One of my favorite thought-leaders is Bob Doll of Nuveen Asset Management. He maintains a strong hold on the long-term perspective and is not prone to panic. His latest commentary contained the following:
1. Corporate earnings are increasing nicely. Consensus forecasts for this quarter is a 6.4% increase.
2. Weekly unemployment claims hit a 43-year-low last week.
3. Because most new presidents stumble when first taking office, eight of the last eleven new presidents have experienced a fall in the stock market during February, averaging a 4% drop.
4. Increased policy uncertainty is a drag on the market, and the president’s ambitious agenda is likely to increase this policy uncertainty, because it is not likely the Administration can move on so many fronts in short order.
5. He retains “pro-growth, pro-risk” investment approach, and I agree!