A Review of the 2nd Quarter of 2021
The second quarter of 2021 had a little bit of everything: vaccines, inflation concerns, jobs recovery, and more. Let’s take a look at how markets performed and what we might look forward to in the months to come.How Did Markets Perform Last Quarter?
What Can We Expect in the Months Ahead?
“Despite fears of runaway inflation and pandemic-related challenges, markets delivered a strong performance in Q2. While obstacles to growth remain, we expect the economic recovery to continue this quarter.”
Key Takeaways for Savvy Investors
Despite a lot of uncertainty around business reopening, vaccination rates, and economic growth, equities delivered a solid performance in the second quarter, closing out the strongest first half since 2019.7 While the quarter closed strong, a number of dips, rallies, and ongoing volatility made it a bumpy road. We can expect more of this as the world continues to recover from the pandemic. With all the uncertainty, it would not be surprising to see a market correction or pullback in the months ahead. Overall, the economy seems positioned for strong growth in the second half of the year, though inflation worries, politics, and post-pandemic concerns may weigh. Bottom line, I’m keeping a close eye on market conditions, as continued uncertainty could drive sudden changes.Sources: 1 https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/29/us-stock-futures-are-little-changed-as-the-market-closes-out-a-winning-first-half.html 2 https://www.conference-board.org/research/us-forecast 3 https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/29/stocks-should-add-to-gains-in-the-second-half-but-there-are-two-big-concerns.html 4 https://www.usnews.com/news/economy/articles/2021-06-29/consumer-confidence-rises-sharply-in-june-to-highest-level-since-pandemic 5 https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/economy/us-economic-forecast/united-states-outlook-analysis.html 6 https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2021-07-02/june-jobs-report-economy-coronavirus 7 https://www.marketwatch.com/story/u-s-stocks-set-to-edge-back-from-records-ahead-of-private-sector-jobs-report-11625051833 S&P 500: https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/%5EGSPC/history?p=%5EGSPC (Closing price performance between March 31, 2021 and June 30, 2021) NASDAQ: https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/%5EIXIC?p=%5EIXIC (Closing price performance between March 31, 2021 and June 30, 2021) Dow Jones Industrial Average: https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/%5EDJI (Closing price performance between March 31, 2021 and June 30, 2021) U.S. Economic Outlook, Equity Outlook, Consumer Sentiment, Labor Market, Business Outlook, and Fiscal Policy gauges: https://www.cnr.com/insights/speedometers.html (July 2021) The S&P 500 is a stock index considered to be representative of the U.S. stock market in general. The NASDAQ Composite Index is an unmanaged composite index of over 2,500 common equities listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a price-weighted index that tracks 30 large, publicly traded American companies. All index returns exclude reinvested dividends and interest. Indices are unmanaged and cannot be invested into directly. Risk Disclosure: Investing involves risk including the potential loss of principal. No investment strategy can guarantee a profit or protect against loss in periods of declining values. Past performance does not guarantee future results. This material is for information purposes only and is not intended as an offer or solicitation with respect to the purchase or sale of any security. This content may contain projections, forecasts, and other forward-looking statements that do not reflect actual results and are based on hypotheses, assumptions, and historical financial information. The content is developed from sources believed to be providing accurate information; no warranty, expressed or implied, is made regarding accuracy, adequacy, completeness, legality, reliability or usefulness of any information. Consult your financial professional before making any investment decision. For illustrative use only. Advisory services offered through Cambridge Investment Research Advisors, Inc., a Registered Investment Adviser. Strategic Wealth Design and Cambridge are not affiliated.
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