FYI: Once upon a time, fund managers kept plenty of cash in reserve in case the stock market tanked. Those days are gone.
Regards,
Ted
http://blogs.wsj.com/moneybeat/2016/03/11/cash-is-now-a-sin/

FYI: Talk to some traders right now and you’ll hear the smartest ones talking about fading each edge of the range – the market-wide breakouts and breakdowns are all false.
Only amateurs are making high-conviction moves these days. They get bearish at SPX 1970 and bullish as we approach 2000. The market is chopping them up.
Regards,
Ted
http://thereformedbroker.com/2016/03/11/welcome-to-the-chop-shop/
When Do You Want Your Risk, Now Or Later?:
http://thereformedbroker.com/2016/03/10/when-do-you-want-your-risk-now-or-later/

Junkster: "I would have to look, but haven't hedge funds performed absolutely miserably since 1/1/2009?" You are so correct !
Regards,
Ted
http://www.aei.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/hedge2.png

I would have to look, but haven't hedge funds performed absolutely miserably since 1/1/2009? Just another example of "there are no experts". Once investors grasp that tenet they can begin going about developing their own money management strategies based on their particular goals and risk tolerances - and not what they read here, there, or anywhere.

FYI: The hedge fund titan Larry Robbins did something out of character last year. He apologized to investors for losing their money and pledged to “right the ship as quickly as possible.” Then he solicited more money from them, raising $1 billion for a new fund and promised to waive the fees.
But he keeps on losing money.
:http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/11/business/dealbook/for-hedge-funds-start-of-2016-offers-little-relief-from-2015.html?_r=0
Regards,
Ted

Subscription Period
Vanguard Core Bond Fund is holding a subscription period from March 10, 2016,
through March 24, 2016. During this period, the Fund will invest in money
market instruments rather than seek to achieve its investment objective. This
strategy should allow the Fund to accumulate sufficient assets to better
construct a portfolio and is expected to reduce initial trading costs.
The Fund reserves the right to terminate or extend its subscription period prior
to March 24, 2016.
During the subscription period, you may invest in the Fund online (if you are
registered for online access), or you may contact Vanguard by telephone or by
mail to request this transaction. Please see the Investing With Vanguard
section of the Fund’s prospectus for more details about requesting transactions.
© 2016

e.r.= 0.25% (Investor Shares) or 0.15% (Admiral Shares)
Prospectus straightforward and unremarkable, as one would expect.....
https://personal.vanguard.com/us/funds/snapshot?FundId=1320&FundIntExt=INT

How To Be Wrong As An Investor
Posted March 9, 2016 by Ben Carlson A Wealth of Common Sense blog post
Investors can’t expect to be right at all times. You’re going to be wrong on occasion even when you make the right decisions. Understanding that poor outcomes can happen to a legitimate investment process is a huge step in becoming a better investor. The thing is you can poke holes in any investment strategy out there. The trick is finding the one with flaws that you’re comfortable with.
http://awealthofcommonsense.com/2016/03/how-to-be-wrong-as-an-investor/

FYI: Vanguard today introduced Vanguard Core Bond Fund, bringing a low-cost entrant to the core bond fund category.
Regards,
Ted
https://pressroom.vanguard.com/press_release/press_release_vanguard_launches_actively_managed_core_bond_fund_20160310.html
Barron's Slant:
http://blogs.barrons.com/focusonfunds/2016/03/10/vanguard-launches-ultra-low-cost-actively-managed-core-bond-fund/tab/print/

FYI: Generally ignoring mixed economic news, equity investors continued to follow the lead of oil prices throughout the fund-flows week ended March 2, 2016.
Regards,
Ted
http://lipperalpha.financial.thomsonreuters.com/2016/03/55317/

FYI: Study finds the pattern persists over five and ten years.
Managers who bought international equities fared better.
Chalk up another victory for indexing.
Sixty-six percent of mutual-fund managers who buy large U.S. stocks underperformed the benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500 Index last year, according to a study by S&P Dow Jones Indices.
Regards,
Ted
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-09/most-u-s-stock-pickers-failed-to-beat-index-last-year-s-p-says
MarketWatch Slant:
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-sp-500-beat-66-of-stock-pickers-last-year-2016-03-10/print
Click On SPVIA U.S. Year-End 2015
https://us.spindices.com/search/?query=spiva+u.s.+year-end+2015&Search=GO&Search=GO

I have been a fan of Matthews in general for many years and have owned both MAPIX when it first opened as an alternative to MACSX when that fund was closed to new investors. When MACSX reopened, I moved my MAPIX money to it. But when moving my 401k money to an IRA I was able to buy SFGIX. I moved that EM chunk of money again, to Andrew Foster.
At one time years back on this discussion board, many were saying Asia is the future - that's where the bulk of your money should be. Well, that was baloney then and it still is - at least I don't see it happening in my life time. Some exposure to Asia is great, but I for one don't think you need an Asia specific (especially China specific) fund. Not When Andrew Foster's fund is available. Who better then to determine an Asia allocation? And right now Foster is reducing Asia exposure. Matthews funds are the best of the Asian specific class, but are they needed other than for momentum bets? Here is a quote I pulled out of a different MFO post on SFGIX.

February 2016 – In his latest portfolio review, Andrew Foster discusses a shift in the Fund’s composition, away from the Asian region, and toward larger stocks at the expense of smaller ones. Next, he speculates as to the cause behind the collapse in China’s capital markets. While he does not offer a definitive explanation, he does suggest that circumstances may be serious enough to warrant attention from investors.

@hank said "So small investors are supposed to ...? "
Gundlach mentioned as possible investments
G-7 Bonds in local currency. Gundlach's newest fund Right product,right time.
http://www.doublelinefunds.com/funds/global_bond/overview.html
Bond C E Fs @ discount.His ?
DBL
http://www.cefconnect.com/Details/Summary.aspx?Ticker=DBL
DSL
http://www.cefconnect.com/Details/Summary.aspx?Ticker=DSL
@junKster said on 3/6
the Jeffrey Gundlach DoubleLine bond funds mentioned (DBLTX and DLTNX have been among the best of the best over the past 1, 3, and 5 years. And obviously had you *blindly* put your money in the trust of DoubleLine you would be sitting pretty in that bond category if a diversified portfolio is your thing.
http://www.mutualfundobserver.com/discuss/discussion/comment/75948/#Comment_75948
Also in JNK

By Bloomberg News | March 9, 2016 - 12:09 pm EST
Best junk bond manager of decade says recession fears overdone
Fidelity's Mark Notkin sees mid-to-high single-digit returns for 2016
Mark Notkin expected the rebound in high-yield bonds. The earlier plunge in the first part of the year is what didn't make sense to him.
Mr. Notkin, whose $9.7 billion Fidelity Capital & Income Fund FAGIX has outperformed all peers over the past decade, didn't flinch as high-yield bond prices tumbled in January and early February. While investors feared that declining oil prices and troubles in Europe and Asia might disrupt growth in the U.S., Mr. Notkin found little evidence to support the gloom.
http://www.investmentnews.com/article/20160309/FREE/160309924?template=printart
Gundlach's Slides From 3/9
http://seekingalpha.com/article/3956876-jeffrey-gundlach-probability-another-hike-march-june-2016-slides
Gundlach "uncanny"how accurate this indicator has been

We will have to revisit Mr. Gundlach predictions sometime down the road. PIMCO has a different and positive view on junk bonds - see link below. I have no idea on stocks, junk bonds or whatever. Albeit I am lighter than I was last week in the junk category. I also have a few irrelevant issues with the month long stock market rally. My only quibble with his junk bond prediction is when he says they aren't worth buying until crude rallies to around $45 to $50 a barrel. They have already rallied 6% from their 2/11 lows (at which time he was predicting a junk bond collapse) If crude does trade to the $45 to $50 level that is another large percentage move you will have missed in junk.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-03/pimco-wades-into-junk-as-doubleline-warns-danger-still-lurks

@Heezsafe,
Thanks - But I added a gold fund, a real estate fund and an EM-bond fund to the mix on Sept. 9 ('15). Added an EM-equity fund (Latin America) on Jan. 18 ('16). These were not popular moves at the time. All have jumped since purchase - in he case of gold and EM-stocks about 35% and 25% respectively.
I'd prefer to move before the markets have ratcheted-up 10-40% and the pundits have issued their reports.

FYI: Is the risk rally of the past few weeks near its end? Jeffrey Gundlach, who runs Double Line Capital LP, thinks so.
Regards,
Ted
http://blogs.wsj.com/moneybeat/2016/03/08/jeffrey-gundlach-calls-end-of-risk-market-rally/

@heezsafe: Are you aware that David Snowball and Mutual Fund Observer has a working relationship with Brian Haskin's publisher of the DAILYALTS. Therefore, the Linkster will continue to link articles by Blaine Rollins, formely of Janus Funds, through DAILYALTS rather than 361 Capital.
Regards,
Ted

@shipwreckedandalone: As time goes buy, you'll learn that one must get up very early to beat the linkster to a article, but please keep on trying. Once again welcome to MFO.
Regards,
Ted
http://www.mutualfundobserver.com/discuss/discussion/26304/the-problem-with-trying-to-quantify-risk#latest
http://www.mutualfundobserver.com/discuss/discussion/26259/bogle-vs-golitath-college-endowment-funds/p1

@hank I'm not sure if Blaine Rollins' "weekly briefings" appear every week in dailyalts.com; but if you like his broad sashay thru the prior week, to get yourself prepared for the week in progress, you can go to the source here:
http://361capital.com/category/weekly-briefing/
It's mostly data trends he thinks were interesting, with some general impressions thrown in. Not infrequently, it will include something unmentioned in the MSM.

I meant to provide this link. My first post was a follow up to the below link.
http://awealthofcommonsense.com/2016/02/bogle-vs-golitath/

@MJG: Interesting, but the chart you linked is from 1/2/15, today ,3/8/16, he updated the chart. Earlier this morning, I did link which at the time was his latest column, 3/6/16, " Bottom Fishing & New Bull Markets" Thanks for calling it to my attention.
Regards,
Ted
http://awealthofcommonsense.com/2016/03/updating-my-favorite-performance-chart/