Equities resumed their march higher last week. The shorter week, due to the July 4th holiday, should mean lower trading volumes this week.
The economic data was positive last week. Housing data was better in the month of May. Building Permits, Mortgage Applications, New Home Sales, and Existing Home Sales were all higher for the month. Pending Home Sales did disappoint, but have still not dropped down to the low level reached in November of last year. The University of Michigan's Consumer Sentiment for June came out at 64.4, which was higher than forecast and much higher than last month's reading of 59.2.
Personal Income came in higher for the April reading, while Personal Spending was lower than expected, but still higher than March.
As Summer vacations begin, we'll see if the June reading for Personal Spending improves. However, with a healthy consumer and a return of more than 5% for equities in June, the prospect of a solid 2nd half for 2023 remains a strong possibility. Expect a little pullback in equities as quarter-end will force many pension funds to rebalance back into fixed income. Equities should resume a positive trend as rebalancing is completed.
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