It has long been accepted that January is a bellwether for the performance of the stock markets for the rest of the year. That is, if stocks rise in January, the market will rise for the rest of the year. If stocks fall, stocks will drop for the rest of the year. The bad news is that stocks have shed some 3% already in January 2010. Read more…
Banks are getting creative with their advertising by utilizing a model that is half adopted from the mail in rebate idea. Some banking institutions are offering high interest, high yield checking accounts that pay as much as 4% on accounts greater than $25,000. Read more…
Last year I wrote about the reasons for buying Phillip Morris International as a safe, anti-dollar investment. Well, after doing some more research into the cigarette industry, I’ve found that there is cause for concern. Fire safe cigarettes. (FSC) Read more…
The blogosphere, and the news industry, has been all over Apple Computer’s supposed new product: an Apple branded tablet computer. Tablets, or computers that run on a touch screen system, were first tested in the early 2000s but never really caught on. I’ll examine Apple’s newest product, as well as the possibility this could be a hit product for Apple. Read more…
In a phenomenon that couldn’t be more ill-timed, tens of billions in Alternative mortgages are due to be reset in 2010-2011. Though not sub-prime, many of these loans are interest-only, those in which the borrower makes no payments on principle. Once reset, borrowers could have monthly payments 15-20% higher than today. Read more…
With all eyes on Haiti after an earthquake of unbelievable magnitude, the world has learned so much about such a small country. After hearing day in and day out about the disaster that has taken such a toll, I thought it would be interesting to look at the Haitian economy, a country I had never before investigated. Read more…
Stock lending fees are a crucial part of the business models for both exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds, which derive extra returns on their equity positions by “lending” shares to short sellers for a fee. Some companies, however, are more fair than others in how they distribute these earnings. Read more…
As repetitive as it may seem, it is important for investors to realize there is only one way to get rich. Slowly. Read more…
Making the case that China is now in bubble mode doesn’t seem as ridiculous as it might prior to the global recession. In fact, I have been long Chinese stocks for years, mostly due to the huge export driven inflows of cash. However, as China’s economy becomes more consumptuous, particularly in real estate, it appears the country may be entering what may be difficult to exit—a huge real estate bubble. Read more…
Looking into the prospects of 2010 we have to begin understanding exactly how much influence governments and central banks had in 2009. Of the most importance to American investors should be the Federal Reserve, which invested a full $1.5 Trillion in mortgage backed securities and Treasuries. Read more…
Consumers are still pushing the panic button on the amount of debt they’re willing to take on, a sure sign that the economy has yet to recover. At an annual rate of 8.5%, it is now evident that debt is the new pandemic to be shed, however it creates some huge microeconomic consequences. Read more…
This new fund from Wall Street is sure to shake up the regulators and traders alike. Ahead of its launch, one palladium producer rose nearly 16% due to the belief that these new funds will create huge amounts of artificial demand. Read more…
Last year I wrote about an interesting correlation between the strength of movie attendance and the economy. In 2008, movie attendance was slumping-off more than 7% from 2007. However, as 2009 comes to a close, movie attendance indicate that we as a collective are feeling much better about the economic future. Read more…
