The financial sector was one of the hardest areas of the economy in 2008 and early 2009, as years of excessive risk taking finally resulted in a meltdown that spurred several unprecedented emergency measures and set off one of the worst recessions in a generation. Since bottoming out last March, however, financials have surged higher, leading the way during the recovery effort (see the Top Ten ETF Performers Since The Market Bottom). While many financial ETFs remain well below pre-recession highs, they have reclaimed significant chunks of the ground lost in the last 13 months. [click to continue…]
Legislation overhauling regulation of the U.S. financial system, some 18 months in the making, took another step towards becoming a reality on Monday when Senator Christopher Dodd, chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, unveiled a draft bill outlining the framework for new regulatory infrastructure. Several components of the latest bill presented more stringent than had previously been expected, and painted a somewhat frightening picture of a “new normal” for Wall Street executives. [click to continue…]
Despite a relative paucity in major earnings reports and regular statistical releases, the upcoming week could be a busy one for domestic and international equity markets. After conflicting reports on the health of the economy last week–retail sales figures were up but consumer confidence trended lower–all eyes will be on the Fed this week as [...]
Major indexes barely stayed in the green on Wednesday, as conflicting economic reports kept the market in a seesaw pattern for most of the day. The S&P 500 finished ahead by five points while oil closed just under $82/ bbl. The Commerce Department said that wholesale inventories fell 0.2% in January after dropping 1% in [...]
Thursday saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average climb back into the black for 2010, as a recent rally has now erased February’s steep losses. A series of analyst upgrades gave markets a boost, although health care stocks continued to show weakness. Also on Thursday, retailers reported strong improvements in February sales. A week full of [...]
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. [...]
Equity markets snapped a two-day losing streak on Wednesday, as comments from Ben Bernanke indicating that interest rates could remain low for the foreseeable future caused a buying spree on Wall Street. Elsewhere, General Motors announced that it would begin winding down Hummer operations after Chinese regulators rejected a proposed deal while Toyota’s president apologized [...]
Anxiety over the economic recovery returned to Wall Street Monday, as concerns over the Fed’s action plan and the pullback of stimulus plans around the globe caused a slight dip in equity markets. The energy sector dragged on broader benchmarks, led by Schlumberger’s decline following news of its $11 billion takeover offer for Smith International. [...]
Wall Street posted modest gains on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve decided to keep interest rates steady ahead of Obama’s State of the Union Address. Traders pointed to the lack of bad news in the Fed statement as a reason for optimism going forward. “There was some relief that there wasn’t anything overtly negative that [...]
One of the best sources of information on the state of the ETF industry is the monthly data download from the National Stock Exchange. While the most interesting numbers are generally the fund flows into exchange-traded products and the issuer “totem pole,” the release has some pretty thorough statistics on notional and share trading volumes. [...]
Chaos gripped Wall Street on Friday, as the likelihood that Ben Bernanke won’t be confirmed to a second term as Fed chairman surged and uncertainty swirled around the financial sector in the wake of Obama’s proposed regulations to curb risk. The technology sector also sunk following Google’s earnings report after the bell on Thursday. Despite [...]
The banking industry has been on a wild ride over the past few years, as the unprecedented economic environment of 2008 resulted in a wave bankruptcies and bailouts that many figured would forever change the business. But less than two years removed from the disaster, many financial institutions have staged an impressive return to glory, [...]
