Commentary

Each month, the BCWM Portfolio Management team publishes an Investment Commentary that examines the latest developments in financial markets and the economy. We filter out the noise and present the information most relevant to our investment strategies and management of our clients’ portfolios.

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Trains, Cranes & Demographics

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Last month, I attended the annual conference of the CFA Institute, a gathering of Chartered Financial Analysts from all over the world. This year’s conference was held in Frankfurt, Germany, attracting more attendees from Europe and Asia than usual. My wife and I arrived a week early to take advantage of the opportunity to travel…
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Sibling Rivalries & Dick-tatorships

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I will be in Frankfurt, Germany next week where the 68th annual conference for Chartered Financial Analysts is being held. Once a year, nerds from all over the globe gather to talk about the current state of the economic world. Usually, host cities alternate between the U.S. and a foreign destination (last year was Seattle…
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Fed Up

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Janet Yellen, Chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, spoke last week after the Board’s two-day meeting. Her speech was an attempt to clarify the Fed’s stance on raising interest rates someday. We all know they will eventually raise interest rates, but many economic “know-it-alls” keep playing a cat and mouse…
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Statistics Can Be Deceiving

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My October Investment Commentary (KC Royals) included a graph illustrating the S&P 500 Index’s growth since 1985. In that graph, I pointed out high and low points and suggested that we might be currently near a high point. Statistics (and graphs made from statistics) can be deceiving. Chris Harrington, our senior portfolio manager, pointed out…
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Dollar is Still King

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Last year proved to be another good year for the U.S. economy, as well as the U.S. stock market, while wreaking havoc on foreign economies and foreign stock markets. The S&P 500 increased 13.66% while the All World (ex U.S.) Index declined 3.87%. A 50%+ decline in the price of oil blistered countries (and companies)…
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