Stock Bulls Need A New Story, Fast

Stock Bulls Need A New Story, Fast

It was almost exactly one year ago that one of the most powerful market narratives in history emerged. As the pandemic raged, it didn't take long for investors to figure out the biggest natural economic byproduct of COVID-19 was soaring demand for live-at-home technology for people and businesses. On April 16, I wrote that, "It Turns Out the Whole Nasdaq is a Stay-At-Home Trade!" On April 30, Microsoft MSFT crushed sales expectations by more than a billion dollars and the company said the virus had minimal impact on business. For the biggest companies in the world, our global suffering was a bottom-line booster. Their technology allowed the economy to get by indoors, and their products helped keep us sane when we had only our minds to keep us busy. The Quarantine Trade was a simple, verifiable story that rallied investors around stocks they already loved. The earnings power of big tech alone would've been enough to keep the market afloat, but in case there were any doubt, we got an even juicier story on top: stimmy checks. Direct deposit from the government started flowing in, and by this time, anyone who'd been too busy playing video games or Peloton-ing got