This Week's Quote:
“I believe every human has a finite number of heartbeats. I don't intent to waste any of mine.”~ Neil Armstrong


We were on a fishing trip near Orlando, Oklahoma on July 20, 1969 on the Tompkins Ranch. That night in the cabin, the black and white TV was tuned to the same thing virtually every TV in the world was….The Moon Landing of the Apollo 11 space mission.

I remember watching astronaut Neil Armstrong take the last step off the ladder that night and the immortal quote, “That’s one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind.” Looking at that was pretty cool stuff for a 12 year old. What a moment. More importantly, what a man!

Neil Armstrong was born during the depression in Ohio. He became an Eagle Scout and excelled in school, eventually enrolling at Purdue to study aerospace engineering. The terms of his enrollment (under the Holloway scholarship program of the day) had a military service requirement, which he fulfilled by serving in the Navy.

His military and aeronautical exploits were legendary. A Korean War pilot with 78 missions, Armstrong would go on to pilot over 200 different aircraft from the World War II B-29 bomber to the X-15 to the Lunar Module. He would narrowly survive some of the most harrowing incidents in the annals of aviation. He would be awarded the Medal of Freedom and numerous other accolades. Chronicling his life would take much longer than this short missive, but a start is available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Armstrong.

Mr. Armstrong’s family said it best: "For those who may ask what they can do to honor Neil, we have a simple request. Honor his example of service, accomplishment and modesty, and the next time you walk outside on a clear night and see the moon smiling down at you, think of Neil Armstrong and give him a wink"

Indeed.**


Market Week: August 27, 2012

The Markets

After six straight weeks of gains, equities took a breather last week. The S&P 500 bumped up against its year-to-date high but couldn't quite manage to close above it, while the Russell 2000 took the biggest hit. Meanwhile, hopes for Fed action sparked renewed interest in gold, sending the price up $50 an ounce to $1,670.


Last Week's Headlines

•Minutes of the most recent meeting of the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee showed that members are seriously considering the possibility of a new bond-buying program--QE3--and keeping interest rates at current low levels even longer than anticipated. A letter to a congressional committee from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke also indicated the Fed feels it has more ammunition in its arsenal if additional steps are needed to support economic recovery.
•News from the housing market was encouraging, particularly compared to last year. Sales of new single-family homes increased 3.6% in July, putting them 25.3% higher than in July 2011. Sales of existing homes also were up, rising 2.3% in July; according to the National Association of Realtors®, that's 8.6% higher than last July. The NAR also said the median home price was up 9.4% from last year as higher-end homes represented a greater percentage of total sales.
•Durable goods orders were up 4.2% in July. It was the third consecutive month of increases, but the Commerce Department said a 14% jump in orders for commercial aircraft represented the bulk of the increase. Excluding transportation, new orders were down 0.4%.
•Sixteen years after it almost went bankrupt, Apple became the largest U.S. company in history as its market cap hit $623.52 billion. That figure is more than $200 billion higher than current runner-up Exxon Mobil, and higher than the $616.34 billion that Microsoft was worth in 1999 (still the record if inflation is taken into account).
•In its semiannual budgetary report, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said that currently scheduled tax rate increases and cuts in federal spending--the so-called "fiscal cliff"--would likely push the U.S. economy into recession next year. The report said the changes would cut real GDP by 0.5% between December 2012 and December 2013 and push the unemployment rate up to more than 9%. Even without the spending cuts and tax increases, the CBO forecast a relatively sluggish 1.7% increase in GDP and unemployment still at 8% by the end of 2013. The CBO also said the scheduled tax increases and spending cuts would reduce the nation's budget deficit to $641 billion in the next fiscal year from an anticipated $1.1 trillion for 2012. That $641 billion would represent 4% of GDP, compared to 2012's projected 7.3%. Extending current tax provisions and eliminating budget cuts would put next year's deficit at $1 trillion and add 2.5% of GDP to the 4% projection.
•Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Shapiro called off a vote on proposed rules that would have tightened restrictions on money market funds. The decision came after it became clear that most commission members opposed requiring funds to either allow a fund's $1 share price to vary depending on the market value of its holdings, or to hold greater capital reserves to cover any losses.
•Economic growth in Germany, the eurozone's key economic driver, slowed to 0.3% from 0.5% during the second quarter.


Eye on the Week Ahead

When Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and European Central Bank President Mario Draghi address the Federal Reserve's annual Jackson Hole gathering on Friday (Bernanke) and Saturday (Draghi), the dynamic duo will have traders on the edge of their seats hoping for signs of fresh policy measures to assist the economy and the euro. Data about the housing market as well as any changes to the estimate of second-quarter U.S. economic growth also will be of interest.

Key dates and data releases: pending home sales (8/27); home prices (8/28); second estimate of Q2 gross domestic product, Fed "beige book" report (8/29); weekly new jobless claims, personal income/spending (8/30).


Data sources: Includes data provided by Brounes & Associates. All information is based on sources deemed reliable, but no warranty or guarantee is made as to its accuracy or completeness. Neither the information nor any opinion expressed herein constitutes a solicitation for the purchase or sale of any securities, and should not be relied on as financial advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is a price-weighted index composed of 30 widely traded blue-chip U.S. common stocks. The S&P 500 is a market-cap weighted index composed of the common stocks of 500 leading companies in leading industries of the U.S. economy. The NASDAQ Composite Index is a market-value weighted index of all common stocks listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange. The Russell 2000 is a market-cap weighted index composed of 2000 U.S. small-cap common stocks. The Global Dow is an equally weighted index of 150 widely traded blue-chip common stocks worldwide. Market indexes listed are unmanaged and are not available for direct investment.

Prepared by Lee Davis** and Broadridge Investor Communication Solutions, Inc. Copyright 2012