Follow Up To "Headline of the Day"

China's move to free up its financial sector for foreign investment also potentially bodes well for our emerging markets exposure; as China's looming bad debt issues have been a source of concern for global investors.

Headline of the Day: China's starting to get it...

Contrary to what so many hold to be true (completely baffles me!), history -- the history of the U.S.A -- has proven that the countries with the markets most open to trade and investment (not to mention labor) have the most robust economies and the richest citizens!

This Week's Message: A Wall of Confusion

We think there's something to be said for the old Wall Street adage, "bull markets climb a wall of worry"; if only for the fact that while there's worry in the system, there's uninvested cash in the system. It also jibes with John Templeton's oft-quoted and forever prescient line:

"Bull markets are born on pessimism, grow on skepticism, mature on optimism and die on euphoria."

Chart of the Day: Jobs are Presently Plentiful!

One more today to go with the jobless claims chart I posted earlier. Here, courtesy of Bespoke Investment Group, is a look at the "Jobs Plentiful" component of the most recent Consumer Confidence report:   click to enlarge...   

Worried About the U.S. Jobs Market? Don't Be!

As I get a jump on our weekly research this morning, I am yet again baffled by the disconnect between rhetoric and reality. This morning, my baffledness has to do with jobs.

This Week's Message: Mispricing, Ms. Yellen, and a Certain Something

Interesting day yesterday. The U.S. stock market began with a nice broad-based rally which ultimately fizzled into a, broadly-speaking, mediocre session that saw the Nasdaq give up all of its morning gains, and some, while energy stocks advanced an impressive 1.13%, followed by our global natural resources (read commodity producers) ETF, up .87% and materials +.49%. Utilities and telecom came in last with .56% and .79% declines respectively.

Quotes of the Day: Gut Instinct Does Not Generally Serve Us Well (when it comes to investing)

Ned Davis's excellent book Being Right or Making Money is a treasure trove of potential Quotes of the Day.