We are mere points away from 1,300 on the S&P 500 Index. That is a drop of over 7% in the first 17 days of May. Don’t be surprised if you see a spike in the averages in the next few days, but don’t get too excited.

It has been almost five years since the start of the financial crisis. In its second year, the so-called recovery has been disappointing, unlike any other economic cycle since World War II. At the heart of this failure lies our country’s inability to recognize why this time it is truly different. That difference can be [...]

“Play it once, Sam, for old times’ sake, play ‘As Time Goes By’.”–Ingrid Bergman “You played it for her, you can play it for me…If she can stand to listen to it, I can. Play it.”–Humphrey Bogart. Casablanca Last year the bull market rally began to run out of steam on May 2nd. Over the [...]

John McClane (Bruce Willis): Hey, what’s a fire sale? Matt Farrell (Justin Long):  It’s a three-step… it’s a three-step systematic attack on the entire national infrastructure. Okay, step one: take out all the transportation. Step two: the financial base and telecoms. Step three: You get rid of all the utilities. Gas, water, electric, nuclear. Pretty [...]

Friday’s unemployment rate was a real downer for the markets. Although the unemployment rate itself dropped from 8.2% to 8.1%, that number was deceiving. The markets immediately saw through the headline number. The resultant decline was hefty.

If I hear one more person spout that line, I think I’ll go nuts. Suddenly, because this cliché has worked for the past two years, it has become Gospel to believe it will happen again this year.   Investors should be wary.

It has now been over three years since the CARD Act was signed into law. You remember that bit of consumer legislation that sailed through congress with nary a nay vote. How then have the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act performed since inception?

Good news is good news but bad news is even better news for the stock markets. If you doubt that, just look at recent events and how investors have reacted.

  The oil and gas boom in this country has had some serious side effects. Everything from earthquakes to polluted water has been blamed on the industry. Residents near the areas of hydraulic drilling and exploration are fighting back using the Environmental Protection Agency, lawsuits, lobbying and the media.  The challenge is separating fact from [...]

Doubts are growing. Economic data is beginning to disappoint. Investors are taking profits and beginning to sell their best holdings. Yet, earnings are coming in better than expected. What’s an investor to do?