Apr 2, 2010

Daily Markets - Financial News And Opinions

Daily Markets - Financial News And Opinions

Sourcing Economic Data

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 11:21 AM PDT

Here’s an Easter special; this article is about efficiently sourcing economic data. Traditionally what you will do if you want to know e.g. US GDP data is to go to the official website (i.e. the Bureau of Economic Analysis) or if you want to know Chinese CPI you go to the National Bureau of Statistics website. But this article is more about how to efficiently and easily find all sorts of economic data in single (or a few) sources.

For the most part the data in the sources described … [visit site to read more]


Demon Debt And The Dalliance Of Denial

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 11:05 AM PDT

Stocks rose 70 points on the Dow yesterday. Gold went up $8. And oil is now selling for more than $85 a barrel.
What are these numbers telling us? That there is a recovery? That inflation is increasing? That things are booming…?
Every body is an optimist.
House flippers are back in business. They're not buying new houses this time. They're standing in front of courthouses and buying houses that have been repossessed. Still, they think they can find buyers and make money…
The day traders … [visit site to read more]

Two Versions Of Reality

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 11:04 AM PDT

On the one hand, there is the version of reality that Wall Street and Washington are desperate for would like you to believe:

“As Recession Fades, Americans Head to the Mall” (Bloomberg)
After two long years of belt-tightening, U.S. consumers are finally starting to spend again. That is giving the economy a much needed boost. Will the shopping spree continue?
It has long been a truism among economic forecasters: Never underestimate the willingness of Americans to spend. Year in and year out, … [visit site to read more]

Reexamining The Country’s Founding Principles

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 11:00 AM PDT

My book's observations about the world's financial meltdown that began in 2008 is an adventure into the past, into our American culture, and a reexamination of the very principles of this country's founding, including foregone conclusions about the viability of democracy. We have forgotten our forefather's debates about central banking, hard currency, and taxation.
So too have we adopted a very different understanding of morals that guide us and our decisions. Theirs was a world of … [visit site to read more]

Q1 In Review: Dogs Have Their Day

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 10:52 AM PDT

The first quarter of 2010 is officially in the books, with global equity markets calming after a rocky start to post impressive gains in March. Most ETFs finished the first quarter–a three month period many investors saw as a critical test of the recovery's staying power–in positive territory. Of course some funds performed better than others, and a closer look at the top performers in Q1 reveals some interesting trends. Many of the big gainers year-to-date were the dogs of recent periods … [visit site to read more]

My Plan For Eliminating America’s Dependence On Foreign Oil

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 09:59 AM PDT

Friday, April 2, 2010: Issue #1230
Why isn't the U.S. government doing more to get us off foreign oil?
Great question. It's one I ask myself all the time.
It was clearly on the minds of many attendees at the Investment U Conference in San Diego a couple of weeks ago, too. I lost count of the number of times people asked me about it – and what the United States should be doing to address the problem.
So I decided to see what it would take to drastically cut our oil dependence.
How could we … [visit site to read more]

Beyond FXI: Three Alternatives To The Popular China ETF

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 09:30 AM PDT

With the Chinese economy continuing to expand at an impressive rate, many investors are looking to allocate greater percentages of their portfolios to this increasingly important market. More and more investors are turning to ETFs as a means of accessing Chinese equities. By far the most popular fund in the China Equities ETFdb Category is the iShares FTSE/Xinhua China 25 Index Fund (FXI), which has amassed close to $8 billion in assets and has an average trading volume of nearly 25 million … [visit site to read more]
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