Insights
6/28/12 12:44 PM – Supremes Uphold Obamacare
The Supreme Court announced its decision on Obamacare today with Chief Justice Roberts writing the opinion. Roberts, not Kennedy sided with the liberal wing of the court in upholding the mandate and a penalty for people who do not buy health insurance. Hospital...
6/27/12 2:54 PM – Big News Day Tomorrow
Thursday is the day we will probably hear the Supreme Court decision on Obamacare which have a big impact on businesses, individuals and government. A recent rumor by Justice Ginsberg that they were very divided over the issue means it will likely be aq 5-4 decision...
6/26/12 10:16 AM – Spanish and Italian Interest Rates Rise
Italian and Spanish yields continue to rise. This was a problem a few months ago and with all the news about the European recession and Spain's troubles with its undercapitalized banks, contagion is back in the news. This probably had a lot to do with the fall in...
6/26/1210:05 AM – Home Prices Recovering
The Case-Schiller composite index of housing prices in 20 major metropolitan areas came out today and was higher for the 3rd month in a row, up about 1.2% if you strip out the seasonal adjustment. Prices were still about 2% lower than last April but it is encouraging...
6/22/12 4:30 PM – Bounce Today, Europe Running in Circles
US stocks bounced today after yesterday's big decline but as is usual got back only a small portion of yesterday's drop. The S&P 500 index was up 0.72% today, gold was up 0.4% while natural gas gained 1.9%. Oil was up 2%+ and bonds were slightly down. European debt...
6/21/12 4:30 PM – Down Day in Stocks
The U.S. stock market as measured by the S&P 500 index lost 2.23% today which is really just a give-back of the runup on Tuesday in anticipation of the Fed meeting which yielded nothing of substance. That is a pretty normal pattern for trading around a Federal Reserve...
6/21/12 10:43 AM – U.S. Economy Shows More Signs of Slowing
According to CNBC, an industry survey by Markit showed that, "U.S. 'flash' manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index fell to 52.9 from 54.0 in May. The June reading was the lowest since last July although it stayed above 50, indicating expansion in activity." New claims...
6/20/12 5:33 PM – Choppy Markets, Fed Statement
Markets were choppy but ended not far from breakeven. The S&P 500 was down 2 points, bonds were fairly flat, gold lost 3/4%, natural gas was down 1%, giving back a little of the big pop a few days ago. European stocks were up a bit, Asia was mixed. The Fed statement...
6/19/12 4:32 PM – Strong Stock Market on European Hopes
Stocks had a nice day today, led by European stocks that were up roughly 1.4% - 1.9% today. U.S. stocks finished up 1% - 1.7% with small stocks leading the way. The market pulled back from a short term resistance level late in the day but still had a very good day....
6/18/12 4:14 PM – Are You in Trouble on your 401k Plan and Not Know it?
Are you a business owner or executive whose company has a 401k plan? Did you know that you have specific duties to perform on the plan and may have liability associated with not performing them? Owners or senior execs of a company providing a 401k plan to its...
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