No matter where you look, carnage abounds in markets around the globe; companies in every sector and every market have taken massive hits. Read More

Yes, it’s flat out ugly out there. Stocks are sinking, commodities are getting crushed, real estate is blindly searching for a bottom and even bonds are being bounced over fears of what might be next in the ongoing credit crunch. Read More

A government bailout program won’t be a panacea. The credit markets are burdened by trillions of dollars’ worth of muck buried around the world. And the trouble isn’t limited to subprime mortgages; all asset classes are tarred. Read More

Despite news of Washington’s plans for a large scale bailout of the US financial system, stocks have continued to trend down as consumers’ wallets are becoming lighter and property values continue to fall. There’s also skepticism that the same regulators and academics who led us down the path to total meltdown have what it takes to remedy the problem. Read More

Defense stocks are one of the most secure places in times of market troubles. Although most businesses need credit lines to conduct and expand business operations, big defense companies are underwritten by big governments and ink their deals with nations, not other businesses. Read More

Bear markets require a lot more work. As the bad times continue to roll, more and more investors tend to assume the worst rather than the best. Read More

In normal times, preferred stocks’ prices are extremely stable. That goes double for those backed by strong underlying companies, such as the quintet in the Income Portfolio. Read More

The past month and a half will undoubtedly be remembered among the most painful and dramatic episodes in stock market history. Read More

- The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), roused from its long slumber by a debilitating financial crisis, has decided the climate isn’t right for shorts—especially when it comes to financial shares. After the failure of Lehman Brothers and the bailout of American Insurance Group,THE REGULATOR MOVED TO PROTECT SHARE PRICES IN THE FINANCIAL SECTOR, imposing a temporary moratorium on the shorting of some 799 stocks. The SEC indicated it will require hedge funds that oversee more than $100 million to disclose daily short positions. The agency also approved regulations designed to crack down on naked shorting, augmenting previous rules the agency failed to enforce. Although overseas regulators have enacted similar measures, one wonders if short-sellers are to blame—after all, years of lax oversight and a myopic focus on short-term profits have taken due toll. Read More

The fallout from the housing, mortgage and credit crises has raised the public’s awareness of credit default swaps (CDS), adding yet another acronym to the list of all-too-real abstractions that threaten our nation’s financial health. Read More