We are pleased to present you with our third quarter market review. During much of the third quarter global equity markets pushed higher regardless of continued concerns over COVID delta variant infection rates. Toward the end of the quarter, regulatory risks from China and politics in the US eventually diminished the third quarters advances. The Federal Reserve has indicated…
We want to share with you one of the recent trends in retirement, something we like to call The Retirement Test Drive. Like test driving a car, it allows you to check out the comfort and feel of the experience without the commitment. Just like car shopping, you can test out multiple options to see which one you like…
All the talk of inflation in the news is making some folks nervous about the prospect of future prices for goods and services. For several reasons we don’t think it’s worth too much worry. 1) The federal government has many stop-gaps in place to combat runaway inflation (they’ve learned from the past). 2) Historically, stock prices tend…
We are pleased to present you with our second quarter market review. The more wide spread rollout of Covid-19 vaccines allowed both US and global equities to advance during the second quarter with the S&P 500 index reaching a new all time high. US and global bonds also saw modest increases during the last quarter. Although the…
At the end of March one year ago, the stock market was down by approximately 30 percent; certainly an abysmal first quarter, but as we now know, the markets went on an unexpected tear for the rest of the year. The first quarter of 2021 continues this momentum propelled by three factors: vaccine progress, government stimulus and expectations for more economic…
Last Thursday, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) into law. This article breaks down the major provisions of the Act that impact investors, retirees, families, and small businesses. Please know that there are many additional provisions in the 600+ page Act and we are here to help you decipher anything that affects…
It’s been a while since we last discussed Bitcoin on the Stone Pine blog. However, we’ve received a steady increase in the amount of questions regarding the cryptocurrency, particularly so in the last few months. No one can deny that Bitcoin has become quite popular, and while we don’t recommend cryptocurrencies as an investment, it is worth…
The year 2020 proved to be one of the most tumultuous in modern history, marked by a number of developments that were historically unprecedented. But the year also demonstrated the resilience of people, institutions, and financial markets.Here we present you with the 2020 Market Review. We encourage you to not only look at the short term market but to step…
Late last night President Trump signed the new stimulus bill, which is part of a larger federal funding bill, into law. While this bill is over 5000 pages in length we’ve synthesized some of the major points that are pertinent to retirees, investors, and small business owners. STIMULUS CHECKS With similar rules as the CARES Act stimulus…
Early retirement is an aspiration many of us have during our working years. For those who’ve been diligent savers and have managed to accumulate a significant nest egg in their early 60s or even before, early retirement may be in reach, congratulations! The joy of this great accomplishment can often be shattered by the sobering realization that…