Topic: How To Invest

What is Pat’s commentary for the week of August 19, 2014

Article Excerpt

Long-time readers may recall that in the mid-1990s, I started writing about three special factors that I felt were likely to make stock prices go higher, and continue rising longer, than most investors expected. These special factors or “economic energizers” were: Economic liberalization and the spread of free enterprise around the world, following the end of the Cold War and the break-up of the Soviet Union. The maturing of the baby boomers, who were entering the economic prime of their lives. The productivity gains available from modern computer and communications technology. The 1990s stock market boom did indeed last longer and take prices higher than many expected. Now I’m coming around to the view that we are headed into something similar today. Here are four factors that make me optimistic about the stock market for the next five to 10 years: 1. The end of the energy crisis will relieve a major source of worldwide economic uncertainty. The crisis began with ballooning oil prices in…