Category: Resources

The stock market just hit an all time high and real estate values continue rising rapidly. Investors could not be happier. The day I refer to, of course, is October 9, 2007 when the S&P closed at its new record of 1565.15. What followed was a bull run in commodities culminating on July 11, 2008 when oil hit its high of $147.27 on dollar weakness and insatiable raw material demand from China. By January of 2009, oil dropped to almost $30 a barrel, the dollar was much stronger as seemingly everyone flocked to its perceived safety, and the worldwide economy would begin digging out slowly from the depths of the credit crisis. The S&P would drop below 700 points.

The world reacted very negatively on Thursday to the idea of a post-quantative easing economy. The oddest thing about the reaction to the Fed announcement was that not only did the stock market plummet but nearly all of the commodity markets fell just as aggressively despite the US Dollar strengthening. The big question now is whether or not the talk of tapering will effectively end the bull run of 2013, and where we go from here. With the market off the highs, sideways over the past few weeks, then sharply lower, it really is an interesting and difficult situation. The market showed us all how weak its legs really are.

Farmers will tell you that “rain makes grain.” That often holds unless the rain is accompanied by winter-like temperatures during the planting season in the key growing areas within the US. As of May 13, the USDA reports that 29% of the corn crop has been planted as opposed to 85% last year. For soybeans, […]

As we enter the final two weeks of the first quarter of 2013 it is remarkable to see where the market has come and how steadfast it has been in getting here. It was only two months ago that traders were exiting positions for the safety of the sidelines, clients were calling to reassert risk measures, and the media was producing panic stricken headlines shouting words like “cliff” and “recession.” I must say, the arguments at the time were equally coherent regardless of your market stance. In fact they still are despite the recent highs. It did indeed seem like the sidelines were the place to be as no one wanted to be the first to wander of the looming fiscal cliff. Then just as everyone returned to work from the New Year the market decided to assert itself and the S&&P rallied 35 points and closed on the high.

As we approach the end of another temperamental summer market we are reminded again of how important it is to assure the diversity of our portfolios. Volatility has again become exaggerated, due largely to a market severely starved of liquidity. Although summer markets are historically thin, this summer has been more dramatically affected due to […]

Contents: S&P Announcement Debt Ceiling Philosophical Clash Fiscal Scenarios Impact on Markets Conclusion Standard & Poor’s downgraded the credit rating oflong-term U.S. sovereign debt from a stellar AAA toAA+ based on “political risks and rising debt burden” with a negative outlook as of Friday, August 5.1Thisrepresents the first time that one of the three majorcredit […]

By Noble DraKolnFounder of Speculator Academy and Author of “Winning the Trading Game” and “Trade Like a Pro” Significant differences in the liquidity, leverage, and costs of futures and ETFs must be understood before making any investment decision. Gold has historically served as a legitimate hedge against inflation and an integral part of a diversified […]

By Michael S. Rulle Jr. There is only one history in financial markets. But there are almost an infinite number of time series one can analyze. Think of all the combinations of markets, units of time (for example, one second, one minute, one hour, etc.) and periods of time within which those units reside (for […]

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is an independent government agency aimed to better protect the futures market from fraud or manipulation. It is responsible for recording and monitoring the trading of futures contracts on United States futures exchanges. The CFTC has the authority to fine, suspend, or sue the company or individual in a […]

In 1971 President Nixon imposed a 90-day wage and price control program and other various expansionary fiscal policies in what became known as the “Nixon Shock”. More importantly, Nixon closed the gold window to prevent foreign governments that had been holding dollar-denominated financial assets from demanding gold in exchange for their dollars. By January 1976 […]