Market Snapshot: Week of Jan. 1 – 8

We believe that knowledge is power and we want you to have more of it. The best realtors can engage their customers in conversation on a wide-range of topics, from business trends and shifting political landscapes to the latest happenings in the world of sports, art, and pop-culture. We've summarized the biggest happenings from these sectors so that you don't have to.

Business

Market Snapshot (January 2^nd ' 5^th)

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• Dow Jones:┬á25,296 (+2.19%)
• S&P 500:┬á2,734 (+2.50%)
• Nasdaq:┬á7,137 (+3.35%)

Market Winners:

• AT&T announced it plans to bring 5G wireless to mobile phones carriers in 12 cities by the end of 2018. AT&T is ahead of its rivals Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile who are still figuring out how to roll out this new technology.
• Fans of late night fast food chain Taco Bell have something to look forward to this year as it plans to introduce a plethora of new $1 options to its menu's. The $1 "Nacho Fries" will join Taco Bell's value menu January 25^th.

Market Losers:

• Despite the nation's growing wages and consumer confidence Victoria's Secret sales fell by 1% in December. Victoria Secret's sales are majority for parent company L Brands, whose stock has gone down by 12%.

Other Market News:

• MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.2 percent Sunday night, and Australia's S&P/ ASX 200 reached the highest level in 10 years. S&P 500 futures were flat, the two-year Treasury yield stayed below 2 percent and the price of gold remained the same.┬á

Real Estate

Local:

• November 2017 Report: Mid-market Miami home sales and median prices for all properties rose in November, according to a recent report by the┬áMIAMI Association of REALTORS┬«┬á(MIAMI) and the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) system. ┬áHere are some of the highlights outlined in the report:
  • New listings of Miami single-family homes increased 1.6 percent to 1,584 from 1,559. New listings of condominiums increased 3.3 percent, from 2,217 to 2,290.
  • Monthly supply of inventory for single-family homes decreased 3.3 percent to 5.8 months, which indicates a seller's market. Existing condominiums have a 14.2-month supply, which indicates a buyer's market.
  • Total active listings at the end of November increased 1.2 percent year-over-year, from 21,415 to 21,668. Active listings remain about 60 percent below 2008 levels when sales bottomed.
  • Miami-Dade County single-family home prices increased 6.5 percent in November 2017, increasing from $310,000 to $330,000. Miami single-family home prices have risen for 72 consecutive months, a streak spanning six years.┬á
  • According to Freddie Mac, the average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage increased for the second straight month to 3.92 percent in November.
  • Click here to read the full report.
• Just before closing out 2017 Bitcoin crusader, Ivan Pacheco paid 17.741 Bitcoin, or the equivalent of $275,000, for a two-bedroom unit at 777 Northeast 62nd Street in Miami's Upper East Side neighborhood. Investors using digital currency to buy real estate in the U.S. usually end up┬áconverting it to cash at the end of the sale. ┬á
• Grammy Award-winning record producer and rapper Timbaland closed two units at Aria on the Bay according to our very own John Parsiani, senior sales executive for the project. The acclaimed producer's condo is over 4,700 square feet with an addition 1,300 square feet of terrace space.┬á

Politics

North America:

• This weekend at the Golden Globes Oprah Winfrey accepted the Cecil B. DeMille lifetime achievement award and followed it up by giving a moving speech that reverberated throughout the nation. Oprah stated in her speech "A new day is on the horizon". Leaving many to question whether she's hinting at the upcoming 2020 elections. Oprah's speech from the Golden Globes is embedded above.

• President Donald Trump stated over the weekend that he would not back legislation to protect hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants from deportation unless it included funding for a border wall with Mexico and eliminated the visa lottery program and extended-family-based immigration. Read more here.

Middle East:

• During the Holidays, protests broke out in Iran. Iranians are protesting because of Iran's sputtering economy, corruption and rising prices of common goods. This protest is the largest display of discontent with the Iranian government since the 2009 Green Movement. President Hassan Rouhani took the chance to challenge his hardline opponents, saying protestors were seeking a better life and are sick of the widespread corruption and clergy-led government.

Sports

North America:

College Football:

• Monday night Alabama University trounced Georgia University in the College Football Playoffs championship game. Georgia was up most the game but Alabama came back to beat them in overtime. Alabama is already ranked in the Top 25 for next year college football season, here's to another year of Bama fans yelling "Roll Tide".

National Football League (NFL):

• The NFL Wild-Card Round ended last week setting up NFL fans for what looks like an interesting playoffs and Super Bowl. Here are this year's NFL playoff matchups:
  • Atlanta Falcons vs Philadelphia Eagles, Saturday 1/13 4:35 PM
  • Tennessee Titans vs New England Patriots, Saturday 1/13 8:15 PM
  • Jacksonville Jaguars vs Pittsburg Steelers, Sunday 1/14 1:05 PM
  • New Orleans Saints vs Minnesota Vikings Sunday 1/14 4:40 PM
  • The Super Bowl LII will be on February 4^th, 2018.

Entertainment

• This past Sunday was the 75^th annual Golden Globes, this was the first major award show since Hollywood's major sexual harassment & conduct turmoil. Beyond the night's festivities celebrities used the event to voice much needed change in the entertainment industry. Click here for a recap of winners and memorable moments.
• HBO series "Big Little Lies" won four awards including the Golden Globe for Best TV Movie or Limited series. The upcoming show beat out "Fargo", "Feud: Bette and Joan", and "Top of the Lake: Chine Girl" to win Best TV Movie and Limited series. The show is based off David E. Kelley's novel "Big Little Lies".
• Sterling K Brown won best actor in a TV drama for starring in "This Is Us", he is the first African American actor to win this award.

Quote of the Week 

All the opinions expressed by Juan Artiles in this newsletter are solely his opinions. You should not treat any opinion expressed by his as a specific inducement to make a particular investment or follow a particular strategy, but only as an expression of his opinions.