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Jim: Hi Everyone, today is Wednesday, June 15, 2016 and this is our weekly, midweek, market update call, brought to you each Wednesday to bring you current with observations, assessments and decisions we are making.We are saddened this week at the tragic news that is emerging from Orlando, FL. I was in our home office Monday of this week and I can tell you that even though Tampa is an hour away from Orlando, there are very heavy hearts throughout Florida as well as the rest of the world.We hope for peace, safety and comfort for the victims and families of the tragic events of recent days.

Today’s comments include some observations in the financial news as well as a review of our indicators that we work with to provide guidance for our portfolios.But, before I do that, here is Bernie Murff with some team news and other remarks, Bernie?

Bernie: Thank you Jim.

As a recap for my June topic – Estate Planning – I have covered Typical Documents Needed and Critical Next Steps. If you missed the calls or if you want more detailed information on either of these items, you can go to our website and click on the News & Resources Tab, Conference Calls, and review Week 59 & 60 Transcripts. These links will have the transcript of the call and any related articles.

Today, I will continue with June’s topic: Estate Planning, but my focus will be: Educating and Preparing Your Family. The steps to educating your family include: picking the right time to take, creating an agenda for your meeting, be open and honest, and cover the essentials.

You should pick a time that is convenient for everyone and isn’t part of a holiday celebration to discuss your estate plan, plus wishes. You may want to include your estate attorney and financial advisor as part of the discussion to help answer questions and explain how your plan will work. You should create an agenda or list of topics that you want to cover during the meeting. You don’t have to discuss specific financial valuations if you don’t want to include that, but you should have an open conversation about what you have planned and why – you should include items like who is your executor, who has your POA, what your wishes are if you become disabled or die, etc.

This family meeting will give everyone a sense of what to expect in the coming years and there won’t be any incorrect assumptions which could potentially lead to family conflicts down the road. Ultimately this conversation can help ensure that your family understands your wishes and is in the best position to carry them out.

I’ll now turn the call over to Jim for his market comments and updates.

Jim: Thank you Bernie.We saw the NY Times go negative on Donald Trump again this weekend, this time with bringing out the substantial losses Trump’s work in the 1980’s created for bondholders.Nonetheless, Teflon Don, as he could be called, moves on.And none of the political volatility seems to rattle the market.A historical examination by the way, show that the markets tend to move higher in election years in which the incumbent party retains the presidency by a performance ratio of 3 to 1 over years in which the opposite party inherits the presidency.

Opinions in our business are often inexpensive and easy to find, so this week’s Barron’s reflected opinions of George Soros here in the US and the Brexit polls in the UK.Soros has gone negative on Western stocks and bought gold, while the UK market is set to vote on whether their monetary policy will be based on the sterling or to remain in the European Union.Right now the London bookies are favoring staying in the union, but government polls are showing a 10 point lead favoring exiting.Either way, there is some bearish concerns in the Euro continent markets.My money is on the bookies who have a successful track record.

Checking out our US markets today, we continue to see a pause and hesitation in overall market movement.As noted in recent weeks, we have placed some investments in gold related stocks, utilities and keeping our fixed income positions very much in place.The Over the counter market continues to remain positive and we have not landed our choices yet in that space, although we are considering adding Performance Food Group to our Staby Equity account.Further notice is forthcoming.Interest rates continue to hit 52 week lows, expectations that the Fed will raise rates has mitigated once again, continuing to create dilemmas for investors and professionals alike.

I suspect the complacency that I have been commenting on in recent months is finally making its ways into the headlines.That’s usually a sign that things are about to change.As the Zen forecaster says, “We’ll see……”

Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of Raymond James & Associates. The author's opinions are subject to change without notice. Information contained was received from sources believed to be reliable, but accuracy is not guaranteed. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Investing always involves risk and you may incur a profit or loss. No investment strategy can guarantee success.

Diversification and strategic asset allocation do not ensure a profit or protect against a loss.

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