A NOTE ABOUT HURRICANE SANDY: Sunday night, as Hurricane Sandy took aim at the h eart of Americas financial district,

both the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq stock market said they would not open for trading Monday due to the storm. Depen ding on how much damage is inflicted on the Eastern seaboard, there is a possibi lity that trading might also be halted on Tuesday.[1] With Hurricane Sandy appro aching, and likely bringing high winds and flooding, its potential economic impa ct is a point of concern. The historic storm is thought to be the largest to hit the U.S. and could cause major damage to cities in the northeast and mid-Atlant ic. Please be assured that we will keep you informed about any developments with the potential to affect your investments.[2] THE MARKETS Markets got off to a slow start last week as disappointing earnings and a downgr ade of Spanish debt combined to fuel bearish sentiment. Major indices closed nea r their seven-week low with the S&P trimming 1.48%, the Dow sliding 1.77%, and t he Nasdaq losing 0.59%.[3] Last weeks earnings reports mostly continued the downbeat trend weve seen this yea r of top-line revenue misses and a weak earnings outlook. With earnings reports in from nearly half of S&P 500 companies, just 36.9% have reported revenue that beat forecasts, far below the 62% historical average, according to Thomson Reute rs data. Earnings are faring slightly better, with 62.5% above expectations.[4] Moodys downgraded the debt of five Spanish regions last week, citing limited cash reserves and upcoming interest payments. This move will make it more likely tha t these regions will reach out to the national government for a lifeline, worsen ing Spains already-precarious debt situation.[5]This move is an unfortunate remin der that the European debt situation is far from resolved. On the bright side, Fridays GDP reading showed that the U.S. economy grew at an a ccelerated rate in the third quarter. The Commerce Departments initial GDP estima te clocked in at 2% growth, beating economists estimate of 1.9% and showing a sub stantial improvement over the second quarters 1.4% increase. The uptick in growth was a result of a last-minute surge in consumer spending and an increase in gov ernment spending. Despite the tough economy, consumers went on a shopping spree, buying up automobiles and iPhone 5s, driving up consumer spending by 2% in Q3[6 ]