The Penny Daily

FedEx: Sign of Growing Hope For the Economy

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 05:17:00 +0000

FedEx Sees Sign of a Turnaround

Package delivery giant and U.S. economic bellwether FedEx is seeing signs for a potential turnaround in the second half as production seemed to be picking up again, German magazine WirtschaftsWoche reported.

Michael Ducker, in charge of FedEx's international business, told WirtschaftsWoche in an interview to be published on Monday that the downturn was easing and its ternationally transported volumes had not fallen further compared with the previous quarter.

"Production seems to be picking up again worldwide," he was quoted as saying.

He added that FedEx was aiming to save about $1 billion in its current financial year by, for example, taking out high fuel consuming planes, and by cutting working hours and maintenance costs.

FedEx was not planning on cancelling any of its plane orders, Ducker told the magazine.

Like its main rival, United Parcel Services , Memphis, Tennessee-based FedEx is considered a bellwether of U.S. economic activity.

CNBC

Service Industry Showing Signs Of Hope

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 04:40:00 +0000

The Service Industry, which comprises of almost 90% of our economy, is coming close to an end in contraction and the beginning of growth.

Service Industries Probably Contracted: U.S. Economy Preview

Leading Indicators Signal Recovery

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 02:48:00 +0000

This is a really cool site at the NYTimes. Go through the slides and you will see that the industrial production almost always follows leading indicators and the leading indicators seem to be close to the recovery phase! Even though the article says the recovery is going to be prolonged, the chart seems to show positive signs.

Turning A Corner?

Carnival of Investing Strategies #15

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:15:00 +0000

Welcome to the 15th edition of the Carnival of Investing Strategies. This is a carnival focused on different strategies of investing your money. If your article was included, please be sure to link back to this carnival. If you want to make a submission for the next edition, the form is here. Sorry about the delay, but I hope you enjoy the extra long carnival to make up for it!

Jim presents Comparing Fixed Annuities & Certificates of Deposit posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Wren Caulfield presents Adventures in Cake, Installment One posted at True Adventures in Money Hacking, saying, "Invest in yourself by starting a home-based business and use your talents. Here's how I'm doing it."

Ricky Dee presents Mutual Fund Investing posted at Stock Market College - Investment Advice & Stock Tips.

Rick presents Retirement Investing posted at Stock Market College - Investment Advice & Stock Tips.

The Dough Roller presents Zecco Online Stock Trading for Free posted at The Dough Roller, saying, "See why Zecco is one of the highest rated online discount brokers around, and how you can still get 10 free trades every month, even in an IRA."

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents Should You Contribute to a 401k Without an Employer Match? posted at Cash Money Life, saying, "Why you should invest in your 401k even if your company doesn't offer a matching contribution."

Savings Toolbox presents Should You Switch to a Credit Union to Save? posted at Savings Toolbox.

Silicon Valley Blogger presents ETrade Online Brokerage Account: Top Broker Review posted at The Digerati Life.

Nickel presents Pay Off Mortgage Early? Or Invest? posted at fivecentnickel.com.

The Smarter Wallet presents Learn How To Invest: Develop An Investment Plan posted at The Smarter Wallet.

Freddy presents Bullish Stock According To Technical Analysis On May 17, 2009 posted at Protege Analytics.

Britannica Blog presents Recession Over? (Harley-Davidson: +140%; Winnebago: +170%) posted at Britannica Blog, saying, "If the stock prices of companies like Harley-Davidson and Winnebago selling luxury, discretionary items like $35,000 motorcycles and $140,000 RVs are rebounding by +100% over a two-month period, at 4-5 times the increase in the S&P500 Index, does that suggest that the recession must be over?"

Kathryn presents Getting into the Real Estate Market posted at Out of Debt Christian, saying, "The prices are right and the added incentives by the government have many people eyeing the real estate market. It is important to take your time and review your situation completely before getting in too deep."

ChristianPF presents IRAs: Roth vs Traditional posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog, saying, "Looking at the benefits of the ROTH ira and traditional ira"

Zach Scheidt presents CME Trades Higher on OTC Regulation posted at ZachStocks, saying, "Geithner has proposed new regulation for the OTC derivatives markets. Oversight of these contracts would likely benefit clearing firms like CME Group and IntercontinentalExchange"

Michael Haltman presents Does CNBC Know What A Bid and Ask Are? posted at The Political and Financial Markets Commentator, saying, "This hopefully makes some sense, but the point is that investors need to understand what is happening and the way that markets work, because in many instances the "experts" on television do not and are not."

Michael Cintolo presents How to Find the Hidden Values in Today’s Market posted at The Iconoclast Investor.

Dave presents The Money You Could Have Made posted at Cheapo Groovo.

Steve Patterson presents Goldman Sachs Group (GS) - Increased Profit Estimates posted at FastSwings, saying, "Buying Goldman now and holding until their earnings announcement looks like a winning strategy."

Kristjan presents A New Bull Market for Uranium posted at Personal Development for Awesome People.

Dan at Everydayfinance presents Sucker's Rally: For 34% since March, Call Me a Sucker! posted at Everyday Finance, saying, "With esteemed economists referring to current investors as 'suckers' in a Sucker's Rally the question is - for 34% since March, are you willing to be called sucker?"

Vahid Chaychi presents How to Use MACD or Moving Average Convergence / Divergence in Forex and Stock Trading posted at SirForex.com, saying, "MACD is one of the most important and reliable indicators in forex and stock trading. MACD helps the traders to take a position on time and to stay with the trend and maximize their profit. It also prevents them from going against the trend."

Kristjan presents Investment Opportunities in the Uranium Mining Sector posted at Personal Development for Awesome People.

One Family presents eBay (EBAY) – Stock Analysis posted at One Family's Blog.

Bank Savings Review presents More Restrictions to Repaying the TARP posted at Bank Savings Review, saying, "The government have spoken. No one will be able to repay TARP until we say so!"

ABC presents Investment Time Horizons for Retirees posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "A short and concise analysis of retirement asset allocation possibilities."

Jim presents Who Can Invest at Lending Club? posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

MoneyNing presents Let Businesses Deal with Sales Tax - Government Improvement Series posted at Money Ning, saying, "Government really needs to improve on somethings and I say to let businesses deal with sales taxes!"

Barry presents Bull-Bear Royal Rumble: Bear To Assert Presence Soon posted at Jeflin's Investment Blog.

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents How to compare online brokers posted at Cash Money Life, saying, "Tips on how to find the best online brokerage for your needs."

Patrick @ Military Money presents Roth Option for TSP Close to Reality posted at Military Finance Network, saying, "A new investing option for military members and government employees is about to become a reality."

The Smarter Wallet presents Stock Market Index Analysis: Predicting An S & P Reversal posted at The Smarter Wallet.

Nickel presents SIPC Insurance Coverage: What Happens if Your Broker Fails? posted at fivecentnickel.com.

The Dough Roller presents Best Discount Brokers for Online Stock Trades and Option Trading posted at The Dough Roller, saying, "A review of the top online discount brokers"

Zach Scheidt presents Capella Education (CPLA) | ZachStocks posted at ZachStocks, saying, "Credit Card reform may benefit some consumers, but could restrain business. Look for opportunities to short card processors as the business will be under pressure."

Diego Cervantes presents The Amero Currency: Myths, Facts and 25 Great Resources for Further Research posted at Bankling.

Verna Morris presents How to Build Your Own Ivy Endowment Portfolio Using ETFs posted at ETFdb.

Freddy presents High Dividend Yield Stock For Income Investors (May 27, 2009) posted at Protege Analytics.

Wealth-Ed presents Can American Banks Bounce Back posted at Wealth Education - Investment Ideas Personal Financial Advice.

Jared presents General Growth Continues Restructuring Efforts posted at Wealth Education - Investment Ideas Personal Financial Advice.

Heather presents The Ultimate Guide to the BRIC ETFs | ETF Trends posted at ETF Trends, saying, "Many investors might know about the BRIC countries, but do they know how to invest in them? There are dozens of options when it comes to exchange traded funds (ETFs)."

Bank Savings Review presents FDIC is Running Out of Money but You are Safe posted at Bank Savings Review, saying, "FDIC is running out of money for sure but your money is probably still safe even if your bank goes under."

Silver Investor presents How To Buy Gold Through Your Brokerage Account posted at Gold Investing Info, saying, "Many want to buy gold but do not want to own the physical bullion."

Jack Schmidt presents Diversity Means Never Having to Say You're Sorry posted at SectorMatic Money Journal, saying, "Personal Finance - Everything for the Big Spender on a Budget. Now you can live like a fat cat, even if you're on a money diet. Laugh all the way to the bank with Jack Schmidt and SectorMatic. It's for you!"

Dividends4Life presents Is Now The Right Time To Start Investing? posted at Dividends Value, saying, "Over the last six to eight months, there have been several prognosticators saying the market has finally hit bottom. In most cases they were quickly proven wrong as stocks continued to decline. What’s an investor to do? When is the right time to start investing?"

Darwin presents The Riskiest ETFs on Earth - 3X Sector ETF Short/Long posted at Darwin's Finance, saying, "With investors are enamored by weekly returns in excess of 20%, this article demonstrates the destructive and volatile nature over time of the Riskiest ETFs on Earth - 3X sector ETFs."

Caterina Christakos presents Making Money in the Stock Market posted at Forex and Currencies Explained.

Praveen presents Three Stock Picking Ideas From Forbes Magazine posted at My Simple Trading System.

ChristianPF presents 3 keys to safe investing posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog, saying, "Three things every investor should be doing if they are trying to maintain safe investments"

Jim presents Basics of Retirement Investing posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Glowing Face Man presents Short Term Assets vs. Long Term Assets posted at Glowing Face Man: Awaken the Badass Within, saying, "Longterm investment and passive income are all the rage these days, and for good reason. But it's also possible to go too far. Sometimes, short term beats long term."

The Dough Roller presents Morningstar User Guide posted at The Dough Roller, saying, "A comprehensive guide to making the most of Morningstar's tools and resources."

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents ShareBuilder Review posted at Cash Money Life, saying, "A full review of ShareBuilder, one of the most popular online brokerages for long term investors."

Patrick @ Military Money presents CD Ladders Are a Good Choice for Short Term Investments posted at Military Finance Network, saying, "If you need the money within the next few years, you don’t want to take much investment risk. CD ladders and savings accounts are a great choice."

Brian McKay presents CD Rates: Your Actual Rate of Return on a CD Investment These Days posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, "CD Rates: Finding decent CD rates is challenging these days, when you factor in the rate of inflation the return isn’t as bad as it seems"

Britannica Blog presents How an Inflation Threat Could Make the 1970s Look Like Happy Days posted at Britannica Blog, saying, "When the U.S. financial system seemed on the brink of collapse last fall, Washington undertook the largest monetary rescue in history. The $750 billion allocated to shore up failing banks and AIG was only the beginning. The Federal Reserve has made available hundreds of billions more in assorted “lending facilities.” Many details, including the exact cost, have been kept secret. Some educated guesses put the number at $2 trillion."

The Writer presents Diversification is NOT Dead posted at WeSeed, saying, "Some people think diversification is dead...but is it just another scare tactic to sell us something we don't really need?"

Manshu presents List of Gold ETFs posted at OneMint.

Barry presents Is This Stock Market Rally For Real? | Jeflin's Investment Blog posted at Jeflin's Investment Blog.

ABC presents Stock Prices Do Not Represent Stock Value (or Company Value) posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "A lower priced stock isn't "cheap"."

Four Pillars presents Is Dave Ramsey A “Financial Expert” posted at Quest For Four Pillars, saying, "A discussion of Dave Ramsey and his methods."

KCLau presents Why Robert T. Kiyosaki is a best-selling author? posted at KCLau's Money Tips, saying, "Robert T. Kiyosaki is the best personal finance author I follow. I started reading his books back in 1999. Although some reviews you found written by readers on Amazon say that he keeps repeating most of the points, I still find them interesting every time. It works as a revision whenever he repeats."

Darwin presents 2009 Stock Market Returns by Country YTD posted at Darwin's Finance, saying, "This article highlights where the hottest market returns stand YTD (many 50-80%), which ETFs to use and what's next in emerging markets."

Bob Brooks presents A Better Way to Invest Than Buy and Hold Investing posted at Bob Brooks - Prudent Money Blog, saying, "If there was an investment strategy that always worked, then all of this would be easy. That is just not the case. Buy and hold doesn’t always work."

Praveen presents Sometimes You Bend Your Trading Rules... posted at My Simple Trading System, saying, "Taking an early profit to ease your comfort in a volatile market."

Jim presents A Typical Day in Life as an Independent Trader posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents What is investing? posted at Cash Money Life, saying, "The difference between investing, saving, and trading"

The Dough Roller presents How to Avoid a Mutual Fund’s Minimum Investment posted at The Dough Roller, saying, "Here's an easy and inexpensive alternative to a mutual fund's minimum investment requirement."

Tushar Mathur presents Long Term Investing posted at Everything Finance, saying, "Investing has its own language and understanding it can make it easier to be a confident investor. Two common terms you hear when people talk about investing are "bid" and "ask." here's an explanation of what they mean."

Britannica Blog presents NY Times: "Buy American" Is a Terrible Idea posted at Britannica Blog, saying, "“It’s not surprising that Democrats in Congress could not resist adding a “Buy American” provision to the fiscal stimulus bill earlier this year. It might seem sensible (or at least politically useful) to ensure that taxpayer dollars would be used exclusively to support American jobs."

Stephen Todd presents Trading Stocks With A System posted at Buy Stocks.

Investing School presents A Great Inflation Indicator posted at Investing School, saying, "Here's a seldom talked about but great inflation indicator. Check out the video."

Stock Trading Brokers presents Zecco Zirens | Educational Trading Videos posted at Stock Trading Brokers, saying, "Zecco Zirens consists of attractive ladies teaching investing basics. Check them out here."

Tyler Tervooren presents My Journey to Become a Green Investor - Part 4: The Final Decision posted at Frugally Green, saying, "This is the final installment of my journey to become a green investor. After copious research, I have finally selected the best fit for me, explain my decision making process and reflect on the month of research done to allow myself the peace of mind in selecting an investment that I won't need to fret about."

ABC presents Safe withdrawal rate for retirement funds - 4% rule posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "How much can you withdraw from your portfolio in retirement? The 4% safe withdrawal rule explained."

Jim presents Smart Money 2009 Best Online Brokers posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Patrick @ Military Money presents Tax Advantages of 529 Plans posted at Military Finance Network, saying, "Tax advantages for the 529 College Savings plan."

The Dough Roller presents How to Profit from a Stock Market Crash posted at The Dough Roller, saying, "How to profit when the stock market goes down. HINT: It's really easy."

MoneyNing presents Turbocharge Your Savings with Certificate of Deposits (CDs) posted at Money Ning, saying, "Certificate of Deposits are boring but it's a guaranteed way of capital preservation!"

Mike presents Beware of the Double Dip posted at Great Depression Version 2: Bear Market and Economic Depression, saying, "The stock market may be up, but that does not mean the end of the recession is necessarily near."

Tony presents How A Certificate Of Deposit Works posted at Understanding Certificate of Deposits, saying, "Ever wonder how a bank CD actually works?"

Michael Cohen presents Don't Bet On A Soft Landing Into The New Normal posted at Debt, Economics, Boom and Bust, saying, "There are those predicting a new normal of 1-2% economic growth. We will likely not ease our way into that sort of situation."

Chris McClelland presents Stocks to Retire On posted at Lucrative Investing.

Investing School presents The Rule of 72 posted at Investing School, saying, "A neat mathematical trick to calculate when your investment will double!"

Tom Escent presents Introduction to Nerds on Wall Street posted at Quantitative Finance, saying, "Think of this book as sort of a Hitchhiker’s Guide to Wired Markets. There are no robots parking cars for six million years, but there are robots trading millions of shares in six milliseconds, so maybe that’s close enough."

Susan Saverton presents 9- Efficiency of Personal Investing Strategies posted at Pasadena Financial Planner, saying, "When pursuing optimal financial planning and investing strategies and controlling your costs and capital gains taxes, you also need to establish a time-efficient system to monitor, adjust, and adhere to your financial plan. You need to control and limit the time that you spend on your financial planning, and you need to focus your planning efforts on the most effective activities."

Noload Bonds presents Bond Mutual Fund Fees posted at Bond Market Index Funds, saying, "Simply put, if you pay higher bond mutual fund fees, then these bond management expenses tend just to be a deadweight loss to you. The best bond fund buying strategy is to pick only very low-cost no load bond funds."

Top 10 Index Funds presents Top 10 S and P 500 Index Funds posted at NO LOAD INDEX FUND, saying, "Buy these top 10 very low cost no load S&P 500 index mutual funds directly. You do not have to pay the heavy added expenses of buying through a stock broker, financial adviser, investment adviser, or investment counselor."

JJ presents Understanding Risk and Investments posted at Investing and your Future, saying, "Risk with investments is less cut and dry than you may think."

ChristianPF presents How to save more money to invest posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog, saying, "Tips to help you find and save money to invest...."

Ben presents Day Trading VS Long Term Trading posted at Money Smart Life.

The Dough Roller presents How is the Dow Calculated? posted at The Dough Roller, saying, "See how the components of the Dow are selected and how the storied index is calculated."

Greggdavey@verizon.net presents Ten Important Lessons From the History of Mergers & Acquisitions posted at M&A Blog.

Manshu presents iShares Dow Jones EPAC Select Dividend Index: IDV posted at OneMint, saying, "iShares Dow Jones EPAC Select Dividend Index (IDV) is a relatively smaller ETF with just $47.26 million of assets under management. As the name suggests it tracks an index that is based on high dividend yield stocks. It is invested in stocks that are outside US and are primarily present in Australia, UK and Hong - Kong."

Barry presents Buy Gold To Keep Up With Inflation posted at Jeflin's Investment Blog.

Stephen todd presents Investing - day trading systems posted at Currency Trading.

Praveen presents Two Recommended Stocks: ATVI and WOOF posted at My Simple Trading system.

ABC presents Should I Invest In Dividend Stocks (and what are they?) posted at ABCs of investing, saying, "An explanation of dividend stocks and why you might want to invest in them."

Investing School presents Passive Investing Convert posted at Investing School, saying, "Passive investing is really wearing on me!"

Tushar Mathur presents Can't Control the Markets? Try controlling the Costs posted at Everything Finance, saying, "As 2008 proved, the financial markets are prone to unpredictable periods of turbulence. That can make investing feel a bit like a roller-coaster ride. The disappointing results that many mutual funds posted in 2008 and at the outset of 2009 may have left you feeling concerned over your financial future. You're not alone."

ChristianPF presents Should you convert your IRA to a Roth in 2010? posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog, saying, "This article discusses the advantages of a Roth conversion in 2009 and in 2010..."

Nickel presents Index Mutual Funds vs. Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) posted at fivecentnickel.com.

Stephen todd presents Stock Market Trading - Investment Portfolio And Trading Strategy posted at Buy Stocks.

ABC presents Some Index Funds and ETFs Are Not Diversified posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "Some ETFs and index funds are too specific and risky for a passive investor."

Jim presents Best Options Broker Review posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

ChristianPF presents Using a Roth IRA as an emergency fund? posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog, saying, "Is it a good idea to use your Roth IRA as an emergency fund? The answer may surprise you..."

AIG Explained

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:38:00 +0000

This is a really good article at Vanity Fair explaining what exactly happened at AIG that caused it to crash.

The Man Who Crashed The World

Market Correction?

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:06:00 +0000

A lot has happened since I took a break from blogging... actually not really. The market has pretty much moved no where. At that is precisely the point. All these market analysts, who may I remind you made mistake after mistake in 2008, losing tons of money for their firms, are saying that we are due for a huge correction. Well, I don't believe that. My view may be slightly biased because I am an inherent optimist, but what can I do about that? I take negative view points about the U.S economy into consideration, but even then I still see a bright future. Here is why I don't think we will have any major correction.

The stock market can create and destroy wealth like no other. People can make more money in the stock market in one month, than the amount they would have made in years of working. Minor day to day movements in the stock market create and destroy billions, if not trillions, of dollars of wealth in the world everyday. Where else would you ever see that being done? Just as the stock market can create money for us to live off of for retirement, pay for a new house, college tuition for our kids, or a vacation, the market can also destroy that money. And that is what has happened this past year. In fact, the market has destroyed so much money, that only the market can bring it back. It would take this generation of people years and years to rebuild that wealth by just working in jobs alone. And it is for that reason alone, that more than ever in history, we are so desperate for a rally. So we can create billions of dollars a day, instead of losing the billions of dollars a day we have become accustom to as of late. We got a rally, a historic one, but the problem was, it came from no where and not enough people were in the market at the time to take advantage of it. Yes, it is true that in history, after such a huge market rally, we typically see a correction. But I want to remind people, that there is no law that says history has to repeat itself. Just because the correction happened before, does not mean it is going to happen again. More importantly, this rally has something that no rally has had before. It was a rally that people desperately needed, in order to retire and to witness their dreams again. But it is a rally that most people missed. Now, people are fearful of missing the next leg up, and there will be one. This economy has show signs of significant improvement and the market has not priced it all in yet. And the only way we will get back to our living standards before this recession will be through the stock market creating wealth again.

The analysts on wall street are forgetting the enormous power that fear has in controlling the market. Fear of the financial collapse drove this market to the ground. But now the fear in the market is a different fear. It is a fear that you will miss the next rally, and you will not be able to attain back the wealth you had prior to this recession in your life time. And it is that fear that will prevent any correction from happening. At any sign of a small downturn, buyers will swoop in, seeing this as their opportunity to get back into the market for the next leg up. In my opinion, this is the strongest factor that will prevent a significant correction. It is a fear that we have not witnessed before, fear of missing out on market gains, not of the market going lower.

Another thing that is annoying me is that every analyst I hear says they think that the market is going to have a correction, but then go up again. In case they were sleeping during their economics 101 class, I think they forgot that is not how prices work. You cannot believe that prices will fall a little tomorrow, and then the day after they will go up a lot. If that is the case, that prices today will automatically adjust to the farthest outcome, in this case the day after tomorrow's market gain. You can't say that the market is going to correct itself in July, but then go up again in August. Prices will just adjust automatically to the expected gain in August right away, bypassing any July correction. And that is what most analyst have been saying, correction before we go higher again. That does not make economic sense. At all. If it is KNOWN to go up in August, why would it bother going down in July... If you think a significant correction is going to happen, you can't think the next day there is going to be a sudden upward trend.

Unemployment hit 9.5% today, better than the expected 9.6%. I don't know why everyone suddenly panicked about it, it is priced in and assumed by all that the unemployment rate is going to go north of 10%... so why is 9.5% such a surprise. Most CEOs have said that business has bottomed out, and as their business bottoms out, they will slow down layoffs. For the 90% of people who still have their job, they are living in fear of getting laid off. Because of that fear they are not spending any money and really clamping down the economy. But as that fear goes away, as the unemployment rate growth begins to slow down, that fear will go away and spending will bring this economy back. We used to have the unemployment rate jump by .5 percent, but now its only .1. Obviously, it can be argued that the labor market is in more peril that a simple .1% gain in unemployment. But the important thing is that a .1% gain doesn't seem as scary as some of those other gains we have had. And that matters a lot because the 90% of employed people need to stop being fearful and need to get out and spend because odds are, your job is safe. And once that spending goes up we will see the recovery we all want.

The market has had a month to correct itself and its only gone down 5%. Given that we don't get any fundamental change, the market is not going get down much lower. We had a huge downturn today and I heard some analyst on CNBC bragging about how he called the downturn for a month. Well I am glad after a month of saying it, he finally got his downturn. That is like telling someone for a 100 years that one day they are going to die... eventually you will be correct but that doesn't make it a good prediction.

Hello Again

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:05:00 +0000

After a month long hiatus, the Penny Daily is back!

Someone Is Hiring!

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:55:00 +0000

Signs of hiring!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wal-Mart to add 22,000 jobs in U.S.

BENTONVILLE, Arkansas (Reuters) - Discounter Wal-Mart Stores Inc says it will add more than 22,000 jobs in its U.S. namesake stores in 2009.

The forecast points to lower growth compared with last year, as the world's biggest retailer opens fewer of its U.S. Wal-Mart discount stores to focus on expansions and renovations.

Last year, the company created 33,800 U.S. jobs, though that figure also included new jobs at its much smaller Sam's Club members-only chain of warehouse stores.

Wal-Mart has gained market share despite the poor economic climate as shoppers seek out its low prices on everything from food to electronics.

But the retailer has not been immune to the downturn. At an October analyst meeting, executives said the company would slow expansion of new U.S. Wal-Mart supercenters to focus instead on spiffing up existing stores.

Last October, Wal-Mart announced plans to open 157 to 177 new or expanded stores and clubs during the current 2010 fiscal year in the United States.

Numerous retailers including Target Corp and department store operator Macy's Inc have announced job cuts in recent months as the recession slows sales.

Overall, the U.S. economy is expected to shed 520,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in May alone, according to a Reuters poll of 79 economists.

Wal-Mart said the new positions will be in all levels of retail operation, including cashiers sales, store management to pharmacists and other positions.

Benefits, including affordable health plans that offer customized health coverage options, will be available to full- and part-time associates, the company said.

The announcement comes as the retailer readies for its annual shareholder's meeting on Friday, and just four months after it slashed 700 to 800 jobs at its Wal-Mart and Sam's Club home offices in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Source: Reuters

17th edition of the Carnival of Everything Money

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 00:04:00 +0000

Welcome to the 17th edition of the Carnival of Everything Money. I wanted to give my thanks to everyone who is contributing to making this carnival a success! I would appreciate it if anyone who is featured in the carnival links back to this post. If you want to submit an article for next week's edition, the submission form is here. Just a reminder: I am not including articles that are not submitted with a category. If your article wasn't included, that's most likely why. Please change it because the more articles I can post, the better!

budgeting

The Budgeter presents Let the Bad Press on the Economy Work in Your Favor posted at Keep Your Cash, saying, "The recession, while painful, can help you find bargains when you are out shopping."

Silicon Valley Blogger presents Best High Interest Savings Accounts In Online Banking posted at The Digerati Life.

credit

Pinyo presents How To Improve Your FICO Credit Score posted at Moolanomy, saying, "Improve your credit score with these easy to follow tips."

Jim presents How to Review Your Equifax Credit Report posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

David presents Discover Card Doubles Rewards for Military Families posted at Credit Card Offers IQ, saying, "Discover Card is doubling cash back and points rewards this summer for families in the military."

The Dough Roller presents Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Card Review posted at The Dough Roller, saying, "The Starwood Preferred Guest card by American Express may just pay for your next vacation."

Patrick @ Military Money presents Discover Card Double Cash Back on Military Installations Worldwide posted at Military Finance Network, saying, "Discover Card is offering Discover Card holders a special bonus for purchases made on military installations - double cash back from Memorial Day to Labor Day (05/25/09 - 09/07/09)."

Mr Credit Card presents American Express Membership Rewards Review posted at Ask Mr Credit Card.

Bob Brooks presents New Credit Card Laws - Victory for the Credit Card Industry and Congress??? posted at Bob Brooks - Prudent Money Blog, saying, "Why can't politicians write laws that are easy to interpret? The Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 favors the credit card companies rather than the consumers. This bill just defines how credit card companies can raise rates on you. This is just another dog and pony show by our politicians."

debt

NetBiz presents How To Negotiate Credit Card Debt posted at Your Finish Rich Plan, saying, "These days credit card companies are much more open to negotiation"

Leave Debt Behind presents Yes, Debt Settlement Will Affect Your Credit Score posted at Leave Debt Behind.

Raj Patel presents UNBROKE: What You Need to Know about Money posted at DebtGoal.

Kristjan presents Option ARM Defaults Looming On the Horizon posted at Personal Development for Awesome People.

Brian McKay presents Mortgage Rates: APY vs. APR posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, "Mortgage Rates: We have all seen rates offered as APY or APR. APY means annual percentage yield and APR means annual percentage rate. The different between the two is compounding interest."

frugality

Darwin presents How to Save Money with a Contractor - Patio Example posted at Everyday Finance, saying, "This article highlights an approach to reducing the cost of contractor jobs which requires a different approach than your standard frugal savings tips."

Buck Weber presents 10 Free Barter & Swap Sites posted at THE BUCK LIST, saying, "During the current economic climate people are rediscovering the advantages of bartering and swapping. If what you are looking to barter or trade for is not available from friends and family here are some online options you can try."

investing

ABC presents Investment Time Horizons for Retirees posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "Discussing investment asset allocations and time horizons for retirees."

Scott H presents 10 Economic and Business Pro Tips from World of Warcraft posted at College and Finance, saying, "The economic recession, investor panic, and the numerous bailouts might have been avoided if only CEO's and Wall Street traders weren’t n00bs, and had played World of Warcraft to learned these Pro Economic and Business lessons."

Silver Investor presents How To Buy Gold Through Your Brokerage Account posted at Gold Investing Info, saying, "Many want to buy gold but do not want to own the physical bullion."

Melchor Reyes presents Property Lien - How Do Property Liens Work posted at tax lien investing.

Praveen presents Three Stock Picking Ideas From Forbes Magazine posted at My Simple Trading System.

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents ShareBuilder Review posted at Cash Money Life, saying, "A full review of ShareBuilder, one of the most popular online brokerages for long term invetors."

Finance Tips 101 presents He Said She Said Finances posted at Finance Tips 101.

The Smarter Wallet presents Fibonacci Retracement: A Technical Stock Tool To Predict Market Direction posted at The Smarter Wallet.

Manshu presents List of Gold ETFs posted at OneMint.

other

Bouch presents Top Rated Money Making Opportunities | MoneyStance.com posted at MoneyStance - Money Making Opportunity Reviews.

Len Penzo presents 9 Personal Finance Lessons I Learned from Watching "The Simpsons" posted at Len Penzo . Com, saying, "Personal finance advice for those who want to stretch their D'oh!"

Kaushik Chokshi presents Are you unemployed – Lost your job? – Worried about your job? Laid off? Not finding a job? Do you have anxiety about the financial crisis? posted at Beyond Karma, saying, "How to instantly release anxiety about job loss, business downturn, or asset loss during this crisis."

Lazy Man and Money presents Friends’ Influence and Money: A Two Way Street posted at Lazy Man and Money.

Shot presents The Chrysler Trabant and the GM Wartburg posted at Conunderground.com.

ChristianPF presents Purpose + Passion = Performance posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog, saying, "The key to success in every area can be defined by following this simple formula...

Nissim Ziv presents How to make money selling on eBay posted at eBay Business Guide, saying, "There are many ways and tips for selling on eBay. This article provides some essential tips for you to make money selling on eBay.”

These days more and more people are looking for an additional source of income. EBay has given these people an option to earn and to start an eBay business."

Diego Cervantes presents The Amero Currency: Myths, Facts and 25 Great Resources for Further Research posted at Bankling.

saving

Ed Biado presents How to save on utility bills posted at Ed Biado at MST Life | Philippine Lifestyle News.

Four Pillars presents 397 Ways To Save Money - Squawkfox Book Review posted at Quest For Four Pillars, saying, "397 Ways To Save Money - Book review on Squawkfox.com's new release!"

Bank Savings Review presents Ally Bank Review posted at Bank Savings Review, saying, "Is a bank that's associated with GMAC good enough?"

Bank Savings Review presents FDIC is Running Out of Money but You are Safe posted a Bank Savings Review, saying, "FDIC is running out of money for sure but your money is probably still safe even if your bank goes under."

Praveen presents Easy Ways to Generate Cash posted at My Simple Trading System.

BankMan presents $250k FDIC Deposit Insurance Extended to 2013 posted at High Yield Savings Accounts, saying, "The FDIC has extended the additional insurance until the end of 2013, which will add stability to the banking industry and instill more consumer confidence in our economy."

stocks

The Writer presents Stock Charts: What Are They Good For? posted at WeSeed, saying, "Stock charts may not tell us about the future of a stock, but they can certainly teach us a thing or two to become sharper investors."

Mike Pastore presents Invest in Penny Stocks Today To Aquire Wealth posted at Mikes Millions.com.

other

Wealth-Ed presents Can American Banks Bounce Back posted at Wealth Education - Investment Ideas Personal Financial Advice.

Jared presents General Growth Continues Restructuring Efforts posted at Wealth Education - Investment Ideas Personal Financial Advice.

Revised GDP

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Fri, 29 May 2009 12:49:00 +0000

GDP Drops 5.7% as Fall in Economy Begins to Ease
The US economy contracted slightly less than initially estimated in the first quarter, while corporate profits rebounded, according to a Commerce Department report on Friday that hinted that the recession was moderating.
Gross domestic product, which measures total goods and services output within U.S. borders, dropped at a 5.7 percent annual rate, the department said, less than the 6.1 percent estimated by the government last month.
The revisions were below market expectations for a 5.5 percent contraction for the January-March quarter.
Output has declined for three straight quarters for the first time since 1974-1975.
The Commerce Department's preliminary report also showed corporate profits after taxes increased 1.1 percent in the first quarter, the first increase in a year, after plummeting 10.7 percent in the fourth quarter. Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast profits dropping 7 percent.
Economic activity in the first quarter was dragged down by cutbacks in business, federal government, residential and nonresidential investment as well as a drop in exports.
Business inventories fell $91.4 billion after slipping by $25.8 billion in the fourth quarter. Last month, the Commerce Department estimated the drop in inventories at a record $103.7 billion in the first quarter. Inventories subtracted 2.34 percentage points from the overall GDP figure.
Excluding inventories, GDP contracted 3.4 percent, the department said.
Exports fell 28.7 percent, the largest decline since the fourth quarter of 1971, after dropping 23.6 percent in the fourth quarter. The drop in exports lopped off a record 3.86 percentage points from GDP.
Investment by businesses tumbled a record 36.9 percent in the first quarter, while residential investment dived 38.7 percent, the biggest decline since the second quarter of 1980.
Consumer spending, which accounts for over two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, rose 1.5 percent, but slower than the 2.2 percent rate estimated by the government last month.
Spending had collapsed in the second half of last year.
Consumer spending was lifted by a 9.6 percent leap in the consumption of durable goods, the biggest advance since the first quarter of 2006. Motor vehicle output cut 1.36 percentage points from first-quarter economic activity, an improvement from the 2.01 percent subtraction in the fourth quarter.

Source: CNBC

Carnival of Everything Money #16

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Wed, 27 May 2009 14:30:00 +0000

Welcome to the 16th edition of the Carnival of Everything Money. I wanted to give my thanks to everyone who is contributing to making this carnival a success! I would appreciate it if anyone who is featured in the carnival links back to this post. If you want to submit an article for next week's edition, the submission form is here. Just a reminder: I am not including articles that are not submitted with a category. If your article wasn't included, that's most likely why. Please change it because the more articles I can post, the better!

credit

PFCreditCards presents Credit Card Companies are Screwed with the New Bill posted at PF Credit Cards, saying, "Credit card companies have had enough fun. They are going to lose tons of money on this new bill."

BrandonLaughridge presents New Credit Card Law Likely to Hurt Markets posted at Mortgage Loan Place Blog, saying, "An interesting take on the next meltdown. Credit card companies appear to be the culprit."

Jim presents How Secured Credit Cards Work posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Jim DeSantis presents 3 Keys To Self-Control and Saving Money posted at On Line Tribune | Family Life, saying, "Lack of self-control when it comes to money is a common pitfall for most people. Often, when people come into an extra amount of money, they have this tendency to rush out and instantly satisfy the irresistible urge to splurge on anything they lay their eyes on. This is a very costly mistake from a number of aspects. Sometimes people fail to recognize the idea that the future has to be considered, too, whenever spending and saving enter the picture."

Wenchypoo presents The Protectionist Plastic Police posted at Wisdom From Wenchypoo's Mental Wastebasket.

Silicon Valley Blogger presents Discover Credit Card Rewards, Sign Up Bonuses and Holiday Promotions posted at The Digerati Life.

Mr Credit Card presents Credit Cards to Rebuild Credit - Credit Score of 640-680- What Cards Can I Get? posted at Ask Mr Credit Card.

debt

Raj Patel presents A Second Glance at Debt Settlement posted at DebtGoal.

Nickel presents How to Find the Best Mortgage Rates posted at fivecentnickel.com.

frugality

Tiffany Colter presents Recipes for this week?s sales posted at Hidden Leaks, saying, "Don't know how to use those sale items in your local grocery store to help your finances? You'll get healthy, great-tasting, money-saving recipes here!"

Heather Levin presents How To Go Green and Save Money On Your Air Conditioning posted at The Greenest Dollar, saying, "Want to know how to reduce your costs for air conditioning this summer? There are tons of tips in this article!"

Steve Faber presents Get Cheap Car Insurance in California (of all places) posted at Cheap Car Insurance.

Wren Caulfield presents DIY Project: Bike Panniers posted at True Adventures in Money Hacking, saying, "For those of you who've been following my Bike to Work series, here's another way to save money and be green by commuting by bike!"

Pinyo presents How To Save Money - The 1,001 List Of Money Saving Tips And Ideas posted at Moolanomy, saying, "Saving money is the key to improve your finances. This list of lists contains over 1,000 ideas on how to reduce your expenses."

Patrick @ Military Money presents Lowe’s and Home Depot Memorial Day Discounts posted at Military Finance Network, saying, "Home Depot and Lowe's are supporting military personnel and their families with a 10% discount for Memorial Day."

SpendingIt presents The Three Biggest Opportunities to Save Money posted at Spending It.

investing

Chris presents British Pound Information posted at Learn Currency Trading, saying, "Information about the British Pound"

Investing School presents Morningstar Review - Free vs Premium Membership posted at Investing School, saying, "Morningstar is a well known name but not many people know of its free service. Is it worth the money? Find out."

Raag Vamdatt presents Understanding Deep Discount Bonds :: RaagVamdatt.com :: Financial Planning demystified posted at RaagVamdatt.com.

Kristjan presents Investment Opportunities in the Uranium Mining Sector posted at Personal Development for Awesome People.

ABC presents Investment Time Horizons for Retirees posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "A short and concise analysis of retirement asset allocation possibilities."

FIRE Getters presents What is the Current Inflation Rate? posted at FIRE Finance.

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents How to compare online brokers posted at Cash Money Life, saying, "Tips on how to find the best online brokerage for your needs."

Silicon Valley Blogger presents $50 TradeKing Bonus Extended, Zecco Free Stock Trades Update posted at The Digerati Life.

The Smarter Wallet presents S & P Index and Crude Oil Market Trends: Next Steps? posted at The Smarter Wallet.

Zach Scheidt presents China Gaming Continues to Grow - NetEase Shares Rebound posted at ZachStocks, saying, "NetEase.com, Inc. (NTES) is one of China's strongest gaming companies with additional exposure to online advertising. The stock is rebounding after a strong earnings report. Eventually, shares could rise 60% from current levels."

other

Steve Faber presents How We?ll Be Forced To Drive the Most Fuel Efficient Cars - Even if We Don?t Want To posted at super gas saver.

EE presents 5 Things I’ve Learnt About Making Money on the Internet posted at Web Career Girl, saying, "Some things I've learnt on my road to making extra money on the internet through writing and blogging."

Kim M. Bayne presents Personal Finance: 10 Creative Ways to Earn Cash While in College - Official Quicken ® Blog posted at The Quicken Blog.

ChristianPF presents What to do when you hate your job posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog, saying, "Things to do if you can't stand your job!"

marjorie presents Econ4U: A Financial Literacy Resource posted at Wealth Junkies, saying, "Econ4U, a financial literacy website, stands out among the many websites of its kind as one that presents concepts in a way that most readers can grasp. In addition to simple articles, the site includes several quizzes on topics like credit card debt and home ownership. Although, the site isn’t going to solve everyone’s financial problems, it does provide excellent resources."

Saving

Chris presents Selling a house without an agent? 3 things to think about posted at Home I Own, saying, "This post about one thing people shouldn't try and save on when selling their house"

Barry presents Saving Money At The Amusement Park posted at Associate Money.

Brian McKay presents Weekly Money Market Account - Savings Account Rates:Updated May 21, 2009 posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, "Money market account rates and savings account rates are dismal these days. The average rates for all account balances are under one percent."

Patrick @ Money Saving Deals presents $50 ING Checking Account Bonus posted at Cash Money Life Deals, saying, "Get $50 for opening a new ING Electric Orange Checking Account."

The Dough Roller presents Review of WT Direct Online Savings Account posted at The Dough Roller, saying, "While most banks offer interest rates on savings accounts below 1%, WT Direct is offering 1.76% for accounts over $10,000"

KCLau presents Easy Pawn Shops - Do you need to Pawn? posted at KCLau's Money Tips, saying, "Pros and cons of pawning"

Wenchypoo presents Saving Energy Begins at Home Part III--Examining Efficiency posted at Wisdom From Wenchypoo's Mental Wastebasket.

stocks

One Family presents eBay (EBAY) – Stock Analysis posted at One Family's Blog.

Bank Savings Review presents More Restrictions to Repaying the TARP posted at Bank Savings Review, saying, "The government have spoken. No one will be able to repay TARP until we say so!"

And The Rally Goes On!

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Tue, 26 May 2009 19:44:00 +0000

A couple of important pieces of economic news today. First off, consumer confidence had a huge jump today. Consumer confidence is important because the higher it is, the more likely it is that consumers, who make up 2/3s of the economy, will spend money, helping to grow the economy. Remember, it is a lack of confidence that is hurting this economy. Unemployment is up about 3 or 4 percent from the average unemployment rate. However, you see the revenue in business fall far more than just 3 or 4 percent. Why? It is because once people see someone get laid off, they automatically think that they might get laid off. It is this fear of getting laid of that makes everyone stop spending money because everyone wants to save just in case they are going to lose their job. That is why the damage in the economy is a far greater percent than the 3/4% increase in unemployment. So when confidence goes up, that means that fear of losing your job is going away. The hope is, if confidence goes up, people will start spending more and not hoard their money in fear of unemployment. So while the confidence has gone up, which is a great sign, we will have to see if that confidence actually translates into more spending.

The second piece of news was the Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, showed a huge drop in home prices at a record annual rate. While some people thought this was bad news because it showed more problems in the housing sector, I think it is beneficial. First off, we need prices to go down so that housing becomes more affordable which will then drive the housing market back up. Second, the prices were from the first quarter, which was Jan, Feb, and March. The great rally in the stock market began towards the middle of March, meaning that these house prices were before the rally started. So they are pretty far behind lagging indicators.

Both pieces of news were positive in my eyes. Lets hope it can continue this week.

Wine Rx

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Mon, 25 May 2009 00:01:00 +0000

Watch CBS Videos Online

Economy Stabilizing

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Sun, 24 May 2009 22:13:00 +0000

Goods Orders, Home Sales Probably Rose: U.S. Economy Preview
By Courtney Schlisserma

May 24 (Bloomberg) -- Orders for durable goods and home sales probably rose in April as the worst U.S. recession in at least half a century started to loosen its grip, economists said before reports this week.
Bookings for goods meant to last several years increased 0.4 percent, the second gain in three months, according to the median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey ahead of a Commerce Department report May 28. Combined sales of new and existing homes likely advanced to a 5.02 million annual rate from a 4.93 million pace in March, other figures may show.
Stabilization in housing and manufacturing, the two areas suffering the biggest contractions, will help ease the economic slump. Still, gains will be difficult to sustain in coming months as banks remain hesitant to lend and unemployment climbs, underscoring projections from Federal Reserve officials and private economists that a recovery will be subdued.
“Evidence that the 16-month recession is coming to an end continues to build,” said David Resler, chief economist at Nomura Securities International Inc. in New York. “Home sales and building activity seem to be stabilizing and manufacturing surveys point to smaller production cuts and smaller job losses.”
An increase in orders for durable goods would follow a 0.8 percent drop in March. The Commerce Department’s report may also show bookings excluding transportation equipment fell 0.3 percent last month, according to the Bloomberg survey.
Orders Steady
United Technologies Corp., the maker of Pratt & Whitney jet engines and Carrier air conditioners, last week maintained its profit forecast for the year as order rates stabilized across its divisions since March.
There are some “early signs” of price stabilization in some markets, Chief Executive Officer Louis Chenevert said at a conference May 19, citing benefits from stimulus programs in the U.S. and in China for the Carrier and Otis divisions. Demand at the commercial and business jet aerospace units may have peaked in 2008 and will take several years to recover, he said.
Boeing Co., which saw a gain in bookings last month that probably contributed to the increase nationally, is among companies trying to make it easier for customers to get credit. Its financing arm may tap debt markets for as much as $800 million this year to help clients fund purchases, Chief Financial Officer James Bell said last week.
Cancellations at Boeing, the second-largest commercial- plane maker and defense contractor, have paralleled new orders this year. The Chicago-based company is cutting 10,000 jobs and reducing or postponing production of some models next year.
Auto Slump
Automakers continue to struggle. Chrysler LLC this month idled its 22 U.S. plants after filing for bankruptcy. General Motors Corp. also has cut output as a bankruptcy deadline looms.
Sales of existing houses, which account for more than 90 percent of the market, rose 2 percent in April to a 4.66 million annual rate from a 4.57 million pace the prior month, according to the survey median. The National Association of Realtors’ report is due May 27.
A day later, Commerce Department figures may show new-home sales increased 1.1 percent to a 360,000 annual rate, the most this year, the survey showed.
Toll Brothers Inc., the largest U.S. builder of luxury homes, said last week signs were beginning to emerge that the worst was over. The Horsham, Pennsylvania-based company said fiscal second-quarter revenue fell 51 percent from the same period last year as banks cut lending and demand sagged.
More Deposits
Deposits from buyers per community rose in seven of the past nine weeks compared with last year, Chief Executive Officer Robert Toll said on a May 20 conference call with analysts. The increase made him “slightly more optimistic,” Toll said.
“We believe the U.S. government’s forceful intervention in the capital markets has begun to restore some confidence that the financial system is on the road to stabilization,” Toll said.
A report tomorrow may show the decline in home prices that began almost three years ago is moderating. Property values in 20 of the largest metropolitan areas probably dropped 18.4 percent in March from the same month last year compared with an 18.6 percent decline in February, economist project figures from S&P/Case-Shiller will show.
The rebound in stocks and easing of the housing slump are helping to make Americans less pessimistic. The Conference Board’s gauge of consumer confidence, also due tomorrow, may rise to 43 for May, a six-month high, from 39.2 last month.
Finally, revised data from the Commerce Department on May 29 may show the U.S. economy contracted in the first quarter less than initially estimated, reflecting a smaller decline in inventories and a narrower trade gap.

Source: Bloomberg

15th edition of the Carnival of Everything Money

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Thu, 21 May 2009 02:34:00 +0000

Welcome to the 15th edition of the Carnival of Everything Money. I wanted to give my thanks to everyone who is contributing to making this carnival a success! I would appreciate it if anyone who is featured in the carnival links back to this post. If you want to submit an article for next week's edition, the submission form is here. Just a reminder: I am not including articles that are not submitted with a category. If your article wasn't included, that's most likely why. Please change it because the more articles I can post, the better!

credit

Jim presents Citi Forward Credit Card Review: Rewarding Responsibility posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

David presents CNN Money Names Top 5 Credit Card Offers posted at Credit Card Offers IQ, saying, "CNN Money 100 has named the top credit cards in five categories, including cash back, travel and balance transfer."

The Smarter Wallet presents No Credit History? Here's Why Building Credit Is Important posted at The Smarter Wallet.

debt

Dave presents Debt is Squalor posted at Do You Dave Ramsey?.

Raj Patel presents Yahoo! Personal Finance: DebtGoal Puts Financial Houses in Order posted at DebtGoal.

Brian McKay presents Buying Down Mortgage Rates with Points posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, "Getting a lower mortgage rate is possible by shopping around for the best mortgage rates. Another option to getting a lower rate is to buy points."

frugality

MoneyNing presents How to Deal with Frugal Advice posted at Money Ning, saying, "Don't just skip the article if you think it doesn't apply to you as it might be useful later on in life."

investing

Kristjan presents Gold & Silver About to Hit Resistance posted at Personal Development for Awesome People.

ABC presents Warning - Not All Index Funds and ETFs Are Low Cost posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "Some index funds and etfs are too expensive."

Silicon Valley Blogger presents TradeKing Review: How Does TradeKing Measure Up? posted at The Digerati Life.

ChristianPF presents Retirement Plans (Part 1) - 401k questions answered posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog, saying, "A bunch of 401k questions answered by a CFP..."

Cash Tree presents Cash Advance Payday Loans Not an Option for Everyone Says Payday Loan Company posted at Cash Advance Loans, saying, "With people more often tempted to pursue lending options to make ends meet during tough economic times, Cash Tree Loans (www.CashTree.com) is offering free tips to help consumers better understand the risks to decide if payday loans are really right for them."

other

GrrlScientist presents Tough Love for City's Homeless: Pay Rent or Get Out! posted at Living the Scientific Life, saying, "Sounding like a story that is fresh out of the satirical newspaper, The Onion, the eighth richest person in America tells thousands of homeless families in NYC to pay rent to live in a shelter or GET OUT!"

PicktheBrain presents Gallows Humor: 21 Economy Inspired Cartoons posted at School Loans.

Kate Kashman presents Four Financial Lessons from a Six Year Old - The Paycheck Chronicles posted at The Paycheck Chronicles, saying, "Learning about shopping, budgeting and debt from a six year old perspective."

Wren Caulfield presents Adventures in Cake, Installment One posted at True Adventures in Money Hacking, saying, "starting a home business"

Jerry presents Figuring Payments On A New Car posted at Talking About Cars, saying, "How much can you afford to pay for a car?"

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents Reasons to Buy Whole Life Insurance posted at Cash Money Life, saying, "Here are a few times when you should consider whole life insurance over term life insurance."

Patrick @ Military Money presents GI Bill Transfer Rules posted at Military Finance Network, saying, "The GI Bill now allows some military members to transfer their benefits to their family members."

Nickel presents How Much Life Insurance Do You Need? posted at fivecentnickel.com.

saving

Fabulously Broke presents Fabulously "Broke" ...in the City: What is your lifetime income? posted at Fabulously Broke ....in the City, saying, "What is your lifetime income? The number may be shocking and it will certainly help change your mind in how you spend/fritter away your money on non-productive items."

Online Dividends presents Blogging Banks: $200 Capital One Bank Bonus Opportunity posted at Blogging Banks.

Bank Champ presents GMAC Bank Becomes Ally Bank posted at Bank Champ.

Lazy Man and Money presents Glad I Have an Emergency Fund posted at Lazy Man and Money.

stocks

Ryan Suenaga presents What’s in My Portfolio: Apple, Inc. posted at Uncommon Cents.

taxes

Shadox presents Issue Bonds with No Tax Increase? Dream On... posted at Money and Such, saying, "The truth about bond issues: tax payers always end up paying. Bonds necessarily lead to higher taxes. There is no such thing as a fre lunch in economics."

Small Bankers See Green Shoots

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Mon, 18 May 2009 14:45:00 +0000

Good interview on CNBC today with some regional bankers who have a better feel of how the individual consumer is borrowing money than some of the big banks do.

14th edition of the Carnival of Investing Strategies

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Sat, 16 May 2009 05:41:00 +0000

Welcome to the 14th edition of the Carnival of Investing Strategies. This is a carnival focused on different strategies of investing your money. If your article was included, please be sure to link back to this carnival. If you want to make a submission for the next edition, the form is here.

ChristianPF presents Should I sell my stocks or buy more? posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog, saying, "What is your current investing strategy? Buy more or sell them all?"

Jim presents Best Money Market Account (MMA) Rates posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Khan Ben presents Investing on a Shoestring Budget - College posted at Higher Education and Career Blog, saying, "Elicit as much advice as you can from those who are qualified to give it."

Investing School presents ShareBuilder Review - Stock Broker for Automatic Investing posted at Investing School, saying, "ShareBuilder is not a much talked about stock broker but the automatic investing feature could be golden for those that just don't time markets."

Bank Savings Review presents Bank Stress Test Results posted at Bank Savings Review, saying, "We finally got the results from the bank stress test but did anyone fail? Nope. Not much of a test huh?"

Nickel presents Risk Tolerance vs. Risk Capacity posted at fivecentnickel.com.

MatthewPaulson presents Grow Your Investments: Know the Rule of 72 posted at Fine-Tuned Finances.

ABC presents Commodities posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "A brief explanation of commodities."

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents Alternative Income is a Form of Insurance posted at Cash Money Life, saying, "Tips on how you can make more money by creating alternative income streams - and why it is important."

Dana presents Four Reasons I’m Bullish on Canada posted at Investoralist, saying, "Canada's sound banking system, plentiful commodities, liquid social welfare system, and favourable demographics make it attractive amidst the global downturn."

Four Pillars presents BMO InvestorLine Discount Brokerage Review posted at Quest For Four Pillars, saying, "Review of BMO InvestorLine discount brokerage."

Freddy presents Stock Of The Week For Defensive Investor (May 12, 2009) posted at Protege Analytics.

Praveen presents Successful Trading is About More than Generating A Buy Signal.. posted at Stock Trading Riches.

ABC presents Warning - Not All Index Funds and ETFs Are Low Cost posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "Some index funds and etfs are too expensive."

Citigroup... Getting Their Act Together?

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:16:00 +0000

It is little, unknown news like this that makes be bullish on the banks. In the past few days I have become increasingly bullish on Citgroup. Yes their bank sucked, no doubt about that. But they are working hard to fix their loan portfolio, and I am confident that their efforts are going to work. Citigroup is lending out a lot of their money, while some people have a problem with that, I think it is the best thing to do because that is how banks make money... Citi has been doing a lot of lending to schools and city government, which typically provide a lower default rate than the individual consumer. Also Citigroup is conducting efforts to keep people from foreclosure (as seen in this article). The less foreclosures, the less write offs Citi has to do. Citi is not the best bank right now, but I certainly think they have the most room for improvement.

CHICAGO, May 15, 2009 (BUSINESS WIRE) ----Today, Citi's Office of Homeownership Preservation (OHP: undefined, undefined, undefined%) announced that Citi's foreclosure prevention and industry-leading loss mitigation efforts in the first three months of this year have successfully helped thousands of people throughout Illinois and the rest of the country avoid foreclosure.

CitiMortgage is the fourth largest mortgage servicer in the United States and is committed to helping families stay in their homes. According to Citi, its U.S. efforts to keep distressed Citi borrowers in their homes outnumbered foreclosures completed by a ratio of more than ten to one in the first quarter, a significant increase over the fourth quarter 2008 ratio of six to one. Citi continued to show increased success in Illinois specifically, with company initiatives keeping homeowners in their homes by a ratio of more than eight to one, compared to over five to one last quarter.

Sanjiv Das, CEO of CitiMortgage, said, "Preemptive outreach to homeowners is often the best defense against foreclosure. At Citi, we are committed to working with our national and local community partners as well as using Citibank's retail banking resources to communicate with homeowners, to keep people in their homes and to strengthen neighborhoods across the country. With upcoming events nationwide from Chicago, to Stamford, Conn. to Tucson, Ariz., I look forward to expanding upon the progress Citi and our partners have made in foreclosure prevention."

Chicago Homeowner Events Part of Citi's Ongoing Efforts to Keep People in Their Homes

This weekend, Citi will host homeowner outreach events in Chicago. The events, organized by Citi Community Relations, the OHP, Citibank retail banking and other nonprofit partners, will build on Citi's ongoing progress in keeping distressed Chicago homeowners in their homes.

Citi will meet with local leaders from Rainbow PUSH Coalition, the Spanish Coalition for Housing and the Westside Ministers Coalition at events to discuss foreclosure prevention and homeowner assistance. Citi also will counsel at-risk borrowers from the Chicago-area on alternatives to foreclosure and offer specific tips on how they can get started, such as writing a hardship letter.

Similar events are scheduled in other cities significantly affected by the housing crisis such as Cleveland, Bakersfield, Calif. and Phoenix.

These community events are an extension of Citi's foreclosure prevention programs in which Citi works with nonprofit organizations through the following efforts: coordinating foreclosure prevention strategies across the country; offering broad-based financial education and free nonprofit counseling for its mortgage customers; and providing nonprofit counseling organizations with direct access to Citi's loss mitigation staff. In partnership with Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago, Citi was the first financial institution to support the 2003 launch of the Home Ownership Preservation Initiative (HOPI: undefined, undefined, undefined%) to provide foreclosure prevention initiatives and counseling programs in Chicago, which became the national blueprint for foreclosure prevention.

Ophelia Navarro, Executive Director of the Spanish Coalition for Housing, said, "Citi continues to be an important partner in our work to expand and preserve communities throughout the Chicago metro area."

Reverend Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. of Rainbow PUSH said, "The Rainbow PUSH Coalition is pleased to announce our partnership with Citi. Their successful and innovative initiatives around foreclosure prevention have positioned them as a leader in this area of business. We look forward to our work together to achieve our mutual goal of keeping homeowners in their homes."

Citi's Successful Foreclosure Prevention Initiatives

Last year, Citi launched the Citi Homeowner Assistance program, a multi-faceted program to help homeowners avoid foreclosure and stay in their homes. Citi has developed programs addressing homeowners at all stages - from those who are current on their payments but may face economic distress, to borrowers who have fallen behind on their payments, to recently unemployed eligible customers - to provide assistance.

The company is using a variety of means to help homeowners, including expanding its specially trained servicing units to work with homeowners to find long-term solutions; a continuous evaluation of portfolios to identify those borrowers who may be eligible for reduced monthly payments; adoption of the Obama Administration's streamlined long-term modification program; and partnering with community and nonprofit partners through the Company's OHP to offer free services to borrowers and training to counselors.

Additional Statistics

Since the beginning of 2007, Citi's ongoing efforts in foreclosure prevention have helped approximately 520,000 of its customers avoid potential foreclosure.

Foreclosures completed in the total Citi servicing portfolio in Illinois were down approximately 41% in the first quarter of 2009 as compared with the fourth quarter of 2008, and down approximately 32% over the prior year time period.

For more information about Citi's foreclosure prevention efforts and for tips on how homeowners can preserve their home, visit www.mortgagehelp.citi.com

Source: Fox Business

So The Rally Hit A Road Bump...

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Thu, 14 May 2009 01:17:00 +0000

We've hit a little bit of a wall here in the rally. I hope/don't think it will last but we will see. If we do continue going down it just provides us with an even better buying opportunity. Everyone has been saying we are due for a correction/pull back blah blah... as if it is some rule that we must follow. There are a lot of stocks out there that are great buys, they might go down some more this week, but through out the summer I think they rise. We can't go up in the market every single day so obviously we were going to hit a few down days, which we have seen the past few days, but I just don't think the downturn will be as severe/long as everyone is predicting. We hit a road bump today with retail numbers, but hopefully tomorrow's more important weekly jobless claims number will be on the positive side.

Carnival of Everything Money #14

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Tue, 12 May 2009 05:57:00 +0000

Welcome to the 14th edition of the Carnival of Everything Money. I wanted to give my thanks to everyone who is contributing to making this carnival a success! I would appreciate it if anyone who is featured in the carnival links back to this post. If you want to submit an article for next week's edition, the submission form is here. Just a reminder: I am not including articles that are not submitted with a category. If your article wasn't included, that's most likely why. Please change it because the more articles I can post, the better!

budgeting

The Smarter Wallet presents Microsoft Money Software Review: A Look At Money Essentials posted at The Smarter Wallet.

Nash Dadameah presents The secret to having money posted at nil2million.com, saying, "A real-life experience on how to keep having money"

Barry presents Tips To Curb Impulse Buying posted at Associate Money.

credit

PabloPabla presents Five Alternatives To Traditional Credit Cards posted at Free Credit Card Information, saying, "There are many alternatives to credit cards that can be used for all of the purposes that a credit card is traditionally used for. Here are five alternatives that can be used for credit cards."

Money Beagle presents Are Rewards Credit Cards Worth It? posted at MoneyBeagle.

Jim presents What Is A Good Credit Score? posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

David presents 9 Tweeters Every Credit Card Hound Should Follow posted at Credit Card Offers IQ, saying, "Check out theses credit card twitterers worth following."

Nickel presents Is FreeCreditReport.com a Scam? posted at fivecentnickel.com.

freefrombroke presents Credit Cards Suck! posted at Free From Broke, saying, "There are a lot of reasons credit cards are not your friend!"

SingleGuyMoney presents Still Getting 0% Balance Transfer Offers posted at Single Guy Money.

Kevin Fleming presents Best Cash Back Credit Cards posted at CreditShout.

Woman Tribune presents Fed Report Shows Banks Tightening Lending Standards on Credit Cards posted at Woman Tribune.

Sun presents Starwood Preferred Guest Card 25,000 Bonus Points [Card Reviews] posted at The Sun’s Financial Diary.

debt

Raj Patel presents Mortgage Renegotiation Options posted at DebtGoal.

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents Who is Dave Ramsey? posted at Cash Money Life, saying, "A mini bio about Dave Ramsey, one of the most popular personal finance gurus in the US."

Sam presents Credit Card Debt. Get Out of Debt and Take Back Your Power $$$$ posted at Surfer Sam and Friends.

frugality

FinancialHealthGuy presents Quick Tips You Probably Never Heard To Save Money: Part One | financialhealthguy.com posted at Financial Health Guy.

Anotherjen presents The Recession Hits the Wedding Industry posted at The Next Rich Girl, saying, "today's brides and grooms can't afford to be as extravagant as couples getting married just a year or two ago..."

Renee V. Rouse presents Garage Sale Shopping Tips posted at Frugal-Living-Skills Blog, saying, "Garage sales can be a great place to find just about anything. Here are 5 garage sale shopping tips"

Dan at Everydayfinance presents Savings Tips Consumer Reports Style posted at Everyday Finance, saying, "This article highlights several great savings tips from the latest Consumer Reports edition, as well as some additional ideas."

Wren Caulfield presents 10 Ways to Have Big Fun for Little (or No) $$ posted at True Adventures in Money Hacking.

BankMan presents Get a Free Garmin GPS at Key Bank posted at High Yield Savings Accounts, saying, "Get a free Garmin GPS system for opening a free checking account at Key National Bank. This offer excpires soon!"

Lazy Man and Money presents Save Money on Cell Phones posted at Lazy Man and Money.

investing

ChristianPF presents Should I sell my stocks or buy more? posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog, saying, "Is now the time to be selling or buying?"

MoneyNing presents TradeKing Review posted at Money Ning, saying, "TradeKing is quickly becoming one of the best stock brokers out there. Find out why."

Ray presents TradeKing Review posted at Money Blue Book.

ABC presents Commodities posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "A brief explanation of commodities."

MoneyEnergy presents Peter Schiff on the Rally and Why You Still Need to Buy Gold posted at MoneyEnergy, saying, "fits with saving and wealth protection, too."

Shadox presents Passive Investing is for Extremists: The Critique posted at Money and Such, saying, "This post explains why trying to time the stock market - even over the long term - is a fool's game."

Manshu presents Value Traps posted at OneMint.

Dana presents Don Coxe on Sunspots, Demographics, and Your Investments posted at Investoralist, saying, "Don Coxe discusses in his March 2009 Basic Points report his views on demographics and the housing market, sunspots and agricultural stocks, and more."

Four Pillars presents BMO InvestorLine Discount Brokerage Review posted at Quest For Four Pillars, saying, "Review of BMO InvestorLine discount brokerage."

Craig Ford presents Your First Step in Developing A ‘Personalized’ Investing Plan posted at Money Help For Christians.

Zach Scheidt presents ZachStocks Podcast 10: Stress Tests, TARP Repayments, Moral Hazard And Solar posted at ZachStocks, saying, "Bank Stress Test lifts financials, TARP money repayments meet opposition, Moral Hazard is now in the works, and some interesting solar information on tap."

other

Michael presents What Credit Score Do You Need to Buy a Car? posted at Vital Motion, saying, "If you want to buy a car, you might be worried about your credit score."

Kim Staudenraus presents Should I lend money to a friend or relative? posted at Tranquility Financial Visioning, saying, "Lending money to a friend or family member - at some point in time someone close to you will ask you for a loan - what do you do when they ask?"

Brian Reilly presents Zen and the Art of Creating Competition in Merger and Acquisition Deals posted at Merger and Acquisiton Advice, saying, "Selling your private business"

Leon N. presents Residual Income - Making 1 Dollar A Day posted at How to Build Residual Income.

Patrick @ Military Money presents Watch Out For Stimulus Check and Government Grant Fraud! posted at Military Finance Network, saying, "Tips on how to guard your identity and avoid online rip off scams like the infamous government grant scheme."

Junior presents How To Evaluate Car Buying Deals posted at Car Commentary, saying, "When it comes to buying a car, everyone wants to get the most value they can for their money."

KeithMcC presents What is your price? posted at {be} Wealthy / [get] Happy, saying, "This talks about how you value your time and in turn, how much money you will make"

Vicky presents Wedding Planning On A Budget posted at Affordable Wedding Planning, saying, "Basic wedding planning help."

saving

The Dough Roller presents Dave Ramsey Unleashed: How to Apply Ramsey’s ‘Baby Steps’ to Grown Up Finances posted at The Dough Roller, saying, "See how to apply Dave Ramsey's Baby Steps for those already on their way to retirement."

Brian McKay presents CD Early Withdrawal Penalties posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, "When you invest in a certificate of deposit be sure you don’t need access to your money for the duration of the certificate of deposit term."

taxes

Robert D Flach presents Here's Something To Think About posted at The Wandering Tax Pro.

Price to Earnings Ratio

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Mon, 11 May 2009 22:17:00 +0000

I think this is a great article.

Since the stock market's March 9 low, the S&P 500 rose from 676.53 to 929.93 and the Dow Jones industrials jumped from 6,547 to 8,574 by May 8--gains of 37.5% and 31%, respectively. Such stunning gains encouraged bears to dust off the same argument they used two months ago to predict the S&P 500 could fall to 500 and the Dow to 5,000.

A May 11 Wall Street Journal headline claims, "By Most Measures, Stocks No Longer Look Cheap." In this article, Tim Lauricella alludes to three measures of valuation: a trailing ratio of S&P 500 stock prices to operating earnings over the past 12 months; a forward ratio of stock prices relative to estimated earnings over the next 12 months; and a nostalgic ratio of stock prices to a 10-year history of inflation-adjusted earnings. The latter is thought to be "the most widely followed of these barometers ... created by Yale Professor Robert Shiller."

The trouble is that such valuation measures were also cited in a March 9 Wall Street Journal front page feature--"Dow 5,000? There's a Case for It" by Annelena Lobb. "Looking solely at valuations," she wrote, "the S&P at 500 isn't necessarily a wild stretch."

Relying on Professor Shiller's valuations, Barrons' March 7 cover story claimed, "the Dow could fall a further 25%, to 5,000, and the S&P could drop to about 500." In a March 12 commentary on Forbes.com, Nouriel Roubini used forward P/E ratios to predict that "even in the best scenario" the S&P was unlikely to exceed 500-600 this year. The following Sunday, TheNew York Times posted Shiller's chart emphasizing that the ratio of stock prices to earnings "hasn't fallen as far as the market bottoms of 1932 and 1982."

By March 23, after the DOW had risen 14% from the bottom, Mark Gongloff's "Ahead of the Tape" column in The Wall Street Journal suggested "such rallies are fairly typical of the worst markets." He compared it to other "dead cat bounces" between 1929-32. Relying on Shiller's figures, Gongloff said "the S&P is priced about 13 times earnings. ... But that ratio has fallen below 10 in the grimmest bear markets. ... A 30% plunge in the S&P to 530 would take its P/E ratio to 10 in a hurry."

All of these gloomy projections of falling stock prices have been based on falling valuations, not falling earnings. We're told the ratio of stock prices to earnings could supposedly fall below 10 simply because that happened before, in years like 1982.

But stock valuations are not just a matter of opinion, gyrating unpredictably between waves of optimism and pessimism. On the contrary, the graph shows that P/E ratios mainly depend on interest rates. It makes that point by simply turning the P/E ratio upside down, resulting in an earnings-price ratio or "earnings yield."

The previously mentioned New York Times graph highlighted the fact that the P/E ratio briefly fell to seven in early 1982, which is equivalent to an E/P ratio of 14.3 (one divided by seven). My graph, however, reveals that such a low multiple (high E/P ratio) made sense in January 1982 only because the yield on 10-year Treasuries was 14.6%.

This graph bases the earnings-price ratios on trailing earnings over the past four quarters rather than relying on analysts' estimates of the future or on Shiller's decade of ancient history. I used annual figures from the Economic Report of the President for 1980-88 because quarterly data from the Standard and Poor's Web site don't go back that far. After 1988, bond yields in the graph are for the last month of each quarter because that captures changing rates better than a three-month average.

Since 1960, the yield on 10-year Treasury bonds averaged 6.68%, while the earnings yield averaged 6.43. The earnings yield on stocks rarely deviates much from the coupon on bonds partly because stocks and bonds compete with each other, and because stock prices gauge the discounted present value of expected earnings. Expectations of future earnings differ from recent reported earnings, of course, yet nonetheless involve estimating changes from that starting point.

Note that the E/P ratio was lower than bond yields toward the end of the recessions of 1991, 2001 and 2008. That is because trailing earnings are an increasingly bad indicator of future earnings as recessions near an end. Year-to-year comparisons of earnings become easy to beat during the early stages of recovery.

The relatively low E/P ratio in 1999, despite a rising bond yield, does suggest some unduly euphoric momentum, though scarcely a "bubble." Conversely, the E/P ratio was higher than the bond yield in 2005-2006, suggesting prescient pessimism about future earnings but also accurate optimism about rising bond prices (falling yields).

It is not hard to envision future earnings disappointments as a result of higher tax rates on companies or shareholders, health care price controls or cap and trade schemes. But these are threats to earnings, not to multiples. They are to some extent reflected in the weakness in stock prices ever since the election.

Any big drop in P/E multiplies, by contrast, requires a big increase in bond yields. It is certainly possible to envision massive federal borrowing and aggressive Fed easing culminating in a sizable increase in long-term interest rates. Yet such a future of "reflation" and "crowding out" presupposes faster growth of overall demand, gross domestic final sales. In that case, earnings would be rising so the net effect on stock prices might well be positive. Bearish economists, by contrast, typically assume depressed demand and deflation--forecasts impossible to reconcile with the double-digit interest rates required to push the E/P ratio to 10 or more.

I first met Bob Shiller in the early 1980s, when I invited him to speak at Lew Lehrman's Institute in Manhattan. He thought stocks were grossly overpriced then too. Indeed, Shiller always seems to see the current P/E ratio as too high relative to some historical average. But the stock multiple is not a mean-reverting series. On the contrary, the height of today's P/E ratio relative to the past tells us nothing except that (1) interest rates are far below average and (2) future earnings are very likely to rise from today's depressed base.

Unless those who have spent the past two months predicting P/E ratios of 8-10 are also predicting a tripling of long-term rates, their forecasts of stock prices are inconsistent and unworthy of the slightest attention.

Source: Forbes.com

Carnival of Investing Strategies #13

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Fri, 08 May 2009 19:22:00 +0000

Welcome to the 13th edition of the Carnival of Investing Strategies. This is a carnival focused on different strategies of investing your money. If your article was included, please be sure to link back to this carnival.If you want to make a submission for the next edition, the form is here.

Ben presents IRA Vs Roth IRA posted at Money Smart Life.

Debt Kid presents No More Buy and Hold Strategy for Me posted at DebtKid.

MoneyNing presents Fees in Your 401(k) posted at Money Ning, saying, "Mind the small little fees in your 401k"

Tushar Mathur presents How to choose a financial planner posted at Everything Finance, saying, "There's retirement to plan for and college tuition for the kids. Insurance. Estate planning. And, oh, don't forget a wedding for your daughter. If all this sounds familiar, it may be time for you to start shopping around for a financial planner."

Jack Schmidt presents How To Pick A Profitable Mutual Fund posted at SectorMatic Money Journal, saying, "Personal Finance | Everything for the Big Spender on a Budget. Now you can live like a fat cat, even if you're on a money diet. Laugh all the way to the bank with Jack Schmidt and SecorMatic Money Journal. It's for you!"

Waystoinvestmoney.net presents Investing In Gold posted at Ways To Invest Money.

Manshu presents Gold ETF: iShares Comex Gold Trust (IAU) posted at OneMint.

Bank Champ presents Failed Banks Not Required to Honor CD Rates posted at Bank Champ.

Investing School presents Investor Mistakes - Constant Refresh posted at Investing School, saying, "Most of us love the real time information provided by our stock brokers but it really doesn't help us much to look at it every day (or worst yet, several times a day). This article explains why."

Jack Schmidt presents Starting Young: Teaching Teens to Save Money posted at SectorMatic Money Journal, saying, "Personal Finance - Everything for the Big Spender on a Budget. Now you can live like a fat cat, even if you're on a money diet. Laugh all the way to the bank with Jack Schmidt and SectorMatic. It's for you!"

Jim presents Buying Municipal or State Bonds posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Joe Light presents Dear index buyer, you too are an active investor posted at Invest Wisdom, saying, "Invest Wisdom is a blog about the market, investing for retirement, and mutual fund trends. This post reflects on whether or not index investing is really "passive" investing."

Caterina Christakos presents INVESTMENT STRATEGIES IN A LOUSY ECONOMY posted at Forex and Currencies Explained.

Praveen presents Combining Fundamental and Technical Analysis in Stock Trading posted at My Simple Trading System.

Four Pillars presents Transfer In Kind posted at ABCs of Investing, saying, "Learn about the "transfer in kind" option if you are transferring an investment account to save taxes and money."

Nickel presents The Best 529 Plans - 2009 Edition posted at fivecentnickel.com.

Michael Haltman presents Man, Is This A Real Bull Market? posted at The Political and Financial Markets Commentator, saying, "Why Do I Watch CNBC? I'm not sure, but if you look closely at CNBC during the day the anchors are all wearing Dallas Cowboys cheerleading uniforms. Men and women. Now it is my fault for watching it, as I have the option to change the channel, but I do like the ticker going across the bottom. Takes me back to my trading days."

Adam presents How to Get Started in Stock Trading and Investing posted at Pimp My Trade, saying, "Tips for the average Joe getting started in the stock market. Whether it be investing in your 401K or taking an active trading approach, learn to do it right."

Steve Patterson presents SSO June Calls Reentry posted at FastSwings.com - Steve Patterson, saying, "The markets are not providing much space to get back in after taking profits as each day pushes the indexes higher."

The Investor presents Crisis investing as swine flu panic spreads posted at Monevator.com, saying, "How should investors react when markets fall because of scary headlines in the newspapers?"

Zach Scheidt presents Blackstone Offers Mixed Results posted at ZachStocks, saying, "The Blackstone Group L.P. (BX) reported relative strength in the Private Equity business while the Real Estate division suffered. The company will reinstate their dividend which sent the stock significantly higher."

Mark Aucamp presents How often should you remortgage? posted at Money Saving Tips, Consumer Finance, Expert, Advice and Help | Talk Money Blog, saying, "Over the years I have come across people who have been brainwashed into remortgaging every two or three years by their Bank, Building Society or their Mortgage Broker. These intelligent people are sold the story that know body knows where the interest rates will be in two or three years time and it is better not to tie yourself into a long term fixed rate just in case interest rates fall."

Peter Maclennan presents Four Benefits of Real Estate Investing posted at Maclennan Investment Group, saying, "Investing in real estate has four benefits of cash flow before taxes, principal reduction, depreciation, and appreciation that set it apart from other investment vehicles."

Alex Fotopoulos presents RSP Chart - May 7, 2009 posted at Chart Analysis, saying, "Alex charts equal weight S&P ETF RSP for the past three months looking for an entry point."

Great Start To The Weekend

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Fri, 08 May 2009 19:03:00 +0000

Unemployment came in at around 530,000, much better than the 600,000 something that was predicted. While unemployment continues to climb, the rate of of the decline is slowing down and we need that to happen before we can start increasing employment. Unemployment hit 8.9%, it will probably climb to 10% but I hope it doesn't go much further than that.

On a side note, tech has been showing a lot of weakness the past two days.... for no apparent reason. I bought some tech stock on the weakness. I think tech is giving us a good buying opportunity right now because once investors come back to their senses and see how most tech companies are saying things are bottoming out, they will realize there is no where but up to go from here. Tech CEOs are the few CEOs that have been saying things are only going to get better, it seems most CEOs have been reluctant to say that about their company.

I'll have the carnival of investing strategies up later today, don't worry I didn't forget :)

Stress Test Results: Nothing Surprising

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Thu, 07 May 2009 21:23:00 +0000

Stress results are out... I don't really see any surprises, it seems that the leaks this week were accurate. I am looking to tomorrow's unemployment numbers now to see how the economy is performing. People have become custom to the better than expected numbers that have been released as of late so we will see how the market reacts to the numbers tomorrow. I think the market is expecting job losses closer to 500,000 even though the estimate by most economists is 610,000.

US banking regulators released results of the stress tests on the 19 biggest American financial institutions, saying which banks need additional capital to survive a worsening of the economy.

Here's a rundown of the results:

Capital Needs of Big U.S. Banks (in alphabetical order)

American Express — None

Bank of America — $33.9 Billion

Bank of New York — None

BB&T — None

Capital One Financial — None

Citigroup — $5.5 Billion

Fifth Third — $1.1 billion

GMAC — $11.5 Billion

Goldman Sachs — None

JPMorgan Chase — None

KeyCorp — $1.8 billion

MetLife — None

Morgan Stanley — $1.8 Billion

PNC Financial — $0.6 Billion

Regions Financial — $2.5 billion

State Street — None

SunTrust Banks — $2.2 billion

U.S. Bancorp — None

Wells Fargo — $13.7 Billion

Source: CNBC

An Update on the Stress Tests

noreply@blogger.com (VC) — Wed, 06 May 2009 22:57:00 +0000

US regulators released capital guidelines for the nation's 19 largest financial insitutions under the government's stress test and said banks needing fresh capital will have until June 8 to develop a plan and Nov. 9 to raise the capital.

The eagerly awaited results, which will be released at 5 pm New York time on Thursday, will lay out how much more capital some banks may need to raise to satisfy new stringent capital cushion targets, the US Treasury and bank regulators said in a joint statement late Wednesday.

Banks must ensure that they have tier one risk-based capital ratios of 6.0 percent, and tier one common risk-based capital ratios of 4.0 percent at the end of 2010, under a hypothetical sharper than expected economic downturn, the statement said.

Regulators described the capital as a 'one-time buffer' that will give market participants confidence in the ability of the top banks to continue providing credit to U.S. households and businesses, even if the economy is weaker than expected.

Regulators also said the banks must review their existing management to "assure that the leadership of the firms has sufficient expertise and ability" to manage risk.

Banks seeking to repay U.S. taxpayer bailout funds will have to prove they can maintain the higher capital buffers and can issue debt not backed by government guarantees.

"The U.S. government reaffirms its commitment to stand firmly behind the banking system during this period of financial strain to ensure it can perform its key function of providing credit to households and businesses," the statement said.

The release of the capital guidelines follows a steady stream of leaks to the news media concerning how individual banks may have fared on the tests.

Bank of America needs to close a nearly $35 billion capital gap. Wells Fargo needs $15 billion, while Citigroup probably will require about $5 billion.

Among the banks that will need no additional capital are:

JPMorgan Chase , Goldman Sachs , American Express , Regions Financial and Bank of New York Mellon .

Shares of bank stocks soared Wednesday even as the government told some of the industry's leaders that they'll need to raise billions.

source: CNBC