Equity markets continued their slump in Thursday trading, as all the major indexes fell by roughly 0.6% on the day. Oil also fell as fears over global growth resumed and send the commodity down 2.8% on the day. Surprisingly, T-bills sold off a bit despite the exodus from equities as the 10-year and two-year notes both saw yields rise. Investors seemingly avoided the low yielding government securities for precious metals, which all had a banner day. Gold and platinum both rose by roughly 1.4% while silver gained by a more modest 0.9% as investors embraced the safe havens on worrying reports from Cisco and poor unemployment numbers. The weekly number of people filing for first time unemployment benefits rose by 2,000 to 484,000, disappointing analysts who had predicted a slight decrease. In terms of earnings reports, Cisco disappointed with its revenue and outlook numbers sending shares plunging by almost 10% on the day. [click to continue…]
While most investors are relatively familiar with metals such as gold and copper, few know anything about an increasingly vital group of resources known as “rare earths.” As the name suggests, these metals are very scarce, but are needed for a variety of modern technologies ranging from alternative fuels to consumer electronics to defense and [...]
Equity markets finished relatively flat on Monday, as most investors waited for earnings season to begin after the bell with aluminum giant Alcoa and railroad company CSX kicking things off. The Dow finished ahead by 18 points while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 both traded up by less than 2 points each. In commodity markets, [...]
Recent weeks have highlighted the “new normal” in the investing world, as concerns of a debt crisis in Europe have rippled throughout the global economy. On Wall Street, developments in the streets of Athens and the German Bundestag have trumped more local economic indicators, as U.S. markets have taken their cues from across the pond [...]
ETFs were originally embraced by buy-and-hold investors as an optimal, low-cost vehicle for inclusion in a long-term retirement portfolio. But in recent years they have become popular among more active traders who value their liquidity and efficiency in providing exposure to various asset classes. Once used primarily by beta grazers, ETFs have become a favorite [...]
After a stellar performance out of Intel to kick off earnings season last week, several other bellwethers have reported impressive results, leading some investors to believe that the market recovery is the real deal (see all the early winners and losers from the start of earnings season). Looking to add to recent recent gains will [...]
As global equity markets plummeted in the final quarter of 2008 and first two months of 2009, many investors watched in horror as gains that were accrued over several years slipped away in a matter of months. With many major benchmarks falling by 50% or more, countless investors began to recalibrate retirement plans and risk [...]
The ETF industry continues to demonstrate impressive growth, both in assets and number of products. Already in 2010 more than 60 new ETFs have hit the market, putting this year on pace to shatter last year’s product development record. This surge in product offerings has led some to lament that the industry has reached (or [...]
The much anticipated Apple iPad tablet computer was released today across the country. The device, which has been hailed as revolutionary by many and useless by a few, could have a huge impact on the technology and consumer electronics sectors. If successful, the product could open up a whole new market for content producers who [...]
Two months into 2010, hopes for a smooth, steady year for equity markets have already been dashed. After stumbling out of the gates as worries about the euro zone and the sustainability of China’s impressive growth, most equity markets bounced back in February, as rounds of solid economic data sparked renewed optimism in the U.S. [...]
The reasons for the rise of the ETF industry are numerous: intraday liquidity, (potentially) superior tax efficiency, and enhanced transparency relative to traditional actively-managed mutual funds have all contributed to the billions of dollars of inflows that these funds have seen in recent years. But the real attraction for most ETF investors is the reduced [...]
