|
Shoreline Wealth & Investment Management
|
|
|
The Stock & Bond Markets Was the recent rally (March 2009 - March 2010) the eye of the hurricane, a brief respite in the midst of a perfect economic storm? I advised clients last month there was a lot of conflicting financial data that could yield a variety of results in terms of market movement. And move the market has! The past month was not pretty and prices began a steep decline. The toll from the BP oil spill is still being assessed while the number of European countries with economic concerns keeps rising (e.g. Hungary has been added to a growing list). Britain's new prime minister, for example, told citizens to prepare for "decades of austerity". The positive news is that the economic recovery in the U.S. appears to be continuing the upward trend although, as we've all discovered, economies are truly global and are impacted by what's happening elsewhere in the world. This is an especially important time to be diversified among asset classes and industries, both here and abroad, while focusing on high quality companies.
Bond prices have declined as the expectation for rates going up increased along with the improving economy. Bonds may be in a bit of a "bubble" as investors have assumed too much safety based on the fact that they're investing in bonds rather than stocks. This is understandable given that many saw stockholders wiped out in recent financial industry collapses while bondholders received payments in full. Regardless, bonds do go down with rising interest rates and can also go to 0 if a company goes broke. The yield for 1-year Treasuries is only about .3%, for 5-year notes about 2.0%, for 10-year bonds about 3.2% and around 4.1% for 30-year bonds. Investment-grade municipals yield tax free income and are paying about .5%, 1.9%, 3.1%, and 4.5% for the same time periods. Similarly, investment-grade corporate bonds are yielding .8%, 1.9%, 3.2% and 6.4%. Shoreline continues to recommend playing it safe and staying on the short-to-intermediate side of the yield curve. For those worried that inflation make negatively impact bond values but still prefer the safety and income offered by bonds, this may be a time to consider "inflation-protected" Treasuries.
CELEBRATING 30 YEARS
Since 1980, I have been providing financial advice to investors and I'm proud to say that our service and performance (see "Bottom Line" section on the right) continue to be superior to the market and our peers. Thanks for your support.
Real Estate Home sales reached a 2-year high in April while home prices fell 3.2% according ton the S&P Case-Shiller Index which continued to show weakness despite very low mortgage rates and tax incentives to encourage new home purchases. While there were price gains of 16% in San Francisco, prices continued to decline in the sunbelt parts of the country and there is concern of a "shadow inventory" of soon to be foreclosed homes hitting the market. Increased supply means continued pressure on prices with the median price declining 9.7% according to the Commerce Department over the prior year ending in March. Those lower prices resulted in a 14.8% increase in sales for new homes and the market continues to favor buyers with long-term time horizons. |
| Selecting an Advisor |
Warren Buffet, the most successful investor of the 20th century learned his craft from Benjamin Graham, author of several books including the legendary "Intelligent Investor." This important book has been updated by Jason Zweig who includes 16 key questions to ask your advisor and 11 an advisor might ask ... click here for more details |
| Understanding Mutual Fund Investing |
An alternative to trading or investing in individual stocks and bonds is mutual funds. The advantages are broad diversification, professional management and liquidity. More importantly, whether your goals are for growth or income, long or short-term or conservative or aggressive, there is a fund that meets those objectives. If only it were that easy ... Full Story |
| Long-Term Trusts: Disinheriting Uncle Sam |
We recently discussed living trusts as a way plan your estate to reduce taxes. Another kind of trust, the "long- term" trust offers other advantages worth reviewing ... Learn More |
| Looking for a Speaker for Your Event? |
Shoreline Wealth & Investment Management has given presentations to Fortune 500 companies as well as many local groups and organizations. If you are looking for a professional presentation on topics ranging from investments to estate taxes to business or tax law, please contact us ... click here for more details |
|
Thanks for reading. Please send questions or comments.
Sincerely,
Chuck
Charles M. Bloom
Shoreline Wealth & Investment Management
|
| |
 |
| Portfolio Performance |
| This is where we provide the performance of our conservative, moderate and aggressive portfolios and compare these to the S&P 500 and NASDAQ Indexes. While they are an important consideration, performance is only a portion of the evaluation investors should consider when evaluating investment management. Other considerations include the risk taken to generate the returns, the quality of the service, the reasonableness of the fees and, more important now than ever, the integrity of the investment manager. find out more |
| |
|
| |
Return to home page
|
| |
|
| "Very professional and informative seminar" - Brown & Root, a Halliburton Company |
|
