Everything went up – and that’s unusual.
Randall Forsyth of Barron’s explained, “Like our major political parties, the stock and bond markets seem to live in two different worlds these days. The former sits at record levels, suggesting we live in the best of all possible worlds. The latter sees things as bad and only getting worse.”

Here’s what happened last week:
The Federal Open Market Committee met last week (they decide whether the central bank of the United States should push rates higher or move them lower). It left rates unchanged, but indicated a willingness to lower rates in support of economic expansion. That was music to the ears of some investors and the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose to a record high, reported Sue Chang and Mark DeCambre of MarketWatch.

The Fed’s song was the same as the one already playing across the world. Central bankers in Europe and Japan had signaled they were willing to encourage economic growth by easing rates lower and using other tools available, reported Leika Kihara and Daniel Leussink of Reuters. Their attitude helped push world stock markets higher.

Last week, the U.S. bond market gained value, too, as interest rates moved lower. Falling interest rates suggested bond investors were hearing a different tune. When investors are willing to accept lower yields, it suggests they’re worried about what may happen and are seeking safety. In some parts of Europe, investors are accepting negative yields – taking small losses to own government bonds they perceive to be safe – because they are pessimistic about the future.

There is plenty to be concerned about, including ongoing trade issues and conflict in the Middle East. Only time will tell how recent events will affect the U.S. and world economies.

A land without time. You may have heard: Sommaroey Island in Norway may do away with time. Residents of the island don’t experience time as people elsewhere do. From May to July, the sun doesn’t set on Sommaroey. From November to January, it doesn’t rise.

Proponents of a time-free island zone say it would reduce stress. “…the change would not mean that shops are open 24/7, but that residents could make better use of the daylight,” reported ABC News.

Living without time is an astonishing idea.

In modern life, time is a critical organizational tool. We divide our experience into centuries, years, daytime and nighttime, hours and minutes. Our actions are informed by schedules. We need to arrive at class, at work, at the bus stop, at a restaurant, or at a ballgame at a specific time.

However, time is not nearly as straightforward as it seems.

In a review of Why Time Flies: A Mostly Scientific Investigation, The Economist opined, “Time is such a slippery thing. It ticks away, neutrally, yet it also flies and collapses, and is more often lost than found. Days can feel eternal but a month can gallop past. So, is time ever perceived objectively? Is this experience innate or is it learned? And how long is ‘now,’ anyway? Such questions have puzzled philosophers and scientists for over 2,000 years.”

Residents of Sommaroey have been pondering life without time and whether it is actually possible. The leader of the move to abolish time told ABC News, living without time, ‘is a great solution but we likely won’t become an entirely time-free zone as it will be too complex.’

Weekly Focus – Think About It
“How did it get so late so soon?”
–Dr. Seuss, American author

Best regards,
John F. Reutemann, Jr., CLU, CFP®

P.S.  Please feel free to forward this commentary to family, friends, or colleagues. If you would like us to add them to the list, please reply to this email with their email address and we will ask for their permission to be added.

Investment advice offered through Research Financial Strategies, a registered investment advisor.

S&P 500, Dow Jones Global ex-US, Gold, Bloomberg Commodity Index returns exclude reinvested dividends (gold does not pay a dividend) and the three-, five-, and 10-year returns are annualized; the DJ Equity All REIT Total Return Index does include reinvested dividends and the three-, five-, and 10-year returns are annualized; and the 10-year Treasury Note is simply the yield at the close of the day on each of the historical time periods.
Sources: Yahoo! Finance, Barron’s, djindexes.com, London Bullion Market Association.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Indices are unmanaged and cannot be invested into directly. N/A means not applicable.

* Government bonds and Treasury Bills are guaranteed by the U.S. government as to the timely payment of principal and interest and, if held to maturity, offer a fixed rate of return and fixed principal value.  However, the value of fund shares is not guaranteed and will fluctuate.
* Corporate bonds are considered higher risk than government bonds but normally offer a higher yield and are subject to market, interest rate and credit risk as well as additional risks based on the quality of issuer coupon rate, price, yield, maturity, and redemption features.
* The Standard & Poor’s 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities considered to be representative of the stock market in general. You cannot invest directly in this index.
* All indexes referenced are unmanaged. Unmanaged index returns do not reflect fees, expenses, or sales charges. Index performance is not indicative of the performance of any investment.
* The Dow Jones Global ex-U.S. Index covers approximately 95% of the market capitalization of the 45 developed and emerging countries included in the Index.
* The 10-year Treasury Note represents debt owed by the United States Treasury to the public. Since the U.S. Government is seen as a risk-free borrower, investors use the 10-year Treasury Note as a benchmark for the long-term bond market.
* Gold represents the afternoon gold price as reported by the London Bullion Market Association. The gold price is set twice daily by the London Gold Fixing Company at 10:30 and 15:00 and is expressed in U.S. dollars per fine troy ounce.
* The Bloomberg Commodity Index is designed to be a highly liquid and diversified benchmark for the commodity futures market. The Index is composed of futures contracts on 19 physical commodities and was launched on July 14, 1998.
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), commonly known as “The Dow,” is an index representing 30 stock of companies maintained and reviewed by the editors of The Wall Street Journal.
* The NASDAQ Composite is an unmanaged index of securities traded on the NASDAQ system.
* International investing involves special risks such as currency fluctuation and political instability and may not be suitable for all investors. These risks are often heightened for investments in emerging markets.
* Yahoo! Finance is the source for any reference to the performance of an index between two specific periods.
* Opinions expressed are subject to change without notice and are not intended as investment advice or to predict future performance.
* Economic forecasts set forth may not develop as predicted and there can be no guarantee that strategies promoted will be successful.
* Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investing involves risk, including loss of principal.
* You cannot invest directly in an index.
* Stock investing involves risk including loss of principal.
* The foregoing information has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but we do not guarantee it is accurate or complete.
* There is no guarantee a diversified portfolio will enhance overall returns or outperform a non-diversified portfolio. Diversification does not protect against market risk.
* Asset allocation does not ensure a profit or protect against a loss.
* Consult your financial professional before making any investment decision.
* To unsubscribe from the Weekly Market Commentary please reply to this e-mail with “Unsubscribe” in the subject.

Sources:
https://www.barrons.com/articles/low-interest-rates-could-have-surprising-benefits-51561165445?mod=hp_DAY_1 (or go to https://peakcontent.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/+Peak+Commentary/06-24-19_Barrons-Stocks_Soar_Yields_Sink_Whats_Next-Footnote_1.pdf)
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/dow-poised-to-surge-to-highest-level-in-812-months-gold-hits-5-year-high-as-fed-signals-cuts-2019-06-20
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-japan-economy-boj/bank-of-japan-joins-fed-in-signaling-easing-if-needed-keeps-policy-steady-for-now-idUSKCN1TL06C
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/global-stocks-rally-bond-yields-010510813.html
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-06-20/norwegian-island-sommaroey-wants-abolish-time/11230200
https://www.economist.com/books-and-arts/2017/02/09/clock-watching (or go to https://peakcontent.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/+Peak+Commentary/06-24-19_TheEconomist-Clock_Watching-Footnote_6.pdf)
https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/time

Are we on the cusp of change?
The United States is doing quite well. Randall Forsyth of Barron’s reported: “…the U.S. economy and stock market both seem to be doing better than OK, thank you, as the expansion and bull market celebrate their 10th anniversaries. Unemployment is around the lowest level in a half-century. The worst thing seems to be that inflation continues to run slightly below the Fed’s 2 percent target, a problem that might strike some as similar to being too rich or too thin.”

The economic facts are encouraging, but recent events have potential to knock the U.S. economy off its tracks. The most significant threat may be a second round of oil tanker explosions in the Gulf of Oman. The U.S. accused Iran and Iran denied responsibility, reported The Economist. Tensions in the region are on the rise.

U.S.-China trade rhetoric heated up, too, which has some analysts concerned. It’s difficult to discern what’s truly happening, though. Reuters reported the United States stopped the World Trade Organization investigation of China’s treatment of intellectual property in early June. Some believe the action signaled a thaw in trade relations.

This week new concerns may rise to the fore. The Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee meets Tuesday and Wednesday. Some hope it will decide to lower rates, while others believe a rate cut is unnecessary.

Major U.S. stock indices gained value last week, despite a spate of bad news, but change may be coming.

Plastic goes where few have gone before. In 2012, filmmaker James Cameron brought attention to the Mariana Trench, the deepest point on Earth (6.8 miles down), when he took a solo dive into its depths. The seafloor of the abyss also has been visited by at least one plastic bag, according to the Deep Sea Debris Database on ScienceDirect.

The Mariana Trench is just one of many unlikely places where plastic has been found. Jesse Li of Axios reported, “A marine biologist found 373,000 toothbrushes and 975,000 shoes on the beaches of a remote string of islands in the Indian Ocean.” In addition, the manmade material has made the trip to Point Nemo, the most remote location on Earth. Point Nemo is more than 1,000 miles from civilization in every direction – the farthest a person can get from dry land without heading into space, according to Atlas Obscura.

The pervasiveness of plastic is not too surprising. There is a lot of it in the world. Globally, almost 400 million tons of plastic were produced in 2015. Fifty-five percent of it was discarded, 25 percent was incinerated, and 20 percent was recycled, according to Our World in Data.

The glut of plastic pollution inspired Canada to ban single-use plastics last week. The goal is to eliminate use by 2021. The European Union has taken similar steps. As plastic use ebbs, new packaging materials are being developed. Biodegradable seaweed bubbles may replace plastic water bottles. Paper made from stone may wrap food products and fresh fruit may arrive to market wrapped in palm leaves.

Innovation creates opportunities for investors.

Weekly Focus – Think About It
“Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell.”
–Edward Abbey, American author and essayist

Best regards,
John F. Reutemann, Jr., CLU, CFP®

P.S.  Please feel free to forward this commentary to family, friends, or colleagues. If you would like us to add them to the list, please reply to this email with their email address and we will ask for their permission to be added.

Investment advice offered through Research Financial Strategies, a registered investment advisor.

S&P 500, Dow Jones Global ex-US, Gold, Bloomberg Commodity Index returns exclude reinvested dividends (gold does not pay a dividend) and the three-, five-, and 10-year returns are annualized; the DJ Equity All REIT Total Return Index does include reinvested dividends and the three-, five-, and 10-year returns are annualized; and the 10-year Treasury Note is simply the yield at the close of the day on each of the historical time periods.
Sources: Yahoo! Finance, Barron’s, djindexes.com, London Bullion Market Association.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Indices are unmanaged and cannot be invested into directly. N/A means not applicable.

* Government bonds and Treasury Bills are guaranteed by the U.S. government as to the timely payment of principal and interest and, if held to maturity, offer a fixed rate of return and fixed principal value.  However, the value of fund shares is not guaranteed and will fluctuate.
* Corporate bonds are considered higher risk than government bonds but normally offer a higher yield and are subject to market, interest rate and credit risk as well as additional risks based on the quality of issuer coupon rate, price, yield, maturity, and redemption features.
* The Standard & Poor’s 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities considered to be representative of the stock market in general. You cannot invest directly in this index.
* All indexes referenced are unmanaged. Unmanaged index returns do not reflect fees, expenses, or sales charges. Index performance is not indicative of the performance of any investment.
* The Dow Jones Global ex-U.S. Index covers approximately 95% of the market capitalization of the 45 developed and emerging countries included in the Index.
* The 10-year Treasury Note represents debt owed by the United States Treasury to the public. Since the U.S. Government is seen as a risk-free borrower, investors use the 10-year Treasury Note as a benchmark for the long-term bond market.
* Gold represents the afternoon gold price as reported by the London Bullion Market Association. The gold price is set twice daily by the London Gold Fixing Company at 10:30 and 15:00 and is expressed in U.S. dollars per fine troy ounce.
* The Bloomberg Commodity Index is designed to be a highly liquid and diversified benchmark for the commodity futures market. The Index is composed of futures contracts on 19 physical commodities and was launched on July 14, 1998.
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), commonly known as “The Dow,” is an index representing 30 stock of companies maintained and reviewed by the editors of The Wall Street Journal.
* The NASDAQ Composite is an unmanaged index of securities traded on the NASDAQ system.
* International investing involves special risks such as currency fluctuation and political instability and may not be suitable for all investors. These risks are often heightened for investments in emerging markets.
* Yahoo! Finance is the source for any reference to the performance of an index between two specific periods.
* Opinions expressed are subject to change without notice and are not intended as investment advice or to predict future performance.
* Economic forecasts set forth may not develop as predicted and there can be no guarantee that strategies promoted will be successful.
* Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investing involves risk, including loss of principal.
* You cannot invest directly in an index.
* Stock investing involves risk including loss of principal.
* The foregoing information has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but we do not guarantee it is accurate or complete.
* There is no guarantee a diversified portfolio will enhance overall returns or outperform a non-diversified portfolio. Diversification does not protect against market risk.
* Asset allocation does not ensure a profit or protect against a loss.
* Consult your financial professional before making any investment decision.
* To unsubscribe from the Weekly Market Commentary please reply to this e-mail with “Unsubscribe” in the subject. 

Sources:
https://www.barrons.com/articles/the-rate-cut-the-economy-doesnt-need-but-the-markets-do-51560557553?mod=hp_DAY_1 (or go to https://peakcontent.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/+Peak+Commentary/06-17-19_Barrons-The_Rate_Cut_the_Economy_Doesnt_Need_but_the_Markets_Do-Footnote_1.pdf)
https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2019/06/13/who-is-blowing-up-ships-in-the-gulf (or go to https://peakcontent.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/+Peak+Commentary/06-17-19_TheEconomist-Who_is_Blowing_Up_Ships_in_the_Gulf-Footnote_2.pdf)
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trade-china-wto/united-states-and-china-suspend-intellectual-property-litigation-at-wto-idUSKCN1TF1ER
https://www.barrons.com/articles/dow-jones-industrial-average-gains-as-interest-rate-decision-looms-51560555002?mod=hp_DAY_3 (or go to https://peakcontent.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/+Peak+Commentary/06-17-19_Barrons-The_Dow_Gains_Again_as_a_Decision_Looms_for_the_Federal_Reserve-Footnote_4.pdf)
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/03/120325-james-cameron-mariana-trench-challenger-deepest-returns-science-sub/
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308597X17305195
https://www.axios.com/plastics-places-found-608053d3-eb2d-4fc3-9ffc-8c66eda65ed6.html
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/point-nemo
https://ourworldindata.org/plastic-pollution
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/06/canada-single-use-plastics-ban-2021/
https://www.innovationexcellence.com/blog/2018/07/02/13-plastic-packaging-alternatives/
https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/21664-growth-for-the-sake-of-growth-is-the-ideology-of