Thanks to strong economic recoveries in Germany and France, the 16-country euro zone has now officially exited its worst recession in a half century. According to data released on Friday, the euro zone grew by 0.4% in the third quarter, compared with a 0.2% decline in the second quarter. Although the news strengthened hopes of a sustained global recovery, many European economies continue to contract, facing strong headwinds on their recovery track. [click to continue…]
Earlier this year, best-selling author Harry Dent , Jr. ventured into the ETF industry, launching the Dent Tactical ETF (DENT) in a move that further blurred the lines between active and passive management. DENT is actively managed by a team of analysts using primarily economic and demographic analysis to determine the overall trend of U.S. and global economies and how consumer spending patterns may change based on this analysis. DENT has been trading for only about two months, but a look at the fund’s performance over that period and its current holdings reveals some interesting trends. [click to continue…]
UK investors expecting to receive news of an official end to the recession on Friday were left bitterly disappointed. In a preliminary report, the office of National Statistics said GDP contracted for the sixth consecutive quarter, falling 0.4% from the prior period and 5.2% from a year ago. Economists who had been expecting quarterly growth [...]
Over the past several months, concerns over the fallout from the massive stimulus plans, rising unemployment, and continued weakness in corporate earnings have left many investors rethinking their allocations to U.S. equities. Once considered an essential element of any portfolio, American stocks have fallen out of favor with some investors who have shifted assets towards [...]