Marc Faber, author of the Gloom, Boom & Doom report expected the Federal Reserve to reduce its monthly bond purchase program by $10-$15 billion, but says he’s not surprised Ben Bernanke didn’t bite the bullet. The people at the Fed are academics with little understanding what’s happening on the ground. What they fail to understand is that printing money benefits …
One Man’s Opinion: Are Emerging Markets Along With Europe Likely To Outperform Global Equities In The Future?
Emerging markets and Europe is the place to be for investors. They should play this call through broad-based index ETFs in emerging markets, said Hank Smith, chief investment officer at Haverford Trust. Emerging markets are the most underperforming area in what has been a bull run in equities globally and they will surely catch up, Hank observed. Asked if he …
One Man’s Opinion: Should The Government Wind Down Freddie Mac And Fannie Mae?
Fannie May and Freddie Mac are still supported by the tax payer, but progress is being made as Congress is debating on how to get the government out of the mortgage business. However, Fannie and Freddie are now making money and putting in billions of dollars in the coffers that the government used to bail them out in the first …
One Man’s Opinion: Should Fixed-Income Investors Focus On Short-Duration Bonds?
Equities and bonds have been moving in lock-step recently, which is rather unusual since they tend to move in opposite directions because they are negatively correlated. If stocks fall due to geopolitical tensions, bonds tend to rally, giving investors some protection, said Guy LeBas, chief fixed-income strategist at Janney Montgomery Scott LLC. For the few weeks in late July and …
One Man’s Opinion: Could The Fed Increase Asset Purchases To Bring Down Yields?
Following the release of the Fed’s latest FOMC minutes, the bond markets have witnessed violent movements with prices plummeting and yields shooting up. People have pressed the panic button a little too early and may have jumped too far, feels David Blanchflower, economics professor at the Dartmouth College and a former policy maker at the Bank of England. If the …
One Man’s Opinion: Is A Continuation Of The Stock Market Rally Linked To Fed Stimulus?
When the S&P 500 first hit the 1,700 mark, it was evident the market is going to enter a trade range for the rest of the year, says Jim Paulsen, chief investment strategist at Wells Capital Management. The market is going to digest three really big things now. First, will be digesting the big move it already had since last …