The S&P 500 continued to reach record highs in November, leading many to speculate whether the market had rallied too much, too fast. Looking at historical data, Duru Ahanotu, founder of Ahan Analytics, says that this anxiety probably comes from the fact that rallies like this have been rare in recent years. When you expand the timeframe, rallies are much more common, though the current one is starting to look like one of the extremes. Ahan said that traders should expect even more upside before the cycle concludes, but warns that the safest time to buy has already passed.
A Risk-Averse Retirement
According to a new Allianz study of 791 people between 18 and 55 who are employed, more than three-quarters (78 percent) said they would rather invest in products that guarantee a stream of income during retirement than choose riskier products with more potential for growth. The study concluded that market volatility is a “persistent reality that can disrupt Americans’ attitudes about saving for retirement.” It should be noted that Allianz Life Insurance, which is obviously interested in convincing investors to choose annuities during a time of strong equity markets, commissioned the survey.