Edward Jones - Financial Advisor: Courtney Bond

09/27/2024

It's been a while! I haven't posted on here because my business page was shut down for a while, but I'm back!

What a difference a week makes. Today it's 60s and rainy. Last Friday, we had our annual Branch Family Picnic in Creve Coeur Lake Park and it was sunny and 90+ degrees. That's STL for you though. The picnic was a huge success! Between my branch and my bff/fellow advisor Ana Stringfellow, we had over 100 people in attendance. Boogie Chyld graced us again with an awesome performance and everybody had a great time. Thanks to those that made it out. 😊

03/11/2024

This past week, markets digested several datapoints that indicated the U.S. labor market may be showing early signs of fatigue.

In our view, given the ongoing easing in inflation and now more signs of a cooling labor market, the Fed likely remains on track to begin a rate-cutting cycle later this year, perhaps starting around the June meeting.

We share more of our takeaways in our latest Weekly Market Wrap.

A summary of last week's market highlights and economic news.

03/04/2024

Rising markets and low volatility always rank high on investor's wish lists. In the past four months, we've been fortunate to experience precisely that.

In our latest Weekly Market Wrap, we share five takeaways from February's market performance.

A summary of last week's market highlights and economic news.

02/26/2024

With the sharp rally sending the S&P 500 to a record high in recent days, you wouldn't think it would be hard for investors to find good news. We think the bull market looks to have runway ahead, but we also know that even the best markets run out of breath occasionally. In this latest installment of the Weekly Market Wrap, we offer three signs that can give investors confidence in the broader outlook for this market.

A summary of last week's market highlights and economic news.

02/20/2024

Although stocks recovered from a sharp drop after last week's CPI inflation report – and the S&P 500 even approached new all-time highs – investors may be feeling anxious.

Can inflation continue to moderate, as it has over the past year, even in the face of resilient economic growth? Or, is this a start of a trend in the wrong direction?

We share our views in our latest Weekly Market Wrap.

A summary of last week's market highlights and economic news.

02/12/2024

The S&P 500 crossed the 5,000 milestone, a fresh record high for the index. While 5,000 is an arbitrary number and simply an attention-grabbing psychological threshold, it is symbolic of the market's strength and resiliency in the face of a historically sharp adjustment in interest rates.

With the economy defying expectations for a slowdown and stocks having rallied about 20% over the past three months, investors are wondering what's next. Our latest Weekly Market Wrap shares our views on five common questions.

A summary of last week's market highlights and economic news.

02/05/2024

All eyes were on the Fed last week, with the market's wagon remaining tightly hitched to the outlook for future monetary policy moves. The Fed kept its policy rate steady, but the primary focus was on the central bank's message that it intends to remain on hold a while longer.

While markets were hoping for a signal that rate cuts were coming sooner, incoming data, including the latest jobs report, continue to offer confidence that the economy is holding up well enough for the Fed to exercise some patience.

In our latest Weekly Market Wrap, we offer our takes on what the latest Fed and employment news means for the markets ahead.

A summary of last week's market highlights and economic news.

01/29/2024

Over the past week, investors digested two key datapoints that continue to support the case for a soft landing in the U.S.: The S&P PMI data, for both services and manufacturing, were in expansionary territory in January, and fourth-quarter GDP growth exceeded forecasts, coming in at 3.3% annualized, versus expectations of 2.0% growth.

While these datapoints are backward looking, they support the narrative that the U.S. economy was not softening entering the new year. In fact, the data indicates that economic growth accelerated at the end of last year. Meanwhile, inflation also showed signs of moderation as we entered 2024.

Read more of our takeaways in our latest Weekly Market Wrap.

A summary of last week's market highlights and economic news.

01/23/2024

Help your portfolio start the year off on the right foot — with your goals in focus.

Learn how to strenthen your investment portfolio based on our view of 2024 interest rates, the economy and central bank monetary policy.

01/22/2024

Despite pushing higher last week, markets in 2024 thus far can best be described as subdued.

In our latest Weekly Market Wrap, we discuss three data points to watch as markets get through a bumpy January.

A summary of last week's market highlights and economic news.

01/16/2024

"Inflation" and "the Fed" were two of the most used words in financial market commentary in 2023 as the economy continued to navigate an unconventional cycle. The first full trading week of 2024 brought a fresh read on consumer prices and more discussions about how the path of rates might look like.

In our latest Weekly Market Wrap, we offer our take on the debate around the timing of potential rate cuts. Additionally, we share insights into where we see opportunities as markets potentially enter a choppier phase.

A summary of last week's market highlights and economic news.

01/08/2024

2023 is over, and so too is the stock market's winning streak. After nine straight weeks of gains, the S&P 500 finally took a breather, falling slightly last week.

We'd chalk it up primarily to some beginning-of-the-year repositioning, as well as a to-be-expected break after a stellar 16% rally in the final two months of the year.

Last week brought fresh data on both the Fed and the labor market, and while it failed to fuel an extension to stocks' winning streak, we don't think it changes the broader direction as markets embark on their encore to last year's rebound.

In our latest Weekly Market Wrap, we share a few takeaways on how these important factors are kicking off 2024.

A summary of last week's market highlights and economic news.