1.14.2018

Annual Stock Market Comments

First of all, I am not a stock broker or financial advisor, any comments made are just observations and not advice.

The stock market is soaring with optimism and faith in the market. Do the corporations that we have faith in have the earnings to back it up? Both large and small companies are reporting losses. Amazon has taken a big bite out of retail, malls and brick and mortar stores. Banks are financing the losses, so when will they take the hit on the bad loans?

What do you do? Well you can ride the roller coaster but you have to know when to get off. The climb is always exciting but the fall can be devastating. Since I believe the increase in stocks is based on faith in the market instead of facts, it is difficult to tell when to get out of the market. It also depends how investors react to negative market news. Will it be a market correction or a another bubble that has burst?

To recap. I believe it is best to look at the stock market in years instead of days. 2010 DJIA was 11,577, 2011 DJIA was 12,218, 2012 DJIA was 13,105, 2013 DJIA is 16,577, 12/31/2014 17,823, 12/31/2015 17,425, 12/31/2016 19,942, 12/31/2017 24,824.

From 2010 to 2011 5.5% change, from 2011 to 2012 7.26%, from 2012 to 2013 21% change, from 2013 to 2014 7% change. From 2014 to 2015 .36% down. From 2015 to 2016 14%. From 2016 to 2017 14%. From 2017 to 2018 20%. In eight years, it has more than doubled. If we are doing so great, why is there so much downsizing and layoffs.

In conclusion, “Buyer Beware”.