Willem D. Okkerse - CEO OK-Rating Inst.

Clarifying the Information Ratio and Sharpe Ratio

Our Dutch OK-AEX Portfolio deliveres an Information Ratio of 2,01 since Jan 1. 2003 until Oct. 31, 2009

Is this a satisfying result for you ??

Oil Prices Double, Futures Contracts Flat & Falling: Where's the Excessive Speculation?

A dear US friend - Hazel Henderson - President of Ethical Markets explained to me HER solutions in order to solve this oil-crises.
In fact she advocates to increase the margin on oil futures to 50% in order to restrict speculation. This is her story :

I wrote this editorial and sent it to IPS for syndication in early June. The story has broken in mainstream media and in hearings in the US Congress Energy and Commerce Committee and the Joint Economic Committee of the House and Senate. Most expert testimony from independent financial players agrees with my analysis and recommendations.

These witnesses estimate that if the Commodities Future Trading Commission (CFTC) were to implement 50% margin requirements, full disclosure of hedge funds and the volume of "paper barrels" versus real barrels of oil and the huge institutional investor positions in the oil and commodities futures markets and other recommendations, then the price of oil would drop to somewhere between $70-100 per barrel within 30 days. They expect that US gasoline prices would drop in a similar time period by roughly the same percentage. They agree that curbing speculation is urgent, whereas drilling in the US for more supply would produce a small fraction of the reduction that could be achieved by curbing speculation.

I believe that Peak Oil is still looming, as well as that control of 77% of oil reserves is by national governments; but I agree also with the growing expert opinion that the speculative bubble in oil can be addressed and is the best way to reduce oil prices. It is also necessary to keep US gasoline prices at current levels which are more realistic and nearer to global prices of $7-10 a gallon. I have editorialized since the mid-1980s on the need for green tax-shifting (to lower taxes on incomes and payrolls and shift tax to waste, pollution and depletion) which can help the transition to energy-efficiency, solar, wind, ocean and geothermal sources.

This article is also available at ethicalmarkets.com.

Continuation of Negative Annual Returns in Housing

Excellent article

Risk-Return Balance Across iShares ETFs

I am obliged by this amount of work and surprised by its result.
During my investigations within the total ETF's of Dutch AEX index the following could be ascertained :
During eight years the annual and preselected stocks of that AEX delivered together a Bèta of 0,62 and an Alpha of >9%