April 8, 2013
The passing of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher reminds us that she refused to abandon Britain's currency in favor of the euro. "A country that surrenders its currency, surrenders its sovereignty," she said. As southern European nations struggle with austerity, Thatcher looks prescient.
October 30, 2012
Stock market officials plan to re-open the U.S. exchanges on Wednesday for a full day of trading. Trading is apt to be light for a few days as traders will still have trouble getting into Manhattan due to limited availability of public transportation. We do not anticipate any long-lasting investment opportunities or risks due to the storm that has affected the East Coast. This NY Times story provides additional information.
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October 25, 2012
An interesting article in USA Today about which industries will be winners under either a Romney or Obama presidency. These opinions are good food for thought, but much of this information may already be reflected in share prices. Click here for the link to the article.
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September 27, 2012
Sometimes the way the markets react to the news is more important than the news itself. The federal government revised down its estimate for economic growth in the second quarter but stock prices rose. Rather than looking in the rear view mirror, market participants focused on Spain's new, more austere, budget and prospects for China to do more to goose its economy.
September 24, 2012
One of the oldest sayings on Wall Street is, "Buy the rumor, sell the news." Since the low in June, the S&P 500 Index has risen nearly 15% in anticipation of an announcement of more quantitative easing(QE) by the Fed. Now that the Fed has given details of the program, a pause in the advance of the market averages after the announcement last week would not be surprising.
September 17, 2012
Eagan Jones, an independent bond rating agency, lowered its assessment on U.S. Government debt to AA- from AA. Eagan Jones rating changes tend to lead the changes published by Moody's and Standard and Poor's. Moody's still rates the U.S as a AAA and S&P lowered the rating last year to AA+. Egan Jones is two notches below the S&P rating. This article from the San Francisco Chronicle provides additional detail.
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