By I hope everyone is recovered from the tryptophan hangover of Thanksgiving! For those of you who don’t know, I spent Thanksgiving on my Covid-delayed honeymoon in Cabo, and we had a blast spending some quiet time together, reading books, catching a marlin (yes, really!), whale watching, and even enjoying a private sunset cruise.
Thanksgiving dinner in Cabo was a little different from the traditional American fare. The restaurant actually served a seven-course dinner with beverage pairings, starting with trout sashimi! I have to admit, I’ve never thought about trout when thinking about Thanksgiving, but of those seven courses, I’d put the trout in the top three if not first. The entire meal was wonderful and we had a delightful Thanksgiving, even without the turkey & dressing & pilgrims.
While we enjoyed our time in Mexico, we were excited at the week’s end to come back to the good ol’ USA. I often take my safety for granted, and it’s only when I visit other countries that I’m reminded that I should make better decisions. (I know you’re laughing.) Seriously, my appreciation for America and all it affords and offers us as citizens makes me grateful to get to live in the land of opportunity.
That brings me to today’s topic at hand, as we’ve heard from several of you lately wondering if the Omicron variant of Covid means we’re entering the next downward spiral of gloom and doom.
We’ve already had two small market corrections in 2021 that you may or may not have noticed, as they weren’t tied to a new strain of Covid. Now, I know the news outlets need to sell ads, but there is not enough data on what this variant really is yet. I was still monitoring markets and activity during my vacation, and what I’ve seen amounts to shooting first and asking questions later. This could be panic because a computer program thought we were pretty much done with Covid, and then a new variant showed up, but I’m of the opinion that there will always be new strains and variants, especially as long as the media has ads to sell. That is not to say you should live in fear. People have gotten past the shock of Delta and now can’t remember if it’s an airline, a virus or a sorority.
While the media is all over it and yes, the markets are gyrating, I don’t see anything other than Christmas, which comes every year, or a typical walk down Wall Street. It may look like the markets are tied to that article you just read, but the larger companies in the indexes have simply given way for the third time this year. In another week, we may very well be back where we were.
As always, if you are feeling the need to discuss your concerns with us, please do pick up the phone and give us a call. Even if I’m in a meeting, I’ll call you back asap. And remember, we are always rebalancing your portfolios whether times are good or rocky, and this is why. There are some things on sale that we may be able to buy.
Lastly, I’d like to extend a hearty invite to you all to join us at our annual Christmas Open House next week on Thursday, December 9 from 4-7 p.m. If your kiddos have activities that night, feel free to stop by at 3 and we’ll be ready for you.
On behalf of our entire team, I wish you a merry Christmas season, and thank you for your ongoing trust in our ever-growing team at Family Financial Partners.
Article by David Smyth, Senior Partner at Family Financial Partners — a financial services firm in Lexington, Kentucky.
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