AndrewBaker

Equities Roundup: Gains, But Commodities Strongest

Generally, commodities are better buys now than stocks. And a weak dollar will make that more so going forward.

Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

Here we go again: political proposals to force OTC derivitives through an exchange ignore so much of the purpose of many OTC derivitive contracts, and will cause more harm than good as a result.

Many companies who trade internationally rely on these contracts to even out the cost of supplies so enabling them to regularize their prices to their customers, including the consumer. They also insure various risk issues using such contracts, and being forced onto an exchange will compromise many legitimate elements of OTC derivitive use by companies.

But politicans are more concerned with their knee-jerk reactions being given as much publicity as possible, so they can be seen to be "doing something." In this case, I hope that the doing is not done.

Are Financial Stocks Preparing for 'The Fall'?

A bit late in here, but I've taken advantage of the rise to sell my leveraged long financial and S&P 500 ETF today (20 Aug) as I don't want to bet anymore on a rise, given that my view is a big fall due to the downside. I may have left a little there for someone else, but they are welcome to it for the risk they have to take at this point.

The chart told me to stay in with a limit order, but after taking hits earlier this year with leveraged shorts (and yes, I know the details and how to trade 'em), my nerve went and common sense said take your money off the table now; and I did. Running them for a few days, which I did, is not conducive to rest and relaxation, so if I get back in anytime soon, it'll be on a day trading basis.

Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

PPIP will make lots of money for the banks who will buy each other's debt using bail-out funds and engineering a book profit on the written down values, and then when all that money has gone we'll have stimulus mark 2, giving them even more of our tax dollars to play with and for the top people to get richer on. After that, the real losses will come out and the poor stockholders will cry as they watch the stock prices drop even more.

One way to stop this cynical manipulatory plan is to sell bank and financial stocks now whilst you can still get a reasonable price, and in so doing preventing further unwarranted price increases.

Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

Well, life insurers are joining the banks in needing bail-out funds, whilst financial bosses still in place are letting us know that they're going to go anyway. Meanwhile stress test results are maybe not going to be released to us. If anything good was in them, they would tell us soon enough, and holler it from the penthouse office roof garden tops. Those financials are still in big trouble even with all the money we've poured in. Anyone expecting good results to be coming out? I'm not.

Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

The spin is in: of course there is more bad news out there, but given the concerted efforts - whether they be good or bad, time will tell - of world leaders to bring us all out of recession, it looks like this market rise will continue for a while. So, I've gone long for now, but watching to turn around very closely!

Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

I'd like to know on what criteria the AIG bonuses were paid: what slight of hand accountancy can settle a bonus on someone in a company that has traded its way to being bust, and only still exists because of taxpayer charity? And bankers and other financial wreckers are looking for higher basic pay because their bonuses have been taken away because they are not good enough to trade their company to a profit! I'll tell them now what their bonus is: they've still got a job.