You might think that a falling unemployment rate is a bad thing, but in actuality as unemployment dips and job losses continue, falling unemployment is TERRIBLE for the economy. Of course, like most indicators, much of the disparity comes from how we calculate the numbers. Read more…
Fixed rate interest investments are a staple of recessions as investors turn to conservative investing strategies to protect their capital. CDs, Treasuries and money markets have returned the most since the year began but as investors pour into fixed income and government backed investments, yields are dropping rapidly.
Each year investors of all sorts and account sizes utilize their stock losses to rack up huge tax gains. Individuals are able to sell off depreciated stock to offset capital gains. Investors are able to match up however large losses against gains ($50K loss against $50K gain= 0 capital gain and no tax). Investors can also opt to take up to $3000 more in losses than gains, thus resulting in a drop of income by $3000. Any amount above $3000 can be carried over and deducted the next year. Read more…
Wall Street was happy that the Federal Government hopped on board to help out Citigroup. The Dow was pushed upward a few hundred points but the end result for taxpayers is far less outstanding.
The deal was struck so that the US Government through the TARP program, the Treasury and eventually the Federal Reserve would back up the $306 Billion worth of mortgages and other assets that Citi holds. The TARP program gave Citigroup $20 Billion in exchange for $20 Billion in preferred stock, good deal there. Read more…
2008 should have solidified the belief in international funds. Domestic funds look terrible, they’re beaten down by the perma-oil bear and an economic downturn. But overseas things are looking on the up and up, actually they look great. Why? Developing nations practically control the world’s commodities, we buy their oil, their metals, their food. We used to produce the world’s food, but take a look at how much we’re sending into creating energy. Food for energy, ethanol, yuck. Read more…
January to March quarter posted a 0.9% gain in GDP, giving investors the fundamental understanding that textbook recession is out of the picture. It was certain that investors would respond favorably, and they did. The dow was up 52 points to 12,646. This kind of optimism is great for a market that’s been beaten down by high commodity prices and a slowing economy.
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Unfortunately due to the laws regarding capital gains, it is likely that many people will be paying capital gains on holdings that have lost money this year. Mutual funds are taxed on each individual position rather than the fund as a whole, so even if you lost money with a fund you can still be taxed. This hurts when you’ve watched funds drop in the last two months of 2007 and the first 3 of 2008. Read more…
The Federal Government certainly threw Northrop Group a bone today in the form of a $40 Billion contract to produce refueling tankers. The stock was up 6% in after-hours trading but the company still looks like a great buy. Read more…
Throughout the last few years I’ve watched target funds go from just a select few to huge funds encompassing billions of dollars. They’re the bulk of 401k plans, and they seem easy to master. Just pick a date you want to retire, add funds to your target fund and expect that by the date you wish to retire, your target fund will have enough money. Read more…
Natural resources stocks have continued their winning streak throughout the second quarter. As such, mutual funds that invest in them have been pushed to double-digit gains. Read more…
You should know that mutual funds that distribute large dividends will provide you with better odds of maximizing your financial growth and maintaining a comfortable life style for yourself, regardless of whether the financial markets go up or down. This is because mutual funds that provide distribution will enable you to increase the total number of shares you own because you will be able to reinvest them. Read more…
Closed-end funds are able to offer you with some great opportunities.
For instance, here is what would have happened if you’d purchased the following closed-end funds 5 years ago: Read more…
When investing in mutual funds the most important factor to your long term success is diversification. Diversification reduces investment risk by spreading your risk across hundreds of stocks. Remember when building your investment portfolio that you should not only diversify across classes (Large cap, Mid Cap) but you should also pay close attention to the companies in which the fund invests in, and a great service to review and compare mutual funds is Morning Star. Read more…
Today the markets in the USA took a bit of tumble due to the trade deficit of $63.8 billion for the month of May. The Dow fell 121.59 and NASDAQ dipped 38.62 from this news. Oil went the other direction as it is close to 75 a barrel. Read more…
Last week I was listing mutual funds that have been performing great and I understand that many readers may not have any idea on how to invest in a mutual fund. This post is going to give you the basics on investing in a mutual fund. Remember the biggest thing about a mutual fund is diversification. Read more…
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The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates a quarter of a point to 5%. The rates are at a five year high and they also speculated that it may raise again the next meeting. Read more…
