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Who would have thought, most major Stock Market Indexes finished the 1st<\/sup> Quarter 2019 up double digits! The Dow recorded a gain of 11.81%, the S&P 500 13.65%, the Russell 2000 14.58% and the Nasdaq Composite up 16.9%. United States Bonds as measured by the Barclay\u2019s Aggregate Bond Index finished up 2.94%. I don\u2019t think anyone 4-5 months back would have thought this is where the Markets would stand after the 1st<\/sup> quarter. <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Over the pond, the MSCI EAFE International Index finished the quarter up 10.13% and the Emerging Market Stock Index up 9.95%.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Something else to keep an eye on, the price of WTI Oil is up from $45.41 per barrel to $60.14. <\/span>That is a 32% rise year-to-date. No wonder it costs a little more to fill our gas tanks.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Last week we started to hear chatter from a few of our leaders wanting the Federal Reserve to now CUT RATES! As I have a lot of respect for John Kudlow, I don\u2019t believe the Federal Reserve should cut rates at this point. The US economy continues to expand, rates are very low already and I believe the Federal Reserve should keep the bullets in their gun until they are truly needed.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Part of the reason for this chatter is the fear that the economy is slowing down and we now have had a couple of Yield Curve Inversions. Last week the 3 Month Treasury Yield rose higher than the 10 Year Treasury Yield.\u00a0\u00a0 The last several recessions have been preceded by a Yield Curve Inversion bringing many to believe that a recession is only months away.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What will truly happen, as always, time will tell!<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n On a fun note, so glad to see Bryce Harper smack 2 dingers in the first 2 games. He has the ability to electrify the city. Remember that little guy who did it a few years back, Allen Iverson! With 76ers now very competitive, the Phillies loaded with optimism, the Eagles having 2 great seasons in a row, one can\u2019t help but feel adrenaline when thinking of Philly sports!!!<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n The price of Oil impacts pricing of gasoline, plane tickets and cost of goods sold for many businesses. What was the highest price of a barrel of WTI Oil?<\/span><\/p>\n a) 121.25\/barrel<\/span><\/p>\n b) 161.70\/barrel<\/span><\/p>\n c)\u00a0\u00a0 91.30\/barrel<\/span><\/p>\n d) 301.31\/barrel<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Social Security:<\/span><\/p>\n What is the last year you can be born to be eligible to receive 100% of your projected Full Retirement Age Benefit at age 66?<\/span><\/p>\n a) 1965<\/span><\/p>\n b) 1954<\/span><\/p>\n c) 1960<\/span><\/p>\n d) 1975<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The correct answer is –<\/span><\/p>\n b) 1954\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n For each year born after 1954, the age of full Retirement increases by 2 months. For example, if you were born in 1957, to begin receiving your \u201cfull Retirement Social Security benefit, you must begin at age 66 and 6 month. For those born in 1960 and later, the age is 67.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" 1st Quarter Ends on a High Note\/Interest Rate Cut\/Philly Sports Who would have thought, most major Stock Market Indexes finished the 1st Quarter 2019 up double digits! The Dow recorded a gain of 11.81%, the S&P 500 13.65%, the Russell 2000 14.58% and the Nasdaq Composite up 16.9%. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":163,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"post_statement":"","post_description":"","post_cta":"","post_button":"Read More","post_button_url":"","compliance_id":"","post_disclaimer":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.retirementrefined.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/162"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.retirementrefined.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.retirementrefined.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.retirementrefined.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.retirementrefined.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=162"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.retirementrefined.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/162\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.retirementrefined.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/163"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.retirementrefined.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=162"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.retirementrefined.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=162"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.retirementrefined.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=162"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Talk of an Interest Rate Cut?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Philly Sports<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Question of the Week<\/span><\/h3>\n
Answer To Last Week\u2019s Question<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Please join us for our next Workshop!<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Social Security Planning Workshop<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Wednesday, April 17, 2019 \u2013 6:30 pm\u20138:00 pm<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Cherry Hill Library \u2013 1100 Kings Hwy North \u2013 Cherry Hill \u2013 08034<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
RSVP By Clicking Here Register for Social Security Planning Workshop<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Or<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
\u00a0Call 856-354-3200 x205<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n