Alex Harding

Trick or Treat

Trick or Treat

Chocolate-loving parents may be in for a sour surprise as they rummage through their children’s Halloween candy this year. With cocoa prices double the levels seen last year, food companies are getting creative, reducing the size of chocolate bars and adding more non-chocolate treats to their Halloween candy bags for sale. Trick-or-treaters weren’t the only ones to experience an eventful week, as an action-packed capital markets provided investors with their own bag of surprises to unpack.

Time to Pivot

Time to Pivot

On Wednesday, the last significant economic data release occurred before the Federal Open Markets Commitee (FOMC) meeting next week. Overall, inflation appears to be tamed with the August Consumer Price Index (CPI) falling to a 2.5% growth rate compared to a year earlier, hitting a new three-year low.

Rotation

Rotation

Since the release of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) on July 11, the stock market has experienced a noticeable shift in leadership as the inflation rate continues to move toward the Fed’s target of 2%. Investors have been moving away from technology stocks, which have been the darlings of the market this year, towards small-cap and value stocks.

Hawks vs. Stocks

Hawks vs. Stocks

It was an action-packed week headlined by Wednesday’s economic “doubleheader.” The Federal Reserve’s June meeting took place the same day as the release of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation report.

Where Did Everyone Go?

Where Did Everyone Go?

On Monday, Facebook experienced an outage across its platform of apps for nearly six hours, affecting billions of users. The network disruption reminds us how interwoven social media is into the fabric of the global economy and many of our personal lives.

Christianson, Harding and Havnaer Receive Promotions

Christianson, Harding and Havnaer Receive Promotions

Promotions within our company are something worth celebrating. Three professionals representing different teams were recognized for their accomplishments at Ferguson Wellman.