Many of us may remember playing the game “Marco Polo” with our little ones, or perhaps our folks playing the same game with us. Some of us remember reading of his travels in school, too.
This week’s Update examines the game’s namesake on this occasion of his 760th birthday (yes, he is deceased!).
In today’s globally connected world, a look back through the ages to a true adventurer is both enlightening and inspiring. Who will be the adventurers of tomorrow?
Enjoy!
Best always,
Lee and Jeremy
PS—Oh yes, a solid, if not overly impressive week in the markets too.
This Week’s Quote:
“I have not told half of what I saw.”
― Marco Polo, adventurer & journalist
JL Davis Thoughts This Week:
When the Davis’ traveled to Venice a few years ago, the history was overwhelming. The world’s first republic was straight out of the past. At one time, the island nation of Venice controlled an enormous amount of the world economy, the predecessor capitalist model for ages to come. But Venice isn’t what this story is about.
Among its citizens in the 1200’s was one Marco Polo. Marco was born to a wealthy merchant family but sadly spent most of his boyhood parentless, rose by his extended family. Neither the death of his mother at a tender age nor a father who was away in Asia for years at a time seemed to faze the boy. At the ripe old age of 17, he began his legendary travels, journeying to the Far East himself. Lucky for us, his prodigious and detailed memory dutifully recorded all. Subsequent trips brought him in contact with Kublai Khan, grandson of Genghis Khan, the bloody Mongol conqueror of northeast Asia. Marco reveled in the adventure with a keen eye dutifully recording all he saw.
Crossing the Gobi desert was a mean feat in those days. So too was his journey to Xanadu, the marble architectural wonder of the orient world and to the far corners of China. Mastering at least four languages along the way allowed communication with the peoples of Burma, Tibet, and Turkey. Marco was accepted not only by Khan, but by the leaders of the time in remote parts of the world. Remarkably, after 20 years gone from his home, he returned to Venice barely able to still speak his native tongue.
Ever in motion, within a few years Marco was in command of a Venetian warship when captured by Genoa forces and sentenced to prison. There he told the tales of his travels to his fellow prisoner, Rusticello, who dutifully wrote them down in what became known as The Travels of Marco Polo. Rusticello’s considerable writing skills resulted in the book ultimately being translated in numerous languages. Marco left prison a celebrity in 1299, the namesake protagonist in the world’s most popular book.
However the pundits and naysayers of the day (sound familiar?), those supposedly in the know, accused Marco of outright lying in his stories. On his deathbed in 1324, still dogged by accusations of writing fiction, he remarked, “I have not told half of what I saw.” As the world slowly expanded through the centuries, Marco’s stories were verified many times over. His tales inspired adventurers across the globe. Two hundred years later one Christopher Columbus set off to find a new route to Asia…and discovered the New World.
The “adventurers” of today share the same wanderlust as Marco. James Cameron who doggedly pursued the Titanic. Astronauts like Neil Armstrong. Business pioneers like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, and John Rockefeller before them. Scientists like Stephen Hawking. Pediatric brain surgeons like Ben Carson. The list goes on.
So, Happy Birthday, Marco. May you continue to inspire the adventurer in all of us!**
Lee and Jeremy
http://www.biography.com/people/marco-polo-9443861#the-travels-of-marco-polo
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marco_Polo
Market Week: September 15, 2014
The Markets
The record-breaking march of the stock market faltered last week, as all indices posted losses. Perhaps the setback was due to a lack of economic influences, or because investors were nervously anticipating the results of next week's Federal Open Market Committee (Fed) meeting, wondering whether Chair Janet Yellen will indicate a leaning toward higher rates. Or perhaps, as some observers believe, it was just time for a mild adjustment. Yields on the 10-year Treasury jumped to their highest point since early July.
Last Week's Headlines
• Job openings remained near a 13-year high in July 2014, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). At 4.7 million, the number of open jobs changed very little from a month earlier. The hire rate (3.5%) held steady from June. The number of hires inched upward to approximately 4.9 million in July from nearly 4.8 million in June, reaching the highest level since December 2007.
• In a prime-time address to the nation Wednesday night, President Obama announced an expanded effort to "degrade, and ultimately destroy" the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria, or ISIS. Details included expanding airstrikes in Iraq, introducing airstrikes in Syria, and sending additional troops to Iraq for training and advisory missions.
• The Commerce Department reported that sales by wholesalers rose 0.7% from June to July, and were up 7.5% from a year earlier. Inventories inched up 0.1% from June, and were up 7.9% from a year earlier.
• Consumers shopped at their strongest rate since April, also according to the Commerce Department. Retail sales rose 0.6% from July to August, to a total $444.4 billion. Sales were 5% higher than one year ago.
• The United States joined the European Union in imposing further sanctions on Russia Friday, with impacts on Russian interests in the energy, banking, and defense sectors.
Key Dates/Data Releases
9/15: Industrial production, Empire State manufacturing survey
9/16: Wholesale inflation, international capital flows
9/17: Consumer inflation, FOMC meeting
9/18: Housing starts, Philly
Fed manufacturing survey
9/19: Leading economic indicators, quadruple witching options expiration
Eye on the Week Ahead
This week promises to make up for last week's trickle of economic data. Investors will have an eye on industrial production; inflation, manufacturing, and housing data; international capital flows; Wednesday's Fed meeting; leading economic indicators; and any changes in trading volume due to this quarter's quadruple witching options expiration at the end of the week.
Data sources: Economic: Based on data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (unemployment, inflation); U.S. Department of Commerce (GDP, corporate profits, retail sales, housing); S&P/Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Index (home prices); Institute for Supply Management (manufacturing/services). Performance: Based on data reported in WSJ Market Data Center (indexes); U.S. Treasury (Treasury yields); U.S. Energy Information Administration/Bloomberg.com Market Data (oil spot price, WTI Cushing, OK); www.goldprice.org (spot gold/silver); Oanda/FX Street (currency exchange rates). 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 2,000 U.S. small-cap common stocks. The Global Dow is an equally weighted index of 150 widely traded blue-chip common stocks worldwide. Market indices listed are unmanaged and are not available for direct investment
Prepared by Lee Davis** and Broadridge Investor Communication Solutions, Inc. Copyright 2014
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