investing

The Shanghai has turned down this evening after opening up and looks to continue the downtrend. That is one ugly chart. Meanwhile, the S&P500 looks like it really wants to resolve its wedge formation to the upside. After a year of head…

A visual representation of how stocks in the S&P 500 fared in 2011 with Green for gains and red for losses

A visual representation of how stocks in the S&P 500 fared in 2011 with Green for gains and red for losses

Wow! Who would of thunk it. The Dow the only major global equity index positive for the year. U.S. Treasuries up 15-20 percent, the dollar index (Dixe) positive; Brazil and Chinese equities down 20 percent and India down almost 25…

Investment advisor John Mauldin explains his attitude towards austerity measures; a return of the gold standard; the euro crisis; and the willingness to bailout everyone that makes capitalism and monetary systems stop working.

Gold is poised to complete its 11th consecutive annual gain, the longest winning streak in at least nine decades, on the brink of a bear market. George Soros, the billionaire who two years ago called it the “ultimate asset bubble,” cut 99…

This morning’s swan dive in the euro stopped the Santa rally right in its tracks. We have two questions: 1) Has the ECB shot its wad as the lender of last resort providing massive liquidity to the banking system and leaving little…

The S&P 500 volatility index - the VIX - is a measurement of volatility expectations. It has fallen 50% since the (latest) agreement to save the euro was announced. If the VIX falls to 18, call options are worth considering.

Great data from the BLS comparing hourly compensation for manufacturing. The second chart looks at the benefits component of the hourly cost.

US dollar is mixed vs. majors Thursday as market sentiment improving a bit in the wake of ECB’s 3-year LTRO. Merkel advisor Bofinger warned that the euro zone has six months to solve the debt crisis; Greek creditors reportedly balking at…