Posted by For the month of January, the DOW lost 1207 points. It would have been a lot worse if not for the 971 point gain in the last two trading days of the month. My investments decreased by 3% during the month. Interest and dividend income was $1025 for the month. In my retirement account I acquired another 50 shares of FINX as the price continued to drop during the month. I also bought 100 shares of QCLN @ $51.66 and sold 100 shares of STLD and 50 shares of PLTR. I still have 250 shares of PLTR at an average price of $21.70. In my stock account I sold 100 shares of PNW and bought 100 shares of DRIV. I decided to get out of Pinnacle West with a $513 profit because I didn’t like the analyst ratings. It was a good move because I see that it has lost 2 dollars per share since I sold it. DRIV is an electric vehicle ETF sponsored by Global X. I like the fact that it has a lot of high-quality tech and semiconductor stocks in its top holdings in addition to a wide range of car manufacturers. It holds a good blend of value and growth stocks and has a low expense ratio of 0.68%.
As we move into February, we can expect to see continued volatility. It shouldn’t be anything like the 14% drop I experienced back in February 2020 when the pandemic started. Although, that turned out to be a buying opportunity as the federal government stepped in to support the economy. Now the Fed is going to start increasing interest rates to try and slow the rate of inflation. If the price of gas and oil continues to go up, I think more people will consider buying an electric vehicle. The first company that can offer an affordable electric vehicle with good quality and range should do well in this environment. In the next 6-8 months the chip shortage should be under control. I don’t expect to see huge gains in semiconductor stocks with demand most likely slowing as the economy adjusts to higher interest rates. People will want to travel and spend money on updating their clothes, homes, and cars after enduring the pandemic for the last two years.