I love this time of year as temperatures drop, but sunshine is typical and at least some trees turn beautiful colors. Market trends are often seasonal too since rotations among sectors and industries occur. People like me with ADHD love having these changes to watch and decipher.

Recently I spent two days watching presentations of 20 Wall Street experts in Technical Analysis provide their observations and investment ideas for the present circumstances. While there was variety among them, there were also common threads.

Dominant themes? Interest rates will likely continue to rise from here. The last bond bear market lasted from 1946 through 1981 and the bull market for bonds lasted until the Federal Reserve Board began raising the federal funds rate in the past few years. Interest rate cycles often last for decades so the experts suggest laddering bonds or other forms of debt such as CD’s. Schwab is quoting one year CD’s at 4.7% and T-Bills at 4.667, but don’t forget there is no state tax on Treasuries.

Second, the technology/AI investments were great for 2 ½ years, but all that changed course in early June. I sold some positions at excellent profits, but I was somewhat slow to recognize that the downtrend would last for months, not weeks. The experts admitted as much too.

The State Street Technology Select Sector index (XLK) rose by over 220 percent from the 2022 low through May 30, 2026. Since then, it has dropped over 11 percent and semiconductors are lower by 23 percent.

Nvidia (NVDA), the poster child for the new semiconductor world, has lost almost 25% of its former value due to the downtrend as well as the revelations of the CEO’s misdeeds with his Chinese Communist mistress. A full 40 of the 70 companies in that category are lower by over 37 percent since May. One expert compared the current state of technology stock pricing to that of late 1999 when it took three years for prices to bottom out!

On a more positive note, although the rise in oil refiners and marketers has ended, most expect energy stocks to continue to perform well and pointed to companies such as Exxon Mobil (XOM), Conoco (COP), Chevron (CVX), and Equinor (EQNR), for example and in no particular order.

The other giant sector they like is Healthcare/Biotech, especially the Biotech area. If you read about the wonders of new discoveries concerning GLP-1 hormones and drugs, and the research efficiencies that are being created by use of Artificial Intelligence software, it is hard not to be optimistic about new treatments, drugs, and knowledge by which we can become healthier.

The Biotech subsector index is over 24 percent higher now than at the end of May. One company named in particular was Exelixis (EXEL). It has risen 44 percent in that period and still has a Price to Earnings Ratio (PE) of 16.9, quite reasonable by usual standards.

As I write this on Tuesday, November 10, the S&P 500 is 1.45 percent lower than on May 29. Remember if you live long and stay invested, you will probably prosper. But if you rotate your investments in synch with the trends, you can often get to a better place more quickly.

(Past performance is no guarantee of future results. The advice is general in nature and not intended for specific situations)

(All statistics from TC2000 Software, Worden Bros., Inc., 2026.)