SFM Observer- February 2025

Glenn Sweeney |

SFM OBSERVER

February 2025 Recap

A CONCISE REVIEW OF THE MONTH IN THE INVESTMENT MARKETS

Issued: March 5, 2025

The Dow closed the month of February at 43,841 for a monthly loss of -704 points or -1.6%.  The Trump Tariffs have been causing volatility in the investment markets because of the on/off nature of statements coming out of Washington.  Heightened uncertainty makes CEOs hesitant to make plans for the future because they don’t know what will happen to themselves or their customers and suppliers. 

Some interesting events from the month just passed:

  • After 50 years since they were first introduced, 401k plans are now the dominant form of retirement funding.  More than 50% of current working Americans are enrolled in a 401k plan.  Previously, companies offered pension plans that paid retirees a monthly benefit based on their salary at the time of retirement.

  • Company IT departments are now phishing their own employees in an effort to teach them.  Phishing or opening up a phony email with an attachment is the number one cause of hacking.  Be careful when you get an email you do not recognize or seems suspicious.  Check the sender’s email and see if it makes sense.  If it is from the government, it should end in .gov, if it is from the IRS, it should end in .irs.gov.  If you get an email from a sender with an address like RomXC324880pte.com.  Do not open it.  Call the company on your phone if you think it might be legitimate.

  • Walmart is warning of slowing sales growth as shoppers struggle with higher prices for gas, coffee, eggs, etc.  Walmart has been doing well over the past year as shoppers are trying to stretch their dollars as far as they can.

  • Apple plans to invest $500 billion into manufacturing more products in the U.S.  They will build a new plant in Houston that will hire approximately 20,000 employees.

  • Existing home sales continue to fall as the national average price rose to $396,900.  Unit sales dropped -4.9% in January from the prior month as mortgage rates stay stubbornly high and the supply of available homes remains tight.

Thank you for reading this issue of the SFM OBSERVER.  If you have any comments or questions, please send us a reply.  If you have a friend or associate that might be interested in the SFM OBSERVER, feel free to forward this email.

 Until next month,

Glenn Sweeney CFA