Client Event September 28th:
Spaces are filling up quickly for this year’s client event on Thursday, September 28th at the Jones Assembly in downtown Oklahoma City. Be sure to call us today or email Chris if you have not yet done so in order to reserve your spot at our upcoming event. Space is limited so call now to be sure you won’t miss out on this year’s event at one of Oklahoma City’s new premier venues. Call: 405-844-9826 or email: chrisjurrens@figfinancial.com
Markets Look Past North Korea, Hurricane Impact
Shrugging off another North Korean missile launch over Japan, the Dow Jones Industrials1 and the broader-based S&P 500 Index3 both finished last week higher and have continued to do the same so far this week. The Dow closed at 22,370.80 as of 09/19/17, while the S&P 500 stood at 2,506.65, up 11.67% year-to-date. (Google Finance)
It’s not that North Korea’s provocative actions aren’t unsettling. They are. But without a significant escalation in tensions, investors haven’t been expressing much concern. Case in point, Friday’s higher closing followed the late Thursday missile test. The same might be said of the recent impact of Hurricane Harvey (and presumably September’s landfall of Hurricane Irma) on the economic data.
Weekly initial claims for unemployment insurance surged (Dept. of Labor) in the wake of Harvey. We would suspect those left unemployed by Irma will soon file, keeping claims elevated, at least temporarily.
We are also seeing an impact on industrial production, which fell 0.9% in August, the biggest decline since May 2009 (St. Louis Federal Reserve, Federal Reserve).
The Federal Reserve, which compiles the data, said Harvey reduced industrial production by almost 0.8 percentage points, as drilling, petroleum refining, and servicing within the oil fields were curtailed. As with jobless claims, it’s likely temporary. Retail sales also experienced the wrath of Harvey. Autos sales dropped 1.6% in August (U.S. Census), as attention in Texas was diverted away from auto dealerships. But expect a jump in auto sales as vehicles that were wrecked by the hurricane are replaced.
From a purely market perspective, investors simply looked past the reports.
We are very pleased with the overall net performance of our client portfolios across all risk levels so far in 2017, especially given the fact that we reduced overall risk for all accounts earlier this year. If you have not yet scheduled your personal review in the second half of this year, please call today to set up a time, either in our office or by utilizing the go-to-meeting, online option. The third quarter is now almost over and year-end will be here before we know it
If you have any other questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to call.
God Bless,
Your TEAM at F.I.G. Financial Advisory Services, Inc.
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1 The Dow Jones Industrials Average is an unmanaged index of 30 major companies which cannot be invested into directly. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
3 The S&P 500 Index is an unmanaged index of 500 larger companies which cannot be invested into directly. Past performance does not guarantee future results
Uncertainty and Volatility