January 2024 Newsletter

JANUARY 2024 NEWSLETTER

We hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Our client Christmas party was once again a huge success with everyone having a great time. It is always nice seeing everyone there. It is also very special for me to see how so many of our clients who didn't know each other years ago now look forward to seeing each other at our client events.

As we start the new year, I would like to share with you the 2024 outlook from LPL's research department.

In 2024, LPL believes the market will make a definitive turn to a more recognizable place. The transition will be marked by meaningful shifts in a few key areas. Inflation is going down. The risk of a recession is bubbling up again as the effect of post-pandemic stimulus wanes. And the end of the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) rate-hiking campaign is indeed upon us. Where the last two years had investors focused on inflation, market volatility, and striving for a sense of economic balance, we now can expect to see some return to the previous status quo—that is, a less-stringent Fed, normalizing inflation, and a slower growth environment. We’ve seen indications of this reset—receding inflation, rates stabilizing, more modest equity market performance, and go-forward economic forecasts that have been dwindling. From our perspective, this turning point for the markets and economic landscape can be characterized as a return to familiar economic and market patterns, leaving behind the volatility of policy and economic swings experienced in recent years, and moving toward a steadier environment. All of this said, it doesn’t mean that 2024 won’t have its own surprises or potential challenges. Reflecting on 2023, we certainly experienced our fair share of unexpected events. There was positive news: The U.S. economy was strong, and the stock market performed relatively well, despite the Fed tightening monetary policy and raising interest rates. On the downside, we faced a regional banking crisis driven by interest rate risk and saw escalating conflict in the Middle East, reminding us that markets are seemingly constantly overcoming obstacles.

Our advice in 2024 is to keep in mind short term fluctuations only affect the day traders, not the long-term investors. History tells us that people who don't act emotionally and stay invested will be fine. I know it's hard but try not to pay attention to the media. They have made it obvious that they have an agenda and seem to only want to promote fear. If you ever have questions or concerns, please call the office for unbiased objective honest advice.

On a personal note, we had a great Christmas. Having Nick home for the holidays was the best gift of all. Nick is back in Long Island ready to start up the second half of the year. Hopefully, he can continue his dominating play from the first half. He leads all goalies in every category. His numbers are insane!! His record is 21-1-1 with a 951 save % and a 1.86 goals against average. He has won 18 games in a row and his team is in first place in their division and the entire league. To no surprise he was selected to play in the all-star game in a couple of weeks. Lexi enjoyed her winter break and truly loved having her big brother home for Christmas. Her grades are still fantastic, and she will be narrowing down her list of schools to visit during the spring. I couldn’t be prouder of them both.