The stock market surged on Monday, but it wasn’t due to the report of any major positive economic data. The S&P 500 surged on news that stimulus-friendly Fed Vice Chairman Janet Yellen may become the next leader of the Federal Reserve after front-runner Lawrence Summers announced his withdrawal.…
There were two hurdles investors and business people were worried about. The first was the presidential election; the second was the fiscal cliff. While the presidential election has concluded, the ensuing gridlock that will now become a reality has many investors and business leaders worried that no definitive…
Last Friday, I presented you with my seven top reasons why we should be worried about the long-term prospects for U.S. economy. Today, I’m going to shorten the time frame and tell you why I expect we will fall back into a recession soon. When the credit crisis…
Two news items this morning I want my readers to be aware of as we start June… The New York-based Conference Board’s index of consumer confidence fell “unexpectedly” in May to a six-month low. It wasn’t “unexpected” by readers, as I have been warning about the economy cooling…
Dear reader, the sad truth is that while the media and government have been pumping us with good news about the recovering economy, we are inching closer and closer to falling back into recession. If we look at Europe, analysts have cut corporate earnings forecasts by the most…
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— by Inya Ivkovic, MA In my previous editorials, I wrote about world governments and other decision-makers moving too slowly on the regulations front. And that snail pace towards the regulation reform seemed to be the only type of risks discussed on many important agendas these days. By…
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— by Inya Ivkovic, MA Banks around the world have gone through probably the worst banking crisis in the past eight decades or so. Some have navigated their way through the crisis successfully, some not so much; the determining factors being business acumen, susceptibility to greed, and degree…
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— The Financial World According to Inya Column, by Inya Ivkovic, MA We may wish for it all we want, but there must not be a return to the way things used to be before the Great Recession. The knee-jerk reaction to keep everything as it was is…
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— The Financial World According to Inya Column, by Inya Ivkovic, MA At the G8 convention in Italy this week, if the world leaders agree on one thing, it will be that the Great Recession is going to last longer and it is going to hit us stronger…
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The power generation business in China and India is relatively recession-resistant. And so is the health care and pharmaceutical business. The pharmaceutical business in China is a burgeoning industry with real staying power. Individuals might cut back on buying a new television or vehicle, but they don't cut…
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For years, U.S. lenders were giving away loans to literally anyone who asked. Banks worldwide were flush with cash and needed new financial instruments to haul in even more cash. So, they bought mortgage pool after mortgage pool, good and bad, packaged them nicely and sold them to…
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The key variable driving market risk at this time continues to be the soft housing and subprime markets and their impact on wealth and consumer spending. We are seeing a decline in wealth across America, as housing prices continue to fall. Lower prices translate into less material wealth…
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The financial markets were jubilant on Tuesday after the Federal Reserve slashed interest rates by a greater-than-expected 50 basis points. (Note that one basis point is 1/100th of a percent.) It was a glorious day that has sent global stock markets, gold and the Canadian dollar through the…
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The best way to describe this market is to say that it’s in a bad mood. The correction is here and it’s going to stay a while. When sentiment gets this negative, no good news makes any difference. We’re always just guessing, but in my view, this correction…
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One company that's been a stellar market leader over the last few years is Caterpillar. The heavy equipment manufacturer has distinguished itself by generating impressive financial growth, expanding around the world, and generating significant wealth for stockholders. I'm a little worried now, because Caterpillar's stock chart doesn't look…
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Despite all the worries about oil, inflation, interest rates, the economy, and war, there is one truth that cannot escape mankind-- people love their pets. For quite a while, the pet care industry investment theme has been a favorite of mine, and I've been fortunate to find some…
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You may recall early last week when I wrote an article, "A Roaring Start to the New Year," and talked about how little faith I had in the big-cap stock rally that started at the beginning of January. I even gave my "logical reasons on why the rally…
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"[Hurricane Katrina] is worse than 9/11 in terms of the economy impacts." So says Aspen, Colorado Energy Economist Philip Verleger. If his predictions come true, we could see gas prices double in the next six weeks and consumer spending grind to a halt. On Monday, oil prices surged…
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It looks like things are finally looking up for people in Japan. After a decade-long recession, the world's second-biggest economy is now seeing signs of a recovery. Many of the key economic indicators are looking more positive today than they have in years. Last week, Japan's Ministry of…
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If you think you have it bad in the U.S. stock markets, just be glad you don't live in Japan. It may be true that the Japanese build much better cars and electronic devices than Americans, but take a closer look. The Nikkei 225 (the largest 225 companies…
