Friends
The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index rose 4.1% from a year ago and that’s the lowest annual rate since September 2021. Minus food and energy, the index was up .2% from the previous month. Overall, the inflation gage that the Fed watches closely came in a little better than expected. That’s a good thing. The Fed continues to make progress in their fight against inflation. Yesterday’s GDP confirms that the economy has been able to withstand the Fed’s hawkish monetary policy. Corporations continue to defy the pundits who have been calling for an earnings recession as they deliver better than expected bottom line profits quarter after quarter. And finally, we continue to see unemployment remain below 4%. A stable economy, lessening inflation, full employment, and good corporate earnings all seem to be good news to me. It’s ok to take a moment and recognize that things have gone pretty good so far in 2023. I mean it, it really is ok to have a positive outlook. I know negativity sells, but it’s ok to feel good about things once in a while.
As for stocks, the bulls have been feeling pretty good about things for most of the year too. After yesterday’s slight pullback the buyers were at it again today and by the close the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 176 points to finish the day at 35,459. The S&P 500 was up 44 points to close at 4,582. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 266 points to close at 14,316. Gold was up $12 to trade at $1,958 per ounce, while oil was up $.28 to trade at $80.37 per barrel WTI.
More earnings on tap next week including Apple, AMD, Altria, Starbucks, Caterpillar, Kraft Heinz, Clorox, Emerson Electric, Amgen, and Amazon to name a few. We will also get employment data from ADP and then the non-farm payroll number next Friday. Stay tuned, it will be another busy week.
Have a great weekend everyone.
