Keep connected
Our investment management team is made up of engaged thought leaders. Get their latest commentary and stay informed of their frequent media interviews, all delivered to your inbox.
The stock market has continued to show gains so far in 2012 as investors have a greater sense of calm about the European situation and have also been encouraged by the strong economic data that continues to come out of the U.S. The world’s largest economy has been showing renewed vigor since last fall, just as investors fears about imploding global economic growth were reaching a crescendo due to the Euro-Zone financial crisis and it’s impact on China, given that a large percentage of their exports go to Europe. But you can’t keep the U.S. consumer down too long, and strength in retail sales, housing and employment have all lead to a resurgence in U.S. consumer confidence. With recovery apparent in the world’s largest economy, fears about global growth have receded. Recent corporate earnings reports were in line with expectations and still showed low double-digit year over year growth. Investors had braced for something more dour than that. On top of all this, there continues to be the commitment of central banks to keep interest rates low for an extended period of time and the fact that stock valuations are at historically low levels. Given that bearish sentiment among investors had been at record highs going into last fall, the reversal of these conditions seems to have given the stock market a decent ‘tailwind’ behind it this year.
(more…)