oldtrdr

Mexico's Hedge Signals Bottom of Oil Price Drop

Agree with Barry Robbins 100%. Socially, Mexico (among others) is a powder keg with a pretty short fuse. They can't afford a major financial hit (affecting social programs).

Krugman and El-Erian in the Valley of FUD

WOW!!!! Talk about a "bird's eye" macro view...problem is, that this particular "bird" is flying somewhere between Saturn and Neptune, so its hard to pick out any "detail".

A Bear Market Within a Bear Market

Its my understanding that evaluating using 10 yr. trailing earnings, when calculating P/Es shows a MUCH different picture, when defining "cheap" stocks.

Defensive Dividend Stocks Offering Value Now, And Comparative ETFs

Bull/bear rider,

Re: foreign divvies. About 30% of my portfolio is foreign equity, and the biggest difference between US and foreign divvies, is that 1) most foreign cos. pay on a semi or annual basis, rather than quarterly, and 2) in many/most cases payments are based as a percentage of profits, rather than announced per share figure, so trying to put together an "income stream" is somewhat more problematic. (i.e. If I buy "x" shares of ABC Ltd, I'll get "y" dollars quarterly). More of an issue for someone close to retirement, methinks.

Ten Sound Mississippi Stocks

For the life of me, I don't get the "why" of these state-specific pieces...geographic diversification at the micro-level? Waste of pixels.

You Are Not as Dumb as the Bear Market Makes You Feel

Yeah...being "only" down 16%, YTD is cold comfort. I try to console myself with the knowledge I'm doing better than a lot of Harvard MBAs, and former "Masters of the Universe", but it doesn't help all that much..

Dividends: Yields Are Rising, But Will Growth Continue?

BloggingBanks,

Yeah, oil is down...but for how long? To a large degree, low prices are "self-correcting&... NG has dropped as much as, if not more than, oil, and producers have already shut in production. I'll guarantee that all of those hard/expensive to tap tar sands projects up in Alberta are grinding to a halt. That huge oil/gas find off the coast in Brazil (VERY deep water)??? ....with oil at $63, or less, its going to stay RIGHT where its at.

Anyway, back to the post, I believe Ben Graham preferred to use the 10 year trailing average earnings when computing P/E, and defining what is "cheap". By that standard, we're not there yet.

Have the Markets Put the Cart Before the Horse?

I've got to agree with the 2 previous commentors. Granted, there may well be a bear rally, perhaps all the way up towards the end of the year. I think the election may well provide a "pop", regardless of who wins, just because the market hates uncertainty. Keeping all politics at bay, whichever candidate wins, different segments of the economy will benefit, and investments can be made accordingly. Longer term, I agree with David (above), that any economic "bounce", (as opposed to a market bounce), will bump up against energy constraints.

Cyclical Argument Now Invalid for Equities

Chris B.,

Read the same thing, years ago. (That political thinking is circular, rather than a linear spectrum.) At the extremes, the outcome is the same, between fascism and communism. Only the details, differ.

Equities: Where Are the Bears?

If one is looking for "bears", just check out the comments on the Calculated Risk" blog, LOL. Fwiw, I'm with the camp that says this is just a bounce, and am looking for some more pain ahead, based on a crappy economy.

It seems we're confronted with 2 simultaneous, but different problems. One, the credit markets, is being addressed by global injections of liquidity, which seems to be working, albeit slowly. The second is a global recesssion, which can only be mitigated, somewhat, via the liquidity injections.

Don't Touch Anything Requiring the Use of Short-Term Lending Markets

Liquid,

Anything pegged to the Fed Fund's rate will drop (like savings accounts); anything pegged to LIBOR (LondonInterBankOverni... will spike.

Global Financial Crisis Makes Oil a Great Hedge

I've got to agree with those who point out heating season hasn't started (although the Midwest is experiencing subnormal temps, currently), and OPEC HAS been pretty quiet, lately. I can't help but wonder how long that will last, given that Iran and Venez. (among other exporters) need high oil prices to keep their economies propped up.

Despite being bullish on oil, I thought at $145/$150, it was over-bought (thinking a floor of $100/$95), but also think that < $90, its oversold.

MLPs Still Attractive After Recent Selloff

CT,

PGH is a Canroy, NOT a MLP, (I used to own it...currently in PVX and PWE in Canroys). Seems like a lot of people get the 2 things mixed up. Canroys won't cause accounting problems within an IRA, MLPs might.

10 Foreign Pink Sheet Traded 'Blue Chips'

You missed Enel SpA, the Italian utility that's been expanding into the old Eastern bloc countries.

10 Foreign Pink Sheet Traded 'Blue Chips'

You missed Enel SpA, the Italian utility that's been expanding into the old Eastern bloc countries.