Elections, COVID and the Markets

No one knows the outcome of the upcoming presidential election, but we do know/believe a few things.

• Either Trump or Biden will most likely be named President for the next four years.

• We will have another election in another four years.

• Historically the Market has been minimally impacted by who wins the election.

• We may have some Market volatility as the election gets closer and shortly after while the election results are still being decided.

• COVID has been expensive so tax increases are possible to compensate for those costs.

• Some companies will be temporarily hurt/helped by COVID and some will be permanently hurt/helped.

• Interest rates are very low right now and the Fed (Federal Reserve Board) has stated that they do not expect to raise rates for a few years. This means a lot of different things for Bonds, CDs, and Money Markets – which are tied to interest rates.

• We believe that, in general, some Growth stocks are over-priced right now while some value/dividend stocks are still recovering from the changes due to COVID.

• We believe that investing is complicated right now, in the short-term. However, long-term investment strategies are … still long-term.

1. Stay consistent with your risk-tolerance.
2. Stay with quality companies that will survive COVID and the Election and all the other craziness going on.
3. Stay diversified because no one realistically knows when the next unexpected life-event happens.
4. Be cautious being too cautious because keeping money in the bank given low-interest rates may cost you money in the long-term given inflation.
5. Remember that stocks have historically out-performed bonds long-term.
6. Remember that you are not a statistic. You have your own needs/wants/goals that drive your own personal investment needs.

Finally, all of this too shall pass, for better or worse the world goes on.

By Cammie Humke, Registered Representative at The Humke Group, Inc

Located at 555 S. Randall Rd #103 in St. Charles, IL 60174, phone 630-584-7343

The Humke Group, Inc is an independent firm. Securities offered through Cetera Advisor Networks LLC, member FINRA/SIPC. Advisory services offered through Summit Financial Group, Inc., a registered investment adviser. Summit and Cetera are affiliated and under separate ownership from any other named entity.

Market Commentary: The views stated in this letter are not necessarily the opinion of Cetera Advisor Networks LLC and should not be construed directly or indirectly as an offer to buy or sell any securities mentioned herein. A diversified portfolio does not assure a profit or protect against loss in a declining market. The return and principal value of stocks fluctuate with changes in market conditions. Shares when sold may be worth more or less than their original cost. Investors cannot invest directly in indexes. The performance of any index is not indicative of the

performance of any investment and does not take into account the effects of inflation and the fees and expenses associated with investing. The return and principal value of bonds fluctuate with changes in market conditions. If bonds are not held to maturity, they may be worth more or less than their original value.