The size of Switzerland's gold trade is so large that authorities have excluded it from official trade statistics for years to avoid distorting the report and making the other data less useful. The value of Switzerland's 2015 gold exports were roughly equal to the entire GDP of Sri Lanka and accounted for four-fifths of all the gold extracted in a year. Swissinfo.ch reports: How did Switzerland manage to develop into a top-level platform for the gold trade? Primarily through tradition. The Zurich gold market has always been very important. Factors linked to security and efficiency in … [Read more...]
Archives for February 2017
Practical Plans Lead to Sensational Retirement Years
Don't put pressure on yourself to do everything you've ever dreamed of doing during your retirement. Believe me, you will be able to do a lot, but you'll also find you've never been busier. Take a deep breath. Make a plan for the big trips like Paris and don't stress out about not doing enough. That's how you can guarantee your retirement will be short lived. Brian Hershberg writes at Moneybeat: Retirement—for better and worse—will change your life more than you anticipate. That’s the consensus of those who should know best: retirees themselves. In the latest Journal Report on Wealth … [Read more...]
Can You Avoid Investing with the Herd?
As Vanguard continues to gather assets consider your exposure to the indexing herd. Sarah Krouse reports at The Wall Street Journal: Of the $533 billion of net flows into all mutual funds and exchange-traded funds last year, 54%, or $289 billion, went to funds managed by Vanguard, according to research firm Morningstar Inc. The fund company’s own tally for the year was even higher, at $322.8 billion. The rush to Vanguard is largely the result of a push to embrace funds that mimic broad indexes for a fraction of the cost of traditional actively managed mutual funds. Vanguard, which started … [Read more...]
Intel’s ‘Most Advanced Semiconductor Facility in the World’
In a recent sit-down with President Trump, Intel CEO Brian Krzanich announced plans for a $7 billion manufacturing facility in Arizona that will employ 3,000 people in high-skill positions. John McKinnon and Rebecca Ballhaus report for The Wall Street Journal: A White House official described the planned Intel facility as “the most advanced semiconductor facility in the world.” It will provide 3,000 high-skill manufacturing jobs, officials said. Some chips that will be made there will be used in emerging technologies that Intel is seeking growth as its personal computer business matures. … [Read more...]
This is a Detailed Account of Why You Can’t Trust Brokerage Research
The Wall Street Journal has a must-read story that lays out in detail why brokerage research must not be relied upon. Brokers are first and foremost in the business of distributing securities. As you will read here, the research departments are a part of the package of gaining underwriting business. The more favorable the opinion on an issuer the more money business for the bank. On the Sunday after Donald Trump won the U.S. presidential election, sparking turmoil in emerging markets, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. downgraded Indonesia’s stock market. The move set off a chain reaction that … [Read more...]
Small Business Profile: Island Creek Oysters
Originally posted April 8, 2014. Becky and I are familiar with the Island Creek success story because good friends of ours live in Duxbury, MA and hang-out with the founder and CEO Skip Bennett. If you like oysters, then you’ll love Island Creek Oysters. What’s great about Skip’s incredible story is that it was his desire for independence that drove him to success. I think every small business owner and entrepreneur can relate to Skip. Here’s a recent profile on him and Island Creek by Under Current News: Before the knuckly-shelled morsels from Island Creek Oysters make it onto the white … [Read more...]
Will Soaring Smallcap Valuations Now Collapse After Euphoria?
After the election of Donald Trump, U.S. small-cap stocks saw their prices explode upward on the hopes that tax and regulatory reform would boost performance. But can the hype match reality, and if it does, has all the opportunity already been priced in? Robin Wigglesworth writes in the FT: US small stocks guru Henry Ellenbogen is concerned that the ferocious post-election equity rally could unravel unless the economy accelerates sharply to justify the frothy valuations, warning that most gains were powered by fickle inflows into exchange traded funds. So-called “small-caps” — or smaller … [Read more...]
New Crisis Threatening the Survival of American Farms
In the Wall Street Journal, Jesse Newman and Patrick McGroarty outline a nightmare scenario for American farmers. Low prices for crops, difficult export opportunities thanks to a strong dollar, and a glut of grain on world markets are combining to push farmers out of business at a rate fast enough to shrink their numbers below 2 million for the first time since the mid-1800s. From the early 1800s until the Great Depression, the number of U.S. farms grew steadily as pioneers spread west of the Mississippi River. Families typically raised a mix of crops and livestock on a few hundred acres of … [Read more...]
One Easy Solution to the Fiduciary Problem
With the fate of the Department of Labor's fiduciary rule up in the air, investors and brokerages are looking for a way forward. For investors worried about doing business with a broker held to the much less stringent suitability standard, the easy solution is to simply work with an investment advisor held to the higher fiduciary standard. Michael Wursthorn reports for the Wall Street Journal on the next steps brokers are taking in the face of uncertainty about the rule. The fiduciary rule, due to take effect April 10, is unpopular with Republicans and some in the financial industry who say … [Read more...]
A New Energy Source Could Change Shipping in the World Forever
In a year, a typical cargo ship can pollute as much as 50 million passenger vehicles. Needless to say, the shipping industry is coming under increasing fire by environmentalists to clean up its fleet. At ExxonMobil Energy Factor, the company explains how shipping companies are embracing much cleaner burning liquified natural gas. While the containerships responsible for supplying goods to consumers have consistently grown in size over the decades, one of the latest technological improvements ahead for these vessels will be what they consume themselves. Today, large, diesel engines are … [Read more...]