Consumer inflationary pressures grew at a healthy, but manageable rate in December 2019.

The core Consumer Price Index (CPI), which excludes food and energy, rose 2.3% year over year last month, around the fastest pace of the economic cycle. As shown in the LPL Chart of the Day, core CPI growth has been steady, thanks to firm U.S. demand, despite slowing producer price and wage growth.

Inflation concerns are back in the spotlight after the December 2019 jobs report showed year-over-year wage growth for nonsupervisory workers slowed to 3%, a 15-month low. However, today’s CPI data shows companies s

The United States’ airstrike January 3, 2020, near Baghdad, Iraq, that killed a top Iranian military general was a major escalation in Mideast tensions. Iran’s retaliatory strike January 8 sent a message, but additional responses can’t be ruled out. We discuss what this conflict might mean for stocks and assess ongoing risks.

Stocks and Geopolitics

These latest developments in the Middle East understandably have many investors on edge. As market strategists, we face the difficult task of separating the human toll from the economic and financial toll—never easy when lives are lost in times of geopoliti

U.S. stocks weathered the Mideast conflict with the S&P 500 Index posting its 12th weekly gain out of the last 14 weeks. All major averages set fresh record highs during the week, causing some to ask whether stocks had come too far, too fast. 

Last year’s leader, the Nasdaq Composite, was the best performing major domestic index for the week, gaining on strength in the technology sector and internet stocks within the communications services sector. Large cap stocks’ market leadership continued, as the Russell 2000 edged lower.

The week’s economic calendar was headlined by Friday’s job

U.S. companies’ hiring momentum slowed in December, ending an otherwise upbeat 2019 on a somewhat down note.

Nonfarm payrolls rose by 145,000 in December, below consensus estimates for a 160,000 gain. Manufacturing payrolls slid by 12,000, their biggest drop since August 2016, as the sector struggled with weakening global demand and lingering U.S.-China trade tensions. Calendar quirks related to the late Thanksgiving may have also played some role in the shortfall.

Even though December’s report was weaker than expected, we’ve been impressed with the job market’s durability in an aging economic