Rock Point Advisors is a wealth advisory firm focused on helping clients make sound financial decisions and take advantage of the benefits of long-term investing. We are dedicated to managing portfolios in the context of plans carefully developed with our clients.
Since our founding in 2004, our financial planning and investment management efforts have been guided by our fiduciary duty to our clients and our belief that doing what’s right matters. We work hard to deliver practical advice and responsible investing to help clients achieve their goals.
Despite the Federal Reserve’s efforts to cool things down, both the economy and stocks have exceeded expectations so far in 2023. Chastened investors were apprehensive after both stocks and bonds registered double-digit declines in 2022, their worst combined performance on record.
The debt limit is the total amount of borrowing authorized by Congress to cover its bills - Social Security and Medicare benefits, salaries, tax refunds, interest, and other payments. Since the US government spends more than it takes in, the US Treasury must borrow by issuing new bonds – it has been unable to do so since it reached the limit in January. Now past the annual surge in tax receipts, the Treasury has been paying its bills by shifting cash between various internal accounts. Unless Congress lifts the ceiling, the government will run out of cash sometime in June.
The first quarter was a rollercoaster ride – alternately exhilarating and frightening. While both stocks and bonds managed to generate positive results, there were notable performance differences within each asset class. The volatility is not all that surprising – in just twelve months the Federal Reserve raised short-term rates from zero to almost 5%, a blistering pace by historical standards.
