MidSouth Week in Review
April 19, 2024

Weekly Update from Fund Manager Buzz Heidtke, MidSouth Investment Fund

The S&P was down 3.2% for the week and has been down the last six days.  Mortgage rates rose above 7% for the first time this year.  Tesla shares declined 12% for the week.  Wholesale gas hit a 7-month high of $2.80.  Gold hit a new high at $24k from $18k in November.  Bitcoin declined from 68 to 59 this week.  Sources:  Wall Street Journal and New York Times

Interest Rate Cuts – Don’t be surprised if the Fed puts off planned interest rate cuts until its November 7^th meeting – The Kiplinger Letter

Yard Work – As I was stepping into the shower after a day of yardwork my wife walked into the bathroom.  “What do you think the neighbors would say if I cut the grass dressed like this?” I asked.  Giving me a casual glance, she replied “They’d say I married you for your money” – John R Buco

Credit Card Delinquency Rates – are now the highest on record.  In Q4 2023, more credit card balances were 30+ and 60+ days due compared to any other period in history.  The percentage of credit card balances at least 30 days past due is now 3.5%, meanwhile credit card debt has skyrocketed – Philadelphia Fed

South Carolina’s – win over Iowa in the N.C.A.A. women’s tournament title game averaged 18.9 million viewers, the most-viewed college basketball game (men’s or women’s) on record for an ESPN platform – New York Times

Home Owners Insurance – Prices are rising briskly.  Look for home owners insurance costs to rise 12% this year on average – The Kiplinger Letter ….. Also more homeowners are going without coverages as premiums jump.  Last year only 88% of homeowners had insurance vs. 95% in 2019. 

A Big Change – On November 5, 2020 mortgage rates were 2.25% and gas was $1.80 a gallon.

The Mail – Only 70% of mail intended to be delivered by the Postal Service within three to five days arrived on time last year, an 11% drop from 2022 – NBCNews

Rentals – Investors are buying homes to rent out.  Real estate investors bought about 18% of all homes in the fourth quarter of 2023, up from nearly 12% in the first quarter of 2020 – The Kiplinger Letter

Blisters – after British Russ Cook completed his epic, south-north run along the length of Africa.  The 10,000 mile  trot took 352 days, 112 months planned and he confessed to Reuters that “I’m a little bit tired” – THE WEEK

Inflation – is heating back up.  Prices rose 3.5% in March, jumping 0.4% month to month – The Washington Post

Jobs – Last month’s jobs report was “as good as it gets”, according to Neal Irwin in Axios.  The labor department said last week that employers added 303k jobs in March, the strongest gain in 10 months.

College Grads – According to the NY Fed, recent college grads last year working full-time earned $24,000 more per year than 22-to-27-year-olds with only high school degrees.

Wills – Only 32% of adults reported having a will in 2024, down from 34% in 2023.  Among adults over 55, just 43% reported having a will, down from 48% in 2020 – USA TODAY

Student Debt – Biden recently announced plans to cut at least $5,000 in debt for 10 million student loan borrowers and completely erase debts held for another 4 million borrowers.  Bidens first relief plan would have dissolved at least $400 billion of debt for 43 million borrowers – THE WEEK

Birth Control Pills – MAGA influencer Charlie Kirk claimed that the use of birth-control pills “really screws up female brains” leading to very angry and bitter young ladies.

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.