Economy
I've been out of town all week with Lauren and the kids at Rosemary Beach, Florida enjoying some time away from the office after we wrapped up our first tax season. Did I plan my family vacation intentionally around a quiet week of economic reports and new data? It might seem that way. A little bit of real estate news and a slight uptick in last week's claims for unemployment insurance looks to be all we had hit the wires. The number of homes that went under contract in March rose from the month prior by more than expected, despite mortgage rates increasing during that time. Interestingly (on a personal note) the Kansas City area saw the largest increase in year-over-year sales, increasing by 14.9%, according to the National Association of Realtors latest report.
There will be much more to discuss on the economy next week as the Fed meets and announces its decision with respect to interest rates, we'll get an estimate on the GDP numbers for the first quarter and be watching for what, if any, impact the Iran war had, and another look at inflation with the Fed's preferred gauge, the personal consumption expenditures index.
Markets
It was a relatively calm week for the markets which saw the week end with a fresh all-time high on the S&P 500. For the week, the index posted gains of 0.55%. John Butters at FactSet wrote that we're just over a quarter of the way through Q1 earnings season, and we're continuing to see strong results from those companies that have reported. Between the companies that have reported and the analyst estimates for the companies yet to report, the blended earnings growth for Q1 is about 15% and blended revenues are up by 10%. With the Fed meeting taking place in the middle of 180 S&P 500 companies reporting, things will get busy next week.
What We're Reading
- Tax Benefits of 529 Plans- The College Financial Lady
- The Most Positive Data Point in the Economy- Bonddad Blog
Have a great weekend.
Dogwood Wealth Management