U.S. stocks had a blockbuster month, as the S&P 500 garnered roughly 7.2%. However, the overwhelming majority of the benchmark’s gains came in the first 3 weeks; the index was effectively flat over the last trading week in July. Fundamentally, a bullish perspective makes the most sense over the intermediate term. As many as 78% of S&P 500 corporations have exceded earnings [...] Continue Reading...
Latin American countries like Brazil, Chile and Argentina have garnered the bulk of investor dollars focused on this region. Yet Mexico may be a dark horse in the field. Consider the facts that the Mexican economy is 11th in the world, sports large cash reserves and plenty of natural resources (e.g., oil, copper, silver). Should you [...] Continue Reading...
What if determining stock market direction was as simple as wetting your finger in the outdoors and holding it up to the sky? A cool breeze telling you if the wind was coming out of the northwest? Not surprisingly, it has never been quite that easy. While we have trendlines that we base on moving averages — 50-day, 100-day, 200-day [...] Continue Reading...
iPhones, iPads and Windows 7 have bolstered shares of Apple and Microsoft in earnings season. Consumer reports on product glitches notwithstanding, should Tech ETFs with mega-exposure to these companies be on your radar screen? What about other areas like utilities? Utilities ETFs have been closing in on 52-week highs. Three Tech ETFs To Play Apple And Microsoft - Kevin Grewal, Smartstops Foreign ETFs Overbought - Bespoke What’s The [...] Continue Reading...
Among stock assets that had fallen on Wednesday, 7/28/10, the 5 largest inflows of money went to ETFs. Yet the ”buying on weakness” dollars didn’t necessarily go to the largest or most well-known vehicles… the money went to a number of economically sensitive sectors. Why do I believe that may be important? If the investing public were boycotting riskier assets, the largest inflows may [...] Continue Reading...
There are numerous reasons to consider the Chile ETF. For example, Chile boasts the largest GDP growth in South America and its exchange-traded fund has maintained a consistent uptrend throughout 2010. (And you thought Brazil was piping hot!) Can the Chile ETF’s fire be extinguished? It probably won’t happen anytime soon! In additon to Chile, we’re looking at copper, [...] Continue Reading...
Uptrend ETFs, Pharma ETFs, Currency ETFs, Oil Services ETFs Click here to listen to the show: 7-28-10 Continue Reading...
What was the intent of financial regulatory reform? Presumably, the new law had been designed to increase oversight over Wall Street traders and reduce excessive risk-taking by proprietary trading desks. Yet Charlie Gasparino for FoxNews.com reports that Goldman Sachs is already ahead of the curve. In less than 2 weeks since the $550 settlement with the SEC, Goldman has moved half of its stock trading operations [...] Continue Reading...
Investors may look for a variety of characteristics when they assess the potential of Biotech ETFs. They may be enamoured with a new technology or a potential drug patent; they might believe a big-time biological discovery is imminent. However, gigantic gains in Biotech ETFs are more often driven by words like “takeover” and “buyout.” Could ownership changes in companies like Biogen [...] Continue Reading...
Research by the Bespoke Investment Group demonstrated that when the S&P 500 hit its 2010 peak in April, the utilities sector had seen its relative strength hit rock bottom. By itself, this fact may not be particularly exciting… since defensive segments tend to be weaker in strong bull market upswings. However, Utilities ETFs have since seen the [...] Continue Reading...
