By 2 Cents on October 28th, 2011 | Category: Investing |  Eat, drink and be scary.
~Author Unknown
I’ve got a little Halloween-themed Friday Food for Thought for you here today. I came across this article On Market Timing and Whiskey on Twitter via Rob Bennett. Basically, the author takes a 1952 quote about the pros and cons of whiskey and superimposes on it his own take on market timing.
As with any debate, defining the terms is key. Market timing, in some circles, has come to take on a foreboding tone. It is seen as an investment vice, garnering a level of disdain similar to that of whiskey during the days of prohibition. For some, it’s the strategy that shall not be named – the Voldemort of the investment world if you will. As we prepare to celebrate All Hallows’ Eve, I thought it might be interesting to look at whether market timing is [...]
Read on and enjoy … On the Evils of Market Timing
By 2 Cents on October 24th, 2011 | Category: Book Reviews |  It’s about taking control of your future so that when you finally get there you’re not surprised at what it looks like. And it’s about making sure you know the truth and deal from a place of fact, not fear.
~ Gail Vaz-Oxlade
Planning for retirement can be confusing – so much so that many of us avoid it altogether. If you’re Canadian, you might be further confused by the fact that much of the information out there is directed at Americans. While the basic principles of retirement saving know no borders, there are significant differences in the types of retirement saving vehicles out there and their corresponding tax laws.
It goes without saying that avoidance is not a good retirement strategy. No worries. Gail Vaz-Oxlade’s latest book called Never Too Late: Take Control of Your Retirement and Your Futurecan help you set a course for [...]
Read on and enjoy … Never Too Late: Book Review and Giveaway
By 2 Cents on October 21st, 2011 | Category: Economics |  Even nectar is poison if taken to excess.
~Hindu Proverb
If low interest rates are good for the economy, it should be booming by now. After all, rates have basically been falling for 30 years. Over the last 10 years or so, short term rates have been held low by central banks. Just a few weeks ago, the U.S. Federal Reserve announced Operation Twist, which will keep rates at the longer end of the curve low as well.
Yay. Soon we’ll all be basking in the glow of a red hot global economy. So why does it sound like so many governments and pundits are preparing for perdition rather than prosperity? Why isn’t the low interest rate elixir working its magic?
10 Reasons Low Interest Rates Aren’t Helping – And May Be Hurting
Lower rates are supposed to stimulate the economy by encouraging business investment, home [...]
Read on and enjoy … Are Low Interest Rates a Solution or a Problem?
By 2 Cents on October 17th, 2011 | Category: Economics |  If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.
~ Bishop Desmond Tutu
“In the wake of the global financial crisis, politicians and regulators assuaged public outrage by promising reforms that would prevent such a crisis from occurring again. But not much has improved. We haven’t even managed much of a regime change. Many of the bankers, regulators and politicians who drove the policies that led to the crisis are still in their chairs. Many of the big banks are even bigger. Too big to fail is still a major systemic threat.” I made this comment over 8 months ago as the civil unrest in Egypt was boiling over.
At the time, I wondered [...]
Read on and enjoy … Occupy Wall Street: Have We Reached the Tipping Point?
By 2 Cents on October 13th, 2011 | Category: Retirement |  The following is a guest post. Please go ahead and share your own thoughts in the comments section.
The current recession and bear market has created difficulties and decisions for private investors across the board, but reactions are slightly different depending on one’s age. Older investors have been switching over to safer investments, such as bonds and CDs. Middle age investors, reaching the peak of their earning potential, have sought to diversify their portfolio while riding the recession out. But what about younger investors? I’m talking about those people who are in their twenties or thirties, have only recently moved into stable jobs, and have limited investments in the market – if they have any at all. Should this demographic start investing now, when the market is low? Or should they wait until the economy is healthier before putting their money in?
Someone in that age range should [...]
Read on and enjoy … You’re Young. The Economy is Bad. Time to Invest in the Stock Market?
By 2 Cents on October 11th, 2011 | Category: Investing |
There is no hiding from the fact that the current economic climate is as bad as it has been for most of the last one hundred years. Savers are being hit by a combination of low interest rates and high inflation, and there aren’t many places to put your money. However, some economies around the world are continuing to boom, so some banks like Legal and General offer customers the chance to invest in emerging markets in the expectation of a better return.
However, is sending your money to the other side of the world really safe? And is it a good thing to do?
Answering the first question is easy enough, even though certain financial institutions haven’t had an easy ride in the press lately, they are still safe to invest with, particularly institutions who have always had a good record with safe investing.
As [...]
Read on and enjoy … Hope From Afar
By 2 Cents on October 10th, 2011 | Category: Life Balance |  It is literally true, as the thankless say, that they have nothing to be thankful for. He who sits by the fire, thankless for the fire, is just as if he had no fire. Nothing is possessed save in appreciation, of which thankfulness is the indispensable ingredient. But a thankful heart hath a continual feast.
~W.J. Cameron
It seems the older I get the smaller the things for which I’m truly thankful become. When I was a child, I was thankful for obvious things like my family and my home and my favourite possessions. Once I had children, they kind of moved up to number one on my list.
Now, I’m still thankful for all of those things, but I notice that the things that really make me feel grateful are a little more subtle – and there are a lot more of them. Here’s a list of [...]
Read on and enjoy … Thanksgiving Thoughts for 2011
By 2 Cents on October 7th, 2011 | Category: Planning |  No one knows what they’ll do in a moment of crisis and hypothetical questions get hypothetical answers.
~Joan Baez
When I wrote Another Bear Market: Is It Time to Buy? earlier this week, I tried to summarize the current bull and bear points of view. I also promised to write about how we’re approaching the current market volatility. As I mentioned, I think everyone can and should have a unique response – including the possibility of having none at all – to the market’s gyrations. Our response, therefore, should not be taken as advice on what anyone else should do. It’s based on our personal situation and if that was different, my strategy would be different too.
Background
For those who aren’t regular readers, I’ll just give a quick bit of background on where we’re at financially [...]
Read on and enjoy … Personal Finance in a Secular Bear Market
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