Experts say economic outlook not so gloomy
Unsure about the stock market? Reluctant to invest your hard-earned money amid fears of war in Iraq, the war on terrorism, corporate scandals and the already sluggish economy?
These concerns and others were addressed yesterday at a series of informational programs held at Edward Jones Investments downtown.
Featured during the presentations was a video featuring Time magazine political writer Hugh Sidey and a panel of financial experts who discussed their outlook on the nation, the economy and financial markets in 2003.
The prevailing mood was one of optimism. Several of the panelists noted the economy’s current downturn is similar to several this country has been through in recent history. We’ve been through this before — war, stock price collapses and corporate scandals, they said, particularly in the mid-1970s, when the economic outlook was much worse than it is today.
“We’re not in uncharted territory. We’ve done this before and we made it. It’s a temporary problem,” said one expert.
The panelists did not go as far as to say 2003 would be a record-setting year, but they did say it could be a year of opportunities for those investors who are not waiting for the stock market to rebound before investing again.
As always, they stressed, any stock portfolio should be diversified with good quality companies which have a solid foundation and realistic earning expectations. Included among Edward Jones’ stock picks this year are Clorox, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Emerson and Pfizer.