Few investors in these troubled times would dream of expecting double digit returns.
Treasuries
Does the World Believe America Will Pay Its Debts?
If you spend any time reading about economics on the internet, you’re aware of the many virtual pamphleteers who loudly portend the impending downfall of the American government and global financial system in general. It’s …
Stock Market Deja Vu: Why It Feels Like 2011 All Over Again
Last year was a rollercoaster ride for the stock market. In 2011, the Dow Jones Industrial Average raced to a high of 12,810 in April before skidding to 10,404 in October. Then, in the final three months of the year, the Dow …
Struggling for Investment Answers? It Helps To Reframe The Question
Tom ran a public opinion survey a while back where some of the respondents were asked if they believed they could save 20% of their income. Only half said yes. But when the other respondents were asked if they thought they could …
Three Takeaways of Today’s Market Decline
A toxic jobs report, a federal lawsuit against banks, Euro-debt troubles and a run to safety are all threatening stocks today — and likely for the rest of the week, too.
The Biggest Loser: Low Interest Rates Crush Retirees
When Fed Chief Ben Bernanke said he would hold short-term interest rates near zero for at least two more years, the stock market, at least initially, whooped it up. In the middle of the party, though, millions of retirees …
What the S&P U.S. Credit Rating Downgrade Means
Ignore all the grumbling you will hear in the next few days about Standard & Poor’s. Yes, the ratings agency miscalled tens of billions of dollars of mortgage bonds leading up to the financial crisis. Yes, it’s an organization fraught with conflicts of interest, where debt issuers game the system to get the highest ratings. And yes, even …
GDP Report: What It Tells Us About the Debt
The bad news just keeps coming.
The U.S. economy grew even less than expected in the second quarter, at a rate of 1.3%, down from what many economists predicted would be 1.8% or higher. The reasons for the continued lackluster performance haven’t changed. Consumers, squeezed by higher gas and other prices, are buying less of …
Debt Ceiling: How Likely Is a Big U.S. Selloff?
The drawn-out debt ceiling debacle has Washington politicians all in a tizzy. But financial markets — the looming force behind the Treasury’s August 2 deadline for Congress to strike a deal on raising the debt limit — still haven’t been shaken. Many worry the failure to strike a deal by the deadline would cause investors to sell off …
Running Away from Treasuries
If, as some are saying, the long-term safety of U.S. Treasury bonds can no longer be counted on, the rules of investing will need to be rewritten.
Bernanke and the Fed: Reading Between the Lines
Today we were treated to the second installment of the Federal Reserve’s new policy of openness with Chairman Ben Bernanke’s press conference. That followed on the heels of the statement by the Fed Open Market Committee about …
