With unprecedented volatility in the financial markets that’s been brought on by the international spread of coronavirus, and the economic backlash associated with it, is potential systemic risk to the global financial system lurking ‘out there’ in an obscure and often little understood investing vehicle (even for its buyers)… DERIVATIVES! Back in 2015, then reposted […]
Depending on your perspective as an investor in stocks, bonds or real estate, the post-election action in the financial markets has either been phenomenally great or dismally destructive! Of course if your portfolio is well diversified as the experts suggest that it should be, then that makes for an entirely different story altogether. Bond Market […]
Summary: Brexit: Stocks going up while treasury yields are going down? Intuitively it’s not necessarily supposed to be that way! The price action comparison between the stock market and the 10-year U.S. treasury yield since the Friday following the Brexit victory offers an interesting contrast and potential warning sign for investors! Stocks Since the huge move […]
Yesterday, May 2, the Puerto Rico Government Development Bank defaulted on approximately $422 million in debt payments! Long in fiscal disarray, this missed payment by Puerto Rico was merely the opening salvo in the Island’s debt crisis as over the summer approximately $2 billion more is going to be coming due. Consider for a moment why […]
Facebook crushes expectations, stock soars LARRY FINK: There’s a ‘20% chance’ China’s debt bubble bursts Bank of Japan Stuns Market by Holding Off on More Stimulus Nikkei falls 2.5%, dollar/yen drops 1.9% after Bank of Japan keeps policy steady Nikkei 225 Futures Plunge as BOJ Keeps Monetary Policy Unchanged China’s $1 Trillion Bond Leverage Unwinds […]
Summary: With the VIX near its lows why are there two so very different sides to the same coin? For those unfamiliar with the Credit Suisse Fear Barometer it is another metric for gauging investor angst and expectation! Knowledge Is Power – Francis Bacon To the everyday stock market watcher the most commonly used metric for […]
As all of the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) fans out there know, the value representing the ‘risk-free’ rate is a critical data point! But for those who may be unfamiliar with CAPM, it’s ‘a model that describes the relationship between risk and expected return and that is used in the pricing of risky securities.’ […]
In my first job as a municipal bond analyst and strategist a key datapoint to consider was the steepness of the yield curve! When the curve was at its steepest, investors would be ‘getting paid’ in the form of higher yields to assume the price and reinvestment risk of moving out to longer maturities. When flat, meaning […]
Summary: As the migrant crisis in Europe worsens serious steps to address it are being considered. One proposal is for passports to be required in order to cross from one EU country to another. Would such a drastic move spell the beginning of the end for the Eurozone as a viable entity? And if so […]
In mid-December 2015, and for the first-time in about eight years, the Janet Yellen-led Federal Reserve raised short-term rates .25%! In a normal financial, political and economic environment one would therefore assume that the economy is in strong enough to warrant a rate hike and that inflation is at or very close to the Fed’s target rate. […]
