96 Search Results for: covid
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Market Commentary: Retail Sales Fell After January Stimulus Surge, Don’t Expect Interest Rate Hike
Retail sales were unable to keep pace with a stimulus-induced surge. Retail and food service sales dropped 3% in February after spiking 7.6% in January. The January data was revised 2.3% higher than first reported. Core retail sales, which exclude autos, gasoline, and restaurants, fell even …
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Market Commentary: Biden Signs Stimulus Bill, U.S. Surpasses 100 Million Vaccine Doses, Recovery Continues
Events are aligning to give the U.S. economy a big boost. The Biden administration approved a $1.9 trillion stimulus package that will provide immediate relief to millions of American households. Last week the U.S. surpassed 100 million vaccine doses, and expectations are the U.S. will be v …
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Rebate Checks, Child Tax Credits, Unemployment Benefits and More: What You Need to Know about the $1.9 Trillion Stimulus Package
The latest stimulus package – signed into law Thursday by the Biden Administration – is built to boost the middle class and low-income Americans, the goal being of course to speed up economic recovery.
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Market Commentary: Monthly Job Growth Exceeds Expectations, New Stimulus Bill Advances
The U.S. economy returned to rapid job growth last month as fewer new COVID cases and loosening restrictions increased demand for labor. Restaurants and bars accounted for more than half the net gains, as employment in this hard-hit sector increased 286,000. Despite efforts to reopen school …
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What to Expect From Low Volatility Investing: Insight into QBI Strategies
During the past decade, ending December 2019, low volatility investing has been embraced by many investors due to above average adjusted performance. With the turn of events, the year 2020 witnessed a negative surprise for low volatility stocks. This surprise further intensified when value …
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Market Commentary: Vaccine Distribution, Stimulus Package Driving Economic Growth Estimates
The impact of government stimulus checks continues to permeate economic data. Personal income rose 10% in January, and disposable income rose 11.4%. Where did the money go? It primarily bought goods or was saved. Goods spending rose 5.8% in January, and the personal savings rate jumped to 2 …
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Market Commentary: Despite Initial Worry, Inflation Remains Well Controlled
U.S. inflation rose 0.3% last month and is now up 1.4% for the year (Figure 1). Investor concern about inflation has increased in recent months against the backdrop of large stimulus packages and hopes of an economic recovery. Pushing back against that concern is a slowly recovering labor …
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Market Commentary: Federal Interest Rates Remain Low with No Increases Planned
The U.S. employment situation remains lackluster. Only 49,000 new jobs were created in January. Unemployment dropped but only because labor force participation fell from 63.4% to 61.4% (Figure 1). As COVID-19 cases have dropped this year, some improvement is expected in coming months. Vacc …
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Tax Tips for Business Owners in a COVID World
Facing everything from empty sales floors to painful staff shortages, entrepreneurs have been uniquely hurt by 2020 and the extent of the damage isn’t fully known yet. A Yelp economic impact report released in September found that almost 100,000 small businesses in the country had closed th …
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5 Things to Watch in the First Quarter of 2021
Have you found yourself officing in a room with a bunk bed? Do you realize you’re going to the store in your pajamas and never leaving your car? Does going to the movies mean going to the living room to turn on the TV? Quarantine changed the world almost overnight, and the adjustment is so …
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