Consumers and the Recession
Where we are in this recession is something the economic historians will decide. What we’ve become during this recession is already evident. Whether it’s scaling back on a flat screen TV purchase (like my family) or clipping coupons again, we’ve all been affected by “recessionitis.” Chances...
The ETF 92-8 Rule
I’m sure most of you are familiar with the “80-20 rule.” It’s more formally known as the Pareto Principle and is sometimes referred to as the “law of the vital few.” In summary, the principle says that roughly 80% of the observable outcome is the result of 20% of the inputs. This...
Fed Fights For Its Secrets
A judge has ordered the Federal Reserve Board to give up at least some of its secrets. In deciding a complaint filed by Bloomberg News last November, U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska told the Fed it must release details about its various crisis-liquidity programs no later than August 31. When the...
Banking with Wells Fargo (WFC)
The beating banks took over the last two years was brutal. Failures, bad mortgages, and investments gone bad caused the crisis we just weathered – and it may not be over yet. S&P Sector SPDR Financials (XLF), an ETF that tracks the sector, dropped 72.0% from its high last September to its low...
The ‘Super Rich’ and the Recession
Last week Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke spoke optimistically about a global recovery. US home sales have started to improve giving cause for more good feelings. Whether or not Bernanke, EU Monetary Chief Trichet, or any other central banker is correct about pulling out of a recession will be known only...
PIMCO Launches New TIPS ETF: STPZ
Almost three months ago we remarked on the launch of PIMCO’s first ETF. We noted at the time that the bond fund giant had other products on the drawing board. On Friday (8/21/09) one of them appeared as PIMCO 1-5 Year TIPS Index Fund (STPZ) and began trading. At first glance STPZ might look...
CFTC Camel Sticks Nose in ETF Tent
The alphabet soup of federal agencies involved in financial regulation is truly staggering. For ETFs the web is somewhat less tangled but still confusing. Now the Commodity Futures Trading Commission – an agency that sounds like it shouldn’t have much to do with ETFs – is flexing...
Investors Now Have A Dozen Inverse Bond Choices
The first inverse bond fund was introduced on March 3, 1995 with the launch of Rydex Juno (RYJUX), since renamed Rydex Inverse US Government Long Bond. Today, more than 14 years later, brought the introduction of ProShares Short 20+ Year Treasury (TBF). This is the first ETF with non-leveraged inverse...
A New Day for High-End Memory (RMBS)
Timing is everything for traders. Whether you buy the break or leg into a position during an uptrend, a proper entry is critical for a successful trade. This holds true for most investments but is absolutely essential for a technology play. Tech stocks are notorious for their drastic moves after...
Global X Launches Nordic Region ETF: GXF
Global X FTSE Nordic 30 ETF (GXF) began trading today (August 19, 2009), becoming the first US-listed ETF to focus on the Nordic region. The four countries represented in the fund are Sweden with a 46% current weighting, Denmark at 20%, Norway at 17%, and Finland at 17%. According to the press release,...
