July 2023 Financial Bullet Points

Written by Bob Barber

Starting this month, and every month hereafter, I will be bringing you “Financial Bullet Points,” which will cover the main financial issues I see affecting the markets at the time without being bogged down with a lot of details in just three minutes or less.

Bullet Points:

1. The Federal Reserve is slowing interest rate increases way down since they started dramatically raising them in March 2022 from 0% to 5.25% today to curb inflation. With inflation subsiding dramatically over the last year, the consensus is the Fed will now raise interest rates much more slowly, moving forward until they hit a target inflation rate in the 2-3% range. The markets expect a 1/4 percent rise in interest rates before the end of July which may or may not happen.
2. The U.S. Government debt ceiling that was hanging over the stock markets in May has now been put off for another few years by our politicians.
3. With the rise of interest rates, Fixed Income for savings and investment accounts are now better than they have been in years.
4. We now offer FDIC, insured CDs at competitive rates that are many times better than you can get at your local bank or Credit Union. Contact us for rates.
5. Many professional money managers are typically on vacation in July, so expect many more market swings from day traders through the end of this month.
6. An interesting note for July is that the markets have seen a positive return for 9 of the last ten years. Will that happen again this July? Only time will tell.

That’s all for now. Once again, if you would like further explanation of any of the bullet points mentioned, please call or text (830) 609-6986 during business hours or email us by clicking here.

Bob Barber, Founder & Owner
Christian Financial Advisors^®