Economic Growth Continues

The stock market stormed out of the gate during the first two months of 2017 as hopes regarding fewer business regulations and increased consumer confidence fueled investor’s optimism for equities. The bond market was flat during the first quarter as increased inflation expectations and higher interest rates were a drag on bond prices.

The Federal Reserve raised interest rates during the first quarter for the first of what is expected to be multiple rate increases during this year. The economy continued the expansion that has been underway since 2009, allowing the Fed the ability to hike rates. Most analysts are projecting a pickup in inflation over the next two years and this is the primary catalyst for increasing interest rates. Another factor is the very low unemployment rate, which can be inflationary with a growing economy. As we have said before, the Fed has the very difficult job of keeping the economy growing but preventing it from growing so fast we have high inflation. This can be a difficult job to manage.

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