Enjoy financial insights, local event info, personal updates, and a tasty family recipe in our latest newsletter!

Keeping You in the Loop: Recent Financial Developments

	In a long-anticipated ruling, a state appeals court on Tuesday upheld a lower court ruling that said people who work for employers based in the city of St. Louis are entitled to refunds of the city’s 1% earnings tax for work done remotely outside the city limits.
	For St. Charles County residents who were at least 62 years old as of January 1, 2024, you can apply for a real estate property tax freeze every year to keep your tax amount frozen. The DEADLINE FOR THIS APPLICATION IS JUNE 30, 2024.

Retirees Speak Up: Discover the World of Travel

Travel is a major retirement goal for people around the world. Transamerica surveyed thousands of working and retired folks in 15 countries to identify top goals. Here are the results:

Top 5 Dreams for retirement
Traveling 62%
More time with friends and family 57%
New hobbies 48%
Volunteer work 26%
Work in the same field 15%
Travel in 2024
65% of Baby Boomers plan to travel in 2024.
63% planned to keep their travels within the U.S.
37% planned to take at least one international trip
7% cited COVID-19 as an obstacle to travel
Of those who didn’t plan to travel:
51% named high cost as an obstacle to travel
34% cited a decrease in discretionary funds because of inflation
37% plan to save money for future travel
45% said they plan to return to domestic travel in 2025

Tom Talks: S&P 500 has best May since 2009

The major stock indexes returned to their rallies in May after a pause in April, with stock index investors in the driver’s seat.
Here are some of the latest developments:

S&P 500: Rally Resumption
The S&P 500 rebounded from April’s consolidation and reached a new monthly closing high in May, marking its best May since 2009. Long-term investors can be pleased with this performance.
For the month, the S&P 500 added 4.80%, the Nasdaq 100 increased by 6.28%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 2.30%.

Tech Leads S&P 500
Microsoft, Apple, Nvidia, Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta together contributed 76% of the S&P 500’s gains in May. The information technology sector showed solid earnings growth, led by Nvidia Corp, Broadcom, and other tech giants.

Fed Meeting & Market Reaction
The Federal Reserve kept the federal funds rate unchanged at 5.25% – 5.50% on May 1st, which set the tone for the market. Even with a slight dip that day, markets eventually rallied after the meeting.

Strong Earnings
As of May 31st, 98% of S&P 500 companies reported earnings, with 78% exceeding EPS expectations and 61% surpassing revenue estimates. Key contributors to earnings growth included NVIDIA, Alphabet, and Amazon.

Mixed Consumer Sentiments
Consumer sentiment dropped by about 13% in May but later improved, indicating mixed sentiments regarding inflation.

Inflation Data
In April, Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 0.3% and Core CPI saw a 3.6% year-over-year increase. The S&P 500 also reached a record-high close following this data.
Producer Pricing Index (PPI) also rose by 0.5% in April.

Labor Market Data
April saw an increase of 175,000 payrolls, though this was below expectations. The unemployment rate inched up to 3.9% from 3.8% in March.

Fed Outlook
The probability of the Fed leaving rates unchanged at the June 12th meeting is 99.9%, with a chance of a rate cut at the July 31st meeting.

Looking ahead, May’s market unity, corporate earnings, and economic data suggest a positive outlook, although inflation trends will play a critical role. If you have any questions or need assistance, feel free to reach out anytime.

Let’s Catch Up: Here’s What We’ve Been Up To

	Coach Tom and His Lions Lions Baseball has FINALLY kicked off after many rain-outs and rescheduling! Tom is the Head Coach for Charlie and Johnny’s baseball team, which is mostly comprised of school buddies. Tom truly enjoys coaching all of these youngsters and Nikki is the loudest cheerleader on the sidelines!
Fun with Nikki’s Family from Indiana Nikki’s dad and step-mom traveled down from Indiana to treat our family to a very exciting Cards/Cubs game. We also enjoyed the LSL Farmer’s Market and trying out Cugino’s in the Meadows for the first time. We highly recommend it! Quality time with “Nonno and Nonni” was the highlight of the weekend!

Your kitchen, our recipes; Let’s cook together!

This month, enjoy a favorite family recipe from Jessica’s mother-in-law.
Cheesy Sautéed Zucchini and Tomato skillet
Ingredients

▢1 tablespoon olive oil
▢1 large zucchini cut into ½-inch cubes
▢1.5 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
▢1 cup ripe tomatoes diced, any variety
▢½ teaspoon season salt
▢½ teaspoon black pepper
▢ 4 ounce mozzarella cheese shredded
▢1 ounce parmesan cheese shredded

Instructions:
Heat olive oil in a 10-inch skillet. Cook onion over medium heat until tender. – – Add 1 tbsp of oil, zucchnini. Cook until zucchini is tender-crisp, about 5-6 minutes.
– Add tomato, Italian seasoning, salt & pepper. Cook an additional 2-3 min.
– Remove from heat, sprinkle with cheeses and cover with a lid*, rest 2-3 minutes, or until cheese melts.
Notes: Instead of cubes, you can cut zucchini slices 1/4-inch thick.
Optional: If your skillet is oven safe, zucchini can be broiled to brown the cheese instead of covering with a lid.
Zucchini cooks quickly and should be served tender-crisp. Do not overcook.
If using fresh basil, it should be added after the zucchini has cooked.
Can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.