It began Sunday night with a warning from one of America’s largest icons. Through the week, other companies followed suite, issuing warnings that the China-spawned virus is beginning to impact revenues and profits. Investors are bracing for further announcements in the days ahead. Now that the Covid-19 virus has been spreading out through the world for more than three weeks, some companies are beginning to get a handle on at least some of the damage they will incur to their businesses as the virus persists. Apple was the first major company to warn investors that their iPhone sales in China…
Insights & Advice
Bill Schmick
Can politicians’ promises be believed?
As the 2020 presidential election campaign heats up, so do the promises. Lower taxes for some, higher taxes for others, better healthcare, higher Social Security payments; whatever it takes to get elected seems to be on the table for now. But most politician’s promises are made to be broken. Once the candidate becomes the president, reality sets in and the blame game starts. “The House is against me.” “The Senate won’t cooperate.” “The deficit is too large.” “Spending is out of control.” The list of excuses goes on and on. Truth be told, Donald Trump has come the closest to…
Markets reaching lofty levels given the circumstances
While the number of cases of COVID-19 (the coronavirus) continues to escalate, stocks this week continued to climb. The higher they go in the short-term, however, the higher the probability of a pullback increases. It is simply a law of gravity. It is one of those 200-year-old sayings that still has meaning today. Of course, the trick is to be able to predict exactly when that financial balloon will run out of air. No one I know has been able to master the timing on that one, at least consistently. This week, there was a huge jump in the number…
Economic inequality becomes a campaign issue
As Bernie Sanders takes the lead in the Democratic primary campaign, investors are beginning to take his socialist leanings to heart. But dire warnings from the opposition and Wall Street seem to have little impact. A look at the present income inequality in America goes a long way in explaining why. Over the years, I have written a number of articles on the growing threat of income inequality and its damage to “the Great Center”–the American middle class. According to a new study by the respected Pew Research organization, over the past 50 years, the highest earning 20% of U.S….