Last night the US Government voted to end the shutdown and increase the debt ceiling. Now, investors can go back to what is truly important to the stock market, fundamentals. For those who are watching, the 3rd quarter earnings season has begun and this is how the market trades. The expectation is that firms will generally beat on the bottom line but many will have a tough time on the top line. This trend started in the last few quarters and should continue for a while. The economy is not growing at an acceptable pace which means less revenue for many companies. However, firms in general are doing a good job and continuing to squeeze every dollar out of their revenues by continuing to cut costs. Currently the stock market is fairly valued; to continue its upward movement we need a P/E expansion. If earnings come in as expected, that expansion may be relatively small. Additionally, with the deal made in Washington yesterday we will be back to the soap opera in a few months.
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