THE WEEK ON WALL STREET
Stocks finished the last week of June and Q2 mixed as investors digested a fresh round of economic data. The S&P 500 Index slipped 0.08%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average also dipped 0.08 percent. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 0.24 percent. The MSCI EAFE Index tracks developed overseas stock markets and rose 0.27 percent for the week through Thursday’s close.
FACT OF THE WEEK
On July 1, 1979, the first personal stereo cassette player, called the Sony Walkman, debuts for sale. It would spark a revolution in portable electronics.
The transistor radio had been the first technological marvel to put music literally into consumers’ hands in the mid-1950s. It was cheap, it was reliable and it was portable, but it could never even approximate the sound quality of a record being played on a home stereo. It was, however, the only technology available to on-the-go music lovers until Walkman appeared.
Even though this proto-Walkman required large, earmuff-like headphones and custom-made batteries (which, of course, ran out on Ibuka midway through his flight), it impressed the Sony chairman tremendously with its sound quality and portability. Many objections were raised internally when Ibuka began his push to create a marketable version of the device, the biggest of which was conceptual: Would anyone actually buy a cassette device that was not for recording but only for playback? Ibuka’s simple response—”Don’t you think a stereo cassette player that you can listen to while walking around is a good idea?”—proved to be one of the great understatements in business history.
After a breakneck development phase of only four months, Sony engineers had a reliable product ready for market at 30,000 Yen (approximately US $150 in 1979 dollars) and available before the start of summer vacation for Japanese students—both critical targets established at the outset of development. The initial production run of 30,000 units looked to be too ambitious after one month of lackluster sales (only 3,000 were sold in July 1979). But after an innovative consumer-marketing campaign in which Sony representatives simply approached pedestrians on the streets of Tokyo and gave them a chance to listen to the Walkman, the product took off, selling out available stocks before the end of August and signaling the beginning of one of Sony’s greatest success stories.
MARKET MINUTE
Nasdaq Regains Lead
Last week opened with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq heading lower, while the Dow rallied on momentum from the prior week. But by mid-week, the leadership shifted with the Nasdaq pushing higher. With the back half of the week packed with fresh economic data, conflicting stories developed about the economy. New home sales fell 11.3 percent in May—the largest month-over-month drop in a year and a half—while the supply of new homes hit a 16-year high. Meanwhile, first-quarter GDP revised slightly to 1.4 percent higher, and durable goods increased in May. Friday's personal consumption and expenditure (PCE) data showed that core inflation slowed to 0.1 percent in May over the prior month and 2.6 percent year-over-year—its lowest annual rate in three years. Both figures were in line with expectations. Stock prices initially rallied on the upbeat inflation news, but the early gains faded as the trading day progressed.
Divergent Speakers
Federal Reserve officials have worked to communicate that despite the progress made on inflation in recent months, it remains above the Fed’s 2 percent target.Last week, Fed Governor Michelle Bowman surprised the markets when she indicated, “I remain willing to raise the target range for the federal funds rate at a future meeting should progress on inflation stall or even reverse.” Fed Chair Powell, scheduled to speak on July 2, told investors on May 14, “I don’t think that it’s likely, based on the data that we have, that the next move that we make would be a rate hike.”
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 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.