Of course....the comments from Dimon are impacting the markets today. it is so nice that he wants to help everyone with his views....I am sure his comments are never based on SELF-INTEREST. Yeah right. Stock market today: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq wobble as Trump tamps down China threats amid regional bank jitters https://finance.yahoo.com/news/live...ats-amid-regional-bank-jitters-000232728.html
It certainly.....feels like.....to me that earnings are coming in really well. But we will get some data this weekend. I expect the data to confirm what I am feeling. I know the expectation is for the SP500 companies to show an increase of 7.9% in EPS this time around. Seems to me we are probably above that so far.
Not that I trust of believe anything that comes out of MOODY's....but....here you go. Moody’s says the banking system, private credit markets are sound despite worries over bad loans https://www.cnbc.com/2025/10/17/moo...are-sound-despite-worries-over-bad-loans.html
The markets and the financial media are TOTALLY focused on negativity right now. They jump on and run with any story with the slightest hint of negativity....often with ZERO fact checking or research. The markets are as skittish and jumpy as I have ever seen them over many decades. REALITY does not matter. This is being AMPLIFIED by politicians and politics. It is creating a very dangerous market and environment. FACT does not matter........as the media runs with the slightest negative rumor we are seeing big sudden drops in the big averages recently. I see the current conditions as perfect for a nasty correction based on....nothing. A self-fulfilling prophesy correction. AND....when it happens it will be caused by the....."professionals"....as usual. The constant and relentless fear-mongering and negativity is severely impacting the markets and the countries general psychology right now.
The reality is....today is about as low and slow of a news day as you will ever see in the markets. NOTHING negative is going on at all. We are just DRIFTING along in a sea of distrust. The markets are stuck and probably exhausted by the recent constant turmoil driven by the media. In the old days you might call it CONSOLIDATION...although what we are going through right now is far from consolidation....it is rampant rumor mongering and a whip-saw market as a result. The AI bubble.....the regional banks....China......auto loans.....inflation.....etc, etc, etc. Every day it is relentless. I am a long term investor and I do believe that it is still possible to hide out in the long term and ignore much of the short term BS.......but.....if we continue along this path....we will see it start to impact even the long term.
I think so. At least so far in the early innings. Most of the large banks did well. Regional banks appear to have cleared the hurdle as well. I think their (regional) issue was some of them reported an increase in loan loss/some fraud. Those then got amplified by the media a bit and as usual it carried over into banking in general.
Yeah, there is a lot of noise out there to pick from at the moment. I was thinking a bit about some of it the other day and wondered something similar...."Are we going to talk ourselves into it eventually?" LOL. Sometimes it seems that way.
Sure enough. I think we (US) would like to reduce our dependency to some degree and limit some of that imbalance with supply chain issues. We are not going to be able to just dismiss them from a trade standpoint. It sounds nice and all, but most of it is political theater from both countries. Both countries "rely" on the other to a certain point. The #1 and #2 spot on the largest world economies are occupied by the two. The strained relationship is nothing new to either side. We are not going to fully "kick" them to the curb and likewise on their side.
The markets were absolutely....INSANELY WILD....today. Jumping around from green to red and back to green. Extremely erratic and confused. BUT by day end I finished with a nice large medium gain.....close to a big gain but not quite. A single stock down for me today....AMZN. I also beat the SP500 today by 0.20%. Simply a RIDICULOUS week.
BUT....for the week....I did way better than it felt. At the close today my entire portfolio was at....+23.14%....year to date. Last Friday I was at.....+21.51%....for my entire account year to date. I will certainly take it.....not that I have a choice.
This is how we ended the day and the week: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq notch weekly wins after volatile week as Trump signals China talks back on track https://finance.yahoo.com/news/live...nals-china-talks-back-on-track-182020560.html
After all of the constant noise and hand wringing, the market closes positive for the whole week. Sometimes the reaction and perception by investors is disconnected from what the market actually does.
WELCOME HOME......and may this just be the first of many, many, plants here in the USA. We need a cushion for the inevitable day.....no matter how far away.....when China decides to take over Taiwan. Nvidia unveils first Blackwell chip wafer made with TSMC in US https://finance.yahoo.com/news/nvidia-tsmc-unveil-first-blackwell-200512383.html
An age old question....when to sell a stock. As Peter Lynch said.....“Selling your winners and holding your losers is like cutting the flowers and watering the weeds.”. Of course the most obvious reason to sell.....the stock is under-performing your expectations. Another reason.....the stock is not in line with your risk tolerance and is driving you crazy. Or.....has your investment thesis changed....or have the fundamentals of the business changed. Perhaps the stock has now grown to too large of a position in your portfolio. HERE is more. When Should You Sell a Stock? https://awealthofcommonsense.com/2025/10/when-should-you-sell-a-stock/
If you are a senior and considering a Medicare Advantage Plan after seeing all the commercials on TV.....here is some info. What to watch out for in your 2026 Medicare Advantage plan Changes to expect in you Medicare Advantage plan next year https://finance.yahoo.com/news/what...r-2026-medicare-advantage-plan-123045304.html
We are in the middle of the Medicare Coverage Annual Enrollment time span right now. it runs from October 15 to December 7. During this time you are allowed to join, switch, or drop Medicare Advantage and Part D plans for the following year Additionally.......those with a Medicare Advantage plan can make changes once between January 1 and March 31 during the Medicare Open Enrollment Period. There are also Special Enrollment periods......which allow for changes outside of these times due to qualifying life events, such as moving or losing other health coverage. From January 1 – March 31 each year..... those already enrolled in a Medicare Advantage Plan are allowed to switch to a different Medicare Advantage plan or go back to original Medicare. If you are going to turn 65.....there is a seven-month window to sign up for Medicare around your 65th birthday. During this time you enroll in Medicare Parts A and B, a Medicare Advantage plan, or a Part D plan for the first time. There are also Special Enrollment Periods at certain times outside the standard enrollment periods that allow people that fit certain qualifying life events to change plans. This Medicare "stuff" is very complex......so do not rely on this simple post.....do your research and make sure you know what you are doing. If you need help get some professional advice. There can be LIFETIME penalties if you do not sign up for medicare in the initial age 65 time window.....so be careful. We just did our annual search for part D drug coverage. We seem to switch to a different company every year....due to big premium increases. We go to the government Medicare site and put in our zip code and get a list of the part D plans in our area along with the premium for each plan. We than put in our few generic drugs that we use to see how the coverage under the plan will apply for us. This year our old plan is going from $20 per month per person to $70 per month....outrageous. So we are once again switching plans...for part D...required drug coverage. Our new drug plan......has $0 premium per month.......and....the cost for our five generic prescriptions will be.....$0. I guess we cant do much better than that. We DO NOT use a Medicare Advantage Plan. We are on traditional Medicare with a Medicare supplement insurance policy.
Mortgage rates are now about 6.25%...for a traditional 30 year mortgage. We are pushing down toward 6%. I consider a 6% rate as TOTALLY NORMAL in historic terms. If you are waiting for rates to go back to the 4% or 5% range.....GOOD LUCK. Look at historic mortgage rates......and make sure you are being REALISTIC in your thinking.....or you might be waiting to buy a house for a very long time....perhaps NEVER. Lower rates were supposed to bring homebuyers back this fall. Here’s why it hasn’t happened. Home prices have continued to rise, straining affordability for buyers. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/lowe...ll-heres-why-it-hasnt-happened-113001019.html If I was a first time buyer....and like most first time buyers had budget or financing issues...I would seek out a home in a Master Planned Community or other site that is being built out by.....big builders. These builders often have special finance incentive rates that.... at least in our area.....ARE....currently in the 4% range. BUT....one thing people buying in the new active.....big builder neighborhoods..... dont think about is....RE-SALE. As long as the big builders are still active in the neighborhood....if you want or need to sell.....you will be competing with the new builder homes and all the perks and incentives they provide. Often in these sorts of neighborhoods prices for re-sale homes....are MUTED..... do not go up as much, due to competing with the new builder homes. Once the builders are done and move on......prices do start to go up as in any existing neighborhood. ANYWAY....if you are determined to buy and own a home.....get creative and consider all the options.
Speaking of Social Security.....we will get the cost of living increase figure next week I believe on October 24. Probably about....2.7% to 2.8%.
HERE is the sad story of the issues that are impacting a few Regional Banks. The alleged ‘sweeping betrayal of trust’ that rocked Zions bank and spooked Wall Street https://www.cnbc.com/2025/10/18/the...ocked-zions-bank-and-spooked-wall-street.html
