Energy and Entrepreneurship…..Your Weekly Update

For the first time in the history of the Update, we are giving you someone else’s opinion.

It’s that good.

Brian Westbury is one of the many economists whose opinion we follow, though we may not always agree. Economists are mostly like CPA’s, just without the personality!

Brian is a rare exception, and his take on falling oil prices and the “fruits of entrepreneurship” are priceless. See what you think as you click the attachment.

Then, please let us know!

All the best,
Lee

PS—THANK YOU. As of this week, JL Davis stands at 83 referrals this year from our great clients; over 40 of whom are now NEW clients. We are honored and humbled. And forever appreciative. L&J


This Week’s Quote:

“When freedom prevails, the ingenuity and inventiveness of people creates incredible wealth. This is the source of the natural improvement of the human condition.”
― Brian S. Wesbury

JL Davis Thoughts This Week:

Oil - Just Another Price

By: Brian S. Wesbury, Chief Economist and Robert Stein, Deputy Chief Economist

Don’t take this the wrong way: energy is important. Oil prices are important. But, we believeth those involved in economic punditry often bloweth them out of proportioneth.

Many, who previously fretted that higher oil prices meant economic doom, now say the sharp drop means an economic boom. We are happy to be paying less at the pump, but, from a macro-economic perspective, we don’t expect lower prices to generate a noticeable improvement in the overall economy.

There are four pillars of economic strength (or weakness) – monetary policy, tax policy, trade policy, and spending (or regulatory) policy. Right now, money is loose, tax rates will remain stable, trade policy is improving, and for the past few years, the leftward lurch in government spending and regulation has been gridlocked.

In other words, macro conditions in the US are no worse, and probably better, than they were a few years ago. Entrepreneurship is still flourishing. The US is riding a wave of technology – 3D printing, robotics, the Cloud, smartphones, tablets, apps, bio- and nano-technology – and horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing. Many prices are falling as these technologies boost productivity.

The only real mystery is why it took so long for oil prices to finally collapse. It’s not OPEC. The US uses roughly 19 million barrels of oil per day (bpd). Seven years ago US production was 8.5 million bpd; today, 14 million bpd, with energy independence in sight. OPEC is drowning under a gusher of tech-driven oil production.

Also, lower prices aren’t a tax cut any more than free mapping and direction-finder software, or a drought-resistant corn plant, is a tax cut. Lower oil prices, lower food prices, more efficient transportation, and better communication aren’t tax cuts per se, but instead are the fruits of entrepreneurship.

High oil prices stimulate drilling and more production, but squeeze consumers. Low prices slow drilling and production, but free up resources for consumers to spend on other things. It’s not a zero-sum game; it’s part of a process. Relative price changes cause a shift in resources, unlike a tax cut, which changes the incentives for labor and investment.

In other words, don’t look for an economic boom. The drop in oil prices is just a positive reinforcement to the growth engine that has been driving the US economy, and equity values higher, in recent years. It’s a Plow Horse and until a true change in policy kicks in, it will remain a Plow Horse. We need less government spending, less regulation, and lower tax rates to get a real economic boom.


Brian has a political bent in his comments no doubt. We remain apolitical, as always, but many of his points in this piece are spot on, in our view. Especially the power of entrepreneurship and the amazing technology boom that’s powering growth in the U.S. and in the world. May we have more of both!

Lee and Jeremy


Market Week: December 1, 2014

The Markets

The Nasdaq had a good week, but other equity indices saw little change, though the Dow and S&P 500 remained in record territory. The biggest news came from falling oil prices in the wake of a decision by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to keep its oil supplies at current levels, which cut the price of oil to roughly $66 a barrel.


Last Week's Headlines
• U.S. gross domestic product grew during the third quarter at a slightly faster rate than the Bureau of Economic Analysis had previously estimated. However, the 3.9% increase in GDP was less than Q2's 4.6%.
• Led by Saudi Arabia, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) decided to maintain current production levels to try to maintain market share in the face of U.S. competition. The decision hurt not only oil prices around the world but the currencies of countries that depend on oil exports. It also raised concerns about whether falling prices would lead oil companies to curtail investments in future exploration and development.
• Home prices in cities measured by the S&P/Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Index were flat in September. Though there was a 4.9% year-over-year increase, that figure continued to show an overall downward trend; that 4.9% gain was lower than the 5.6% annual increase seen a month earlier.
• U.S. manufacturers saw a 0.4% increase in orders for durable goods in October, according to the Commerce Department. However, a 3.4% gain in the typically volatile aircraft sector was responsible for most of that; excluding transportation, new orders were down 0.9%.
• Sales of new homes were up 0.7% in October; according to the Commerce Department, that put them 1.8% higher than a year earlier.
• Both personal income and personal consumption were up 0.2% in October, according to the Commerce Department.


Key Dates/Data Releases
12/1: ISM manufacturing report
12/2: Auto sales, construction spending
12/3: ISM services report, Fed "beige book," business productivity/costs
12/5: Unemployment/payrolls, factory orders, balance of trade


Eye on the Week Ahead

With traders back at their desks and the end of 2015 on the horizon, reports from last week's retail battlefields will be of special interest for what they suggest about how the U.S. economy might fare through the end of the year. Given the freefall in oil prices last week, investors will be assessing the implications for the global economy and the energy sector. And as always, Friday's unemployment figures will be of interest for what they might mean for Fed action in 2015.

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 Broadridge Investor Communication Solutions, Inc. Copyright 2014