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40 | I NSIGH T • N o v e m b e r 2 0 14 w w w . i n s i g h t o n b u s i n e s s . c o m T here has been a considerable amount of discussion this year about the possibility a bear market may return. Reason being, the past five years have seen an unprecedented amount of market growth with the help of low interest rates and government stimulus. From the market bottom in 2009, to a record-high this past September, the S&P 500 grew a total of 197 percent. However, the bull market is aging. Bulls average five years and two months in length and the current market now stands at five years and eight months. Adding fuel to the fire, markets saw increased volatility last month, with more daily market changes in the first part of October than the rest of the year combined. A few key events may have had an impact. First, the Federal Open Market Committee announced it would finally end the controversial quantitative easing program. For investors, this could mean less market predictability from stimulus spending and a possible market correction. Second, the International Monetary Fund cut global growth estimates for 2014 and 2015. Decisions to cut estimates came from the Japanese "triple-dip" recession, a slowdown in Chinese growth and news that Europe teeters on the edge of a recession. e total result of these elements pushed the S&P 500 down 4 percent from its high in September. For the month of November, and in support of current market trends, the U.S. Economic Health Index™ showed only 54 percent of U.S. sectors expanding. is is the lowest rate of expansion for the year and for the history of the index. "clearTREND® research indicates strong signs of a market correction", says Alex Haas, advisor to private clients and retirement plans. "It seems the bull may be getting tired, or at least it needs a water break." KEY: = uptrend = downtrend Ticker = trading symbol (individual securities only) Trend Began = date on which current trend was identified Confidence = clearTREND's historic success rate in generating capital gains based on accurate trend identification clearTREND U.S. Economic Health Index: trending i n fo c u s After a long run, there are signals a correction is coming e battle of an aging bull run This index measures more than 130 unique U.S. market sectors to determine how many are expanding, stable, or contracting. More than 50% of expanding sectors are healthy, while less than 50% are not. 54% Expanding: 54% Neutral: 16% Contracting: 30% Poor Fair Good Excellent Sector Focus: Healthcare Description Ticker Trend Began Confidence ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. ACAD 8/28/14 80.00% Allscripts Healthcare Solutions Inc. MDRX 10/2/14 77.78% Amgen Inc. AMGN 7/9/14 81.06% Biogen Idec Inc. BIIB 10/8/14 80.95% Celgene Corporation CELG 6/20/14 76.10% CIGNA Corporation CI 5/30/14 80.71% Davita Inc. DVA 9/10/14 78.22% Pfizer Inc. PFE 9/17/14 78.41% Construction Description Ticker Trend Began Confidence AECOM Technology Corporation ACM 7/8/14 82.05% Caterpillar Inc. CAT 9/24/14 77.53% Deere & Company DE 10/8/14 73.23% EMCOR Group Inc. EME 10/2/14 81.63% Fluor Corporation FLR 8/11/14 73.73% Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. JEC 9/18/14 75.82% MasTec Inc. MTZ 8/27/14 75.83% URS Corporation URS 6/26/14 81.48% Marinette, Florence, Menominee & Oconto Counties - Top Employment Sectors Description Trend Began Confidence Food Producers 11/20/13 99.00% Gambling 8/29/14 77.27% Health Care 6/2/14 92.86% Health Care Providers 6/10/14 86.84% Industrial Suppliers 8/27/14 78.26% Recreational Services 1/17/12 87.50% Restaurants & Bars 8/8/14 86.00% Steel 7/25/14 86.05% Utilities 9/8/14 84.52% Data as of 10/9/2014