BUILDING A BETTER RETIREMENT

Executive Summary The S&P 500 fell 1.6% last week to close at 6,728.8 There was a widespread sell-off in the Tech space The Nasdaq Composite had its worst week since the week ending April 4th The jobs market is a concern for the Federal Reserve Data is scarce, but the jobs market seems steady U.S. services sector economic activity picked up in October A diversified portfolio is more important for risk management than ever The S&P 500 fell 1.6% last week to close at 6,728.8. The Nasdaq 100 fell 3.1% on the week. The declines were blamed on a report released Thursday by Challenger, Gray & Christmas, according to Barron’s. But the market fell throughout the week. The Challenger Gray report wasn't released until Thursday. The report may have helped sink the market last week, but it wasn't the lone catalyst.

Executive Summary The S&P 500 rose 0.7% last week to finish at 6,840.20 The S&P is up 16.3% year-to-date A stock represents ownership in a business The S&P 500 is rising at an increasing rate, and that can't go on forever Profit margins have been stable over the long run The Federal Reserve cut the Fed funds rate by one quarter point last Wednesday, but why? Inflation appears nowhere near declining to the Fed’s 2% target The annualized headline CPI September number was the second-highest since January Inflation is hurting the lowest 50% of income earners in the U.S.