Celebrating you, your family and all your hard work.
Observed the first Monday in September, Labor Day is an annual celebration of the social and economic achievements of American workers. The holiday is rooted in the late nineteenth century, when labor activists pushed to establish a federal holiday to recognize the many contributions workers made to America’s strength, prosperity and well-being. Oregon was the first state to pass a law recognizing Labor Day, on February 21, 1887, followed quickly by Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York. On June 28, 1894, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a federal holiday. Elaborate parades and union speeches celebrating Labor Day are less prominent now than they used to be, replaced with barbecues and last hurrah summer activities.
The upcoming holiday got me thinking about you and the many ways you and your families have worked hard to be where you are today. It also got me thinking about how infrequently we all slow down and celebrate our accomplishments in all their forms.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang must have had the same feeling this week after the company reported more than $30 billion in sales and profits that doubled to $16.6 billion. As the stock dipped by more than 6% and triggered similar declines in other tech mega caps, it was clear investors were not satisfied. Admittedly, Nvidia stock is up more than 154% this year and more than 3,000% over the past five years, thanks to the AI frenzy. Huang is probably still feeling like he has much to celebrate, even if the last week was a little rough.
And so do investors in the financial markets, as we turn the page on summer and brace ourselves for the end of this year. After the declines in 2022, it has been a spectacular comeback across most financial markets in 2023 and 2024. It’s looking even better because we’re seeing green shoots like how the market is broadening with small- and mid-cap stocks gathering steam. And the market is deepening as more value-oriented companies gain momentum. Economic data is giving us enough good news to feel like we have skirted recession. Case in point, second quarter GDP growth was revised higher from 2.8% to 3% Thursday, thanks to better-than-reported consumer spending. Friday morning, we learned the Federal Reserve’s all-important inflation gauge, the Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) advanced by just 0.2% in July and 2.5% year-over-year, right in line with expectations. With inflation abating, but job growth slowing, the Fed remains on deck for a September interest rate cut, bringing together the most Goldilocks of circumstances: solid growth and declining interest rates.
The question for investors: Is all the good news already priced in? The answer is that it depends. As such, it is an important time to review your portfolio with your team to make sure your investment selection and asset allocation are on the mark for shifts like a market broadening, more volatility and falling interest rates. As presidential candidates share more details about their thinking on taxes, consider how changes in tax rates could affect you and have a plan in either direction, depending on the outcome of November’s elections. We look forward to helping you think through that plan and then putting it into action when the time is right.
On that note, we wish you and your families a wonderful Labor Day weekend. We hope you find time to reflect on all your successes. Being a daughter of Massachusetts, I leave you with one of my all-time favorite poems from one of my all-time favorite authors, and a fellow graduate of Boston Latin School (once they allowed girls, of course), Ralph Waldo Emerson:
“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of the intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know that one life has breathed easier because you lived here. This is to have succeeded.” Cheers to your continued success and thank you for your relationship with us. If you would like to speak personally with a member of your advisory team, please call 833.RWA.PLAN (833.792.7526).