Not being able to understand what is happening around you is not all that bad
So much for the lazy hazy days of summer.
The S&P 500 climbed to 7750 last week as concerns over a rate hike were abated due to a drop in non-farm payrolls last month.
It seems that bad news is good news again.
The real engine to me is the continuous reports of significant earnings increases for corporations.
While we get lost in the conservative projections for the future by these same companies, it is hard to ignore quarter after quarter positive earnings reports.
Back to the jobs reported last month, it is a sign that companies are prospering without having to hire more and pay more.
The last item mentioned, not paying more, can really drive the profit picture for companies and it certainly helps keep a lid on inflation.
I don’t think the labor market is cheering that news.
It is just another sign that the labor market is changing due to AI.
Companies are more productive with less staff.
Did I hear anyone looking for trade school information?
I don’t know about you, but due to my vintage, all of my trusted service people have justifiably retired.
Finding trustworthy service people is a full-time task these days for me.
They are out there in abundance, I have to find them all over again.
I have come to the side of paying just about whatever to get someone that does the task at hand at the time promised.
We are almost out of the earnings season, but far from any resolution in the Middle East.
Apparently, Israel has rejected the proposed Gaza deal and Iran is using the Straits as its hole card.
I am not sure there is anything that will bring Iran to a real negotiation.
Their tactic seems to promise a bit and do nothing in return.
It seems that we will be left with trying to starve their economy into submission.
Not really sure that is possible. That means this situation could drag on well into next year.
There will be a report Wednesday on CPI.
If this report is anything like the last several, it will reflect that not much has changed.
You would think that the recent rise in energy prices would push up inflation but recent months have shown that not to be the case.
Moreover, the price per barrel is down below $80.
I have adapted as prices have changed.
I have used it as an excuse to eat healthier and in smaller portions.
I try for the first time in my life to eliminate highly processed foods.
No easy task in today’s world as most cravings are for things that are not nutritious.
It’s taking all of the comfort out of food.
I am headed to the Euell Gibbons side of the ledger eating hickory nuts.
I know I will be healthier physically but I am sure my mental state will take a hit.
Maybe the return of football will turn my attention away from nutrition and the vagaries of economics.
I can at least appreciate the growth of the valuations of my various equities investments.
While I am at a loss to explain why, I am not one to look a gift horse in the mouth.
I often wonder about such phrases. Never really have seen a gift horse and not sure that I would concentrate my vision on its mouth.
Whatever, as my kids used to say, I am just going to roll with the flow.
Besides, it is so hot, it is hard to get that exercised about much at this time of the year.
