I wish all My City Magazine readers a very prosperous and Happy New Year!
I also want to share some exciting news! The team at OLV Investment Group was recently joined by a new financial advisor who has worked diligently in the financial services industry for over 25 years. Tim St. Cin, formerly of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, is someone we consider to be well-known in the Flint area and we are honored that he has chosen to finish his career with OLV Investment Group.
Now, on to the business of 2022. After a life-altering 18 months and watching our stadiums go from socially distant attendance to 100,000 U of M fans packed like sardines in The Big House, I’m beginning to think that life may just start getting back to normal. I know – we’re not getting our hopes up, as it seems like this virus can do the impossible; but a research article has got me excited. This research comes from a little firm out of New York City called JP Morgan Chase (Fortune.com Dec 9, 2021). It is their opinion that the Omicron variant of COVID-19 may be exactly what we need to be able to move forward. From all the leading information that we are getting back, this variant is significantly more transmissible, but has been much less deadly than the others. This could possibly be the magic ticket out of this hell in which we’ve all been living. If this COVID variant spreads like wildfire and infects the masses while not killing many, we could possibly reach the ever-illusive “herd immunity.” This variant could be exactly what the U.S. needs to get back to normal life.
The implications of this outcome could be so positive, I don’t think we would know what to do with the amount of pent-up demand. Americans are known for being very “hardworking.” We love to work hard, be rewarded with extra income, promotions and accolades from our peers. My generation, Gen-X, is known as the “Work Hard, Play Harder” generation. I can tell you from my observations that there is a whole generation that has buckled down under COVID-19 restrictions and poured their hearts and souls into their jobs as a way to keep their sanity. My work week has ramped up from an average 50 hours to a minimum of 60 and sometimes, even 70 hours. Many of my older clients who were intending to travel and see the world during their retirement have delayed those trips and saved that money in anticipation of spending it when life “gets back to normal.”
My point is that if the article from JP Morgan Chase proves correct, we could see one amazing economic boom in 2022 as America is desperate to get back to enjoying the spoils of our hard work and make up for lost time. This may seem like a pipedream for some; but hope is the belief in things not yet seen. Even the 1918 Spanish flu took approximately three years to end. January 2022 marks the two-year anniversary of COVID-19 (CDC.gov) and one way or another, this is going to end. When the 11 trillion dollars of stimulus money is unleashed into the capital markets in a frenzy of excitement, this could be an economic boom the likes of which were only seen during the Roaring 20s. Wait … what? Yes, “happy days are here again” could be a reality. More on the uncanny comparisons of our current times to the 1920s in my next article.
Happy New Year, MCM Readers! Make 2022 Amazing!
