By Aaron Task What a difference a year makes. 2018 was tough on investors, and it ended with stocks in retreat. The decline was triggered by growing fears of a prolonged U.S.-China trade war fueled by President Trump’s “I am tariff man” tweet on December 4.
In addition, the Federal Reserve was in a multiyear cycle of rate hikes. Nobody knew it at the time, but the last hike occurred on December 18, 2018.
Across nearly every major asset class, 2018 was a bad year.
Fast forward to December 2019. A yearlong rally accelerated in the fourth quarter, with stocks ending the year at or near …read more
