From Scary to Satisfying We reflect on 2016 with gratitude for good stock market performance and an economy that improved steadily after a poor first quarter. This progress defied so many skeptics. However, it’s also important to remember the start of the year. At the low on February 11, we had the worst year-opening selloff…

Defying the Skeptics U.S. and foreign equity markets performed well during the third quarter. Stocks were buoyed by modest economic growth, tame inflation, and low long-term interest rates. Bonds also delivered positive returns. This progress put major investment benchmarks in positive territory for the year-to-date, as detailed below. We are very pleased by this progress…

1st Half Review Julian Fellowes, mastermind of the hit series Downton Abbey, could not have written a more compelling script for financial markets in the first half of 2016. Investors watched episodes of panic and anxiety, scenes of disorder and chaos, installments of resilience and recovery, and were left in suspense as to what may…

Bartlett on BREXIT ~ June 27, 2016 The United Kingdom last Thursday voted to leave the European Union. British Prime Minister David Cameron, who instigated the referendum as an election pledge and campaigned vigorously for remaining in the EU, resigned on Friday in the aftermath of the exit vote. The “BREXIT” decision was not anticipated…

Defying the Skeptics “Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.”              – John Adams The latest facts on the U.S. economy have been favorable and encouraging. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported continuing employment growth…