By no measure was 2022 a good year for investors. Looking into 2023, there are three issues that will impact the market: The Fed and Interest Rates, Ukraine/Russia/Energy, China/Supply Chains.
If you’ve ever planted and cared for trees, particularly fruit trees, you know that, in the initial years, the saplings require quite a bit of extra attention. Newly planted trees need lots of water until established, along with fertilizer and prudent trimming. Initially, trimming branches may weaken the tree, but it's important for the tree's long-term health. I view market corrections in the same light. Without periodic setbacks such as a correction or bear market, we would always be teetering on the edge of a bubble. Most of you who were investing in the early 2000s and during the 2008 financial crisis know when a bubble bursts, it is far more painful than an average correction.
Business owners have a great deal of responsibilities to contend with on a day-to-day basis. As a business owner myself, I can understand and appreciate the sometimes overwhelming list of tasks that need to be done. Among that list, usually somewhere near the bottom, is the process of setting up a retirement plan for yourself and your employees. Although setting up a plan does involve some work on the part of business owners, it does not necessarily need to be a time-consuming or expensive proposition.
When someone says “The Stock Market,” often the images that come to mind are screaming traders in blue jackets or a large mahogany desk perched atop the glass and steel of Wall Street’s skyscrapers. While everyone has a different image of the stock market, when gauging how well the market is doing, most investors think of the same two or three market indexes. The problem with using these popular indexes as the comparison is that investors are often much more diversified and conservative than these “benchmarks.”
I have heard and read arguments by very financially astute individuals that it is unnecessary to purchase life insurance on an infant because they do not produce an economic value. Another way of saying that is because the infant does not produce an income there is no loss of income to insure against. I believe that argument is completely and utterly ridiculous.
With two tough quarters, we are not sure what the third quarter will look like. However, we know there are three questions on everyone's mind: 1. Are we in a recession? (If not now, is one coming?) 2. When will inflation (specifically gas prices) come down? 3. How long will this market last?...
I can admit when I’m wrong… Sometimes. When it comes to digital assets and cryptocurrency, I’ll admit that a few years ago, I was pretty critical and skeptical. However, I have since changed my tune and have become an investor and perhaps even an enthusiast. I could give you many reasons for my previous skepticism, but it amounts to not knowing the asset class well enough.
We are facing a bump in the road right now, and I can feel anxiety and panic coming from some clients. I’m writing this today to hopefully relieve some of those emotions and explain what has happened in markets, why it has happened, and what FSG is doing. In addition, this past Monday, the 9th, Mark Carter and I recorded a video talking about many of the same things.