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Millionaires suspicious of market rally, poll indicates

The equity-market’s surge of nearly 40% since March has made the nation’s wealthiest individuals oddly pessimistic.

The equity-market’s surge of nearly 40% since March has made the nation’s wealthiest individuals oddly pessimistic.
During the month of June, the Spectrem Group’s Millionaire Investor Index registered its largest decline in more than five years, as investors polled by the Chicago-based consulting firm noted that they still have serious concerns about the economy and the broader political climate.
The index, which measures the investing sentiment of millionaires, dropped to an overall level of -20 at the end of June, down from -2 a month earlier, according to a report Spectrem issued today.
Until June, the index had increased for three consecutive months.
“It’s not a reflection of what the markets have done over the last few months, so much as it suggests what millionaires think the markets will do before the end of the year,” said George Walper Jr., president of the Spectrem Group. “There’s now certainly more room for declines.”
The Spectrem Group’s Affluent Investor Index also declined, going from a -12 at the end of May to a -20 at the end of June.
Mr. Walper noted that most of the investors polled by Spectrem indicated that they lacked confidence in the policies being implemented in Washington to revive the economy.
“The common frustration that they voiced was the steps taken in Washington to improve the economy have not yet benefitted individuals on Main Street,” Mr. Walper added.
The Affluent Investors Index is based on interviews with 250 households with $500,000 or more in investible assets. The Millionaires Index is based answers from the members of a subset that have $1 million or more of investible assets.