United Bank & Trust Blog

Gary Haapala

It is that time of year, are you ready for a gut check? If you are like most, the hope of sustaining the New Year resolutions has come and gone. Take me for example, I have had some mild success eating healthy and exercising regularly during January and part of February, so it is time to reward myself and head back to the snack food and cheeseburgers. Unfortunately, 45 days of discipline will not cover the rest of the year. Let’s not let our short term success cloud our ability to achieve the goal we set in the first place. The same thing holds true for our investments.

The short term success of the stock market has been impressive, the S&P 500 up over 50%+ from year ago levels. So the trap has been set. Are you prepared to remain disciplined, focused on your long term goal? As I have suggested in the past, this will be a year of volatility for the market. Here is why.

1. Americans are grappling with weak job growth and little to no income growth for the past several years.
2. While at the same time trying to repair their personal net worth.
3. This is keeping a lid on consumer confidence.
4. In turn, spurring people to spend less and save more.
5. This directly impacts our economic engine because we are a consumer driven economy, which takes us back to number 1.

The good news is we continue to see economic indicators heading in the right direction — but volatility will continue. Now is the time to remain disciplined regarding your investment program. Remember your New Year resolution? Don’t forget what 2008/2009 was like. The key is to stick to a proven investment program.

Our investment professionals will be conducting the 2nd of our 4 part educational series regarding market conditions and investment strategies on May 19, 2010, through a webcast event. Register today at www.ubat.com.