Wednesday’s good news in form of a better than expected durable goods report was overshadowed by a rebound in oil prices causing continued worries about the impact on consumers. Nevertheless, the major indexes managed a decent afternoon rebound, despite the financials being a big drag. This was caused by an analyst’s opinion that AIG’s recent $20 billion raise in capital …
Uncertainty Reigns
Uncertainty was the word of the day on Tuesday as the markets see-sawed (see chart from Marketwatch.com). However, after the drubbing of last week, momentum picked up late in the session supported by a drop in oil prices and an unexpected gain in new home sales. On the other hand, continued lower consumer confidence figures kept a lid on advances. …
Money Making Schemes
Recently, I had a discussion with a client who marveled at the ability of Wall Street firms to make money. He assumed, like many other investors do, that many high powered firms have superior stock picking abilities or staff with the foresight to properly assess the next hot investment trend so that the firm can get in on the bottom. …
What’s Next?
Reader Tom pointed to an article by Bill Gross of PIMCO titled “Hmmmm?” It addresses the current investment outlook with a main focus on U.S. inflation and the way it’s calculated. It’s an interesting read, but his last two paragraphs sum it up best: What are the investment ramifications? With global headline inflation now at 7% there is a need …
Sunday Musings: Staying In Touch
Recently, I had an interesting conversation with a college graduate who was my doubles partner in a tennis match. He elaborated on how he’s been staying in touch with many of his fellow students and friends despite many having moved to far away places. Using email and social sites such as facebook.com make it a snap to keep personal connections …
The Mega Bubble
As you know from previous posts, I am not one to put any credibility into forecasting, which is why I like to poke fun at those who, with serious faces, are trying to predict presidential outcomes or worse the closing price of the Dow on the last trading day of the year. Joining this ever growing list of Wall Street …