Articles written by Sam Ro - Benzinga

Americans Have Money, And They Plan To Spend It During The Holidays

Americans plan to spend more on holiday shopping this year than they did last year. That’s the takeaway from pretty much every consumer survey conducted over the past several weeks. Below are some highlights (emphasis added):

Policymakers Don't Want To Tank The Stock Market

The stock market climbed to all-time highs, with the S&P 500 setting an intraday high of 6,012.45 and a closing high of 5,995.54 on Friday. The index gained 4.7% last week, the best weekly performance since last November.

Getting To 'The Other Side' Of Election Uncertainty

Experts Push Back On Goldman Sachs' Forecast For Low Returns

Goldman Sachs’ prediction that the S&P 500 will deliver 3% annualized nominal total returns over the next 10 years has gotten a lot of attention.

The Stat Explaining Why The Stock Market Gets So Much Negative News Coverage

The stock market climbed to all-time highs, with the S&P 500 setting an intraday high of 5,878.46 on Thursday and closing high of 5,859.85 on Monday. For the week, the S&P rose 0.8% to end at 5,859.54.

The Hiring Situation

On Friday, we learned the U.S. economy created a healthy 254,000 net new jobs in September. While the number confirms that the labor market isn’t falling apart, the pace of net job creation has cooled from levels seen earlier in this economic cycle.

You Said You Love Charts. So Here Are More Charts!

Consumer And Business Finances Are Healthy The customers in the economy have the capacity to spend, which means economic activity should keep churning. “As is well known, household and corporate balance sheets are strong,” Deutsche Bank’s Binky Chadha wrote in a Sept. 12 note. “This is very different from past down cycles.“

10 Charts To Consider With Stocks At All-Time Highs

I spent the past week at Future Proof Festival, the premier conference for the wealth management industry.

How Capitalism Will Keep AI From Destroying The Things We Love

Artificial intelligence (AI) is white hot right now. Companies everywhere are bullish on the promise of taking mountai

The Other Side Of The Fed's Inflation 'Mistake'

In the context of inflation, was the Federal Reserve late to tighten monetary policy and hike interest rates? Most would agree the answer is yes.

The First Question To Ask When A Markets Expert Speaks

Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab, compiled an outstanding list of quotes from history’s investing legends.

The State Of The American Consumer In A Single Quote

Every once in a while, we’ll get a single anecdote that succinctly reflects a much bigger story in the economy.

There Are 'Rules' And Then There Are 'Statistical Regularities'

Just because something happened a bunch of times in the past doesn’t mean it must happen again in the future.

Why The Fed's First Rate Cut Wouldn't Be That Big Of A Deal

Stocks fell last week, with the S&P 500 shedding 0.8% to end at 5,459.10. The index is now up 14.4% year to date and up 52.6% from its October 12, 2022 closing low of 3,577.03. The calls for the Federal Reserve to begin cutting interest rates sooner than later have been getting louder.

On Presidents, The Stock Market, And The Big Picture For Investors

Is a U.S. president from one political party better for the stock market than one from another party? If only things were that simple.

One Of The Stock Market's Most Consistent Trends

Second quarter earnings season kicked off on Friday with the nation’s largest banks announcing financial results for the April-June reporting period.

Warren Buffett: 'It Takes Just A Few Winners To Work Wonders'

Stocks rallied to new all-time highs, with the S&P 500 setting a record intraday high of 5,505.53 on Thursday and a record closing high of 5,487.03 on Tuesday. For the week, the S&P gained 0.6% to end at 5,464.62. The index is now up 14.6% year to date and up 52.8% from its October 12, 2022 closing low of 3,577.03. -

The Bottom Line Is Looking Up For Stocks

Earlier this month, we talked about how bull markets tend to last much longer and generate much stronger returns than the one we continue to experience. But prices don’t go up for the sake of going up.

The Simplest Explanation Isn't Always The Correct Or Complete One

When it comes to understanding new developments in the economy or the markets, the obvious and simplest explanations aren’t always the correct or complete ones.

Bull Markets Are Usually Longer And Stronger Than This

Stocks fell last week, with the S&P 500 shedding 0.5% to end at 5,277.51. The index is now up 10.6% year to date and up 47.5% from its October 12, 2022 closing low of 3,577.03.