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Economy

Common Cents Blog

Common Cents & Surveys

Next week, Americans go to the polls. In my opinion, this has been the most contentious midterm election campaign in recent memory. By recent memory, I mean my adult life. Not surprisingly, both parties are attacking…

Common Cents Blog

Common Cents & Gray Hair

Although I have been gray for years, I have been telling people I had chestnut brown hair at the start of 2022. That is how bizarre this year has been in the both the markets and…

Common Cents Blog

Common Cents & The Silver Lining

There is simply no way to sugar coat the first 293 days of 2022 for investors. The S&P 500 is currently down just over 23% year-to-date. The major international stock index, the MSCI EAFE, is down…

Common Cents Blog

Common Cents & The Queen

Last Wednesday, August 31st, I officially joined the pandemic club by testing positive for COVID-19 for the first time. I had hoped to never become a member of this particular group. However, the virus had other…

Common Cents Blog

Common Cents & One Week Later

In March 2020, my wife, Margaret, and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary and we had planned to celebrate with a vacation to Italy. Needless to say, that trip was postponed – several times. The trip finally…

Common Cents Blog

Common Cents & Know Your Enemy

This week, I made a presentation with my friend Anoop Mishra, the regional executive of the Birmingham branch of the Federal Reserve. Miller Girvin at the EDPA had asked us to speak for 20-25 minutes about…

Economic State of Affairs

In this presentation, Chief Economist John Norris discusses the current state of affairs in relation to the economy and potential future moved by the Fed that may impact business operations and success.  This presentation is hosted…

Common Cents Blog

Common Cents & Mosaics

With the exception of Mondays, our investment committee holds a conference call for Oakworth associates every morning. Before each member of our committee shares their thoughts on the economy and markets, I ask them to “give…

Common Cents Blog

Common Cents & The Scorpion

Despite a spate of decent, and even great, domestic economic news this week, it is hard to escape the morass in eastern Europe. Surely, the military brass in the Kremlin didn’t draw it up like this?…