KIM: Lenders also to blame for Greek debt tragedy
Greece shoulders most of the blame for its third trip to the brink of default in five years, but it takes two to tango and Greece had a most willing accomplice: the lenders themselves.
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SKARBECK: State should tap surplus to boost teacher pension
Plenty of voices are chiming in with ideas on what to do with the state’s $2.14 billion reserves. So, here is another suggestion—make a sizable contribution to the Indiana Pension Stabilization Fund to help offset the woefully underfunded Indiana State Teachers’ Retirement Fund.
KIM: Stock buybacks can be a harmful ‘sugar high’
The combination of higher EPS and company buying usually provides a short-term boost to the stock. This makes Wall Street happy, keeps the activists at bay, and helps management enhance the value of its stock options and meet bonus targets.
SKARBECK: Massive debt overhang to clobber Puerto Ricans
As the world frets over the events in Greece, a giant debt default closer to home is barely raising eyebrows.
KIM: External shocks to stocks are usually short-lived
The U.S. stock market has historically rebounded well and quickly from bad world news.
SKARBECK: U.S. investors keep faith despite global turmoil
Despite the defiant results of the Greek referendum that rejected further economic austerity in return for a cash infusion to deal with their debt crisis, it appears U.S. investors are betting the situation will be adequately solved.
KIM: Golf’s vexing challenges also apply to investing
Golf is not only a metaphor for life, but for investing also.
SKARBECK: Indiana gets aggressive in touting advantages
Indiana’s latest pitch to lure business received national attention and stirred up some controversy. Yet that is exactly what a full-page ad in The Wall Street Journal is meant to do. So, mission accomplished.
SKARBECK: Sizzling Chinese stocks should spook investors
Chinese stocks have been on a tear. Last week, China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 8.9 percent. In the last year, the Chinese market has jumped 150 percent. No other major stock market has ever grown this much in dollar value over 12 months. Since the beginning of 2015, the Chinese stock market has doubled in […]
KIM: ‘Shoot first’ trading mentality dangerous to financial health
High-frequency” trading firms spend billions in a high-stakes arms race to gain a millisecond’s edge on executions. But while speed may be valuable to traders, it can be extremely detrimental to investors.
SKARBECK: Robo-advisers might alter investment landscape
Startup firms like Betterment, Wealthfront, Hedgeable, TradeKing Core and Motif Horizon have been joined by industry giants Vanguard, Schwab and Fidelity in offering platforms that provide low-cost, algorithm-based portfolio management run on computers.
KIM: Career wisdom found everywhere, even in trash
Life lessons can be learned in every job, no matter how humble.
SKARBECK: Shifts in interest rates alter investing dynamics
Interest rates are one of the two most important variables that affect investment results. The other is profitability.
SKARBECK: Firms that buy back shares are often using cash wisely
Savvy long-term investors understand that, when a company repurchases its stock at prices below intrinsic value, their ownership of the business increases.
KIM: Fed policy uncertainty fueling market volatility
Volatility returned with a vengeance in the first quarter of 2015, as investors grappled with increasing uncertainty associated with Federal Reserve policy, signs the U.S. economy has hit a soft patch, and lowered expectations for corporate earnings.
SKARBECK: Graham’s pearls of wisdom still resonate with investors
The title of a recently discovered 1963 speech given by Benjamin Graham, titled “Securities in an Insecure World,” sounds like a topic one might choose to speak about today.
KIM: Invest with managers who ‘eat their own cooking’
It’s logical that you want to invest with a manager who has a significant amount invested alongside you. Why? The manager’s financial interests are aligned with yours.
SKARBECK: Betting against Indiana would be losing strategy
I wholeheartedly agree with the theme advocated last week by fellow IBJ columnist Mickey Kim that, throughout our country’s history, a bet against America has been a bad bet.
KIM: More wisdom from Buffett: Don’t bet against America
Buffett believes in America and puts his money where his mouth is.
SKARBECK: Long-term investors look beyond Fed news
The cognoscenti who dissect every word in Federal Open Market Committee statements predicted “patient” would be dropped from the March 18 “Fedspeak” press release. They were correct—and Voila!, the Dow Jones tacked on 300 points.