THE WEEK ON WALL STREET
Rising concerns about further rate hikes sent stocks lower to kick off the second half of trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.96%, while the S&P 500 retreated 1.16%. The Nasdaq Composite index surrendered 0.92% for the week. The MSCI EAFE index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, tumbled 2.57%.
FACT OF THE WEEK
The United States Patent Office issues the Swedish engineer Nils Bohlin a patent for his three-point automobile safety belt “for use in vehicles, especially road vehicles” on July 10, 1962.
Four years earlier, Sweden’s Volvo Car Corporation had hired Bohlin, who had previously worked in the Swedish aviation industry, as the company’s first chief safety engineer. At the time, safety-belt use in automobiles was limited mostly to race car drivers; the traditional two-point belt, which fastened in a buckle over the abdomen, had been known to cause severe internal injuries in the event of a high-speed crash. Bohlin designed his three-point system in less than a year, and Volvo introduced it on its cars in 1959. Consisting of two straps that joined at the hip level and fastened into a single anchor point, the three-point belt significantly reduced injuries by effectively holding both the upper and lower body and reducing the impact of the swift deceleration that occurred in a crash.
Volvo released the new seat belt design to other car manufacturers, and it quickly became standard worldwide. The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 made seat belts a required feature on all new American vehicles from the 1968 model year onward. Though engineers have improved on seat belt design over the years, the basic structure is still Bohlin’s.
The use of seat belts has been estimated to reduce the risk of fatalities and serious injuries from collisions by about 50 percent.
MARKET MINUTE
Stocks Slide
Stocks were dragged lower last week by news reigniting fears of additional rate interest rate increases. It started with the minutes from June’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting, which revealed a majority of voting members supported at least two more rate hikes. But a strong employment report from Automated Data Processing (ADP), a payroll processor, unnerved investors, sending stocks lower and bond yields higher. Markets stabilized after Friday morning’s federal government’s monthly employment release showed a less-than-expected increase in nonfarm payrolls. But stock prices turned down in the afternoon, adding to the week’s losses.
Mixed Labor Market Signals
Wall Street was rattled by an unexpected surge in new private-sector jobs last Thursday. ADP reported private sector employers had added 497,000 jobs in June, blowing away the consensus estimate of 220,000. Leisure and hospitality led the gains with 232,000 new hires, followed by construction (97,000). Friday’s release of monthly employment data painted a more moderate picture, with 209,000 new jobs added in June, well below the estimate of 240,000 and May’s downwardly revised total of 306,000. Friday’s report added to data released earlier in the week (a decline in job openings and a rise in jobless claims) that suggested that the labor market may be cooling.
FINANCIAL STRATEGY OF THE WEEK
Retirement is about YOU – your values, your priorities, and your dreams for the future. Is there a "right" time to retire? There is – the time you determine works best for you.
Thinking about retiring early? Consider the consequences associated with that choice:
- You might be giving up prime earning years during which you could be adding to your retirement savings.
- The earlier you retire, the longer your accumulated assets must last.
- If you begin collecting Social Security benefits as soon as you are eligible (age 62 for most people), your benefits may be 25% to 30% less than they would be if you wait until age 66 or 67.
- Because you’re not eligible for Medicare until you turn 65, you may need to purchase health insurance and/or pay for out-of-pocket health care prior to age 65
Thinking about delaying retirement? That choice comes with certain advantages…
- The longer you work, the more you can contribute to your retirement savings.
- If you postpone tapping into your nest egg, you reduce the likelihood that you will outlive your money.
- By waiting until full retirement to collect Social Security benefits, you may increase future benefits.
- Continued employment may also include continued access to company-sponsored health insurance.
Of course, the decision about when to retire is yours and should be made with your unique circumstances in mind. If you'd like to discuss questions about the timing of your retirement, let’s connect. We're here for you.