Market Commentary: Stimulus Fuels Retail Sales as Strong Housing Market Faces Hurdles
American consumers put their stimulus checks to work last month. Retail and food service sales rose 5.3% in January, after declining 1.0% in December (Figure 1). Compared to one year ago, sales are 7.4% higher. The strong data resulted from the stimulus checks and declining virus cases. Bec …
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 …
What You Need to Know for the Upcoming Tax Season
Jamie Hopkins, Director of Retirement Research at Carson, and Senior Wealth Planner, Krista Thompson, break down how the right tax planning process can help you during tax season.
Financial Items to Consider After the Passing of Your Spouse
The loss of a spouse can be one of the most devastating events in your life. You are often overwhelmed and faced with several financial tasks that require immediate attention. These financial tasks can be very stressful especially if you did not play an active role in your finances.
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 …
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 …
Market Commentary: Understanding ‘Short Squeezes’ and Last Week’s Intense Market Demands
The prices of a small set of heavily shorted stocks spiked last week as multiple factors conspired to create an intense demand for shares of some companies. The extreme move in prices has created a large gap between the current price and the price targets of even the most optimistic investors.
How the Biden Administration Could Impact Retirement and Tax Planning
Jamie Hopkins, Director of Retirement Research at Carson, offers insight as our country navigates changes after the inauguration.
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 …
Market Commentary: Chinese GDP Grew in 2020; U.S. Corporations Outperform Q4 Expectations.
Chinese GDP grew 2.3% in 2020, making it the only major economy to grow last year. In the fourth quarter, the Chinese economy grew 6.5% as China continued to gain ground on the U.S. economy. The growth was led by strong performance in industrial production, which rose 7.3% in December, comp …