U.S. stocks rallied 4% on the last day of November. Granted, China formerly announced that bank reserves would be lowered, a form of easing that hasn’t taken place in China in 3 years. And the ADP private payroll report on U.S. employment indicated a healthy pick-up in hiring. Nevertheless, the primary driver for one of the best sessions in [...] [...more]
In spite of stock market woes in November, the spot price of crude has managed to push back towards the $100 per barrel mark. Not surprisingly, ETFs with exceptionally high correlations to oil such as Market Vectors Russia (RSX), have significantly outperformed the iShares MSCI All-World Fund (ACWI). That said, Canada, the second largest non-OPEC producer, may also be worth a look. Don [...] [...more]
For better or for worse, there are a wide range of perspectives on the investments that are likely to do well over the next 6 months. And while nobody doubts the severity of the Eurozone crisis, each seems to see different opportunities in light of costly euro-baggage. One portfolio manager believes that U.S. equities will remain [...] [...more]
There is an erroenous assumption that some investors make about Dividend ETFs. For one thing, many mistakenly believe that a fund needs to be labeled as a dividend exchange-traded product to provide a high level of income. For another, many fail to look overseas. Granted, Vanguard Dividend Growth (VIG) is a fine example of capturing long-term [...] [...more]
How many major sectors of the U.S. economy are riding above their respective long-term, 200-day trendlines? 3 of the big 10 are. Not surprisingly, Defensive Equity ETFs like SPDR Select Sector Utilities (XLU) and SPDR Select Sector Staples (XLP) made the cut. More surprisingly to some, however, is the recent emergence of a cyclical powerhouse like SPDR Select Sector [...] [...more]
Is it a loss of confidence in gold that has caused a 10% sell-off over the previous 5 trading sessions? Have under-performing hedge fund managers been forced to liquidate the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) — hedge fund managers like John Paulson who own super-sized stakes in the world’s largest gold ETF? Data may suggest otherwise. Futures traders have yet to close out [...] [...more]
One of the arguments in favor of Dividend ETFs is that they provide 3.0%-3.5% with the potential for capital appreciation. But the last 3 months have seen more depreciation than the “attractive” yield could offset. With savings accounts and CDs offering 1.0% on the high end, investment-grade U.S. government debt has been a consideration for some folks. Of [...] [...more]
As many times as gold vigilantes try to short the yellow metal — as often as gold bugs try to take profits near $1900 oz — new buyers still keep coming back. For example, after a 3%+ smackdown on 9/7/11, the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) managed to rally back 2% on Thursday, 9/8/11. Yet, even as precious metal funds [...] [...more]
Asia’s fight against inflation via tight monetary policy has curbed demand for natural resources. Meanwhile, the reduced demand for resources in both Asia and the developed world (Europe/U.S.) has resulted in less exporting from resource-rich countries like Russia and Brazil. In other words, those who have been “long” the emerging market growth story haven’t had much [...] [...more]
If Abby Joseph Cohen is/was the quintessential perma-bull for U.S. equities, Franklin Templeton’s Mark Mobius is her perma-twin for emerging markets. In fact, it may not be possible to find a moment in time when Mobius wasn’t bullish on emerging countries. Today, Mobius isn’t even falling back on valuation-based arguments; he’s not talking about GDP growth or fiscal policy. He simply points to [...] [...more]
