Welcome to Wall Street, Barack Obama. His victory signaled a change in U.S. political direction, but the biggest election day rally ever – a surge of 4.1% in the S&P 500 Index on Tuesday – was quickly overshadowed by the grim realities of the worsening economic and earnings picture, resulting on Wednesday and Thursday in the S&P 500’s biggest two-day loss (-10.0%) since 1987.
Mr. Obama gave his first press conference as President-elect on Friday afternoon, summarizing a discussion he had had...
However, now that the original up and down shares have terminated MacroShares has launched a new series with a higher termination trigger. The up shares (UOY) and down shares (DOY) just started trading yesterday and surprisingly the volume is fairly low compared to their recently expired siblings. I guess all the gamblers...
In response to a (somewhat ridiculous) proposal that we "sue OPEC" over high oil prices, Mark Thoma writes:
[I]t's unlikely that [monopoly power] is the factor behind the run-up in prices. Monopoly power explains the level of prices, i.e. why price is $8 rather than $5, but it doesn't explain the change in prices, i.e. why the price would change from $8 to $12. There are ways to tell this story, e.g. a war or some other event giving a cartel the cover it needs to raise prices and blame it on external factors, but...
The last time I revisited the Chinese stock market, it was in the throes of a major bear market. Fast forwarding to now shows things have only intensified with the Shanghai composite trading at less than half of its top in October 2007:
Politicians seem to generally dislike high prices (except maybe when they're selling their own houses or their own stocks) and are quick to conduct investigations or propose legislation any time they feel that prices are "too high."
If market-driven CEO compensation is high and rising because super-star executive talent is scarce relative to the demand, politicians generally condemn the high salaries. If market prices for plywood or generators rise after a hurricane because of increased scarcity, politicians condemn "price gougers" and sometimes put them in jail. When gas prices rose after 9-11 and after Hurricanes Rita...
A combination of factors have led to US dollar weakness Monday in the currency markets. Crude oil has reached a new record high of $139.89 per barrel during New York trading as oil production from Norway, the fourth-biggest oil exporter in the world, is cut after a fire broke out at StatoilHydro ASA’s (STO) 150,000 barrel-a-day Oseberg oil and gas field. Oil hitting another all-time high has poured water on USD’s bullish momentum as they tend to move in opposite directions.
The dollar was also pressured on the downside following the release of the weaker-than-expected New...
In different economic eras, different things attract the attention of the media, investors, politicians, etc. Today a leading attention grabber would be crude oil, and the energy complex. It is a honeypot for conspiracy theorists and unscrupulous politicians (not quite an oxymoron).
Oil is up over $6 today as I write this. The daily swings have become much bigger in the last week or two than what is normal. This may signify something meaningful.
Forgetting what you think of the supply and demand aspect of oil for a moment, bigger swings than normal after a huge run that draws out many predictions of much higher prices very soon would seem to cry out for a meaningful drop before doing anything else. This sort of...
The relentless climb in oil prices has vaulted exchange-traded products indexed to natural gas and the energy sector to the top of the performance lists so far in 2008 as some analysts see crude spiking as high as $200 a barrel.
BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- The record-breaking rally in crude oil has forced the liquidation of a pair of interconnected exchange-traded products linked to futures prices, but the backers are already preparing new funds to replace them.
Sonya Morris, editor of the Morningstar ETF Investor newsletter, said that exchange-traded funds and notes that track specific niches are highly volatile investments that aren’t worth buying unless they are “compellingly cheap.” With that in mind, Morris issued sell recommendations on five energy plays.
Sonya Morris, editor of the Morningstar ETF Investor newsletter, said that exchange-traded funds and notes that track specific niches are highly volatile investments that aren't worth buying unless they are "compellingly cheap" from a valuation standpoint. With that in mind, Morris issued sell recommendations on five energy plays as part of an interview in which she found many funds lacking, but few worth buying now.
BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- Exchange-traded funds and their investors may be straying well outside their comfort zones by wandering into complicated commodities and derivatives markets, judging by concerns swirling around new products designed to track oil prices.
Sonya Morris, editor of the Morningstar ETFInvestor newsletter, says that the new breed of exchange-traded issues focused on niche businesses, built around untested indexes, or constructed to be a trading vehicle in a specialty area probably should be avoided by most investors. In a radio interview with Chuck Jaffe, MarketWatch senior columnist, Morris found far more ETFs to sell than that she said are worth buying; one notable purchase recommendation was the Dow DIAMONDS Trust, which replicates the Dow Jones Industrials Average.
BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- The predictable backslapping at the exchange-traded fund industry's annual confab in Miami applauded another banner year for the fast-growing business, yet beneath this veneer some cracks are beginning to show.
BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- Two exchange-traded fund providers are rolling out new ETFs designed to give individual investors mainstream access to commodities, but these specialized products are being released just when commodity prices are under heavy pressure.
BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- A new type of exchange-traded fund tracks the price of oil futures without investing in the commodity itself, and this innovative structure could pave the way for similar ETFs linked to the price movements of any asset for which an index exists.
NEW YORK (CBS.MW) - As expectations for U.S. economic recovery grow, Jordan Alexander is sticking to downtrodden, small-cap companies with strong financials and little debt.
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