by Dino

You’ve heard it many times this month (indeed, this year See our February 23 post by the same title as this one): stocks are cheap. This is due to the naive and dangerous belief that if stocks are down some 10% from the previous high (or the previous week, as it were) they must be [...]

by James

Global markets remained volatile last week, showing continued uncertainty on both the credit crisis and the subsequent economic fears. Determined state action ought to have drawn a line under the banking sector, and last week’s inter-bank data support the thesis that credit markets are gradually returning to normal. But the economic outlook remains highly uncertain. [...]

by Gregory

As we all know by now, Paul Krugman received the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Econ­omic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel Monday for his work on international trade patterns. Krugman contributed by a large extent to the expansion of existing international trade theories and make them more applicable to the modern world. When others were awarded with [...]

by James

…Or, Don’t Open the Champagne Just Yet Markets rallied impressively on Monday, and in many parts of the world on Tuesday. But the US equity market stalled last night and the outlook is less bullish today. What happened to the bail-out party? Monday’s rally was justified by relief that politicians the world over have grasped [...]

by Dino

Pop quiz: When was the last time the Dow rallied 300 points or more? Now try these questions: Answer: Yesterday (up 332 points). OK, that was easy. A (polar) bear jump Bonus question 1: How many 300+ point rallies did the Dow have from March 2003 to July 2007? Bonus question 2: How many 300+ [...]

by Markus

We are living in amazing financial market times. Not many generations of market players have the chance to sit in the first row of such a fundamental change of how the money system works. If Mr. (John) Paulson´s expectation of more than USD 1.3 trillion in writeoffs is approximately valid, the party for financials isn´t over [...]

by Dino

The American stock market has just come off its worst June since 1930, and its worst month since 2002. It’s undeniable: U.S. equities are in a bear market, and so are most large stock markets around the world. This according to the rule of thumb that defines a bear market as a decline of 20% [...]

by James

Equities continued to take a beating last week. Developed markets continued their declines, with the S&P 500 giving up 1.2% in a four day week. The FTSE 100 lost 2.1% and the Eurostoxx 50 dropped 1.3%. It was the emerging markets that were hardest hit though, with the MSCI Emerging Market Index dropping 5%.  The [...]