Less Convenient, More Expensive

How about that for an advertising slogan as the world’s automobile manufacturer’s roll out a broad range of electric vehicles (EV)? Potential EV buyers have to face two clear issues. Battery charging time and charging station availability are problems that owners of gasoline powered vehicles do not have to deal with. It is generally accepted … Continued

Cryptocurrency

Wikipedia defines cryptocurrency as a digital asset designed to work as a medium of exchange that uses strong cryptography to secure financial transactions, control the creation of additional units, and verify the transfer of assets.  Cryptocurrencies use decentralized control as opposed to centralized digital currency and central banking systems. The decentralized control of each cryptocurrency … Continued

Beggar Thy Neighbor

According to Wikipedia, a beggar-thy-neighbor policy is an economic policy through which one country attempts to remedy its economic problems by means that tend to worsen the economic problems of other countries. The term, beggar-thy-neighbor, was originally devised to characterize policies of trying to cure domestic depression and unemployment by shifting demand away from imports … Continued

Talking Your Book

According to InvestorWords.com, talking your book is an investing expression which means arguing for a scenario that, if true, would end up making you money because it follows your investing strategy. In other words, when investment professionals publicly express their views regarding an investment opportunity, in which they hold a position, they are “talking their … Continued

Ethanol

Ethanol is a renewable, domestically produced alcohol fuel made from plant material, such as corn, sugar cane, or grasses.  In the U.S., corn is the primary source of ethanol, while other countries, particularly Brazil, use sugar cane. Using ethanol can reduce oil dependence and greenhouse gas emissions.  Ethanol use in the U.S. has increased dramatically … Continued

Understanding Fear Based Media

Investors should recognize that news is intended to be a money making industry.  Instead of simply reporting the news in a straight forward manner, most media reporting has morphed into editorials, with an emphasis on the spectacular, the stirring, and the controversial.  The emphasis is no longer on getting the facts right, but rather, a race … Continued

Dynamic Versus Static Scoring

According to Wikipedia, dynamic scoring is a forecasting technique for government revenues, expenditures, and budget deficits that incorporates predictions about the behavior of people and organizations based on changes in fiscal policy.  A dynamic scoring model may include expectations as the population adapts to the new policy.  Alternatively, static scoring makes simpler assumptions regarding behavior … Continued

Corporate Governance Does Matter

The importance of corporate governance and shareholder rights has recently made headlines with the implosion of the proposed initial public offering (IPO) of WeWork.  We discussed this issue in our blog, “Corporate Governance/Shareholder Rights,” posted 15 Mar 2017. It is evident that investors have now become somewhat more discriminating in evaluating potential IPOs.  While governance … Continued

“You Need to Calm Down”

“You Need to Calm Down” is the title of a recently released song by singer-songwriter Taylor Swift.  While this is probably good advice for all of us, it is particularly appropriate for investors.  With a constant drum beat of conflicting investing and political commentary, markets tend to be subject to frequent, short-term, and often ill-advised, … Continued

Electric Vehicles (EV) are Coming; Ready or Not

The global auto industry is scrambling to meet carbon-emission mandates and, currently, EVs appear to be the solution of choice.  Unfortunately, advances in battery technology and cost are not cooperating.  Cutting the cost of batteries is probably the industry’s most urgent challenge.  Batteries are estimated to account for 35%-45% of EV total costs.  Unless EV … Continued

Beta Testing

Beta testing is generally defined as external pilot-testing of a product before commercial quantity production.  At the beta test stage, the product has already passed through first-level, internal pilot-testing (alpha testing) and glaring defects have been addressed.  Beta testing puts a new product through “real world” testing by selected customers under normal, everyday conditions. Investors … Continued

The Next Recession?

One of the few things that investors can absolutely count on is that there will be a next recession.  Currently, recession talk has completely taken over the discussion on Wall Street and CNBC.  Economists and other prognosticators seem to be constantly competing with each other to be the first to predict the next downturn in … Continued