With the half year mark fast approaching, it’s as good a time as any to take stock of the first six months for U.S. equities, and, more importantly, to see what, if anything, that means for the market’s potential in the back end of 2019. We’ll get a jump on the sell side, which will dutifully put out its forecast reports after June 30.

Where is this over ten-year old bull going? Will it trot on or begin to wobble, wheeze and fall? I remain convinced the bias is to a higher level by year end—but that doesn’t appear to be the market’s view, egged on by bad news headlines.

I’ll grant you that there’s plenty of skepticism to make you believe a bear market is around the corner. Yes, this is the second oldest bull market in history. There’s the on again, off again trade talks between the U.S. and China, with the market rising and falling on every seeming movement. The global economic news isn’t so great, nor even in the U.S., too.

For example, this week, blaming trade tensions, the Conference Board said its consumer confidence index dropped 9.8 points to 121.5 this month, the lowest since September 2017, from a downwardly revised 131.3 in May. And Tuesday also brought news that new home sales dropped 7.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 626,000 uni...

Unlock this article with a FREE 30-Day Trial!

An FSI Pro, or FSI Macro subscription is required in order to access this content.

*Free trial available only on a monthly plan

Disclosures (show)

Get invaluable analysis of the market and stocks. Cancel at any time. Start Free Trial

Articles Read 2/2

🎁 Unlock 1 extra article by joining our Community!

You’ve reached your limit of 2 free monthly articles. Please enter your email to unlock 1 more articles.

Already have an account? Sign In

Don't Miss Out
First Month Free