Recession – U.S. Real Retail Sales U.S. real retail sales and consumer confidence trends indicate cautious and subdued consumer spending growth, which has historically been linked to an increased risk of recession. Image: Real Investment Advice
Seasonality – S&P 500 Index Average Monthly Returns While the bull market continues, August is generally regarded as a challenging month for U.S. equities in post-election years, characterized by a higher likelihood of declines and increased volatility. Image: Carson Investment Research
S&P 500 – Hedge Funds vs. Retail Investors The contrast between hedge funds taking short positions and retail investors being long is often seen as a warning of potential equity market weakness over the next one to three months. Image: Bloomberg
S&P 500 and Combination of Forward PE, VIX, Bullish Sentiment The Euphoriameter is rising again after a partial reset earlier in the first half of the year. Although this reset seems to have prolonged the current market cycle, overly bullish investors still risk future disappointment. Image: Topdown Charts
S&P 500 Cyclical-Adjusted P/E Ratio vs. Net Private Foreign Inflows to U.S. Equities If foreign capital inflows weaken or reverse, U.S. stock valuations could come under downward pressure as investors reassess risk amid high prices and seek alternatives. Image: Bloomberg
S&P 500 and Relative Strength Index (RSI) Right now, the 14-week RSI is nearing 70. When it previously climbed above 80, the S&P 500 saw an average 27% decline with an RSI lead time of 37 weeks. In other words, bull markets can stay overbought far longer than many expect. Image: Real Investment Advice
Quarterly Capital Raised by SPACs In the first half of 2025, Special Purpose Acquisition Companies raised $12 billion—a significant increase from the same period in 2024—though still considerably less than in the first half of 2021. Image: Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research
S&P 500 Market Capitalization to Real Disposable Personal Income The S&P 500’s market capitalization relative to real disposable personal income has reached a record high of 28 times, surpassing the previous peak of 25 times observed during the 2021 meme stock frenzy—a level never seen before. Image: Real Investment Advice
S&P 500 Four-Year Cycle The behavior of the S&P 500—peaking in early August with a softer year-end rally—is a typical post-election year trend observed historically in U.S. presidential election cycles. Image: Ned Davis Research
Performance of the Magnificent Seven Stocks Following a period of underperformance, the Mag-7 index has almost caught up to the S&P 500, reflecting regained investor confidence in U.S. AI giants despite the challenges posed by DeepSeek’s low-cost AI innovation. Image: Deutsche Bank
Equity Risk Premium and S&P 500 Valuations The current U.S. equity market’s expensive valuations are more grounded in earnings reality than during the late 1990s, but investors should remain cautious due to limited downside protection and valuations ranked at a high percentile. Image: Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research