September lived up to its reputation as one of the worst months for stocks and we are now in the fourth quarter.
The next thing you know it will be Trick or Treat and fall will finally arrive in Texas.
Speaking of scary, we escaped a government shutdown as the can got kicked down the road to November.
It really seems that nothing will get done in government until the election a year from now.
I’ve mentioned before that isn’t a bad idea.
What is becoming apparent is that higher interest rates are impacting the economy.
Regional banks are not lending.
Mortgages are higher and consumers have run up the debt through credit cards.
I would mention the amount of debt the government has accumulated but who really cares.
The bill is coming due and some hard decisions will have to be made after the election.
We may be a rich nation but you have to pay your bills.
Some popular social programs, along with a myriad of others to include the military may find themselves wanting.
For the first time in a long time, politicians will not be able to spend uncontrollably. Unfortunately, this only comes when we hit the wall destroying most things.
Of interest over the weekend was the news of the impact of diabetes drugs like Ozempic. These drugs now are more known as weight-loss drugs.
The theory is that with people eating and drinking less, there will be earnings impacts of restaurants and sales of less-than-healthy foods and drinks. That seems a stretch to me.
I know these drugs are a tremendous success to the likes of Eli Lilly, but they are expensive. I hate to say it but I see more overweight people. While the rich may use these drugs, they are not a significant portion of the population.
This seems like such a reach.
I will start to be a believer when I see the drive-through line at Whataburger shrink.
The last quarter usually is positive as money managers seek to fatten their portfolios. The holiday impact runs through the first half of January and then facing the tax season things start to get real.
As such, this is no value investor situation, but it might be time to at least look. When you have over 40,000 stocks to choose from, there are always bargains, but you have to look.
It seems that while there is much to pay attention to, things are not precarious.
