Author Archives: LSAConnect

Economic Update (-) Retail sales for March came in weaker than expected, down -0.4% on a ‘headline’ level as opposed to consensus expectations of a flat reading.  The biggest impacts resulted from a -0.6% drop in auto sales and a … Continue reading →

The chart of the week looks at the various quantitative easing programs and how they have impacted the markets.  It also demonstrates that when these programs end investors

It was a downbeat week, at least relative to many so far this year, but we knew there needed to be a pause in the flurry of good news at some point. This did not come as a drastic surprise, … Continue reading →

There has been a lot of talk lately about the bond crisis and the potential for a correction.  J.P. Morgan created a chat that shows how various asset classes historically react in different types of inflationary environments. 

(+) Durable goods orders were stronger than expected overall for February, at a gain of +5.7% versus an expected +3.9% increase.  The ex-transportation component, however, lost ground of -0.5% for the month, which lagged the forecasted gain of +0.6%.  Finally, … Continue reading →

With the recent market rally there has been a lot of talk about the sustainability of this run up.  It is important to always take a step back and keep things in perspective.  When building an investment strategy,

It was an especially busy week of the month for housing-related data. (-) Existing home sales rose +0.8% for the month of February, which was a bit light compared to the +1.6% gain expected (however, a revision upward for the … Continue reading →