Financial Review

….Year end review of stocks, bonds, commodities, and more. Plus, the annual bankster of the year award, and (dis)honorable mention. Happy New Year… Financial Review by Sinclair Noe for 12-29-2017   DOW – 118 = 24,719 SPX – 13 = 2673 NAS – 46 = 6903 RUT – 13 = 1535 10 Y – .03 = 2.40% OIL + .26 = 60.10 GOLD + 7.60 = 1303.30   The U.S. stock market turned in a stellar performance for 2017. Stocks slipped on the final trading day of 2017, but not by nearly enough to cast a shadow on the incredible rally this year. For the first time ever, the S&P 500 finished every month of the calendar year with a gain. The Dow Industrial Average posted 71 record high closes, a new record for record highs. For the year, the Dow shot up by 25%, the S&P 500 surged by 19% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq index outshined them with all with a stunning 28% gain. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks gained 13%.   The rally was led by gains in the technology sector, up nearly 40 percent for the year. Of the 11 major S&P sectors, ni