Capital Flow Watch

Five reasons why Google Finance is a winner - Google Finance

John Schroy — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 18:10:58 +0000

Google Finances is a top-rated tool for investment research of US stocks. It features a smart, well-designed interface for fundamental or technical analysis. For both long-term investors and short-term traders, ease of use puts this tool ahead of Yahoo Finance in the US market. For further articles on Google Finance, sign up for the free RSS feed in the sidebar.

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Dodd-Frank won’t make better markets - Phony financial reform

John Schroy — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 14:02:42 +0000

Unfortunately, instead of a 'game-changing' confidence-inspiring reform, the Obama administration presented the United States with the Dodd-Frank Act — a legislative miscarriage that has the potential to hold back recovery and impair the position of New York as a world financial center for decades — unless repealed or drastically amended.

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Stock buybacks are still bad for investors - Corporate Governance:

John Schroy — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 18:48:19 +0000

M. A. Gumport of MG Holdings has published the July 2010 edition of the Buyback Monitor, showing corporate stock profits for 275 firms over the period 2000-2010. Without buybacks, share prices for the group now would be at least 5.3% higher (nearly 10% higher after adjustment for foregone interest income).The lack of attention to protecting long-term investors against the massive fraud of stock buybacks is just one more sign that it will be some considerable time before the US works its way out of the present financial morass.

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Multiple central banks weaken the euro - Euros versus the dollar

John Schroy — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 16:26:17 +0000

The multiplicity of independent central banks is the Achilles heel of the eurosystem. A bank, controlled by the government, in a fiat money environment, that acts as the paying agent for that government, has — in effect — the capability to print money (although not necessarily banknotes).Imagine, tomorrow the headlines in the Wall Street Journal read "$100 billion is inflationary euros issued without the knowledge of the European Central Bank". What would be the effect of the news on the value of the euro as a reserve currency?

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Dodd-Frank spurs sub-prime loans - Faked Reform

John Schroy — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 22:55:45 +0000

The immediate cause of the worldwide financial Crash of 2008 was the extensive granting of sub-prime mortgages.The Dodd-Frank financial reform bill introduced in Title XII, "IMPROVING ACCESS TO MAINSTREAM FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS", a new, fraud-prone solution to a non-existent problem, the granting of $2,500 loans to middle and low income borrowers.In combination with other political funds, this program could be an extremely powerful tool for voter fraud. In fact, it is difficult to imagine why else it would be inserted into the Dodd-Frank Act.

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Thriving without a credit card - Social change:

John Schroy — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 15:06:22 +0000

Restricted availability of consumer credit and a greater propensity of households to save before spending, may result in less use of credit cards and smaller mortgages. A return, even partial, to saving habits of the 1950s could stimulate economic recovery.The popular Dave Ramsey radio and TV shows suggest that a societal change in this direction is at least possible. Lower levels of personal debt would boost the economy and make people happier.

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Economic recovery may wait until 2016 - This is a 'game-changer'

John Schroy — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 17:36:48 +0000

The current economic crisis, which started with the market crash of 2008, is a 'game-changer' that requires effective leadership with a firm grasp of economic reality and a willingness to introduce sensible bipartisan reforms in many areas of financial markets.Unfortunately, these conditions are unlikely to be met before 2016. In the meantime, history suggests that there are likely to be many false rallies and dashed hopes before true recovery begins.

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Why false bull markets are likely - The long road to recovery

John Schroy — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 02:03:37 +0000

Over the years, I've read quite a number of books on investment. Not all are worth the effort. Among those that I consider valuable, I would cite Graham & Dodd's "Security Analysis", "Fooled by Randomness" by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Wu and Zakon's "Elements of Investments", and "The Great Depression: A Diary" by Benjamin Roth. The latter brings a message that is especially relevant in these trying times — a warning that early optimists regarding recovery are often as badly burnt as those who failed to foresee the original crisis.

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Inefficient market portends bumpy recovery - Smooth sailing unlikely

John Schroy — Thu, 20 May 2010 21:17:24 +0000

Markets can be inefficient for different reasons and persist for long periods. The transition between one type of inefficient market to the next is usually a period of strife and uncertainty which may last five to fifteen years. Looking back at how the economy emerged from previous transitions, I note that in each new period, equity prices started at reasonable levels. This was true at the beginning of the Roaring Twenties, the Post WW II Period, and the Reagan Era. It is as if markets, recognizing prior inefficiencies 'reset' and start over. However, for the current market to 'reset', it will be necessary for equity prices to fall considerably, which will have dire consequences.

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The Inefficient Market Hypothesis - Commonsense Economics:

John Schroy — Sun, 16 May 2010 19:43:19 +0000

Eventually, at some point, without an efficient market, common stocks become mere baseball cards.Sooner or later, some Baby Boomer, pressed to pay his bills in retirement, will find that one can't live off the dividends of common stock and that when everyone is trying to cash out their holdings at the same time, market prices plunge to levels that seemed inconceivable for generations. But it will simply be the cost of allowing an inefficient market to flourish for so long.This article discusses the concept of inefficient markets and the practical consequences.

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