16 Mar One Down
This quarter has is coming to a close and there are a couple of interesting foreign and domestic situations developing. Though these developments are nothing too surprising they are still something to be taken seriously in this already serious time.
The first quarter estimates for companies in the S&P 500 did just a little bit less than live up to expectations. The projected growth was 0.3%, and now the projected loss is 8.0%. Now usually the early quarter estimates are pretty positive in an effort to encourage trade rather than scare it away. And then the rest of the quarter is spent toning the estimates down, and a usual drop in estimates is about 3.0%. But for the estimates to drop by 8.3% is just not something to ignore.
As far as foreign troubles, it’s the Japanese economy that’s in the headlines this week. The Japanese government is selling ten year government bonds at minus 0.20%. After selling in the negative for the first time ever, Japanese bonded prices have now dropped even further into the negative territory. The rates have been low around the world for so long, and these negative interest rates popping up as well. If this continues, paying for the privilege to invest in for ten years may become the new normal, although no one thinks it’s plausible or sustainable, it’s certainly not to stoppable right now.
The first quarter estimates for companies in the S&P 500 did just a little bit less than live up to expectations. The projected growth was 0.3%, and now the projected loss is 8.0%. Now usually the early quarter estimates are pretty positive in an effort to encourage trade rather than scare it away. And then the rest of the quarter is spent toning the estimates down, and a usual drop in estimates is about 3.0%. But for the estimates to drop by 8.3% is just not something to ignore.
As far as foreign troubles, it’s the Japanese economy that’s in the headlines this week. The Japanese government is selling ten year government bonds at minus 0.20%. After selling in the negative for the first time ever, Japanese bonded prices have now dropped even further into the negative territory. The rates have been low around the world for so long, and these negative interest rates popping up as well. If this continues, paying for the privilege to invest in for ten years may become the new normal, although no one thinks it’s plausible or sustainable, it’s certainly not to stoppable right now.
As this very decisive quarter is coming to a close it is easy to see that there are more things to be concerned about than to be settled by. Make sure to call Ortiz World Wealth your trusted investment advisor today to make sure that you are certain about your money.
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