At an investment conference in Chicago last week, I attended a presentation hosted by Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson, authors of The Campaign to Fix the Debt. I agree with their assertion that citizens need to communicate with their elected officials NOW to address this problem and follow their bi-partisan plan. I did. Please do … Continued
President Obama has been re-elected. Whether you voted for him or not, I don’t know a single person who is going to miss the political commercials, emails, and robo-calls. (Except maybe the actors and agencies hired to produce them.) The day after the election, equity markets traded down on continued bad news from Europe and … Continued
NOW! As the song from “Annie” says, tomorrow is only a day away. In the invest world, tomorrow is always a day away. It is so tempting to wait for just one more data point or event. Should I wait until after the election, which is coming in just a few days? Then, should I … Continued
Hurricane Sandy is bringing all of New York and most of the East coast to a near standstill. The stock exchanges are closed today, and are likely to remain closed on Tuesday as well. Advance notice of the storm over the weekend appears to have mitigated the amount of market disruption the shutdown has caused … Continued
It is becoming increasingly clear that the US is becoming less dependent on foreign energy. On a 12-month rolling average, domestic output hit 6.1 million barrels a day in July, up roughly 19% in three years. In 2005, the US imported 60% of its oil. That’s now down to about 42%. Increases in domestic energy … Continued
With increasing frequency, investors are trying to handicap the upcoming Presidential Election. For example, many investors are in the camp that if Mitt Romney is elected, the market will react favorably. Alternatively, many fear that if President Obama is re-elected, the market may be negatively impacted. As I reflect on the upcoming election, I have … Continued
A client forwarded an article to me regarding the strong movement of the stock market and suggesting a sale of stocks. He wanted my input – My response, and the actual article, follows. Bob Bilkie, CFA ——————– Dear xxxx: Well, I don’t know. If you read the comments of the “expert” cited in the article, … Continued
Recently released data showing that the growth in China has slowed is raising concern for its once fast-growing economy. China has long relied on exportsto fuel their growth. Exports generated 31% of GDP in 2011, according to World Bank data, and support an estimated 200 million jobs – around a quarter of the country’s workforce. … Continued
The Wall Street Journal (WJS) recently published an article highlighting the fact that many bond fund managers have been beating their respective benchmarks in recent times. In fact, Morningstar has identified at least 187 bond funds that are posting positive relative performance. Included among this list are some of the largest bond fund managers in … Continued
If you work for Ford or GM and drive a Toyota, you are not supporting your employer. If you work for a municipality but live and shop in a different community, you are not supporting your employer. Fortunately, we live in a country with many freedoms. No one is going to force you to buy … Continued
The territorial disputes between China and Japan over a group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea have sparked protests in China since last month. The intensity of the dispute increased last week after the Japanese government bought some of the islands from a private Japanese owner. On Sunday, the biggest anti-Japanese protests in … Continued
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