Interest rates have risen steadily over the past six months but remain low by historical standards. That means the traditional high-quality bonds that many of us owned for decades are not doing the job for investors looking for income, while the potential for interest rates have risen steadily in recent months brings more risk in the bond market than has been evident historically.

“It’s the media’s job to get you to tune in, but it’s our job as investors to focus on our long-term goals,” noted LPL Financial Chief Market Strategist Ryan Detrick.

The resilience of the US economy continues to exceed our expectations. With encouraging progress toward ending the pandemic, and massive fiscal stimulus in place—and more likely coming soon, our prior economic growth forecasts may prove overly conservative.

Should Investors Root For Tom Brady Or Patrick Mahomes?

The Super Bowl Indicator suggests stocks rise for the full year when the Super Bowl winner has come from the original National Football League (now the NFC), but when an original American Football League (now the AFC) team has won, stocks fall.

MIAMI, Florida — January 27, 2021 — Austin A. Frye, an independent LPL Financial advisor at Frye Financial Center in Aventura, today announced his inclusion in LPL’s Chairman’s Council. This elite award is presented to less than 1% of the firm’s more than 17,000 financial advisors nationwide*.

“On behalf of LPL, I congratulate Austin on reaching this milestone in his professional career,” said Angela Xavier, LPL executive vice president, Independent Advisor Services “Business owners, American investors and industries at large faced extraordinary challenges throughout 2020. In the advisor-mediated financial advice market, investors showed how much value they place on a trusting relationship with a financial advisor. We applaud Austin for his commitment to clients and resiliency as a business owner, and we are inspired by his dedication to making a meaningful impact in the lives of his clients. It is an honor to support Austin and wish his entire team continued success as they continue to add value for clients and in their business in the years ahead.”

Real-time data is sending positive news for the economy in 2021. Small cap stocks’ out-performance signals the early stages of an economic expansion, and high stock valuations appear justified. COVID-19 data is starting to show better trends.  Read more here.

Fourth quarter 2020 corporate earnings season likely will be the last in this earnings recession. Earnings may grow in the first quarter of 2021 and beyond.

For Your New Year's Resolutions

Even amid the good news of the rollout of not one but two vaccines, with more likely on the way, we know that we will be living with the uncertainties and fall-out from the COVID-19 pandemic for a while to come.

As we start the pivot to what our new normal will look like, one of the most "normal' things we should do is to take care of our estate planning. Many Americans remain anxious about what would happen should they get sick and be unable to make informed decisions or manage their financial and legal affairs. Some may have no documents in place, or have outdated ones with incorrect beneficiary/guardian/power of attorney designations. Others may never have completed their planning due to indecisiveness around certain difficult decisions. 

2020 was a unique year, from the longest economic expansion ever to the shortest recession on record. Stock markets are forward-looking, and they want clarity on elections, too. Above all else, 2020 showed our ability to persevere.  Read more.

One thing on which we can all agree is that 2020 was a year like none other. Here at Frye Financial we did our best to accommodate and guide our clients through normal planning and challenging situations via remote sessions or masked, socially-distanced meetings at our office. We were deemed an essential service, and indeed, in providing advice to many small business owners, we are helping those who comprise the bedrock of the U.S. economy! Read more.