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36 | I NSIGH T • M a r c h 2 0 15 w w w . i n s i g h t o n b u s i n e s s . c o m A s the year pushes ahead, economists, politicians and analysts have been busy forecasting the rest of 2015. e decline of oil prices, economic performance and the strengthening dollar have all dominated business news commentary. Of particular importance is the strengthening dollar. Is this a positive or a negative for the economy? Well, a strong dollar, compared to a basket of other currencies, is a double-edged sword. On the good side of things, a strong dollar has more buying power. Consumers can get more for their money and have a little le over for non-discretionary spending. Also, foreign goods are cheaper, which can help companies that rely on imports. Lastly, a strong dollar gives us insight into how people view the U.S. economy. A strong dollar means more people are buying dollars, which tells us they see the U.S. as more secure and economically sound than other countries. On the negative side, an appreciating dollar can have significant unfavorable impacts. Sales of U.S. goods in foreign markets can be expected to decline since American goods become more expensive for foreigners to buy. Imagine the impact this has on American companies that generate much of their revenue from foreign sales. Less revenue means that fewer goods are produced and decreasing production could mean fewer jobs. clearTREND research produced by our firm in Appleton indicates upward trends in most U.S. stocks as well as most U.S. sectors. U.S. energy and emerging markets have been trending downward. Our U.S. Economic Health Index shows that 71 percent of U.S. sectors are expanding. "A rising dollar may also indicate an expectation of rising interest rates," says Alex Haas, financial advisor of the Appleton Group. "With the Fed expected to begin raising short term interest rates, the rate of economic growth in the U.S. may begin to slow down." 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 Strengthening dollar offers mixed bag for economic growth More bang for your buck? This index measures more than 130 unique U.S. market sectors to determine how many are expanding, stable or contracting. More than 50 percent of expanding sectors are healthy, while less than 50 percent are not. 71% Expanding: 71% Neutral: 7% Contracting: 23% Poor Fair Good Excellent Data as of 2/11/2015 Sector Focus: Continuing Education Description Ticker Trend Began Confidence Apollo Education Group Inc. APOL 12/3/14 75.68% Corinthian Colleges Inc. COCO 2/4/15 72.38% DeVry Education Group Inc. DV 2/11/15 77.14% Education Management Corp EDMC 1/3/14 81.82% Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Company HMHC 10/1/14 99.00% ITT Educational Services Inc. ESI 2/9/15 82.54% McGraw Hill Financial Inc. MHFI 9/25/14 78.99% Pearson plc PSO 1/20/15 73.37% Innovation Description Ticker Trend Began Confidence Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ALXN 5/29/13 78.08% Amazon.com Inc. AMZN 2/9/15 77.78% Apple Inc. AAPL 1/30/15 82.08% BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. BMRN 7/31/14 78.82% Google Inc. GOOG 11/14/14 79.41% Microsoft Corporation MSFT 3/28/13 83.64% salesforce.com inc. CRM 2/5/15 79.25% VMware Inc. VMW 2/6/15 78.05%