Investments

On May 6, the stock market suffered a massive drop in stock prices that took the Dow Jones Industrial Average down by 1,000 points in a matter of minutes before recovering much of the loss. Although market participants and federal regulators still cannot explain what happened, some popular new investment vehicles’ exchange traded funds, or ETFs—have lost a bit of […]

Investors who own a typical stock and bond portfolio don’t have to go too far to find a handy diversifier. Shares of real estate investment trusts are traded on the major exchanges just like any other stock. However, unlike other stocks that represent ownership of companies, REITS offer ownership in commercial real estate. They give shareholders access to a steady […]

Many investors are worried about the declining position of the United States in the global economy. The dollar has been on a long-term downtrend, federal budget deficits and international trade deficits keep going up, and the country has lost many of its basic industries to overseas competitors. While disconcerting, these trends offer plenty of opportunity to an investor because their […]

We have been hearing the hype for over a year: the 10-year period from 2000 through 2009 was a “lost decade” for stock market investors, featuring two large bear markets and a cumulative loss on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index of 9 percent. It is true that some investors did not have a good experience over the last 10 […]

U.S.stocks rallied nearly 50 percent from March 9 through the end of July, but investors who had suffered through a historic 16-month bear market remained defensive. What did it mean and what are the chances for recovery? Current economic conditions make the picture even more cloudy. Homes continue to go into foreclosure, jobs continue to be lost, and unemployment hovers […]

It is bad enough that investors lost a lot of money in 2008 during a frightening world financial crisis. The sudden and swift recovery that began in March may be even worse for panicked investors who had barely a day to catch their breath between swings in the market. Now many investors who suffered through the bear and still regret […]

Investors suffering during major bear markets are tempted to “time” the market: to sell and avoid the downturn, and then reinvest before the inevitable recovery. It now seems obvious to these investors that anyone with half a brain should have foreseen last year’s credit crisis and massive worldwide fall in asset prices. By selling out ahead they would have preserved […]

Were you able to predict the global bear market that sucked trillions of dollars out of investors’ pockets in late 2008? In retrospect, it looks like it should have been easy to predict—after all, the subprime mortgage crisis had gone on for a year before stocks started crashing in October 2008. It seems obvious that the economy was collapsing and that […]

Most investors could dramatically improve their returns by eliminating five common mistakes from their portfolio management toolboxes. One of these common mistakes is so deadly it could wipe you out, while the others can cost you big time. The most dangerous mistake you can make is betting everything on one investment. This is akin to putting all of your chips […]