On the surface, The Federal Reserve Board and Facebook have nothing in common. But media speculation about Fed action is very similar to the speculation that preceded Facebook’s IPO. For…
Stock Rally Built On Wishful Thinking
“This is the most disrespected rally I’ve ever seen.” John Buckingham, Al Frank Asset Management Stock prices have rallied and are closing in on their highest level in five years. …
GDP Doesn’t Stand For Great DePression
Measuring growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is like taking the economy’s temperature. The annualized growth rate of 1.5% at the end of the second quarter – which is a…
Over Fed
To QE3 or not to QE3? That is the question the Federal Reserve Board has been pondering for months … or at least Fed observers think it’s being pondered. But,…
Pretzel Logic
When Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said recently that he did not expect The Fed to initiate any additional monetary stimulus, apparently stock traders weren’t listening. The recent run-up in stock…
Bad News Boosts the Market
In the strange world of investment management, bad news is often good news. That was the case last week, as the S&P 500 gained a hefty 3.7%, more than reversing…
Market Going In Wrong Direction
With profits exceeding analyst forecasts and a debt-ceiling agreement reached, there was reason to believe that the market might be ready to reverse direction and head back up last week.…
Pick One: High Risk or Low Returns
Here’s your choice: Take on lots of risk and hope for the best or watch your standard of living erode. The stock market has been soaring, thanks to the Federal…
What’s So Funny About Quantitative Easing?
There’s plenty funny about quantitative easing. This UTube computer-animated video explains QE2 much better than anything I’ve seen or read elsewhere. Check it out. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTUY16CkS-k&feature=email]
QE2: Will Investors Buy Higher Prices?
The chief role of the Federal Reserve used to be to fight inflation. It was a role the Fed played well, generally holding inflation in check since the 1980s. With…