When it comes to your investments, you must develop a plan that is more than just reliance on rising stock prices. Share prices can remain depressed for agonizingly long periods of time. A decade or more of no return with a regular retirement draw, can quickly decimate a life-time worth of savings. Regular dividend payments offer a refreshing stream of income to help you navigate long dry spells in the stock market. If you haven’t yet been convinced of the power of dividends, read what I wrote back in April of 1992 below: Dividends Are Key to Your Stock Investing Success Now what about … [Read more...]
Underfunded Pensions and a Devil’s Bargain
In Pontiac, Michigan, pensions for public employees have been underfunded for years, and the city is going to raise taxes to help fund pension payments. This same predicament is playing out across America, with pensions in many states and cities woefully underfunded, and with pension boards who overestimate returns to paper over the problem. Like many pensions, those in Pontiac are restricted on the proportion of assets that may be invested in equities compared to fixed income and other securities. The current limit is 40% of assets may be invested in equities. These limits are in place … [Read more...]
India Targets E-Commerce Giants with new Rules
Amazon and Walmart (owner of Flipkart) are India's two largest e-commerce companies. New ownership rules coming into effect in India are about to hammer their businesses. Bloomberg's Saritha Rai reports: Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc. suffered a blow in India, the next frontier of e-commerce, when the government rejected requests to defer a deadline requiring online retailers to comply with tighter new rules starting on Friday. That means Amazon and Walmart-owned Flipkart, India’s two largest online retailers who dominate the market, won’t be able to sell the products of companies in … [Read more...]
Your Retirement Life: Looking for Tax Freedom? Here’s Where to Find It
With tax season here, it's helpful to examine your own tax situation and understand the alternatives. Read this post I wrote on July 5, 2018 for guidance. As Americans near retirement, they are always looking for ways to maximize their savings. At the top of the list of options is avoiding punitive taxation at all levels. There isn't much most people can do about federal taxes (other than vote), but Americans are gifted with a choice of 50 states and a handful of territories from which to choose where to live. I have been encouraging Americans to explore their options when it comes to … [Read more...]
The Silver Lining to Your Cash
I like having a little silver in my pocket especially when times are desperate. And I also like some in my portfolio. We may not see a rally in silver this year, but it’s coming off it’s best December in almost two years, up 9.1 percent, making me happy I own some. For me, silver is a counterbalance to my cash. And if the Fed’s going to sit tight on rates and silver is at its smallest output since 2013, it might be time to pay attention. Marvin Perez reports at Bloomberg: Think of it as a potential silver lining for investors. A deepening shortage is promising to help boost prices as … [Read more...]
Central Banks Are on a Gold Buying Spree
Central banks of countries trying to move away from dollar reserves are buying up gold in amazing numbers. Russia, Turkey and Kazakhstan were leaders in increased gold buying last, reports Henry Sanderson in the Financial Times. He goes on to write: Central banks bought a net $27bn worth of gold, driven by Russia, whose net purchases were the highest on record, according to the World Gold Council, an industry-backed body. Volumes came to 651.5 tonnes, an increase of 74 per cent on the previous year. The buying reflects continued efforts by emerging market central banks to diversify their … [Read more...]
The Robots Stocking Shelves
Retailers are working hard to blend the advanced logistics systems they have developed to compete with Amazon with their brick and mortar locations. One area of opportunity is better management of what's in stock on the shelves at each store. Now companies are deploying robots to take stock of inventory on store shelves and send that data back to warehouses in real time to make restocking more efficient. Jennifer Smith reports in The Wall Street Journal: The complicated blending of inventories in stores and warehouses has some retailers testing the use of shelf-scanning robots that roam store … [Read more...]
Your Survival Guy: Out of Gas in Newport, Now What?
Your Survival Guy: Out of Gas in Newport: 80% back on the Grid Your Survival Guy: Out of Gas in Newport Day 5 (and 5 to go) Your Survival Guy: Out of Gas in Newport Day 4 Your Survival Guy: Out of Gas in Newport Now that Newport, RI is back on the natural gas grid, I want to share with you a conversation I had with an owner of a successful natural gas operation. He said that the problem basically comes down to the fact that the green movement is spending the money and has politicians in its back-pocket. The utilities aren’t spending the money for political messaging. As a … [Read more...]
Can Retailers Beat Amazon with FedEx on Their Side?
Small retailers have faced heavy competition from Amazon as the big company has raced to dominate e-commerce. One of the greatest advantages Amazon has had over competitors is its logistical efficiency, quickly moving products to customers before competitors are able. That might be changing though, as FedEx has announced a new program that will allow smaller retailers to directly compete with Amazon on delivery speeds. Bloomberg's Thomas Black reports on the new program, writing: FedEx sees potential profit in the competitive pressure online stores face in keeping up with Amazon’s drive to … [Read more...]
This Leading Indicator Says U.S. Economy Still Strong
Some investors have pointed to the recent correction in stocks as a warning of recession and a reason for the Fed back-off of its interest rate hiking cycle. Recessions are often accompanied by falling stock prices, but falling prices don’t guarantee economic contraction. There have been plenty of false positives throughout history. While the jury is still out on whether the current stock market correction is a signal of recession, the coincident economic data continues to show economic strength. GDP is growing close to 3% according to the Atlanta Fed GDPNow forecast, industrial production … [Read more...]
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