Archive - Aug 2010 - Blog entry

The Canadian mutual fund industry has experienced significant setbacks since the credit crisis in 2007. The growing lack of credibility with global capital markets has caused general public skepticism and market risk aversion. The total landscape of the Canadian mutual fund industry has structurally changed as investors re-evaluate their retirement savings plan and seek alternative sources of capital preservation.

Markets in a Flash

· As an appetite for risk has appeared in Europe on this Monday morning investors have been selling the safety of the greenback and making it look weak today.

· Prior to the open of the US equity markets the equity futures markets are higher this suggests that the European uptrend will be followed at the opening bell.

· Oil and Gold are moving higher today. Oil is just below $74.50.

Nothing to see here, move along ...

What is the monopoly for providing cell phone services in the China worth? More than 5 million new subscribers a month. A 3.5% dividend yield means you should put this stock on your speed dial. (CHL).

It's not a bull or bear market, it's a "wolf" market, and it's scaring retail investors away. How long before the "wolves" end up cannibalizing each other and we end up paying a high price for their reckless greed?

While China is the top U.S. debt holder in the world, percentage-of-GDP-wise, the U.S. receives relatively very little non-bond investment from China, mostly due to the long existing tensions over various issues, including but not limited to, trade imbalance and currency. However, there has been some changes on both sides since CNOOC was blocked from the Unocal acquisition in 2005.

A dumb law from 1960 is costing us an extra $50 billion a year. Will it be changed? Not a chance.

But don't worry, BP - like Goldman, JP Morgan, etc. - is too big to fail, and won't have to deal with it's mess...

Rising oil prices (USO) are going to be a major investment theme from here on. Positioning for $150/barrel oil. Higher crude realizations, a new LNG project coming online in Qatar, and sharply recovering refining margins all contributed to sharp growth at ExxonMobile. Investing in the world’s most conservative company. (XOM).

All the latest M&A activity begs the question--where the heck is private equity? Can they still compete with large companies sitting on a pile of cash? If so, who will likely be the potential candidates?

The SEC’s crackdown on the State of New Jersey this week for misrepresenting the condition of its pension funds has cities and states scrambling to make sure their pension disclosures are in order. Is this the tip of the iceberg?

Why would you doubt our Glorious Science Tsars, Comrade?

This is an article I wrote for a newspaper that is a reprise of my reasoning why I think we are headed for stagflation. The article will appear next week, but it will be familiar stuff for my readers.

A new study by the Carbon Disclosure Project finds the transportation sector generating 13% of total global emissions. While there are ongoing debates about the link between greenhouse emissions and climate change, it is a logical and evolutional process to broaden our energy sources. Biofuels is one of the reasonable, although not complete, solutions, and one of the latest biofuel developments is using whiskey by-products.

It looks like an M&A boom is on the horizon and it might provide a much needed lift to sagging markets.