Published November 3, 2023
In this blog, we’ll discuss:
Economic Health: How does the economy look? What are the data points telling us? Here’s a short preview
What’s new with FBS?: We have a new tool to help us mitigate risk for our portfolios, are you interested?
We are thrilled to present to you the very first edition of the FBS Securities Monthly Newsletter. Before we proceed, we would like to express our utmost appreciation for your unwavering support throughout the years. We’re excited to continue growing with you and serving your investment needs.
Our goal with this monthly newsletter is to keep you informed about various topics including the latest news on markets, economy, performance, and new investment opportunities. This introductory newsletter is just a sneak peek of what’s to come. Stay tuned for our next edition where we’ll dive deeper into these topics.
Thank you for being a part of our journey. Let’s get started!
Economic Health: The Data Points
I will start with a famous quote by W.Edwards Deming “Without Data, you’re just another person with an opinion.” At FBS Securities, we strongly believe in the power of data to back our opinions. Speaking of which, let’s take a look at the latest jobs & inflation report.
On October 6th, the jobs report came out much hotter than expected, with 336k jobs added compared to an estimated 117k. This is an important metric for the Federal Reserve, as a strong jobs report typically signals confidence in the economy’s ability to handle another rate hike. On October 12th, the CPI report came in slightly higher than expected, 3.7% vs 3.6%. Beginning of the month, the markets predicted a 25% chance of the Fed raising interest rates by 25 basis points. However, since the data release, that number has decreased to 11%.As per our views, we believe that the current Fed team’s goal of keeping inflation at 2% is debatable whether it is an average or absolute. We anticipate the Fed to be very vigilant in monitoring the inflation metric and we will keep a close eye on the important metrics used by the Fed. We will keep you informed of any significant developments in this regard.
Please stay tuned for our next newsletter for further updates.
What’s new with FBS?
I am thrilled to share with you that FBS Securities has recently launched a new tool called Darwin, which aims to reduce risks. The tool is powered by AI technology, developed in collaboration with academia by our FinTech partner. The academia behind this technology is headed by a UT-Austin Professor who was once a student of William F. Sharpe, the inventor of the Sharpe Ratio. The Darwin model helps us proactively approach the market by adjusting the portfolio at the beginning of every month. By doing so, we proactively aim to improve our Sharpe Ratio, which simply means that we aim to achieve potentially higher returns with lower risk. I have attached a screenshot based on the current backtest for our “Moderately Aggressive Portfolio”. We are currently in the process of implementing this model, and if you require more information, please do not hesitate to contact us.