Little by little, time and evidence is dispelling the ghosts that have bedeviled the stock market since the middle of last year.

Firstly and most importantly, the economy has not fallen into recession; not here and not with many of our important trading partners.

China’s growth rate has subsided, but it is still growing at an envious rate. The financial system is not about to collapse; perceived strains appear to be more rumor than reality. Lastly, the oil price decline is really good for growth, not bad for it.

As investors, through the mechanism of the stock market, have worked through these issues, what is left is opportunity. Surely, opportunity has moved around from previously over exploited stories to new value based ones. Growth has yielded to value. That doesn’t mean all growth opportunities are dead, but emphasis has changed. This change favors our portfolios. Stay steady, my friends.

The Lonely Bull