As August comes to a close, school is back in session, football has returned, the leaves are starting to turn, and we look back on what has been an interesting month in the markets. The August market saw its share of volatility, fueled early on by the threats and tension from North Korea. As tensions eased, and with the help of potential tax cuts and decent economic data, markets were able to recoup most of the month’s initial losses.
Summer is flying by! Back to school shopping has taken over retail stores, and key data from the second quarter is coming in. The markets in July were fueled by several factors: strong earnings, better than expected housing data, four-decade low jobless claims numbers, the “dovish” Fed meeting, a rise in June durable goods, and positive momentum in tech shares.
Resilience seems to be the keyword for the month of June. The month kicked off with stock markets reaching all-time highs, dropping down, and bouncing right back up to another new all-time high later in the month. Consistent with the pattern so far this year, US stocks, international stocks, and bonds continue to climb higher with strong momentum.
