U-Turn

U-Turn

  This week’s featured chart shows that a key indicator of the economy’s strength took a sharp U-turn last month. The ISM Composite indicator rose to 51.3% in January, up from the previous month’s reading of 48.8%. According to the indicator above, this is good...
Balancing the Risks

Balancing the Risks

OVERVIEW   U.S. stocks were mixed last week, as the S&P 500 climbed 1.62% and the Nasdaq surged 3.31%, but the Dow fell about 0.15%. Growth stocks lead the rally, rising roughly 2.8%, versus a 1% gain for value stocks. Small-cap stocks outperformed, climbing...
Call It a Bull

Call It a Bull

  The stock market is acting like it’s in the early stages of a bull market. That’s the message from the Early Cycle Composite, shown on the chart above. This chart looks at the stocks and sectors that tend to lead in the early stages of a bull market—call these...