This is a quotation from FDR’s first inaugural address when the country was in the middle of a severe depression. Obviously, we are not currently seeing any serious economic stress. But rather, we are looking at a very strong economy and a strong stock market, generally just a few, single digit percentage points from all-time … Continued
With bitcoin down 80% from the peak, and similar declines for other cryptocurrencies, what’s likely to happen next? We have previously commented on the cryptocurrency phenomenon, see Coin of the Realm, posted 16 Feb 2018 and Tulips and Bitcoins posted 16 Aug 2017. We have been somewhat less than enthusiastic regarding the investment merit of … Continued
The Right Stuff is the title of a 1979 book by Tom Wolfe about the pilots engaged in U.S. postwar research with experimental rocket-powered high-speed aircraft as well as documenting the stories of the first Project Mercury astronauts. The Right Stuff can also refer to necessary or ideal qualities and capabilities, such as courage, confidence, … Continued
According to Wikipedia, logistics is generally defined as the detailed organization and implementation of a complex operation. For business, logistics is a general term for the management of the flow of things between the point of origin and the point of consumption in order to meet the requirements of customers. Manufacturers and providers of goods … Continued
No, this is not about diversifying your portfolio. Hopefully, you and your advisor(s) have already developed a strategy that suits your circumstances. This is a suggestion that you consider diversifying your sources of information. A sound investment strategy probably incorporates a measure of belief in the future based on an informed understanding of relevant facts. … Continued
Recent market volatility has given rise to all kinds of commentary, by assorted market prognosticators who, encouraged by the media, attempt to attribute some degree of significance to very short-term market swings. Investors would be well advised to retain a focus on longer term objectives. Perhaps the most useful explanation for very short-term market swings, … Continued
That depends on where the oil is. Currently, Brent crude is trading at approximately $80/bbl. U.S. benchmark crude futures, priced at Cushing, OK, are trading about $10/bbl. below Brent, and cash prices in the prolific Permian Basin are even lower. However, the “prize?” goes to Canada, where Western Canada Select crude cash prices are currently … Continued
Net energy metering (NEM) is a special billing arrangement that provides credits for surplus energy to customers with solar photovoltaic systems, at the full retail value of the electricity their system generates. Under NEM, the customer’s electric meter keeps track of how much electricity is consumed by the customer, and how much is excess electricity … Continued
Developing and sustaining a sound, long-term personal financial strategy, in a world full of unexpected events, is difficult enough without incurring unforced errors. Hopefully, most of us recognize that a financially successful retirement plan includes maintaining a consistent approach to spending, saving and investing. Unfortunately, too many of us succumb to unwise consumption behavior that … Continued
German Chancellor Angela Merkel recently said that subsidies designed to help Germans buy electric vehicles cannot go on forever. California will hold hearings on offering a $4,500 subsidy for each electric vehicle sold in the state, up from the current $2,500, even as customers from Tesla and GM face losing the loss of bigger federal … Continued
The short answer is: it depends on where you live. According to a recently updated income calculator, developed by the Pew Research Center, a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about issues, attitudes, and trends shaping the world, a before-tax salary of $37,106 for a three-person household is considered middle class in Jackson, Tennessee, … Continued
Cost-plus pricing is a pricing strategy in which the selling price is determined by adding a specific dollar amount or percentage to a producer’s relevant costs. This pricing protocol is typically used where the provider is a regulated monopoly, such as a public utility, or there is essentially a single-buyer, such as the defense department. … Continued
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