Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
Sorry to hear this; the wheels are really coming off. I've kept MSMLX on watch since I last owned it pre-pandemic -- the only Matthews fund I would have still considered before these latest breakdowns. It's remained a great fund in its category and …
Happy solstice, merry Christmas, and like Jose F. says in the song, a prosperous and happy year coming up. The first real snowstorm of the season arrived just in time, finally enough to make Bing Crosby happy. Looks like that front may be heading to…
Yep. DC appellate court will laugh total immunity out of the courtroom, the trial prep will continue toward the March date, and next term the SC will have its say ... or will decline to take the case. Not doing anything now may be a sign that the la…
I’m giving some thought to going a little shorter or more conservative in the fixed income / bond sleeves. Just a thought. Maybe lock in some of the recent gains?
I'm with you on that, @Hank. Moved some intermediate duration to limited duration th…
YBB: Well, it is NOT uncommon for nonprofit entities to have for-profit units.
Of course it's not. I didn't say it's uncommon or illegal as such.
YBB: Law/IRS only requires budgetary/financial separation and tax payments on the for-profit activit…
The nonprofit arm could have a hard time with the IRS if the profit side controls it, say for example with a majority of the board from the profit side. If you've looked at a 990 IRS info return form lately, there are a LOT of questions about the ex…
Pro Publica is a gem of an organization. I see they've spruced up their website lately. They have a Nonprofit Explorer database with financial info from essentially every nonprofit that's filed an IRS info return (a 990, not the "postcard" return fo…
I like PDO a lot, and will own it again sometime. I'd keep an eye on z-stat (P/D relative to history) in addition to absolute P/D for good buying opportunities. It's B-rated with massive leverage; best buying opps may be a ways off.
Japan equity has been crushing it this year, especially currency hedged, up nearly 40% (DXJ). Question is more what happens now, after such a good run. There's been a small-ish selloff lately, and IMHO, it's not a buy-the-dip time, at least not yet.…
On the other hand, buying a 20-year Treasury would probably yield comparable to an annuity, and it would still be worth something when I die!
Well yeah, and the original investment would still be there to fall back on in case of running out of $ ver…
The 20y is a pretty interesting outlier at 5%. Bought at that rate, could be a future cap gain opportunity.
I doubt if I will live 20 more years, but it’s good to be optimistic.
20y is almost for sure past my expiry date, but I wouldn't be buying i…
Long Jap. equity, short yen has been a good combo for a while. DXJ is a simple way to play it, but how much more juice does that trade have? YTD: EWJ = +11.5%, DXJ = +39.9%.
Maybe not the same coal plant you invested in, @Old_Joe, but the mammoth Navajo plant at Page (AZ) was demolished in 2020. Went by it a few times in the '90s, and it was truly a belcher, the belchin'-est one in the entire West. VOX article.
This most recent PK piece David links has excellent explanations of the strengths and weaknesses of the various inflation measures. Highly recommended ...
Same here in still staying almost entirely out of risk assets, with a twist in the last couple of months: trying to extend maturity in Treasuries I own to 1-2y at 5% or greater, and if 3y ever hits 5%, I'll be there too. For ultrashort maturity, it'…
Racq: "We're going to mine and refine regardless ..."
Of course. But the point is we don't have to mine the amount of metals we can reuse by recycling them. Recycling reduces the level of mining needed to supply the next use. Of course it would be …
First, If you burn stuff to make solar cells, it takes a year or so of their operation to zero out the CO2 impact of the manufacturing. After that, it's all benefit, in terms of limiting GHGs, which is the point. I looked into that aspect before ins…
I am curious of whether lithium-based batteries can be recycled or is it economical?
Hi @Sven, the site Electrek has a few articles on recycling Li and other EV battery metals. Here's one: "North America’s first battery-grade recycling hub just sc…
There's a decent takedown in WaPo today - four Pinocchios of the email pseudonym-Ukraine prosecutor firing-Hunter Biden etc. "issue" House Rs are rattling on about, in the current Kessler fact-check column.
Main problem: the actual timeline of eve…
Turley's rep was shot a few years ago. Like you, @Crash, I can't remember the context, but he went way over the edge the last time I heard him interviewed on NPR. He was at one time a regularly interviewed NPR "expert," but they dropped him, and the…
RIP, Jimmy B. There was a pic in one article, can't find it now, of a woman placing a salt shaker in what looked like an impromptu shrine to him. Get it?
JB Philosophy: Life is just a tire swing.
The generally low IG muni yields with my lower marginal tax rate is why for several years, my only muni investments have been in high yield, and only when they're good buys with a fresh spot of momentum. (And after a good run slows/stops, it's good-…
Maybe Lynn's article "this month" means September, coming up on Friday? Looking forward to it ...
The Columbia piece: It seems to be industry standard, given that they're trying to sell something, but the maximum tax-equivalent yield of a muni is m…
We'll be damned lucky to get even a CR, given what the Republican Party has become.
True dat. It will prob'ly take something like the debt ceiling resolution in the House, with enough Rs and Ds voting for it, and McCarthy willing to even bring it up…
@Anna
Hook 'em Horns!!!
I graduated UT in 73, then left Texas after being born and raised there
I don't recognize the place now! Austin is a nightmare
Pretty much the same story here; graduated 1971, took off for the West afterwards. I look back …
We aren't going to get any of that with the current Congress. Not. Even. Close. Holding the line, which is what a CR does unless it's loaded with poison pills, etc., is a pretty good outcome for now. Then there's an election.
A CR would be terrific. There have been years (only in recent times, of course) when that was the only budget action of the year for many domestic programs. This budget debacle includes a new list of demands from the House crazies.
He had an earlier column with the same theme, and nothing's happened since that would change the math and logic of it. It's just not far enough from 2% to zero for a recession response, and there was never a solid rationale for 2% in the first place.
