Kambourian Financial Advisors would like to congratulate Phillip B. Kaiser, CFA, CMT, CFP® on his outstanding performance in the Financial Forecasting Challenge hosted by the CFA® Societies of the Western U.S. on the forecasting site Good Judgment® Open (www.gjopen.com).  The objective of the yearlong competition was to accurately predict the outcome of economic and…

Market Update – Let’s Make a Deal

When I was younger, one of my favorite activities during a sick day or school shutdown day was watching game shows on television.  I enjoyed the enthusiastic contestants, fun games, and high stakes on the line (high stakes for me at the time).  A couple of my favorite shows were Family Feud and The Price…

Market Update – Barbarians at the Gate

I was cleaning out my closet this weekend and happened to come across some old books. In addition to accounting and economics textbooks long forgotten, I came across some paperbacks spanning a range of business topics. Included in the mix was the book Barbarians at the Gate: The Fall of RJR Nabisco by Bryan Burrough…

Market Update – Between Scylla and Charybdis

It has been said there are two certainties in life: death and taxes.  These days another certainty can be added to the list: a reduction in the federal funds rate at the July Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting.  According to the CME Group’s FedWatch Tool, futures traders are pricing in a 100% probability that…

Market Update – Slowdown or Recession?

In recent months there has been much debate about whether the U.S. economy is heading for a recession. While there is no denying a slowdown is taking place, we believe the U.S. economy remains healthy and the probability of a recession is low. Our assessment is based on a review of the factors affecting the…

Market Update – Caution, Not Panic

Given the equity market volatility over the last several months, emotions are running high and there is a sense of panic in the air. After reaching all-time highs this year, the major U.S. equity market indexes have done an about face and have declined by double digit percentages from those peaks. The causes of the…

What Costs More?

Inflation has been pretty benign over the last 20 years, right?  The U.S. Consumer Price Index has ranged from negative 0.4% in 2009 to a high of 3.8% in the awful 2008 economic year.  In 13 of those 20 years, the CPI was below 2.5%, which is hardly comparable to the double-digit inflation rates that…

Market Update – Another Brick in the Wall

Bull markets climb a “wall of worry.”  The “wall of worry” consists of various fears and challenges that either alone or in conjunction with each other would seemingly bring an end to a bull market.  After a relatively tranquil 2017, this year has been characterized by numerous fears and challenges.  Fears surrounding trade and tariffs,…

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