MidSouth Week in Review
March 10, 2023

Weekly Update from Fund Manager Buzz Heidtke, MidSouth Investment Fund

Mar. 13, 2023 | RedChip Companies


For the week the S&P declined 4.7%.  The 5-year Treasury bond yield hit 4.30%.  Bitcoin declined to the $19k level.  Stocks declined yesterday after Fed Chair Powell said he would consider raising interest rates by a larger half percentage point this month.  Tesla declined 10% this week after announcing they were lowering the price on two of their most expensive models.  Demand for workers let up slightly in January, a possible sign employers are gradually easing off their pace of hiring.  Sources:  Wall Street Journal and New York Times

 

BuzzBits

 

Bank Stocks – had a big decline Thursday.  The four biggest U.S. banks lost $52 billion that day.  Shares of SVB, the parent of Silicon Valley Bank (SIVB) fell more than 60% after it disclosed a $2 billion of selling assets and has dropped from $348 to $106 in one month – Wall Street Journal ….. Two years ago SIVB was trading at $800.  They have stopped trading in the stock today at $39 – CNBC …. The bank just closed – Jay Kumar

 

Love You Mom/Dad – According to a Pew Research Center analysis using Census Bureau data, half of Americans ages 18 to 24 were living with their parents in July.

 

High Treasury Yields – are getting more attractive vs. corporate bond yields.  The 5.7% yield on investment grade corporate bonds looks less appealing next to the yield above 5% on some Treasury debt – Wall Street Journal

 

Electric Vehicles – At 20 degrees they don’t go as far as they do at the ideal 70 degrees.  For the coldest weather, 0 degrees to minus 10 degrees, the electric bus costs roughly $1.15 per mile vs. 40 cents for the diesel bus – Associated Press

 

U.S. Homes – dropped in value to $2.3 trillion in the second half of 2022.  The 4.9% drop was the biggest since a 5.8% decline in 2008 – Bloomberg

 

Millennials – in their 30s had more than $3.8 trillion in debt in the 4Q, a 27% increase from late 2019 just before Covid hit the U.S. – Federal Reserve Bank

 

Rising Mortgage Rates – have gone up to 7.18% according to Bankrate, which are cooling the U.S. housing market and sapping recent buyer interest heading into the crucial spring selling season.

 

Raising Taxes – Lawmakers in California, Illinois, New York and Washington State have proposed new taxes on wealth.  California and New York imposed income tax rates of 13%+, but their deficits are mounting.  In the past 10 years, six of the highest tax states had a net loss of population.  If tech entrepreneurs discover taxes are inescapable, they’ll go to Austin, Salt Lake City, Nashville and other booming high-tech corridors in the first place – Laffer Associates

 

Migration – Housing is the main reason why people move whether they are in search for a better neighborhood, a bigger home, a more affordable mortgage or all the above.  Fewer folks are moving now with only 9% in 2021 to 2022 vs. 20% from the 1940s to the 1960s – The Kiplinger Letter

 

Tax Budget – President Biden will propose a tax increase this week.  The IRS says that the top 1% of earners paid 42% of the country’s income taxes.  Their income represents 22% of adjusted gross income – IRS

 

Workforce Women – have gained more jobs than men for four straight months, including January’s hiring surge pushing them to hold more than 49.8% of all nonfarm jobs – Wall Street Journal ….. U.S. job openings fell in January and layoffs rose in a sign that demand for workers could be cooling – Labor Department

 

The Big Raise – New York City approved a 9%, 30-minute raise for Uber drivers to $26.76 – New York Times

 

ATMs – After peaking at 470,000 in the U.S. in 2019, the number had declined to 451,500.  Why?  More people are opting to spend money digitally for money such as allowances, tips and bill splitting cash and checks are forecast to fall 14% this year from 42% in 2016 – Wall Street Journal

 

Cheryl Porter Young Singer - https://www.instagram.com/reel/Co9-vcNjog1/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=

 

Gardiner Brothers - https://www.instagram.com/reel/CpViAd-gXqc/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=

 

Couple Dancing - https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cms5HC2K_x9/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=

 

The material was prepared by MidSouth Investment Management LLC, and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their affiliates.  This information has been derived from sources believed to be accurate.  Please note – investing involves risk, and past performance is no guarantee of future results.  The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services.  If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.  This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty.  This is neither a solicitation nor recommendation to purchase or sell any investment or insurance product or service, and should not be relied upon as such.  This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results.  Investments will fluctuate and when redeemed may be worth more or less than when originally invested.  All economic and performance data is historical and not indicative of future results.  Market indices discussed are unmanaged.  Investors cannot invest in unmanaged indices. 




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