Friday

America’s central bank increased the overnight interest rate (called the Fed Funds Rate) on Wednesday.  This is the Federal Reserve’s sixth hike since they began raising rates in December 2015.  At the time, Janet Yellen led the institution; four subsequent increases happened under her watch.  On February 5, 2018, Jerome Powell assumed the office, and he now has his f

Happy Friday! Markets continued swinging throughout the week and could probably use some rest this weekend. After a relatively quiet period last year, 2018 has ushered in a new regime of volatility. However, this is quite standard; it was 2017’s quiescence which was abnormal. Market indicators continue suggesting the path of least resistance is up, but Atlas is not complacent.

Atlas has noticed a pattern in recent economic data.  Our economy’s growth rate pushed through the 3.0 percent level (adjusted for inflation) during the middle quarters of last year; since then, the indicators have not been as strong.  Slower might best describe the recent developments.

Atlas' Monday note covered the most recent employment report.  If you did not have a chance to see it or want to reference it, click here.  One of the more positive developments to come out of the report was an increase in average hourly earnings.  This is an important statistic because it sug

Last year will go down as record setting.  The number of global billionaires increased by more than ever before.  According to a study by Oxfam there were 2043 billionaires in the world at year’s end 2017, with a new one now being minted every two days.  When juxtaposed against some of the poorest people on earth, this growth rate seems to be a bit much; Oxfam estimates bil

As the dust settled, it became apparent that 2017 was one for the records.  Unfortunately, natural catastrophes were what set many of the records.  According to Munich Re (a reinsurer), insured disasters globally reached an all-time high cost of $135 billion., nearly three times higher than the annual average of $49 billion.  Sadly, this figure covers just 41 percent of the total

Our modern world is full of distractions.  Beeps, buzzes, custom ringtones, and dings interrupt thoughts daily.  These intrusions often keep us from completing tasks at hand because they consistently cause our interests to change.  In other words, our rate of interest grows for the present distraction while declining from a relatively longer-term goal, possibly sacrificing poster