Employment Report

The unemployment rate fell to 3.8%, the lowest since April 2000.  The US  has had 11 recessions over the past 70 years.  Historically, the unemployment rate turned up, on average, several months before a recession began.

The U.S. stock market was roughly flat in the month of April following some wide swings, and both the S&P 500 Index and the bond market are down on a year-to-date basis, something that has not happened in years.

The stock market has been in a correction phase since late January and volatility has increased due to concerns of a potential trade war with China, rising interest rates, and growing tensions in Syria and Iran. Following President Trump’s initial proposal to slap tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, China swiftly retaliated with announced tariffs of their own, including a 25 percent tariff on critical U.S. exports including soybeans, the biggest U.S. agricultural export to China, and airplanes. Although the proposed tariffs would not go into effect for months, if ever, clearly the threats are creating a heightened level of uncertainty for the markets.

Meanwhile, oil prices have been on the rise as a barrel of West Texas Intermediate hit $68, the highest level in four years as seen below, and the yield on the ten-year U.S. Treasury Note hit 3 percent during April, a level last seen in January 2014.

TJT Capital Group’s InVEST Risk Model® has helped our clients participate in bull markets and protect capital from the devastation of bear markets by focusing on 5 indicators that really matter when it comes to determining the health and direction of markets. The following is the most recent update.

Check out the full report here.

 

The S&P 500 index experienced its first down quarter since 2015 on concerns about the rise in interest rates, a potential trade war with China, and privacy issues with some of the leading technology companies that may lead to increased regulation. The S&P 500 fell 2.68 percent in the month of March and was down 1.2 percent in the first quarter, excluding dividends.

Volatility has also returned to the markets with the S&P 500 registering six trading days of plus or minus 2 percent moves compared to zero in 2017. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), more specifically, saw swings of minus 724, plus 669, minus 345 and plus 254 in the last few days of March.

Interest rates have moved higher as the yield on the three month U.S. Treasury Bill rose to 1.73 percent from 1.39 percent at year-end, while the ten-year Treasury yield rose to 2.74 percent from 2.40 percent over the same period.

TJT Capital Group’s InVEST Risk Model® has helped our clients participate in bull markets and protect capital from the devastation of bear markets by focusing on 5 indicators that really matter when it comes to determining the health and direction of markets. The following is the most recent update.

Check out the full report here