Manage Your Money
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Fred Moseley, professor of economics at Mount Holyoke College looks at the current housing situation.
So bonds might have done better than stocks - but not by much. And now, municipal bonds look attractive. Do you know how to use them?
The 10 Commandments Of Muni-Bond Investing by Marilyn Cohen
This Recession, It's Just Beginning
By Steven Pearlstein
New Economic Commentary
So much for that second-half rebound.
Now, however, inflation risks are creeping upward, and any improvement in financial conditions will mean that [Fed] policy is too loose.
The Consumer Price Index increased by 0.6% last month and was up 4.2% on a year over year basis. But the real economic concern may be elsewhere.
A new report from the Federal Reserve paints a portrait of a U.S. economy under pressure from almost every direction. Neil Irwin reports
Whatever Ben is up to, you can now count on this: Bernanke: Fed is intent on preventing 'stagflation'
By Robert Gavin
Is he too late?
The International Herald Tribune reports: The Federal Reserve's emergency loans to banks climbed to the highest level on record even as Wall Street investment companies scaled back their borrowing.
U.S. Economy: Confidence Falls as Home Values Decline
By Bob Willis
Confidence among American consumers fell in May to the lowest level since 1992 as the two-year housing slump showed no sign of bottoming.
Today's market Composite Bond Yields
Taking a Hit on the Cusp of Retirement
by Ann Marsh
At 64, Gary Bowne's retirement is so close he can almost touch it. But last year he made a serious misstep. He walked into his local Wells Fargo branch and asked for a safe investment for some of his savings.
Dollar Falls to Record Against Euro as EU Inflation Quickens
By Lukanyo Mnyanda and Stanley White
April 16 (Bloomberg) -- The dollar fell to a record low against the euro after Treasuries anymore...
While three-year returns on a single fund are only of little value they are of more value when looking at many more observations in the form of the firmwide performance.
Emerging-Market Bonds Gain on Signs Credit Crisis May Be Easing
By Lester Pimentel
Emerging-market bonds rose, led by gains in Ecuadorean debt, as speculation global banks will be able to weather credit crisis buoyed demand for higher-yielding assets.
Finding Your Refuge From Inflation
By MARK GONGLOFF
March 30, 2008
Bonds are a particularly bad place to park your money if inflation is rampant. You're essentially lending dollars to the bond issuer, and those dollars will buy a lot less when the issuer pays you back.
Last year, our yearly predictions were almost spot on. And if that happens again this year, we will be in for a wild ride. Never have we hoped to be so wrong.
Our 2008 Outlook
Economic Commentary from Paul Petillo, Managing Editor
Perhaps you would like to take another look at the world of Investing in Bonds
Should you be investing in Bond funds or should you avoid them?
There are many different types of bonds from which to chose, how do you decide. First, you educate yourself. Here is a quick look at some of the different types of bonds.
Corporate Bonds
Municipal Bonds
College Bonds
Savings bonds, the old standby guaranteed by the "full faith and credit" of the Federal Government are still a very popular way for use as investments.
There is something amiss in your pension plan. Here are three brief updates on how this will affect you. And believe me, it will.
Part One | Part Two
Part Three
NEW!
Our Glossaries
One dollar off for a limited time! Buy bonds two ways: Download the form, and mail it from here or buy them online here
The Worth of Corporate Bonds
Transparency has always been a problem with investing. It is no different when using corporate bonds
The Bond Glossary
The following are summaries of the definitions of Moody's ratings for long-term bonds.
Aaa Best quality, with the smallest degree of investment risk.
Aa High quality by all standards; together with the Aaa group they comprise what are generally known as high-grade bonds.
A Possess many favorable investment attributes. Considered as upper-medium-grade obligations.
Baa Medium-grade obligations (neither highly protected nor poorly secured). Bonds rated Baa and above are considered investment grade.
Ba Have speculative elements; futures are not as well-assured. Bonds rated Ba and below are generally considered speculative.
B Generally lack characteristics of a desirable investment.
Caa Bonds of poor standing.
C Lowest rated class of bonds, with extremely poor prospects of ever attaining any real investment standing.
Fixed income investing is more than just a conservative investment tool for those who seek no risk. The Bond markets are more than just Treasuries, more than just savings bonds, and more than just what you found in some old box in the attic.
By definition, they are loans made to the government or a business with the promise that the money you invested will be returned with interest. Both governments and companies are subject to many outside influences from financial news to geo-political events. This adds risk and reward.
This page explores some of those events and their impact on your investments. It should be noted that bonds are important is a
Fixed Income Update
Throughout the month, a wide variety of economic surveys are published that move markets not only here at home but around the world as well. The following link will provide you with a guide to when these reports are released as well as some insight into what they mean.
Past Reactions
On Ben Bernanke: Surpluses are now deficits, runaway government spending and poor fiscal planning, imbalances in trade, the once feared inflation is now here, and the obvious vacuum that has become more evident with each new financial disaster, tax cut, and act of God event, leaves the nominated replacement with more trouble than anyone should want.
full article
(02.09.07) - Add to that the steady overseas appetite for U.S. bonds, a three-month T-Bill with a better yield than its longer counterparts and the inability of investors to demand higher long-term reward for their investment.
Will bonds be the next winner or is expectation just too great? And the winner is...
Previous Bond Market Reactions - Past articles
Two Quick Questions
Money News... on the Run
Fortyfive:
How do trade deficits work?
Fortysix:
Are they bad for the economy?
Finding the Right Level
The Federal Open Market Committee decided without much fanfare to leave interest rates right where they were. Folks who watch this activity tend to focus on what is said especially when it is almost guaranteed that any change would be unlikely.
Sand In the Gearbox
There have been numerous voting and non-voting members of the Federal Open Market Committee giving speeches about the intentions of the group to keep interest rates unchanged.
This Can't Be Good
There is a sense of worry accompanied by jubilation that is acting like a dose of acid reflux on the bond markets. Everything seems to be turning away from fixed income and wandering aimlessly into any other investment. And with good reason.
Could Junk Be Better?
Many fixed income investors will still shrug their shoulders at the missed gains that junk, or more appropriately, high yield bonds have given investors willing to take the risk.
Interest Coverage Ratio: The New Watch-phrase
I often speak of balance among all of these articles I write about finance. Seldom is it achieved, but the quest for it is worth the continued crusade by writers like myself to help you accomplish it. Corporate chiefs are looking for balance also.
The Cost of Strength
Does a strong dollar have any place in the current economic recovery? Probably not. But the current controversies and change in economic policy in this investment should not be ignored.
Accident Prone Investing
Let me tell you a little story first about investing.
The owner of the local corner market noticed Little Johnny start hanging out his store. The owner didn't know what Little Johnny's problem was, but the boys would constantly tease him. They would always comment that he was two bricks shy of a load, or two pickles short of a barrel. To prove it, sometimes they would offer Little Johnny his choice between a nickel (5 cents) and a dime (10 cents) and John would always take the nickel - they said, because it was bigger.
One day after Little Johnny grabbed the nickel, the store owner took him aside and said, "Johnny, those boys are making fun of you. They think you don't know the dime is worth more than the nickel. Are you grabbing the nickel because it's bigger, or what?" Slowly, Little Johnny turned toward the store owner and a big grin appeared on his face and he said, "Well, if I took the dime, they'd stop doing it, and so far I have saved $20!" Can fixed income investors be blamed for wanting a quarter?
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