Archive for the ‘Markets’ Category

An Explanation of the State of our Economy

By: Alex Harris First of all, I’d like to say that I personally apologize to those of you who do actually enjoy reading this blog periodically. Clearly, it’s been a while since I’ve taken the time to write; apparently college takes its toll.  But, that’s neither here nor there,...
November 16th, 2009 | Business, Markets, Policies | Read More

Speculation Pushing Major Stocks Higher

By: Alex Harris Warren Buffet once said, “Don’t buy a stock unless you plan on owning it for 10 years.”  That mantra has all but gone out the window. If you’ve been paying attention to market action over the last couple of months, you’ve recognized that certain companies...
August 28th, 2009 | Business, Markets | Read More

The Illusion That is Economic Data

By: Billy Alpert The news is flooded with optimism for our economy and talk of a recovery. Wall Street seems especially euphoric as the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index finished the week of August 7, at 1010, its highest close in 10 months. The calls for an end to the recession come in the midst of...
August 9th, 2009 | Business, Markets | Read More

The Banking Sector’s Problems are Far from Over

By: Alex Harris Since March 6th, 2009, the Dow Jones US Financials Index (symbol: .DJUSFN) has witnessed a drastic jump, moving upward nearly 77% off its 52-week low. Market expert or not, one would have to assume an increase of this magnitude would be coupled with encouraging economic news.  Decrease...
July 4th, 2009 | Business, Markets | Read More

Stock Market: Time to Be Greedy or Cautious?

By: Billy Alpert Generally, the 2000s decade has been rather unkind to investors of the US stock markets. The popular index used as a barometer for US stocks, the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index, emphasizes this point as it includes the stocks of the largest 500 public companies in the U.S. The S&P...
June 30th, 2009 | Business, Markets | Read More

The Bank Rally is Over: Who’s Next?

By: Alex Harris Over the last month or so, we witnessed a barrage of investors flocking toward bank stocks, fueling a spirited rally that hoisted the S&P 500 and Dow Jones to levels well above previous lows of October 2008.  However, it seems as if the bank rally has run out of steam, and investors...
May 17th, 2009 | Business, Markets | Read More

Bank Stress-Tests: May Mark an End to this Rally

By: Alex Harris On May 7th, 2009, the Federal Reserve is set to release the results of “stress-tests” that were conducted in April to gain a deeper understanding of the current state of the banking system.  19 U.S. institutions, including JPMorgan, Citi Bank, and Goldman Sachs, were given...
May 2nd, 2009 | Business, Markets | Read More

Death & Taxes: More Like Taxing to Death

I know it is business as usual in Washington when I see the new proposed transactions tax and capital gains tax hikes.  The same old economic policies one can expect out of Congress and the White House, the ones that only focus on the immediate and minute benefits that some experience, while ignoring...
March 19th, 2009 | Business, Markets | Read More