After dropping 16% between April 23 and July 2, the S&P 500 recouped one-third of that loss last week and rose 5.4%, according to Bloomberg, July 10. Stocks rose on news that U.S. retail sales grew at the fastest pace in four years in June and a bullish report from the IMF projected an upwardly revised global economic growth rate of 4.6% in 2010, according to CNBC, July 8. ....read more

The Second Quarter in Review. The stock market rally that began in March 2009 came to an abrupt halt in the second quarter. Despite excellent first quarter corporate earnings in the U.S., investors fretted about larger issues that could overwhelm the economy in the months ahead. ....read more

Can world governments "cut" their way to prosperity? It's no secret that many countries are incurring large--and unsustainable--budget deficits. What's interesting is the approach each country is taking to try to lower their deficits to a manageable level. Britain, Japan, Germany, and Greece, for example, are focused on cutting government spending, according to Bloomberg, June 22. ....read more

A hypothetical Doctor of Investments might say we are in an "EKG market." We've experienced a series of headlines that have sent the market on a yo-yo ride since we dropped the New Year's ball in Times Square six months ago. Here are a few of the eye-raising events that have kept investors on an emotional rollercoaster. ....read more

Which country is the most attractive market for investors? Perhaps Brazil? Russia? India? China? Collectively, those four are known as the "BRIC" countries and for a number of years, many investors have pointed to them as economic stars ....read more

Despite the blaring headlines of late, the U.S. stock market has been stuck in a broad trading range since last September ....read more

"Sell in May and go away" is a popular Wall Street adage. After the May we just experienced, investors are saying, "True that!" ....read more

The U.S. stock market just entered its first correction of 10% since the March 2009 bear market low, according to Barron's magazine. In the paraphrased words of economist Michael Darda as reported by Barron's, are we experiencing an aftershock of the 2008 market crisis or are we having a relapse? ....read more

"Hot potato" is a favorite children's game. Unfortunately, as adults, we're playing an economic version that has the potential for much more serious consequences. ....read more

Two tragedies, worlds apart, reached a boil last week and affected the financial markets in a not so pleasant way. Greece, which is an ocean away and no stranger to tragedy, (think Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides), nearly imploded last week on fears that its government was bankrupt. ....read more

Between the October 2007 all-time high and the February 2009 low, world stock market valuation declined from $63.0 trillion to $28.6 trillion, according to the World Federation of Exchanges. That's a drop of $34.4 trillion or 54.6% in just 16 months--serious money, indeed. ....read more

Lloyd Blankfein, the chief executive of Goldman Sachs, described himself as "doing God's work," in a profile last year in London's Sunday Times. ....read more

The U.S. stock market continued grinding its way higher last week as the Dow Jones Industrial Average briefly pierced the 11,000 level for the first time since September 2008, according to The Wall Street Journal. ....read more

THE FIRST QUARTER IN REVIEW. The stock market followed 2009's powerful rally with a strong performance in the first quarter. The S&P 500 rose 4.9%, excluding dividends, which was its best first-quarter percentage gain since the heady days of 1998, according to MarketWatch. ....read more

The stock market seems to be climbing the proverbial "wall of worry." Despite potential road hazards such as sovereign debt issues, rising interest rates, a weak job market, and a stalled housing recovery, investors bid up stock prices last week to an 18-month high, according to MarketWatch. ....read more

Earnings drive stock prices, right? It's easy to say that the stock market is nothing more than a "casino" that is driven by "speculators," but over the long term, earnings do drive stock prices. So, how do corporate earnings look these days? Actually, pretty good. ....read more

The American consumer is not dead. Last week, a report from the Commerce Department showed a surprising increase of 0.3% in February U.S. retail sales compared to the month before. ....read more

It was one year ago this week that the Standard & Poor's 500 closed at its bear market nadir of 676 on March 9, 2009. Last week, it closed at 1138, which represents a gain of 68% from the year ago low. ....read more

Three months ago, on December 1, 2009, the S&P 500 closed at 1,108. Last week it closed at 1,104. After three months, the net movement in the stock market was just 4 points. Hmm. What does that tell us about investing? Here are a few thoughts that come to mind. ....read more

The U.S. stock market has had several "mini corrections" since the March 9, 2009 low and last week's strong performance has some analysts saying the recent 9% drop in the S&P 500 from its mid-January high may have run its course, according to the Associated Press. ....read more

The Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment preliminary index for February that was reported last week declined slightly from the late January number and it was lower than expected as consumers continued to fret over unemployment. ....read more

Volatility in the financial markets has risen noticeably in the past few weeks as investors remain on edge about a multitude of issues.....read more

Let’s recap some of the good news last week:....read more

Sometimes earnings move the markets. Sometimes politics does the trick. Last week, both were in play and the result was not pretty. ....read more

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volker was back in the news last week as he warned that the financial system needs broad reform or else we run the risk of another financial crisis. ....read more

The S&P 500 index rose every day last week and finished with a 2.7% gain. This gain came despite a disappointing jobs report, which showed another 85,000 jobs were lost in December. A survey from MarketWatch expected a gain of 15,000 jobs. On the bright side, temporary-help jobs rose by 46,500. This is often a precursor to growth in full-time jobs. ....read more

Major fluctuations in the stock market tend to grab the headlines, but there’s something else investors should keep their eye on, too – the value of the U.S. dollar. As the worldwide financial system melted in late 2008/early 2009, investors fled to the perceived safety of the U.S. dollar and its value soared compared to a basket of other currencies, according to The Wall Street Journal. There seemed to be an inverse correlation between the dollar and the stock market; as the stock market went down, the dollar went up and vice versa. ....read more

Major fluctuations in the stock market tend to grab the headlines, but there’s something else investors should keep their eye on, too – the value of the U.S. dollar. As the worldwide financial system melted in late 2008/early 2009, investors fled to the perceived safety of the U.S. dollar and its value soared compared to a basket of other currencies, according to The Wall Street Journal. There seemed to be an inverse correlation between the dollar and the stock market; as the stock market went down, the dollar went up and vice versa. ....read more

One of the popular parlor games on Wall Street these days is trying to predict how the holiday shopping season will fare. If sales rise from last year, that may bode well for the economy heading into 2010. If sales drop, well, that’s not such a good sign. Like many things related to Wall Street investing, you could do exhaustive, detailed analysis to come up with a prediction, or, you could pick one indicator that has some historical significance and run with that. ....read more

The shocking (in a positive way) unemployment report released last Friday by the Labor Department showed the economy lost only 11,000 jobs in November. The markets were bracing for a number well in excess of 100,000, according to CNBC. On top of that, revisions to the previous two months showed 159,000 fewer jobs were lost than initially reported. And, to complete the trifecta, the unemployment rate dropped to 10.0% in November, down from 10.2% in October. ....read more

We started the week on a good note as the National Association of Realtors said existing home sales rose 10.1% in October to the highest seasonally adjusted annual rate since February 2007. Later in the week, the Commerce Department said new home sales rose 6.2% in October, which was well above the number that economists surveyed by MarketWatch had expected. And, the Labor Department said 466,000 Americans filed for unemployment benefits for the week ending November 21. ....read more

Would you willingly give the government your money and expect nothing in return? Last week, that is exactly what happened. Treasury bills maturing in January 2010 actually yielded -0.01% last Friday. The last time interest rates were negative was at the height of the credit crisis in late 2008 as panicked investors sought refuge in short-term government paper, according to The Wall Street Journal. ....read more

Can Sir Isaac Newton’s first law of motion help explain the continuing surge in the stock market? In 1686, the great mathematician and physicist first presented his three laws of motion. The first law stated that, “Every object will remain at rest or in uniform motion in a straight line unless compelled to change its state by the action of an external force.” ....read more

Take your pick – gold surging past $1,100 an ounce, the jobless rate hitting double digits, Warren Buffett’s, “all-in wager on the economic future of the United States,” a 3.2% rise in the S&P 500 index – there was something for everyone last week in the economy and the financial markets. ....read more

Last week, the government announced that third-quarter GDP grew a solid 3.5%. That was quite a relief coming off four consecutive quarters of negative growth. Gains in the auto and home building sectors led the charge. ....read more

What do Caterpillar, Netflix, Apple and Microsoft have in common? They all posted quarterly earnings last week that exceeded analyst expectations—and they are not alone. ....read more

The good news is the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose above 10,000 last week. The bad news is it first rose above 10,000 more than 10 years ago – March 1999 to be specific. ....read more

The S&P 500 index jumped 4.5% last week as a weakening dollar and a positive earnings report from Alcoa helped keep the bulls in charge. ....read more

As we enter the home stretch for 2009, let’s review what transpired in the financial markets over the past three months. ....read more

After closing at a post-recovery high on Tuesday of last week, the market headed south the next three days as investors assessed the impact of the Federal Reserve’s latest missive and digested some less exuberant economic data. ....read more

On Wednesday of last week, the S&P 500 index reached a milestone that has occurred only three other times since World War II. ....read more

Rarely do you see a headline in a mainstream newspaper containing the three words, “Yale,” “Harvard,” and “Losers,” but that’s exactly what happened last week in The Wall Street Journal. ....read more

The 2000s are turning into a lost decade for investors and for jobs. ....read more

Even though the 4th of July was about two months ago, we may see some fireworks in the financial markets over the next few months. ....read more

An extremely weak real estate market helped lead us into this financial crisis. Could a strong real estate market help lead us out? Possibly. ....read more

Whether you are bullish or bearish, there’s plenty of ammo in each camp to support your view. ....read more

The second quarter earnings season started just like the Fourth of July – with a bang! ....read more

Are the green shoots getting nipped by a late frost? ....read more

Now that we’ve passed the halfway mark in 2009, let’s review what transpired in the financial markets. ....read more

Faith that the economy will get significantly better in the near future will soon need to be replaced by the proof that it is getting better or else we may end up with more market volatility. ....read more

Popular wisdom about life says, “It’s the journey, not the destination.” In successful long-term investing, it’s just the opposite. ....read more

The stock market has been on a very nice run over the past three months and there’s a divergence of opinion on what’s behind it. ....read more

This week marks the two-year anniversary of the financial meltdown. What lessons have we learned? ....read more

How do you spell higher stock market prices? J-O-B-S! ....read more

One key to an economic recovery is a thawing of the credit freeze. Let’s look at three indicators that suggest we’re making some progress in this area. ....read more

Warren Buffett has said his favorite holding period is forever. Does he follow his own advice?....read more

Would you agree that the stock market has been volatile in the last six months?....read more

Set the bar low and then step over it. That idea helps explain why the S&P 500 index has jumped 30% since its March 9 low, according to Barron's Magazine. ....read more

The government’s ability to “stick the landing” will go a long way toward determining how well the economy – and, by extension, the stock market – will fare over the coming years. ....read more

"Time heals all wounds" is a well-meaning cliché and, with a little tweaking, it can apply to how you deal with losses in the financial markets. ....read more

Does August 12, 1982, mean anything to you? ....read more

One-fourth of the year is now history so let’s see what transpired in the financial markets. ....read more

Sometimes, less bad is actually good. ....read more

So now we know where money comes from. ....read more

Last week, the stock market, as measured by the S&P 500 index, staged its third-largest weekly gain since World War II, according to Reuters. ....read more

As it relates to the financial markets, essentially the only positive thing we can say about last week is that it ended. ....read more

"History does not repeat itself exactly, but behavior does," according to legendary Wall Street veteran Bob Farrell. ....read more

Do you remember the catchy old slogan from GE, “We bring good things to life?” Well, last week they reneged on their pledge. ....read more

With the first quarter now in our rearview mirror, it’s a good time to reflect on the key issues that affected the markets. ....read more

Sometimes a loss feels like a win. Several economic indicators released last week suggest the economy is in a funk. Of course, you probably don’t need us to tell you that, but now we have a few more data points to fill in the picture. ....read more

They say truth is stranger than fiction and last week’s mind-boggling activity in the financial markets underscored that point. ....read more

The Wall Street roller coaster continues… On Monday, we heard the news about the fall from grace of former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer. ....read more

The American dream of home ownership is causing some people a lot of nightmares. Stocks took it on the chin again last week as weak housing and credit data helped keep investors in the doldrums. ....read more

“It's not what's in the news today, it's what's already in the price that matters.” ....read more

This up and down stock market may suggest that many investors have weak convictions about which direction they think the stock market will head over the near term. ....read more

There’s not always a direct correlation between what’s going on in the economy and what’s happening in the stock market. ....read more

Whether you call it news or noise, it sure moved the markets last week. The Institute of Supply Management (ISM) released its services sector index last Tuesday and the figure was well below what economists were expecting. ....read more

If there’s an upside to a down market, it’s that stock prices might get low enough to encourage strong companies to swoop in and make takeover offers. ....read more

It could have been much worse. When the markets opened last Tuesday morning after the Martin Luther King Day break, all signs pointed to a potential market meltdown. ....read more

Fasten your seat belts. There are times when market sentiment shifts and investors (speculators?) start functioning as a monolithic block and they either head for the exits all at once or they pile into the markets all at once. ....read more

Well, this isn’t exactly how we like to start the year. With the Dow Jones Industrial Average off 5.0 percent, it’s the worst opening eight days since 1991. ....read more

With 2007 in the history books, we’ll use this week’s commentary to review some of the key stories over the past quarter and year. The chart below shows it was an up year for the major stock indexes. ....read more

Another interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve was not enough to stop a downdraft in the stock market last week. ....read more

Productivity grew strongly last quarter and that may bode well for our standard of living. ....read more

Sometimes bad news is good news for the stock market. ....read more

Here is one place where insider trading is legal—and it’s sending us a bullish signal. ....read more

Recent volatility in the stock market has been good for the bond market. ....read more

Ask and you shall receive. Investors were asking for another interest rate cut and the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) delivered last week as they lowered the federal funds rate by a quarter percentage point. ....read more

Black gold (oil) and the shiny yellow metal we simply call “gold” both seem to be coveted items these days. ....read more

After a 10% rally in the Dow Jones Industrial Average between August 16th and October 9th, the Dow lopped off some of its frothiness last week. ....read more

As another week went into the history books, we hit another all-time high in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 Index. ....read more

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 both hit all-time highs last week as memories of the credit crunch began to take a back seat to positive news on the economy. ....read more

September turned out to be a solid month for the markets as the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 4.0%, the S&P 500 gained 3.6%, and the NASDAQ gained 4.1%, according to Reuters. ....read more

When Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke talks, investors listen. ....read more

It seems rather surprising that oil prices hit a new all-time high last week (unadjusted for inflation), while at the same time, the Dow Jones Industrial Average registered its largest weekly gain since April 22nd, according to Reuters. ....read more

If there’s one thing Wall Street doesn’t like, it’s negative surprises and last Friday, the Labor Department unleashed a doozy. ....read more

Despite the volatility, August turned out to be a positive month in the stock market. ....read more

Sometimes Wall Street has a short-term memory. ....read more

We’re from the Federal Reserve and we’re here to help. ....read more

“All’s well that ends well.” So wrote Shakespeare 400 years ago and it seems an appropriate description for the stock market last week. ....read more

As big money players in the stock market gorged on easy credit terms over the past few years, they helped drive up stock prices. ....read more

Ping-pong anyone? ....read more

As the magic of Harry Potter reached its frenzied climax last Friday night, stock market investors were digesting another run in record territory. ....read more

Whether the market is “half full or half empty” may depend on your period of measurement. ....read more

It usually doesn’t pay to be a pessimist—especially in the stock market.  ....read more

Investors can be fickle. The optimism inspired by the first quarter’s weak economic growth dissipated last week. Why did a weak economy give investors a positive outlook, you ask? ....read more

Pass it forward: Good economic news in America helped European markets gain last week. ....read more

Despite headline-grabbing ups and downs in the stock market over the past three months, the market ended the first quarter pretty close to where it began on January 1.  ....read more