January was another bust for Stocks; the S&P lost 3.1% for the first month of the year. Before you push that button, it might be helpful to recall that in January 2014 the index saw a loss of 3.6%, which then rebounded to close up 11.6% for the fiscal year.
Here’s some good news: Personal Incomes rose last month by 0.5%, and showing that we may have learned something from our historical collective imprudence, Personal Spending declined again by 0.3%, even lower than the 0.2% decrease expected. Profligate pundits are wondering why we are not spending any money, especially given the low interest rates. No need to panic I say; America still loves its debt. The decline in spending is largely attributed to the decrease in fuel costs. I might need to qualify that statement: you might consider panicking if you sell barrels of crude oil.
