On The Markets 2016

     2016 was the year of the vote. We saw the vote on the British referendum (Brexit), the vote for the US Presidency, the Italian referendum, and the Federal Reserve voting to raise interest rates.

     With all these big decisions and uncertainty, the markets still finished higher:

  •      The S&P 500 fell by 11% at one point during the year, but a look at recent history shows that this dip was relatively low. The average drop for the past 36 years was 14.2%.1
  •      Oil prices rose by 44.76% from the beginning of the year, which boosted the price of gasoline. Paying more at the pump ultimately left consumers with less extra money to spend.2
  •      Interest rates increased slightly, by .08%. This raised the cost of borrowing, including mortgages and car loans.3

     2016 was a fairly eventful year, and time will tell what 2017 will bring. As always, please feel free to reach out to our office if you have any questions.

Best Regards, 

AB First Name.jpg

Adam E Bray CFP®
Chief Investment Officer

1 J.P. Morgan
2 The St. Louis Fed
3 The United States Treasury