Steve Athanassie, CFP, AIFA

08/23/2026

The Weekend Brief | August 23

Interest rates finally got everyone's attention this week.

If you've been following The Weekend Brief, you know they've had mine for a while.

Long-term Treasury yields have been moving higher, and I've been increasingly concerned about what that could eventually mean for the economy and the markets.

This week, I think they became a little more relevant in the equation.

The market's tone weakened. Technology and some of the more aggressive areas lost momentum, while the Nasdaq showed more technical damage than the broader market.

But I don't want to overstate what happened.

Credit markets are still holding up reasonably well. The broader market hasn't broken down. Healthcare continues to act well, and financials are holding up reasonably well too.

Utilities are a different story. They had a rough week, which isn't terribly surprising. Higher long-term rates almost always create problems for utilities. Their weakness is another indication that what's happening in the bond market is starting to have consequences beyond the bond market itself.

Gold caught my attention as well.

It moved sharply higher after the Treasury announced plans to substantially increase its purchases of longer-term government bonds. The concern is pretty straightforward: if policymakers try to keep long-term interest rates from rising while government borrowing continues to grow, some of that pressure may eventually show up through a weaker U.S. dollar.

Gold's move higher this week suggests I'm not alone in this thinking.

Here's what I think matters most right now.

Rising long-term interest rates are the biggest thing to watch in this market.

I've been watching the pressure build for a while. Until now, other parts of the market weren't giving me enough confirmation to make much more of it.

This week, I saw a little more.

Not enough to sound any alarms. Not even close.

But enough that I'm giving the interest-rate signal more weight than I was a week ago.

For now, the weight of the evidence has become a little more cautious. I want to see more confirmation before taking that any further.

We'll see what this week brings.

Have a great week.

Steve Athanassie, CFP®, AIFA®

08/16/2026

The Weekend Brief | August 16

One of the biggest mistakes in investing is being right about the problem and wrong about the market.

Right now, interest rates are a good example.

Long-term Treasury yields remain elevated. The cost of capital has risen. There are plenty of perfectly reasonable arguments for why stocks should be struggling.

And yet, the market keeps telling us something different.

The S&P 500 is near record highs. The Nasdaq isn't far behind. Credit markets remain healthy. Volatility has fallen considerably. And more areas of the market are participating.

That's a lot of evidence pointing in the same direction.

Does that mean I'm no longer concerned about interest rates?

Not at all.

Some of the recent pressure on inflation and interest rates may be tied to higher oil prices and the continuing conflict in the Middle East. If we eventually get some resolution there and oil prices retreat, some of that pressure could come out of the bond market as well.

Now think about what that could mean.

Stocks are already near record highs. Credit is healthy. Volatility is low. Participation is improving.

If long-term interest rates suddenly became a tailwind instead of a headwind, it's not hard to imagine the market moving considerably higher. Maybe even the kind of melt-up some market strategists have been talking about.

Will that happen?

I have no idea.

And that's really the point.

We have to be prepared for higher rates creating trouble. But we also have to be prepared for rates falling and markets accelerating higher.

That's why I spend less time trying to decide what the market should be doing and more time paying attention to what it is doing.

Right now, the weight of the evidence continues to improve.

Have a great week.

Steve Athanassie, CFP®, AIFA®

08/09/2026

The Weekend Brief | August 9

This week, something changed.

A week ago, technology was struggling and some of the faster-moving measures I follow were flashing caution.

This week, a lot of that pressure eased.

The Nasdaq started to repair some of the damage. Volatility came down. Small caps joined in. And the credit markets continued to look healthy.

That's a pretty good combination.

But here's what I find more interesting.

A couple of weeks ago, some of the market's faster-moving indicators were deteriorating while the underlying foundation was holding together reasonably well. Rather than assuming one side had to be right and the other wrong, I waited for my market navigation process to provide a clearer direction.

Maybe it's all the years I've spent working with lawyers, but I've never believed in building a case around one piece of evidence. Markets are no different.

I want to gather the data, look at it from different angles, and see where the weight of the evidence leads me.

This week, the evidence became a lot clearer.

There are still things I'm watching. Long-term interest rates remain high, and technology hasn't completely regained the leadership it had earlier in the year.

But the weight of the evidence has improved.

We'll see what this week brings.

Have a great week.

Steve Athanassie, CFP®, AIFA®

08/02/2026

The Weekend Brief | August 2

Every Friday after the market closes, I spend a few hours going through my charts and market data.

I do this weekly because I want the market to have time to digest the week's news before I assess what really changed. Daily headlines can be noisy. By Friday's close, the picture is usually much clearer.

Here's what caught my attention this week.

If you only watched the Nasdaq, you'd probably think the market had a rough week.

Technology has clearly lost some momentum after a spectacular run. It now looks to be going through a pretty normal market recycle. No argument there.

But once I started digging into the data, that really wasn't the whole story.

Financials continued to hold up well. Healthcare was still one of the stronger areas of the market. Credit markets weren't showing the kind of stress I'd expect if the uptrend was really starting to come apart. Even the equal-weight S&P 500 looked healthier than the headlines might lead you to believe.

That doesn't mean everything is fine.

It just tells me the story is a little more complicated than the headlines make it seem.

What does have my attention is interest rates. Long-term Treasury yields have continued climbing to levels we haven't seen in several years, and that creates a tougher environment for both the economy and the markets. By itself, it's not enough to change the weight of the evidence, but it's definitely something I'm watching.

One thing I've noticed over the years is that important market changes usually don't happen all at once. They leave clues. Some parts weaken. Others quietly begin to lead.

That's why I pay attention to the weight of the evidence rather than any single headline, forecast, or indicator.

We'll see what this week brings.

Have a great week.

Steve Athanassie, CFP®, AIFA®

07/26/2026

The Weekend Brief | July 26

Every Sunday morning, I'll share one market observation that caught my attention and why I think it matters.

The headlines this week were dominated by technology earnings, tariffs, and interest rates. Yet beneath the surface, something else was happening.

Market leadership quietly began to broaden.

That's worth paying attention to.

Markets that depend on just a handful of companies can be more vulnerable than they appear. When strength begins spreading to other areas, it often points to a sign of a healthier foundation, even if it doesn't make the evening news.

The headlines tell us what happened.

The quieter shifts often tell us what's changing.

That's where I believe the market quietly reveals its intentions.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Steve Athanassie

07/04/2026

Happy Birthday, America! 🇺🇸 A nation built on freedom, opportunity, entrepreneurship, and the belief that people can create a better future through hard work and innovation. Wishing our clients, colleagues, and friends a Happy Independence Day!

02/07/2026

01/05/2026

As we approach the 2026 tax season, I am focused on intentionally expanding my network of tax professionals to better serve my clients.

Currently, I collaborate with several respected CPAs and have a deep appreciation for the CPA profession, especially given the pressures firms face today. With ongoing capacity constraints in the industry, I am looking to establish one or two additional relationships with a CPA or experienced Enrolled Agent who shares a similar service philosophy.

The clients I serve include:
- High-net-worth retirees, often with significant 1099 income and planning considerations
- High-income professionals such as attorneys, executives, and business owners
- Individuals whose personal, business, and planning decisions require seamless coordination

I seek a professional who values:
- Strong follow-up and client communication
- Comfort with both individual and business tax compliance
- Collaboration with financial advisors and attorneys
- A long-term, relationship-driven approach

What I offer includes:
- Well-prepared, planning-oriented clients
- Proactive coordination of tax data gathering to ensure complete, timely, and usable information
- A secure, centralized portal and liaison role that minimizes back-and-forth, delays, and follow-up requests
- Ongoing involvement throughout the tax process, not just a handoff
- Thoughtful, reciprocal referrals rather than a volume-driven approach

This opportunity may not be the right fit for everyone, as I am prioritizing quality over quantity.

If this resonates with you, or if you know a CPA or Enrolled Agent who aligns with this approach, I would welcome a private conversation in the coming weeks.

11/19/2025

It was great catching up with David Schassler last week. David is the Head of Multi-Asset Solutions and Portfolio Manager at VanEck, and a frequent guest on CNBC.

He was early in calling gold’s recent meteoric rise, and his perspective on the debasement of the U.S. dollar is equal parts fascinating and a little frightening.

Always a pleasure connecting with sharp thinkers who see the landscape through a truly unique lens.

10/09/2025

Flying Without Instruments

With the government shutdown in effect, key economic reports—like the jobs numbers and inflation data—aren’t being released. That means investors, and even the Federal Reserve, are flying without instruments.

So far, the markets seem to be shrugging it off. But here’s the thing: markets don’t like uncertainty. When the usual indicators go dark, assumptions start taking over. That can create a lot of short-term noise, but it doesn’t change the long-term picture.

After 40 years in this business, I’ve learned that the absence of data doesn’t mean the absence of direction. A disciplined, rules-based process keeps us focused on what we can control—price, trend, and risk—until the clouds clear.

Discipline, not headlines, is what keeps the flight steady.