Russian President Vladimir Putin sure has stirred up a hornets’ nest. Why is annexing the Crimean peninsula and, possibly, Ukraine such a priority for the Russian leader? When asked, Putin has indicated Russia’s military influence is necessary to protect Russian-speaking populations in Ukraine. However, The Economist has a different take on Putin’s actions: “Russia’s economic […]
American stocks bounced last week like a skier pounding moguls on an Olympic freestyle course. Some found it difficult to understand why stocks had their best week since December of 2013. Barron’s said: “We just can’t figure out why the markets were strong. It’s not like the news this week was terribly good. The […]
American stocks bounced last week like a skier pounding moguls on an Olympic freestyle course. Some found it difficult to understand why stocks had their best week since December of 2013. Barron’s said: “We just can’t figure out why the markets were strong. It’s not like the news this week was terribly good. The […]
Like a half-full bottle of champagne that was left uncorked overnight, stock markets were anything but effervescent during the first few days of 2014. On Tuesday, December 31, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index (S&P 500) bubbled upwards, finishing 2013 at an all-time high. On Wednesday, markets were closed as Americans celebrated the New Year. […]
Like the mother of a bride reviewing flower arrangements and fretting that a brilliantly sunny day could be marred by dark clouds hidden just beyond the horizon, pundits have been parsing the exceptional year-to-date performance of U.S. stock markets and fussing over the future. It’s true. U.S. stock markets look like they may be […]
You really need to take predictions with a grain of salt. Consider these esteemed opinions: "I think there is a world market for maybe five computers." Thomas Watson, Chairman, IBM, 1943 "Who wants to hear actors talk?" H. M. Warner, Founder, Warner Brothers, 1927 "Everything that can be invented has been invented." Charles Duell, […]
If every piece of positive news was a petal, then you might say the American economy was in bloom last week. Moving into the holiday season, consumer confidence was at a five-month high. Early in the week, manufacturing showed improvement. On Thursday, the U.S. Commerce Department unfurled the news the American economy grew faster […]
In 2006, Time Magazine’s Person of the Year was ‘You.’ The magazine declared that 2006 was about: “…Community and collaboration on a scale never seen before… It's about the many wresting power from the few and helping one another for nothing and how that will not only change the world, but also change the […]
Really?! Okay. Okay. If you’ve been trekking through Siberia or Patagonia for about a year, then maybe it surprised you to hear the minutes from the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee meeting showed it expects to begin tapering Quantitative Easing (QE) in the coming months. However, since the Fed has been telling anyone who will […]