Worries about rising interest rates, the continuing trade friction between the U.S. and China, and geopolitical tensions tempered risk appetites among investors in the 4th quarter. What events will trigger markets to move up or down in 2019?

Despite vast publicity in the media, very few people really understand Bitcoin. We will attempt to explain Bitcoin in simple, nontechnical terms and why we think current Bitcoin market investors are riding a speculative wave that could soon collapse.

Despite vast publicity in the media, very few people really understand Bitcoin. We explain Bitcoin in simple, nontechnical terms and why we think current Bitcoin market investors are riding a speculative wave that could soon collapse.

The U.S. stock market started off in January with a bang, rallying to new records daily. However, in February volatility was reintroduced to investors at a level that has not been seen since 2015, as measured by the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX).

Investors throughout the world had much to cheer this past New Year’s celebration, as positive returns were experienced by investors throughout all markets. Stocks in the U.S. had their best year since 2013 as the S&P 500 Index returned 21.8% with December marking 14 consecutive months of positive returns, a feat not achieved since 1970.

The equity markets continued their upward trajectory during the third quarter, with most market indices closing the quarter at an all-time high, or close to their record highs. This defies the well-known trading adage of “sell in May and go away” that warns investors to sell their equity holdings in May to avoid the typical volatile months of the summer and come back in the Fall.

With the momentum in the market carrying over from the first quarter, the first half of 2017 has been the best start for global equities since 1998. Although equity markets outside of the United States were up more, the Standard and Poor’s 500 had its best first half of the year since 2013.

The first quarter ended with the stock market completing its eighth year of the current bull market, with the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index advancing 6.07%, marking the sixth quarter in a row the index closed in positive territory. Not only was the past quarter one of the least volatile quarters in some 50 years, the sectors that performed well were the stocks that lagged during the fourth quarter last year, as the “Trump Trade” faded.