Well, that didn’t take long. Less than two months into his presidency and Joe Biden wants to raise taxes because we need to pay for all the SPENDING. Give me a break. They’re not interested in paying for anything. They won’t be paying for their spending, they’ll just be creating dollars out of thin air. Look at the chart of M2 money supply below to see how it’s already started. Press Secretary Jen Psaki talks to us with a face that says “I hate you,” and “I will crush you,” and looks just fine with the idea of taking more of what’s yours. She doesn’t look like she worries too much about … [Read more...]
Archives for March 2021
Did the Floodgates for Actively Managed ETFs Just Open?
Recently a mutual fund, for the first time, successfully became an ETF. Is this the harbinger of a flood of new actively managed ETFs hitting the market as other mutual funds follow suit? Claire Ballentine reports for Bloomberg: A small mutual-fund provider has made history by becoming the first to formally change its products into exchange-traded funds. Guinness Atkinson Funds announced on Monday that it had converted two of its mutual funds into the SmartETFs Dividend Builder (ticker DIVS) and SmartETFs Asia Pacific Dividend Builder (ADIV). The conversion was a non-taxable event for … [Read more...]
Parents and Politicians Fight Abuse by Teachers’ Unions During Pandemic
There are still places in America where schools are closed. Despite a promise by Joe Biden that he'd have them open in his first 100 days (by April 30), teachers' unions in many places have no intention of opening schools. The selfish response to the pandemic by teachers' unions, who have left children at home dealing with the mental distress of isolation, has opened the eyes of many parents and politicians who are now fighting back. You've read a lot about West Virginia Governor Jim Justice here lately, and that's because he's leading a charge to make the state part of America's "growth … [Read more...]
Did You Miss the Biggest Market Rally in over Eight Decades?
U.S. stocks just completed their largest 12-month rally since 1936 (see the chart below). The S&P 500 gained 74.9% from March 23, 2020, through March 23, 2021. Investors who bailed out of the market in March or April of last year because of the unprecedented size and scope of the pandemic created too much uncertainty, are surely soaked with regret today. Stocks are volatile. Savvy investors recognize that going in. Maintaining proper balance and perspective is vital to successfully riding through bear markets as well as bull markets. The Financial Times has more on the historic … [Read more...]
Germany Finds AstraZeneca Too Risky for People Under 60
Germany will only recommend people over 60 years old get the AstraZeneca vaccine for COVID-19. Bloomberg's Daniel Schaefer reports: Germany will change its recommendation on AstraZeneca Plc’s Covid-19 vaccine and say it should only be used for women and men older than 60, after new data emerged on potential side effects. The country’s vaccination commission has drafted a recommendation that the shots only be used for older people but leaves open the possibility to administer it to younger people at a doctor’s discretion, according to a person familiar with the document. Chancellor … [Read more...]
My Key West Garden Office
Hard to believe it has been nearly 30 years since I walked away from dealing with investing clients, prospects, or the financial media. I also stopped speaking at capacity-filled investment conferences around the world from New Orleans to Switzerland to Hong Kong. About that same time, Debbie and I bought two Harley-Davidson motorcycles along with a little pink Conch cottage in Key West, Florida. In the following decades, we racked-up 125,000 miles on the bikes with not a single mishap (or road beer) along the way. Today, dodging road obstacles and traffic or riding through passing … [Read more...]
Fidelity is #1: Meet FidSafe and Raise Your Family’s Level of Preparation
UPDATE, 3.29.21: One of the best ways FidSafe can help your family is with useful estate planning document management tools. You can start out on FidSafe with their estate planning checklist, that helps you organize all your most important files the right way. There are many documents you’ll need to be fully prepared, including a last will and testament, durable power of attorney, trust documents, marriage licenses, vehicle titles, charitable wishes, deeds, and more. FidSafe helps you remember it all, keep it safe, and have it ready when needed. Originally posted on September 24, 2020. A … [Read more...]
US Companies Join Chorus of the Inflation Wary
American companies are sounding the alarm on inflation. The Financial Times reports: Investors are fretting over inflation. Scores of US companies are saying they are right to. A growing list of businesses are warning that supply-chain bottlenecks, increasing raw material costs and higher labour expenses are beginning to bite. Manufacturing behemoth 3M has flagged rising air and freight costs to ship its goods, while Walmart has warned on the congestion in US ports. Mobile home manufacturer Legacy Homes and Williams-Sonoma, the purveyor of Breville espresso machines and Wüsthof knife … [Read more...]
Tax Season Is the Perfect Time To Teach the Grandchildren About Money
It’s tax season, why not show your grandchildren how to keep more of what they make? First, tell them about tax-deferred accounts, and then explain to them the power of compounding. Look at the difference between Grandchild A, whose grandparents explained the power of compounding and saved early and often, and Grandchild B whose grandparents only started saving later. Action Line: Save early, save often, and start saving now for your children or grandchildren. As you can see in the table above, if you start early, it doesn't take a lot to deliver the rewards of compounding to your … [Read more...]
You Got the Carrot, Here Comes the Tax Stick
After doling out a few grand to Americans who mostly don’t need it, the Biden Administration and its left-wing allies in the Senate are prepping for tax increases to pay for an infrastructure program (read Green Energy Boondoggle). Biden wants to take back Trump's corporate tax cuts, as well as hike rates on high-income earners (but dump the limit on state and local taxes that benefit high-income earners in blue states the most). And in a truly asinine move, he wants to hike the capital gains tax rate to the ordinary income tax rate for those making over $1,000,000. That’s an increase from … [Read more...]
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