Portfolio Tweak
Earlier this week I made an across the board swap that is worth talking about. I sold China Mobile (CHL) and then replaced it with Partners Communication (PTNR).
From the top down this does not change the exposure to equities or to the telecom sector but it does mostly eliminate China and increases Israel (we've held Teva (TEVA) for years now). We still have a little China as embedded in some of the ETFs we use.

Category: General Market Tags:
Show AND Tell: How to Raise Financially Responsible Kids
This is a guest post from WellHeeled of the Well Heeled Blog. If you like what you see here, please consider subscribing to her RSS feed or following her on Twitter.

Category: Personal Finance Tags:
An Argument for Secondhand Store Clothes, Even If You Must Dress Nicely
Monica writes in:
I don’t understand how you can recommend that people shop in thrift stores for clothes. The stuff there is usually worn out and just looks bad and outdated. I would never wear that stuff to work.
It sounds to me like you’ve made up your mind about thrift stores and secondhand stores before even stepping inside the door. I’ll make the case anyway.

Category: Personal Finance Tags:
Ask the Readers: How Do You Figure the Calculus of Kids?
I keep intending to retain “ask the readers” as a regular Friday feature — and I keep failing. You folks send me tons of great questions, and I’d love to share more of them. This week, for example, Lisa wrote with the following.
“Having kids has made spending choices much more emotional and complex,” she says. “You can’t always calculate a return on investment.” Here’s her predicament:

Category: Personal Finance Tags:
Pre-Market Open News and Links for Friday
Chart of The Day: "Today's chart illustrates how the recent rise in earnings has impacted the current valuation of the stock market as measured by the price to earnings ratio (PE ratio). Generally speaking, when the PE ratio is high, stocks are considered to be expensive. When the PE ratio is low, stocks are considered to be inexpensive. From 1936 into the early 1990s, the PE ratio tended to peak in the low 20s (red line) and trough somewhere around seven (green line).

Category: General Market Tags:
Yen Carry Trade is Back!
I can’t remember how long it’s been since I was hyping the Yen carry trade (though a browsing of the ForexBlog archives indicates 2 years). Upon the outset of the credit crisis, forex markets went haywire, and one of the main “beneficiaries” was the Yen, which soared as carry trades were unwound. Now, however, a similar set of circumstances that made the Yen carry trade attractive from 2006-2008 have re-appeared, and it looks like the trade could be on the verge of making a big comeback.
Readings: derivatives, Greece, & a triple whammy
Here's what I'm reading this afternoon:
1. Triple whammy of trading costs, taxes, and inflation drags down returns on US stocks (with Bloomberg chart graphic).
2. Greece lifts a page from Citigroup's playbook - Jonathan Weil.
3. Barry Ritholtz' take on derivatives regulation.

Category: Longterm Investing Tags:
Thursday links: really soft commodities
The Risk Assets Index is showing a bit too much enthusiasm. (TraderFeed)
The Russell 2000 has retraced some two-thirds of its bear market move. (Barron’s)

Category: General Market Tags:
Force Protection Stuns Investors

Category: Fundamental Analysis Tags:
Who Has Lost More Jobs Men or Women?
Kathy Lien - The U.S. labor market report was released this morning and the data was much better than everyone had anticipated.
Who Has Lost More Jobs - Men or Women?
By: Kathy Lien
Navigation
Tag Cloud
Popular Today
- 7Who Has Lost More Jobs Men or Women?
- 7New derivatives launching very shortly… bet on Avatar & others
- 6AudUsd, 60 min
- 6Gap Fill and Go - CAKE
- 6long one unit at 1140.50 - going with the flow
- 6Five Reasons I’m Skeptical About Target-Date ETFs
- 6Financial Reform Bill To Debut Monday
- 6Wisdom Of Livermore
- 6Stock Market Commentary: Bulls Pushing Their Luck
- 6Help a Reader: House and Debt Decisions
