Wage growth is steady month on month and unemployment remains near its 18 year low.”

“The labour market remains fairly tight but risks to the economy are still present.

“While the possibility of a trade war is still top of mind for investors, it isn’t the only cause for concern. Investors are also closely watching the rising value of the US dollar, slowing global economic growth and the risk of the US Federal Reserve tightening short-term interest rates too quickly and dampening domestic economic growth.

However for now, the Fed has reiterated it has no plans to derail growth at this time.

Additionally, US companies have maintained strong balance sheets and tax reform has made it attractive to repatriate even more of their cash from foreign countries.

That money can support business investment, expansion and stock buybacks.

“The second-quarter earnings season will continue to provide a clearer look at both the health of the economy and the potential damage from trade jitters.

Investors should be watching for more cautious tones or any scaling back of capital spending plans and, as always, remain disciplined and diversified.”

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In addition, recent US economic data has demonstrated the US economy is strong enough to keep downward pressure on the unemployment rate—and upward pressure on the trend in short-term interest rates.

“May’s employment report defied expectations, marking the 92nd straight month of payrolls growth and longest stretch in the history of the data. With the report citing much in it for the economic bulls to cheer, inflation remains tame. There remains the risk that the Fed could end up behind the curve and having to tighten more quickly if inflation accelerates more sharply.

“It is worth noting that despite the latest wage growth figures being relatively strong, they are yet to trigger an inflation scare. This is in part because a growing percentage of new jobs being created are in lower-wage industries, and in turn because some businesses are struggling to find skilled, qualified workers for some jobs.

“Markets have been turbulent this year, and additional rate hikes could add to the volatility in the stock market. However, we believe the US economy is in good shape and able to withstand any brewing storms. We don’t anticipate bouts of volatility to diminish Fed tightening expectations in 2018. As always, it is important for investors to stay disciplined, patient and focused on their individual investment goals.

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Charles Schwab Australia offers self-directed Australian investors access to US investment options.

Australian investors can now access US markets in an easy and cost-effective way through Charles Schwab Australia.

Following its acquisition of Chicago-based US broker dealer optionsXpress, Charles Schwab has re-established a presence in the Australian market. Schwab now provides self-directed Australian investors the opportunity to diversify their portfolios through simple, low-cost access to the most diversified, liquid markets in the world.

Managing Director of Charles Schwab Australia, JP Drysdale, said Charles Schwab Australia presents Australian investors with an alternative to high pricing while still offering high-quality client experience.

“At Charles Schwab we believe all Australians should have greater access to international investing and in doing so have the ability to diversify their portfolios and access opportunities beyond Australia.”

“Typically, access to US markets for self-directed investors, including SMSFs, is expensive compared to the costs of transacting in the Australian market. However, we believe there need not be trade-offs between price and customer service. Our ambition is to bring cost-effective access to US markets to all Australian investors – and with the popularity and ongoing growth of self-managed super funds in Australia we see a clear demand for that access,” Drysdale said.

Charles Schwab Australia offers self-directed Australian investors access to US-listed equities; offshore mutual funds; ETFs; fixed income; options and futures. At just $4.95 (USD) per online equity trade, Charles Schwab Australia provides an alternative to the traditional investment industry.

“Australian investors are savvy investors who understand the need to diversify, however access to international markets, and especially US markets, has remained difficult for them,” Drysdale said.

“Simple, low-cost access to US markets means Australian investors can invest in global leading companies they engage with on almost a daily basis but until now have not had a simple, cost-effective way to make them part of their investment portfolios,” Drysdale added.

Charles Schwab Australia is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Charles Schwab Corporation, a US bank and brokerage firm founded in 1971. The Charles Schwab Corporation recently announced a net income of $618 million for the third quarter of 2017, up 7% from $575 million from the prior quarter and up 23% from $503 million from the prior corresponding period. Net income for the nine months to September 30, 2017 was $1.8 billion, up 29% from the year-earlier period.

The Charles Schwab Corporation also saw clients open more than 100,000 new brokerage accounts each month during the third quarter, marking a record tenth straight month in excess of 100,000. As of 30 September 2017, the group services 10.6 million active brokerage accounts. New retail brokerage accounts for the quarter totalled approximately 216,000, up 29% year-over-year, with retail brokerage accounts now totalling 7.3 million, up 4% year-over-year.

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