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.
I went largely to cash 2 weeks ago as even more ghouls started coming out of closets the world over. Equities have sold off every summer since 2007 (except for 2009), seems like a pattern to me.
It would be prudent to see how Asian and European markets react on Monday to this news. My guess is also risk on, at least for now. One has to wonder if markets will soon focus their attention much more on Italy and if a firewall will need to be b…
Many multinational (large & small) companies are watching their revenues in Asia grow much more quickly than in the USA and Europe, so this move doesn't surprise me. Asia had its financial crisis in 1997 while the USA and Europe are still mired…
Gross and El Erian seem to be everywhere. CNBC and the PBS Nightly Business Report are the examples that come to mind. Are "guest commentators" considered wiser "gurus" the more often they appear on TV and the internet? Is this a conscious effort…
Nobody knows what price oil will go to. This article and plenty more like it suggest that the oil and gas infrastructure in North America (and likely elsewhere in the world) is getting old and needs maintenance and/or replacement. Oil equipment su…
No pullback if you're playing in the oil patch!
I know that this site is devoted to mutual funds, but a month ago I recommended a stock named National Oilwell Varco (NOV). This company has a virtual monopoly on supplying all kinds of drilling equ…
"On China" by Henry Super K (aka Henry Kissinger)
"And So It Goes: Kurt Vonnegut: A Life" by Charles Shields
Don't know how I managed to squeeze those in, but I did... : )
Reply to @catch22: Love this MI winter! I can't remember a winter as pleasant as this one, since forever.
India paying for oil with gold? China salivating at cheap Iranian oil? Could happen, who knows?
With central banks the world over enacting…
I've been in MSMLX for 3 years. I took money out of this fund as it tanked last summer/fall and am reinvesting into this fund now that it's tanked so much. Last year at this time central banks around the world were raising interest rates and reser…
I'm considering adding to Tocqueville Gold (TGLDX) for the reasons stated above as well as my thoughts below.
Europe gets all of the headlines but one can argue that China is what really drives the markets. Even The Economist magazine just added…
Hey OJ & Scott ~ It's been a smooth uphill ride thus far in 2012. I'm also thinking of taking some profits as 2008-9 is still fresh in this Pop Tart's mind, and the S&P is up so much from the October lows. However the Fed just juiced the m…
I've been raising cash since the summer. Not because I'm an equity guru who correctly read the tea leaves and foresaw the summer swoon, but because of the great new addition to my family.
I'm going to raise even more cash (like tomorrow) because…
Thanks again to all! Thanks also for the detailed financial plans, I'll look into them. Yes, we'll continue to live in A squared. It's where my wife and I both went to college and have jobs.
We were as prepared as possible for our daughter. Wit…
Thanks to all! Alicia's already proven to be a very welcome transition into the next phase of life! We're VERY happy parents : )
Thanks for the new savings/college account ideas, I'll follow-up!
OJ & Scott - You both thought that I was femal…
I think that the downgrade was telegraphed well in advance, but most gurus didn't think that it would actually happen. Now that S&P has downgraded the U.S., fear has taken over the markets. Nobody knows how long this will last, it seems that Oct…
What's preventing you from investing in this fund? As David mentioned, the blog doesn't seem to provide any accurate reason to avoid investing with either the Amana or Sextant funds. As David stated, the blog is modern cyber-propaganda.
I'm not i…
My thoughts are that if we've thought of Amana's possible nefarious connection, don't you think that the government has also thought of it? The Amana Group is high profile enough to warrant being on the governments' radar and therefore already inve…
Gold @ 2300 & silver @ 130. Who knows if fiat currencies will depreciate that much more against pm's. Think of what the global economy would look like if they did...
Thanks for the comments as I've been scratching my head over CEF depreciating while spot pm's are appreciating. I've been in CEF since April 2010, so I'm happy with the returns thus far. But CEF has always gone up or down together with spot pm pri…
Apple (aapl) has done well over the years & I continue to hold it. However, I agree with Investor i.e. it's tough to do well with Mad Money. I'll stick mostly with funds.
