A common question asked last week was, why is the stock market going up when there is so much bad news overseas? With the threat of continuing terrorist activity in Europe, the implication was that everyone should be hiding their money under a mattress until order is restored. Actually, that’s… Read More

There was a time not that long age – actually, when I started driving as a teenager in the 1970s – that an automobile was about as low tech as something could get. I recall removing the back doors of my Ford Maverick with nothing more than a ratchet tool… Read More

Recent employment data highlights the duality of U.S. economy. Read More

The “two-tier” stock market we have been expecting for the past year is finally here, and along with it comes heightened volatility now that companies are competing for a more finite amount of investor capital. In simplest terms that means good companies benefit at the expense of bad ones, amplifying… Read More

During her congressional testimony on Nov. 4, Federal Reserve Chairperson Janet Yellen suggested a December rate hike is likely following the release of a strong jobs report earlier in the week. Noting that recent economic strength brings the threat of inflation back into the equation, Yellen qualified her remarks by… Read More

While some tech companies, like Hewlett Packard, are splitting up to move forward, others are consolidating via acquisitions that accelerate the implementation of their strategic plans. In this week’s issue we’ll look at two such deals that affect our portfolios, one of which we discussed briefly last week (EMC) and… Read More