I read an interesting article this weekend by Ray Dalio, of Bridgewater Associates, about deleveraging. He contends that all countries pass through a similar cycle of leveraging up through the use of credit, followed by a phase of deleveraging to return debt-to-income ratios to manageable levels. Deleveraging can occur in four different ways: 1) debt… Continue reading Japan’s Central Bank Enters the Devaluing Fray
CLS Blog
Flu 101: Important Things to Know About Flu Season
1) The medical term for the “flu” is Influenza. Contrary to popular belief, it is a respiratory illness. 2) The flu often peaks in January or February, but vaccines are given from September through March, and cover the 3 main strains of influenza that research has shown to be most common during the upcoming season.… Continue reading Flu 101: Important Things to Know About Flu Season
Environmentally Friendly?
When I would present to clients and advisors in the mid-2000s, I often spoke about some potential transformations that would have a large impact on the investing landscape. Energy independence was one of those items. I always imagined it coming from alternative energy and improved batteries. Based on information in the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s… Continue reading Environmentally Friendly?
Bulls Are On The Move
How does this bull market in the S&P compare to past bull markets? In short, the economic recovery may be below average, but the stock market strength is clearly above-average. The bull market’s length is now over 1400 days. This is longer than 70 percent of all bull markets. The gain in the S&P is… Continue reading Bulls Are On The Move
Earnings Report on Bieber, Oprah, and CEOs
With the start of a new year, it’s no secret that many in the financial world are eagerly eyeing the first corporate earnings reports of 2013. So far, so good it would seem. Alcoa got things off to a good start on Tuesday, Jan. 8, when it revealed that it was able to meet the… Continue reading Earnings Report on Bieber, Oprah, and CEOs
A Quick Look at Fixed Income
For approximately the past four years both stocks and bonds have had positive returns for investors. The Federal Reserve has been printing money at a record pace and it continues to do so. However, that gravy train may finally be coming to an end and some investors are starting to become concerned about what to… Continue reading A Quick Look at Fixed Income
Bank of America’s Billion Dollar Settlements
On Monday, Bank of America announced two large settlements with different parts of the federal government. Settling items for Bank of America is nothing new. Counting the twin settlements, Bank of America has reached fourteen settlements with various entities since 2010. Over that time, Bank of America has paid to settle charges for loaning to… Continue reading Bank of America’s Billion Dollar Settlements
CLS Investment Themes For 2013
CLS has developed key investment themes for 2013, let’s identify them and take a look at some of the ways these can be implemented. Below I offer some ‘resolutions’ to get the ball rolling in the New Year. Theme: Creative Diversification Be More Active – One of the more popular trends in new ETF’s lately has… Continue reading CLS Investment Themes For 2013
Lessons From New York
Last month our Institutional Trading Director, Ritchie Brown, and I attended an ETF trading conference at the New York Stock Exchange. CLS focuses specifically on ETF investing, so we were excited to learn more about how to improve our trading methods. We were also looking forward to meeting our business partners, Bank of America/Merrill Lynch… Continue reading Lessons From New York
Skill vs. Luck
My car broke down over the weekend. As I lost feeling in my toes and smoke billowed out from underneath my hood, I immediately assumed that the problem had something to do with the repairs performed nearly a month ago by individuals who will remain nameless. Not surprisingly I felt a bit of righteous indignation… Continue reading Skill vs. Luck