@theMarket: When Cash Is KingBy Bill Schmick,
05:25AM / Saturday, May 26, 2012 | |
Traders are afraid to hold securities, especially stocks, over the weekends. Every Friday afternoon, positions are squared and Wall Street goes home with few if any overnight positions. This three-day weekend, you can bet cash will be king.
Clearly, investors are just as skittish. They were last summer as well, and for the very same reasons. If anything, the stakes are higher today. Last May, there was some concern that Greece might go bankrupt and/or depart the European Community. This year, both Greece and other member states are actively preparing for that outcome.
Last year, there were riots in Athens. Police battled protestors angry over pension and other spending cuts. Damage 0 Comments
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The Independent Investor: The Devil Is In The DetailsBy Bill Schmick,
05:28PM / Friday, May 25, 2012 | |
It has now been over three years since the CARD Act was signed into law. You remember that bit of consumer legislation that sailed through Congress with nary a nay vote? How then have the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act performed since inception?
Well, it depends on who you ask. Its advocates say it has accomplished its goal, which was to stop the predatory policies against middle/lower class consumers by the nefarious money-center banks and credit card companies.
For the life of me, I really can't see much difference between today and back in the bad old days, can you? Take interest rates, for example, here we are in the lowest interest rate environment 0 Comments
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The Independent Investor Credit: The Real Cause Behind The Great RecessionBy Bill Schmick,
03:10PM / Friday, May 18, 2012 | |
It has been almost five years since the start of the financial crisis. In its second year, the so-called recovery has been disappointing, unlike any other economic cycle since World War II. At the heart of this failure lies our country's inability to recognize why this time it is truly different. That difference can be summed up in one word — credit.
We must reach back to the Great Depression to find the last time there was a large-scale banking crisis in which leverage and excess credit were the main cause of a recession. Too much credit (sometimes called leverage) is the "Achilles heel" of any economic system. Unfortunately, neither government nor the private sector has 0 Comments
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@theMarket: 'Play it again, Sam'By Bill Schmick,
04:21PM / Saturday, May 12, 2012 | |
"Play it once, Sam, for old times' sake, play 'As Time Goes By.'" — Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman)
"You played it for her, you can play it for me ... If she can stand to listen to it, I can. Play it." — Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart)
Last year, the bull-market rally began to run out of steam on May 2. Over the next two months, the Dow fell 1,000 points to the 11,900 level. There was then a rally that took the averages back up to a little over 6 percent before giving up the ghost once more on July 26. It continued to decline until the beginning of October, 0 Comments
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The Independent Investor: Cyber Attacks: Who Is On The Frontline?By Bill Schmick,
04:56PM / Thursday, May 10, 2012 | |
Hey, what's a fire sale?
It's a three-step ... it's a three-step systematic attack on the entire national infrastructure. Okay, step one: take out all the transportation. Step two: the financial base and telecoms. Step three: You get rid of all the utilities. Gas, water, electric, nuclear. Pretty much anything that's run by computers which... which today is almost everything. So that's why they call it a fire sale, because everything must go."
There is a war being waged today in this country, one that could have severe repercussions for each and every one of 0 Comments
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| Bill Schmick is registered as an investment advisor representative and portfolio manager with Berkshire Money Management (BMM), managing over $200 million for investors in the Berkshires. Bill’s forecasts and opinions are purely his own and do not necessarily represent the views of BMM. None of his commentary is or should be considered investment advice. Anyone seeking individualized investment advice should contact a qualified investment adviser. None of the information presented in this article is intended to be and should not be construed as an endorsement of BMM or a solicitation to become a client of BMM. The reader should not assume that any strategies, or specific investments discussed are employed, bought, sold or held by BMM. Direct your inquiries to Bill at 1-888-232-6072 (toll free) or email him at Bill@afewdollarsmore.com Visit www.afewdollarsmore.com for more of Bill’s insights. |
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