Newsletter: In the Markets – Week-Ending December 15th, 2017
Newsletter: In the Markets – Week-Ending December 15th, 2017
Crystal Brook Advisors
We Make Financial Planning Crystal Clear™
United States: Investors are still watching as they are waiting for the tax plan to pass, with Congress still continuing to finalize the deal. News of this deal has helped to keep markets on the rise, but investors are cautiously optimistic about the finalization (7).
Europe: On Thursday, both the Bank of England and the European Central Bank decided not to follow in the steps of the U.S. Federal Reserve and kept interest rates where they were. However, many analysts believe the rates will be rising in the next few months (5).
Asia: Asian markets ended mostly down to finish the weak, as confidence is lowering due to the near passage of the U.S. Tax Plan which could shift more investment into the U.S. economy (6).
Latin America: The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) released a report showing there was economic growth in the region for the first time in the last two years. GDP grew an average of 1.3% in the past year, and this trend is estimated to continue in the next year.
Monday 12/11
• Following in the steps of Bitcoin last week, Litecoin reached a high of $186.89. This is a 4,215% return from the beginning of the year, where it started out at $4.33. (1) The Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite all finished up on the day. (2)
Tuesday 12/12
• Investors watched closely as the Fed started their two-day meeting. The S&P 500 and Dow Jones reached new records, again. Also, small businesses are optimistic, as the index of the National Federation of Independent Business rose 3.7 points to 107.5. (3)
Wednesday 12/13
• The Fed meeting wrapped up today, as they decided to raise interest rates from 1.25% to 1.50%. Financial stocks finished down due to these results. Also, investors are closely watching to see what happens with tax reform, as the Republican Senate majority slimmed with the win by Doug Jones in the Alabama senate race. (3)
Thursday 12/14
• Major U.S. indexes finished down today, with the S&P 500 down 0.4% and the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.3% each. Some of the highlights on the day was the news of the repeal of Net Neutrality and the agreement of the Walt Disney Co. to buy assets from 21st Century Fox Inc. for $52.4 billion (3).
Friday 12/15
• Markets rebounded today, with optimism of the passage of the tax plan which will bring tax cuts to many, including corporations. (4)
Contributor: Nikolas Madonis
Sources:
(1) Forbes, (2) Reuters, (3) Marketwatch, (4) The Wall Street Journal, (5) The Financial Times, (6) Nasdaq, (7) Telesur
