As chills went through our spines Friday night as the terrorist events in Paris unfolded, many of us here in America were likely asking, “Could it happen here?” The answer lies in history: 9/11 was the biggest terrorist event ever. While Homeland Security has done an excellent job…

It would be great to have a crystal ball and see what 2016 will bring. But with so much volatility going on, many investors cannot look beyond the current quarter, especially after the abysmal third quarter that just ended. For momentum and income investors, there are some great…

While most stocks and the underlying sectors are struggling to post gains in 2015, the consumer discretionary sector has been one of the top performers this year. With the U.S. economy showing signs of sustained growth, consumer discretionary stocks may continue to be the top performers in 2016.…

I have written over and over again on how distorted the U.S. business sales and inventory figures are. Manufacturers are stockpiling products. Retailers are experiencing a decline in sales. Consumer spending is getting softer. But it’s more than just retail that is becoming a drag on the U.S.…

What used to be a leading indicator, the stock market has now become a lagging indicator. For months (in these pages), I have written about how sick the U.S. economy has become. Stock market investors are waking up to the reality that world economic growth is either non-existent…

In the month of July, the Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index declined nine percent from May. The index stood at 99.9 in June and plunged to 90.9 in July—the lowest level since September of 2014! A sub-index of this confidence index, called the Expectation Index, which measures how…

In June, retail and food service sales in the U.S. economy declined 0.3% from May. When calculating these sales figures, the Census Bureau looks at 13 different kinds of businesses. In June, seven of those business types reported an outright decline in sales. (Source: U.S. Census Bureau, July…

The S&P 500 is set to be flat on Friday, June 26th, as investors are keeping an eye on a deal to avert a Greek default on a proposal from its creditors and China’s stock market continues to sell off. Although there was some encouraging news earlier this…

The S&P 500 is opening the trading session higher on Thursday, June 25, as investors are optimistic for a deal to avert a Greek default on a proposal from its creditors. The differences between Greece’s proposal and that of its creditors are not big enough to justify failing…

Visa Inc. (NYSE/V), the credit card company, recently published its Retail Spending Monitor report, which keeps track of consumer spending in the U.S. The report shows that, excluding autos and gas, retail sales went up by 4.5% in April 2015. Big Increase in Consumer Discretionary Spending Things look…

The chart below shows us that between April and August of this year, home prices in the U.S. declined. The S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index is only released 60 days after each month’s end, so while data for September and October are not yet available, based on what…

On November 30, Switzerland’s citizens will cast a very critical vote. Through a referendum, they will vote for or against the Swiss National Bank increasing its gold bullion reserves to 20%, the central bank halting the selling of gold, and the storing of gold bullion in the country.…

If you follow the financial news, it feels like the stock market is moving higher and higher…a situation in which investors often feel they are missing out. But the reality of the situation is very different. So far this year, almost eight full months in, the Dow Jones…

A good gauge for me on how consumers in the U.S. economy are faring has always been the statistics coming out of Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE/WMT) reported its operating income in its second quarter (ended July 31, 2014) declined by 2.4%. Its subsidiary, Sam’s Club (wholesale store),…

A few years ago, investors couldn’t get enough of Chinese stocks. This led to numerous frauds committed by crooks in China that has since tarnished the reputation and reliability of all Chinese companies, whether they’re legitimate or not, despite their operating in one of the top growth areas…

By no surprise to me whatsoever, the government’s third and final estimate of first-quarter U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) came in at a negative annual pace of 2.9%. (Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, June 25, 2014.) The U.S. economy’s growth rate in the first quarter of this…

When I look at the stock market, I ask who in their right mind would buy stocks? While key stock market indices creep higher, the fundamentals suggest the complete opposite. But despite valuations being stretched, insiders selling, corporate revenue growth being non-existent, and the U.S. economy contracting in…

Don’t buy into the notion that there’s economic growth in America! We’ve already seen U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) “unexpectedly” decline in the first quarter of 2014, and now there are signs of another contraction in the current quarter. (The technical definition of a recession is two negative…

In the first quarter of 2014, Retail Metrics, a retail industry research firm, found U.S. retailers missed their corporate earnings estimates by the most since the year 2000! As I have been writing, consumer spending only increases when consumer confidence is rising. Unfortunately, in the U.S. economy today,…

I keep hearing about the economy improving, but I keep asking, where? I ask because the facts continue to say otherwise. The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reports gross domestic product (GDP) came in at just 0.1% in the first quarter of 2014. To remind my readers, in…