Weekly Market RecapManufacturing data for July was positive for both the US and Europe, although sluggish in Japan. In the housing market, US new home sales surged for July while sales of existing homes were soft. US jobless claims continued to point to a strong employment market. The latest estimate for US Q2 GDP growth came in at 1.1% annualized. The markets have experienced low volatility in past weeks. This means that there have been less sharply up or down movements in July/August thus far than we typically see over this time period. Of course, short term market direction can be hard, if not impossible, to gauge and we don't claim to have a crystal ball. However, longer term, over decades, the markets tend to be more predictable, in our view. Historically, well-diversified portfolios have seen robust returns when looked at over decades. Nonetheless, what appears to be steady growth over many years becomes more volatile when you zoom in to the daily price movements. We believe the important thing to focus on as a long-term investor is not the day-to-day noise and accompanying media commentary, but the overall long-term trend. Historically, that has been favorable for the patient investor. Disclaimer: Your Portfolio Update
Over the past month your portfolio was up 0.2%, and we have no recommendations at this time to improve it. Congratulations on maintaining one of the best portfolios among all our clients. We will, as always, continue monitoring your account and alerting you if there are actions to take (periodic rebalancing is required, etc). Ways To Improve Your Portfolio
* All amounts are as of the sent date of this email | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Saturday, August 27, 2016
Your portfolio up 0.2% over the last 30 days as volatility stays low
Saturday, August 20, 2016
Your portfolio up 1.4% over the last 30 days as industrial production picks up
Weekly Market RecapUS data for July showed strong industrial production and housing activity, with relatively soft inflation. US employment data for August continued to signal a very healthy labor market. Notes released this week from the US Federal Reserve's meeting held in July suggested continuing gradual, but data dependent, increases in the US federal funds rate. Internationally, German economic survey data for August was positive and UK employment data for July was robust. A quick overview of how automatic rebalancing helps portfolio's managed as part of our Premium service. If left unchecked most portfolios can drift away from their goals as assets prices move, rebalancing is a way to correct this. At FutureAdvisor we assess Premium portfolios every day that the markets are open to gauge rebalancing opportunities and keep your portfolio on course in terms of its risk and return characteristics. Of course, too much rebalancing can add costs. On top of any trade fees, trading daily can carry hidden costs such as bid/ask spreads and potentially higher taxation. That's why our algorithm weighs the expected benefits of rebalancing against the total anticipated costs of any trading activity. We believe this is a task algorithms can do better than humans. The key thing for you to know is that we're constantly looking for appropriate opportunities to keep portfolios on track, and trading off the costs and benefits of doing so. Notes: Disclaimer: Your Portfolio Update
Over the past month your portfolio was up 1.4%, and we have no recommendations at this time to improve it. Congratulations on maintaining one of the best portfolios among all our clients. We will, as always, continue monitoring your account and alerting you if there are actions to take (periodic rebalancing is required, etc). Ways To Improve Your Portfolio
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Friday, August 19, 2016
Fwd: What one word can change the context of a will or trust?
From: 7 Figure Advisor <michael@7figureadvisor.com>
Date: Thu, Aug 4, 2016 at 11:10 AM
Subject: What one word can change the context of a will or trust?
To: <mrpiebald@gmail.com>
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Saturday, August 13, 2016
Your portfolio up 1.5% over the last 30 days as US markets make new highs
Weekly Market RecapUS labor productivity was soft for Q2, potentially a result of low business investment, which has been a weaker area in the current economic cycle. However, this recovery has had its strong points, notably the employment situation as this week's job openings report demonstrated. Mortgage applications numbers this week pointing to a stronger housing market. We wanted to take some time this week to talk about how we view cash holdings in investment portfolios. Generally, we recommend keeping cash balances low within investment accounts as cash has historically been a poor long-term investment. While cash may appear stable, its value is slowly eaten away by inflation (rising prices) by around 2% a year based on data from recent decades of US history. This results in the nominal rate of return being lower than the actual, or real rate of return being achieved. This apparently small annual impact adds up over time. For example, a dollar in 2016 purchases about 29% less than it did in 2000. The historically slow, but steady, rise in prices over time makes cash worth less in terms of what it can purchase. To put this in perspective, you can think about the cost of a gallon of gas, or the cost of a postage stamp, when you were a child. Likely, both of those prices have risen significantly, while money kept in cash would have remained the same. Therefore the impression that cash appears stable can be misleading. The value of cash in terms of purchasing power tends to slowly decline. Investments such as stocks and bonds can have more significant ups and downs in the shorter term, but historically have delivered returns superior to holding cash over most multi-year periods, particularly when held in combination. This is why we generally avoid material cash allocations for portfolios. In an effort to protect a portfolio, we don't view moving investments to cash as a robust strategy. Disclaimer: Your Portfolio Update
Over the past month your portfolio was up 1.5%, and we have no recommendations at this time to improve it. Congratulations on maintaining one of the best portfolios among all our clients. We will, as always, continue monitoring your account and alerting you if there are actions to take (periodic rebalancing is required, etc). Ways To Improve Your Portfolio
* All amounts are as of the sent date of this email If you wish to change your email settings, visit your Settings. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Saturday, August 6, 2016
Your portfolio up 4.0% over the last 30 days as UK cuts interest rates
Weekly Market RecapManufacturing survey data for July released this week appeared robust for the US, China, and the EU; but mixed for Japan and weak for the UK. The Bank of England cut interest rates and announced other measures to support the UK economy, in a reaction to expected weaker growth post-Brexit. The Reserve Bank of Australia also lowered interest rates, primarily to help spur growth. In the US, jobs data was robust and vehicle sales for July were strong. Oil prices temporarily dipped below $40 this week for the first time since April. A reminder this week on the importance of sector diversification. We often discuss how diversification by country and asset class can help your portfolio. This is valuable for sectors as well, and stock-diversification across multiple sectors can also help smooth returns. For reference, sectors are groups of stocks operating in the same industry. For example, over the past 12 months, technology, utilities, and consumer staples have been the best performing sectors within the S&P 500. On the other hand, financial firms and energy producers have lagged. If you pick stocks, you have the risk of picking the wrong stock, and you also have the risk of unbalanced sector exposure. Thus, holding sectors in combination, such as by tracking a broad stock market index, can smooth your returns over time. Notes: Disclaimer: Your Portfolio Update
Over the past month your portfolio was up 4.0%, and we have no recommendations at this time to improve it. Congratulations on maintaining one of the best portfolios among all our clients. We will, as always, continue monitoring your account and alerting you if there are actions to take (periodic rebalancing is required, etc). Ways To Improve Your Portfolio
* All amounts are as of the sent date of this email If you wish to change your email settings, visit your Settings. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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