And consideration of market trends is common to most Wall Street investors. Market trends are described as sustained movements in market prices over a period of time. The terms bull market and bear market describe upward and downward movements respectively and can be used to describe either the market as a whole or specific sectors and securities (stocks). The expressions "bullish" and "bearish" can also mean optimistic and pessimistic respectively ("bullish on technology stocks," or "bearish on gold", etc).

A bull market tends to be associated with increasing investor confidence, motivating investors to buy in anticipation of future price increases and future capital gains. In describing financial market behavior, the largest group of market participants is often referred to, metaphorically, as a herd. This is especially relevant to participants in bull markets since bulls are herding animals. A bull market is also sometimes described as a bull run. Dow Theory attempts to describe the character of these market movements. India's BSE Index SENSEX was in a bull run for almost five years from April 2003 to January 2008 as it increased from 2,900 points to 21,000 points. Another notable and recent bull market was in the 1990s when the U. S. and many other global financial markets rose rapidly.

It is described as being accompanied by widespread pessimism. Investors anticipating further losses are often motivated to sell, with negative sentiment feeding on itself in a vicious circle. The most famous bear market in history was preceded by the Wall Street Crash of 1929 and lasted from 1930 to 1932, marking the start of the Great Depression. A milder, low-level, long-term bear market occurred from about 1973 to 1982, encompassing the stagflation of U. S. economy, the 1970s energy crisis, and the high unemployment of the early 1980s. Prices fluctuate constantly on the open market. To take the example of a bear stock market, it is not a simple decline, but a substantial drop in the prices of the majority of stocks over a defined period of time. According to The Vanguard Group, "While there’s no agreed-upon definition of a bear market, one generally accepted measure is a price decline of 20% or more over at least a two-month period."

A stock market bottom is a trend reversal - the end of a market downturn and the beginning of an upward moving trend. "Bottom" is more than just a recent low in a stock market index, but a reversal of the primary trend. A "bottom" may occur because of the presence of a "cycle," or because of "panic selling" as a reaction to an adverse financial development. It is very difficult to identify a bottom (referred to by investors as "bottom picking") while it is occurring. The upturn following a decline is often shortlived and prices might resume their decline. This would bring a loss for the investor who purchased stock(s) during a misperceived or "fake" market bottom. Some of the more notable market bottoms, in terms of the closing values of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) include.

A secular market trend is a long-term trend that usually lasts 5 to 25 years (but whose distribution is more or less bell shaped around 17 years, in the stock market), and consists of sequential 'primary' trends. In a secular bull market the 'primary' bear markets have in the past almost always been shorter and less punishing than the 'primary' bull markets were rewarding. Each bear market has rarely (if ever) wiped out the real (inflation adjusted) gains of the previous bull markets, and the succeeding bull markets have usually made up for the real losses of any previous bear markets. This is one of the reasons why a secular market trend may be said to encompass the primary trends within it. The United States was described as being in a secular bull market from about 1983 to late 2007, with brief upsets including the crash of 1987 and the dot-com bust of 2000–2002. In a secular bear market, the 'primary' bull markets are sometimes shorter than the 'primary' bear markets and rarely compensate for the real losses of the 'primary' bear markets occurring during this extended cycle. For example, in the 1966–82 secular bear market in stocks, there was hardly any nominal loss. But in real terms the loss was devastating. (In the past most 'housing recessions' were of a slow nature, thereby allowing inflation to keep housing prices steady.) Another example of a secular bear market was seen in gold during the period between January 1980 to June 1999. During this period the nominal gold price fell from a high of $850/oz ($30/g) to a low of $253/oz ($9/g),

Many investors and analysts use technical analysis to try to identify whether a market or security is likely to increase or decrease in value. They then generate trading strategies to exploit their conclusions and market insights. Some technical analysts believe that the financial markets are cyclical and move in and out of bull and bear market phases on a regular and consistent basis.

The precise origin of the phrases "bull market" and "bear market" are obscure. The Oxford English Dictionary cites an 1891 use of the term "bull market". The most common etymology points to London bearskin "jobbers" (market makers),

By the time of the South Sea Bubble of 1721, the bear was also associated with short selling. jobbers would sell bearskins they did not own in anticipation of falling prices, which would enable them to buy them later for an additional profit. Another plausible origin is from the word "bulla" which means bill, or contract. When a market is rising, holders of contracts for future delivery of a commodity see the value of their contract increase. However in a falling market, the counterparties—the "bearers" of the commodity to be delivered, win because they have locked in a future delivery price that is higher than the current price.

It refers to the way that the animals attack. a bull attacks upwards with its horns, while a bear swipes downwards with its paws.

It relates to the speed of the animals. bulls usually charge at very high speed whereas bears normally are thought of as lazy and cautious movers -- a misconception because a bear, under the right conditions, can outrun a horse.

The word "bull" plays off the market's returns being "full" whereas "bear" alludes to the market's returns being "bare".

Bull-bear line is the index average line that indicates bull market or bear market in stock market. The 250-day moving average (the moving average line of certain index for previous 250 trading days) is always treated to be the bull-bear line, which provides reference value for mid-term and long-term investment. If the current index drops below the bull-bear line, some investors believe the market turn bearish from bullish. If the current index rises above the line, some investors believe the market turn bullish from bearish.

Financial analysts have different opinions on the bull-bear line. Some believed the 250-day moving average is not the "bull-bear line". According to Dow Theory by Charles Dow, an American journalist, bull market and bear market are defined by investor's mindset. Bull market develops under extremely optimistic situations while bear market develops under extremely pessimistic situations. There is no limitations on time duration for both markets. Investors should remind no one can expect the junction between bull and bear markets. This can only be known after the change happens.

Panning for Winners By Matt Blackman You get a hot stock tip from a friend or your broker, buy the precious metal stock only to find out it's a losing proposition. You tell yourself that there has to be a better way. Here is one way how, with the help of technology and a little initiative, you can beat the 'hot tip' blues.

Profit from your knowledge!" The Bull Bear Trader discusses market events and news with an interest in understanding risk and return in both bull and bear markets. Discussion topics include trading and hedging strategies, derivatives, risk management, hedge funds, quantitative finance, the energy and commodity markets, and private equity, as well as an occasional investment opinion.

Just last summer as crude oil moved towards $150 a barrel, some companies were being applauded for having had the foresight to hedge their energy and fuel cost by locking into lower prices for future delivery. Unfortunately, as crude oil fell sharply from its summer highs to below $40 a barrel, some of these same companies were now finding themselves on the other side of the profit/loss equation (see WSJ article). Just recently, Delta Airlines reported a $507 million loss on its fuel hedges in Q4, while UAL reported a $370 million hedging-related loss. Southwest Airlines, known in the past for its smart use of hedging, is finding that its needs to post $300 million in collateral with its various counterparties as the price of crude oil and fuels continue to decrease. Not surprising, or maybe surprising to some, it how investors are punishing the stocks of those companies that were considered to be "prudent" in their use of hedging. What is often forgotten by both investors and management is that hedging is not speculation, or at least should not be treated as such when done correctly. A properly managed hedge should theoretically provide a predictable cost, but changes in the price structure of an industry could cause earnings to be volatile, not to mention the company stock price. For instance, if an airline company has hedged its fuel cost based on crude oil being around $70 a barrel, the company should see some benefit compared to its un-hedged competitors as crude moves above $100 a barrel. Yet if companies in the industry have pricing power, they can pass some or all of this cost on to their consumers. Therefore, higher costs are followed by higher product prices (obviously, never exactly one-to-one, even with pricing power). For the un-hedged company, their profit margin will theoretically be the same, while the hedged company will experience increased profits due to their lower cost structure compared to their competitors. On the other hand, as crude oil prices fall into the range of $30 per barrel, the un-hedged companies could once again adjust prices, but now to reflect their lower cost (and attempt to take business from those paying higher costs who may not be able to adjust prices as quickly). Those companies that are hedged and are forced to pay the higher $70 per barrel price will experience a lower profit margin, lower earnings, and potentially a lower stock price. So while hedging can help a company "lock-in" to a specific cost structure, if others within the same industry are not hedged, and those companies have pricing power, the hedged company can expect to see higher swings in profit margins and earnings, and subsequently a more volatile stock price. Not only does this surprise investors who were expecting a less volatile stock given that the company was hedged and should experience consistent costs, but it also generates inquiries from management as to why the risk management department suddenly turned into speculators, and more importantly why they made such a bad bet. In reality, the hedging allowed the company to control what it could (the cost), but still left it at the mercy of what it had less control over - industry pricing and investor reaction. Something to keep in mind as you invest in companies and industries that actively engage in hedging, especially in commodity markets that are volatile.

Are you wondering whether the unemployment rate is really spiking, and how it compares to other recessions? Check out the following chart (the current loses are large, but not at historical extremes - meaning there is good and bad news - it is not as bad as it as been, but worse rates are not unprecedented).

Have you heard that we are moving from manufacturing to a service-based economy, but have been wondering just how long this has been occurring? Check out the number of manufacturing employees over the last three decades, and the last year.

There have been a number of stories over the last few years of academic endowments moving into alternative investments, in particular hedge funds, private equity, real estate, and natural resources, such as timber. While many of these funds have been hurt during the recent downturn, many still found their portfolios falling less than the general market (see previous posts here and here). While losing "only" 20 percent is not as bad as 30-40 percent (although many with budgets getting cut would disagree with losing any money), other consequences of the move into alternative investments are often overlooked, including the valuation of such assets, funding commitments, and issues with liquidity. A recent WSJ article highlights some of these difficulties. For one, hedge funds often have lock-up periods, keeping endowments in these investments at a time when shrinking budgets and donations are calling out for liquidity (see previous post here). In the case of private equity, the consequences of liquidity risk are even worse since not only is your investment "tied-up," but as a result of previous funding agreements, new capital calls may force you to commit another 50-75 percent of your initial investment, once again at a time when liquidity is tight and budgets are shrinking. While such need for liquidity is challenging for any fund, it is even more difficult for a fund that has decreased equity exposure to the 10-20 percent range, or lower, and has nearly all but eliminated interest bearing fixed income from the portfolio. As with any shock to the system, strategies will be re-evaluated, and changes will be made. Unfortunately, for many academic institutions this will involve not only changes to the composition of their endowment portfolios, but also an evaluation of their capital improvements, expansion plans, operating budgets, and financial aid for students.

Technicals are never the whole story, but they certainly help you to know where you have been, and how much trouble you may have getting to where you want to go. The data is certainly not encouraging for the bulls.

There is an interesting Business Week article on Zombie Debtors that is worth reading. These are basically companies that probably need to fail, but are being kept alive by taxpayers and the government. The problem with such companies is that not only do they consume tax money, capital, and labor that could be deployed better within growing industries and sectors, but they also make it harder for the viable companies to benefit from their natural competitive advantages - preventing Schumpeter's "creative destruction" from allocating capital and resources to those areas that can be most profitable and productive. Japan suffered from such companies in the 1990s, and the US will no doubt feel their effects from non-selective TARP bailouts, and those of any future homeowner bailouts, long into the next decade. That is not to say that government interaction is never useful for helping healthy companies overcome current difficulties (after all, isn't that what Chapter 11 is for?). But unless the hard decisions and selections are made now with regard to the next round of government funding, the guaranteed unintended consequences of such inaction will force the decisions to be made later - most likely at a much greater cost.

Firms are rushing to secure supertankers in order to profit from growing contango spreads as crude oil prices continue to fall compared to futures prices (see Times Online article). Frontline estimates that about 80 million barrels of crude oil are currently being stored in tankers (see Bloomberg article), with 30-35 very large crude carrier storing 2 million barrels of crude each. Not surprisingly, a rush into the contango trade is causing tanker rates to increase about $75,000 a day. In some cases, shipping rates have fallen over 90 percent within the last year, with crude oil storage rates falling nearly 80 percent. Teekay (TK) is now trading about $19 a share after coming off its recent low of just below $11, Frontline (FRO) is trading near $31 a share, after coming off a low of $25 a share, and Overseas Shipping Group (OSG) is trading around $41 a share after a recently low of just over $28 a share in late November. Drybulk shippers have also seen rates rise recently, as much as 20 percent (see Yahoo! Finance article). DryShips (DRYS) fell to below $4 a share, after reaching $116.43 back in May. The company is currently trading over $15 per share. Diana Shipping (DSX) has come off its low of $6.85 to trade over $12 per share. Nonetheless, although there are some signs of improvement (see SeekingAlpha article), the contango spread and potential increased demand may not be enough to turn-around the industry, not just yet anyway. Exports from Asia have fallen off a cliff, and will no doubt continue to put pressure on cargo rates, leaving numerous companies at risk of failing. Until global demand begins to increase, or capacity begins to decrease, it may be a little longer before any rally can be trusted with confidence and expected to continue, the contango trade notwithstanding.

The Nasdaq is planning to launch a series of trading and investment products based on companies receiving TARP money (see WSJ article). The first is the GRI (Government Relief Index), tracking 24 companies that received over one billion dollars in bailout assistance. The index is being pushed as a way to track the effectiveness of the TARP, yet it seems that for the index to be successful (profitable), it either needs to be widely followed and reported, or used as a vehicle to be traded against. The first seems unlikely (since many will argue that the success of TARP is not based simply on the individual companies doing well), and the second seems counter-intuitive, or at least counterproductive. Given a potential ETF product, it is not exactly clear how making it easier to short the companies in trouble and needing assistance helps the recovery. Maybe a simple "dead or alive" count would be easiest, but even that is difficult to gauge. Is Bear dead or alive? How about Merrill? Fannie or Freddie?

The New Bull Bear is Pub by day, Lounge Bar and Restaurant by night - and a plethora of other things at other wierd and varied times. The Bear, as it is lovingly known, plays host to a mash of Comedy, Indy Rock, Jazz, International and Local Dj's, Art Exhibitions and loads of other stuff - and we're always looking for more. The Restaurant offers the usual Pub fare complemented by a Modern Australian menu which changes seasonally to keep the flavours fresh interesting. To slake your thirst we offer both draft and bottled beer, a huge range of spirits, cocktails an extensive boutique wine list. If you're looking for something fresh in town, come check it out - Can't do no harm. Open from 11am till Late Mon-Fri. Lunch us., Dinner us. Private Function Rooms Available

Front entry to the Bull Bear is from King William Street, between Currie Street and Waymouth Street. Secure parking is available from the Topham Mall Carpark and you can walk through the lanes from the carpark to Savings Bank Place and enter the Bull Bear from the side entrance. Address Contact details Google Maps

Review "Certainly a savvy buy in the current climate.timely advice on how to survive the bear's bite." (CEO Middle East, November 2008) Product Description Written by seasoned Wall Street prognosticator Peter Schiffauthor of the bestselling book Crash Proof. How to Profit from the Coming Economic CollapseThe Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets reveals how you should protect your assets and invest your money when the American economy is experiencing perilous economic downturns and wealth building is happening elsewhere. Filled with insightful commentary, inventive metaphors, and prescriptive advice, this book shows you how to make money under adverse market conditions by using a conservative, nontraditional investment strategy. See all Editorial Reviews

I was intrigued by Mr. Schiff's little book purports to pull back the curtain on the invisible erosion of the value of your money, your investments, the U. S. economy and our financial system in general. Let me say first and foremost that Mr. Schiff has a lot of smart things to say. Yes, the Federal Reserve is culpable and careless about its monetarist policy of inflationary increases to the money supply, especially as it helps put more air into asset bubbles (think the housing market). Yes, Americans borrow too much money for consumption that they don't really need. Yes, fiat currency is beholden to the whim of the market. Schiff also makes some good and useful points that do not often appear in books about investing. First, he tells you how to actually invest in the things he recommends. Granted, he is often hawking his own wares (his company does many of the things he says investors must have, like stocks bought on foreign exchanges and custodial services for precious metals), but he also presents some things I'd never heard of (like GoldMoney. com) that could have some utility, even if you don't buy his argument whole. Second, he gives some guidance for potential career and business choices that stand to benefit from the disasters he sees befalling the U. S. economy. Though I disagree with him on numerous points, I think his efforts here are an important part of any plan that relates to investing--that is, how you get the money you plan to invest--but are generally ignored in most books on the subject. However, I have some serious problems with this book. Six of them. First, it looks like it was rushed to press to capitalize on the recent market turmoil. I don't think they pushed it to market in the wake of the disastrous first few weeks in October, but when everything was going to hell back in July it looked like Schiff's predictions (ever-higher commodity prices and perpetual dollar weakness) were prescient. There are numerous typographical errors, and the title doesn't really seem to fit with Schiff's premise. These aren't bear-market strategies. this what Schiff thinks everyone should have been doing back when things were swell, and he even says that he said this very thing in a previous book. So while this book has a timely title, I don't think it is as useful as it wants to be. Second, since July, commodities have been largely in freefall and the U. S. dollar has been the strongest performing developed-market currency, undermining most of Schiff's major points. Now he would say--as I do when my own strategies meet an extended bout of resistance--that this is merely a cyclical change and does not run counter to the secular pattern of surging prices of hard assets and the concomitant decline of the greenback. Still, it is hard to find his claims credible when he trumpets the early-July status as proof that his strategies work--including investing in developed foreign stock markets, whose performance has been in many cases worse than that of the U. S. and has been further savaged by weakness relative to the dollar. Third, he underestimates or misrepresents exchange-traded funds (ETFs). At one point, Schiff lumps in ETFs with actively managed mutual funds as a bad idea because their sole purpose is to beat the market. Not so, and he even says so later on. Why the inconsistency? At another, he describes how he talked a prospective client out of investing in ETFs (admittedly in favor of paying Schiff to build and manage a custom portfolio) because he couldn't find any to invest in that didn't have large allocations to financial-services companies. True, financial serivces are often large chunks of broad-market ETFs for any country, but writing the entire product line off for that alone is short-sighted at best and self-serving at worst. Fourth, he really skimps on his foreign-market preferences. Yes, he gives a long list that includes Australia, Singapore, Norway and Switzerland, but the information he offers to buttress his preference is apparently gleaned from the CIA Factbook, which anyone can access for free on the Internet. Why do I need him to regurgitate that? If I'm going to pay for his book, he needs to give me something more than information I can acquire at less cost elsewhere. Fifth, Schiff says the only way back for the U. S. economy is to return to a production-based economy, one where the U. S. produces goods, not services. (At the same time, he says that the entertainment industry in the U. S. is evergreen.) I think he has something there, but it won't be that we'll start again making cotton underwear and tires. We might eventually, but only once the supply of places where workers will supply labor for less money is exhausted, and we've still got big sections of Asia, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and all of Africa to go through before we get there. We're going to have fulfill the single greatest requirement of any business in a free market. make what people want. Obama thinks that's energy technology. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. The point is that innovation and education are key, not an overpriced industrial base. Sixth and finally, Schiff's notion of decoupling is debunked by this year's events. His analogy is that the U. S. thinks it is the engine of economic growth in the world, when really it's the caboose. If the rest of the world lets the caboose go, the rest of the train will be able to move faster. True, China and India will have their hands full of production and demand just supplying goods and services for their own populations. But for better or worse, the financial and economic fortunes of the developed and emerging worlds are married, perhaps not happily but married all the same. In all, I am glad Schiff wrote this book, as it has allowed me to firm up my own ideas about markets and economies. I disagree, but I understand Schiff's strategies as a reaction to real problems. And in his defense, I don't think that investors would necessarily be all that bad off doing what he says. Inflation is a mostly invisible monster, but one that can be tamed. Paul Volcker did it (and Schiff credits him for it), and even feckless Ben Bernanke seems to have some newfound interest in pricking asset bubbles with interest rates and open-market actions. We'll see, but for now I'm sticking with my cheap U. S. stocks and my Treasury inflation-protected securities.

Gold, commodities, foreign companies with little exposure to the USA. That is the gist of Peter Schiff's investing recommendations. Why? He's not unpatriotic, but rational in his thinking that the US has lost its way through outsourcing production of goods, and overwhelmingly becoming a country of service oriented personnel. We make nothing, we buy most, and are up to our ears in debt, which will take its toll now and in the future on the dollar. There are several well known "Doctor Dooms" around. Rubini, Jim Rogers, Jim Sinclair, and Peter Schiff. I never thought that I would ever be a bear on the US stock market, until I started reading not only Peter Schiffs books and the others, but books on derivatives and other financial inventions, that could bring markets down entirely, and for a while. Impossible you say? If you think so, you need to read this. The Dow was down again today nearly 700 points. Maria Bartiromo is starting to call this a market crash. I stayed up the whole night reading this book. The writing flows and points are great, except when he recommends that you buy a gun, and learn how to use it- maybe he's correct there too. He's half tongue-in-cheek. He makes one recommendation that he says will make the dot. com bubble look like "warming up", during the next decade. Curious? Ans. gold producer stocks. Great book.

Mr. Schiff's new book is a follow up to Crash Proof. I bought six copies of that book, because it was my introduction to real economics and I wanted to share it. Both his books are important because they accurately describe economic function in the context of what is happening now in our markets. He understands what is transpiring and warns people in advance. Protecting yourself from the economic forces now playing out is the focus of his work, not the full blown explanation of economics in general. For that, I recommend Economics in One Lesson, so that you may be fully educated on the subject. Read it as many times as you need to. The foreword to Bull Moves is by Marc Faber, who endorses the common sense approach for the long term. The book's introduction warns of the inevitable downturn of an economy that was only possible through speculation borne of low interest rates. There is now no doubt that we are in that recession. The first chapters talk about the loss of America's purchasing power. The 1950's were a healthy economic time, because we produced goods that went around the world. High rates of production coupled with Reserve Currency Status gave the dollar an unbeatable edge back then. He then tracks reasons for the dollars' demise over time. He clarifies what inflation truly is. Unfortunately, most people don't understand it and how deadly it is. I don't like the way he explains Bretton Woods, and this is the second time he's done it in this manner. Bretton Woods was a poor excuse for a metallic standard and doomed to fail. Therefore it is my opinion that it was a dysfunctional group effort with multiple culprit nations. "My country's name is France and I'm a central banker." "Hi France." Mr. Schiff's theory of decoupling hasn't yet come true. It probably will, but I have to wonder after the recent worldwide interest rate reduction, if every central banker will see their citizens lose it all in their efforts to stick to the modern planned economy mantra. Additionally, the one prediction from his last book that is still unfulfilled is about the bond market. US Government bonds comprise the last bubble yet to feel the smack down from Adam Smith's invisible pimp hand. Chapter three steers you through the confusion of government statistics. After reading about it, you'll finally realize what the government isn't telling you with their numbers. Chapter four explains historic market cycles and tells you how to restructure your investments. Chapter five is about investing in commodities. Let's take a breather shall we. Chapter six is specifically about gold and silver. He tells you about the different ways to invest and what to avoid. Seven gets you acquainted with investing in foreign countries and companies. Eight is about stable foreign economies that are his favorite to invest in. Nine is about how and where to invest in emerging markets. Currently, there are big problems in the foreign markets, but again, this book is for the long run. So keep that in mind. Chapter ten is about employment. He talks about industries that will suffer, as well as the jobs that offer the most opportunity. Eleven is about what your declining standard of living will be like and ways to adjust. Twelve is about immigrating to a different country. To this one, I have to say "No Thanks." There are many problems in the rest of the world, not to mention, they're probably gonna hate Americans a lot at that point. The last chapter is about bringing your money back to the USA. Peter says to wait until at least 2012 to see if the economy is functioning properly. I'm sure if you listen to his radio show, you'll be able to tell if we're there. Throughout, Peter explains how interference into the markets has brought about so many of the problems that we now must face. He's one of the few who realize that government intervention is really the helping hand of a leper. Bull Moves is an informative and timely book.

Flawed, but worthy Schiff was among the few who predicted the economic crisis (way before this book was written). Therefore, what he had to say obviously came with some credibility.

Find an interesting gift for that hard-to-please financial wizard! Create a unique investment award. Items in brass, marble, silver, gold, crystal and leather. Bulls and bears! Prospectuses, tombstones and stock certificates embembedded in Lucite cubes. Walnut plaques. Investor-oriented books, greeting cards, corporate art, software, games and more!

The Bull Bear Sailing Team travel with two replicas of 1800 boats called Sandbaggers, they are named the Bull and the Bear. The team is promoting youth sailing, teaching people about the boats history and racing for charity. This website has been made to disseminate information on the boats, the team and events in which they participate. Please check back here often for information on events in your area. Also, to see photos and video after events have taken place. What is a Sandbagger? Originally built in the 1860s, Sandbaggers were work boats used in New York Harbor to shuttle cargo, such as oysters, to market. The fastest boat to market could set the price of the day. Owners and crew then started to race them with wagers on the outcome. The racing boats had a length restriction, but none on the sail so they kept getting bigger and the masts, boom and sprites longer. In addition to this making the boats faster, it made them tip over more easily. To compensate, the crew would literally move cargo, which evolved to sandbags, from side to side to keep the boats upright. Hence the name Sandbagger! An article on Sandbaggers in Wooden Boat Magazine was read by a stock market maker in the mid 1990s and he saw a striking similarity in the boats original purpose to todays stock market specialists. to set the price. Having always been a market and wooden boat enthusiast, and a charitable supporter of the Independence Seaport Museum of Philadelphia, he endowed the museum with funds to build two replicas of the boats. Museum boat builder John Brady then set out to recreate two of them in 1996 and 1997. Starting with original drawings from the Smithsonian Institute, Brady had to fill in a lot of the missing design data and interpolate new drawings from his own experience as a boat builder. With the help or Newt Kirkland, Bob, Ranson and Sean Corson, Brady was successful. The results are the magnificent boats raced throughout the country today. Bull and Bear (obviously named from market terms). What is their Mission? The boats purpose is to promote and encourage youth sailing while teaching their sailing history in the workplace and on the racecourse. They also race to benefit charitable organizations.

Sanbaggers bull and bear will visit Massachusetts and Pleasant bay. Benefiting community sailing and youth organizations.

Bull markets and bear markets.what are they? What do they look like? Here are some definitions and some examples of famous ones. Everyone likes to take a look at the '29 crash and '87 crash.

When two hangouts billing themselves as upscale sports bars debuted within weeks of one another in River North, the comparisons were bound to follow. All thats separating Theory (left) and Bull Bear (right) is a brisk walk down Hubbard Street. The menus? Gussied-up bar food. The TVs? Plentyand strategically positioned for a clear sightline from any possible position, of course. Even the color schemesblues, browns, exposed brickare eerily similar. Whats more, the owners are all homegrown Chicago-area guys. Bull Bears Luke Stoioff, Brandon Zisman and David Rekhson also own nightclub Stone Lotus, while Theorys Joel Sorinsky and Brian Merel have collectively worked at Joes on Weed Street, Castaways and 437 Rush. When we found out that four out of five went to the same North Shore high school together, we only had one thought on our minds. Prepare for battle, gentlemen.

Theory. Booths in the back half of the bar feature built-in TVs (you pick the channel). A private den boasts three screens and pillow-strewn seating for group game-watching (or corporate lunch meetings).Bull Bear. Five oversized booths feature two self-serve, pay-by-the-ounce beer taps (one domestic and one import each). Pre-set your limit with your server and youll never have to wait for a refill (until you get cut off).Advantage. Bull Bear. With the choice to control our game or our beer, we pick beer.

Theory. The half-pound Theory burger ($12. $5 on Mondays), a simple hand-formed patty with a mix of regular and sweet potato fries. Bull Bear. The Bull Bear Burger ($18), a kobe beef patty topped with gruyere cheese, sweet onion marmalade and bacon aioli with truffle fries. Advantage. Bull Bear. Its pricey, but its soooo good. Save a few bucks and split a trio of mini-versions with friends ($14).

Theory. 8 on tap, including Delerium Tremens ($10). 26 by the bottleBull Bear. 8 on tap. 14 by the bottle, including Delerium Tremens ($11)Advantage.Theory. Besides stocking more beer overall, their Deleriums on tap (and a buck cheaper).

Theory. $3 Coors Light bottles, $5 Captain Morgan and Cokes, $5 Cuervo shots and $5 pizzas, hosted by Chicago Sports Social Club. Reservations accepted for parties of 6 or more. Additional details. Bull Bear. $50 food and drink package (lasting from kickoff to games end) includes appetizers, wine, beer and cocktails. Reservations required for those table taps. Additional details. Advantage. Tie. Both parties will be packed, but if youre the consume-in-moderation type, Theorys may end up cheaper.

That's a lot of questions on a complex subject. timely, too! Here goes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average Has a History The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA, or Dow) provides a much longer historical comparison than some newer stock market indexes. The Dow, published by Dow Jones, Inc., soared in the 1990s along with most other stock market measures. Still, using annual data going back to 1901, the expansion of the Dow in the 1990s was extraordinary, as Chart A shows. CHART A -- The Dow There are a number of different firm-level stock indicators. two that are frequently followed are the earnings per share and the price-earnings ratio.1 In addition, there are many stock market indexes that one can use to monitor or evaluate the performance of the overall market or a sector of the market. While all the market indexes are influenced by present and expected macroeconomic conditions, including interest rates, corporate earnings, business cycles, and inflation, the different indexes may exhibit strikingly different performance characteristics.2 A narrowly focused index, the Dow tracks the economic health and earnings outlook for the stocks of 30 blue chip industrial companies (there are separate indexes for transportation firms and utilities). In contrast, the Standard and Poor's 500 Common Stock index (SP 500) is a broader measure, a weighted index of the stock prices of 500 large U. S. firms, and its performance reflects conditions across a broad mix of industries.3 The NASDAQ composite index is dominated by high-tech firms, and its performance reflects economic conditions and the outlook for the high-tech sector.4 The Market as a Leading Economic Indicator The SP 500 is classified as a leading economic indicator by The Conference Board and is used in their calculation of the composite leading economic indicator series.5 This designation recognizes that the SP 500, typically rises (falls) several months before the overall economy begins to expand (contract). This is a tendency, not a rule. the economy continued to expand following the 1987 stock market crash. Biggest Bull Markets The 1990s' bull market compares favorably when examined one-on-one against other strong expansions in the Dow. Chart B plots the cumulative percentage increase in the Dow from its previous trough for four noteworthy expansions. This comparison shows that the 1990s' expansion (even including the decline in 2000) recorded a larger increase and rose for a longer period than occurred during the other three major expansions. CHART B - Bull Markets Worst Bear Markets What goes up, sometimes comes back down, which brings us to the subject of bear markets. A bear market is usually defined as a decline of 15 to 20 percent or more over a period of several months or longer. Chart C provides a comparison of several periods with large stock market declines. it plots the cumulative percentage decline in the Dow from its previous peak, showing that the downturn from 1928 to a trough in 1932 was by far the most severe. The Dow fell about 80 percent over this period, which coincides roughly with a sharp decline in gross domestic product that occurred in the early years of the Great Depression. Moreover the Dow fell for four consecutive years, more than twice the length of the next longest declines (1972 to 1974 and 1912 to 1914). CHART C - Bear Markets Like Stocks, Indexes also Differ Chart D plots monthly levels of the Dow, the SP 500, and the NASDAQ, showing their varied performance over the 12 months ending in March 2001. This variation in performance mainly reflects differences in the stocks included in each index. From its monthly peak in January 2000 to March 2001, the Dow (which tracks 30 blue chip industrial companies) fell by more than 10 percent.6 The broader SP 500 fell by more than 20 percent from its August 2000 peak until March 2001. (This index is more likely to closely reflect overall stock market performance because it monitors the performance of a large group of firms from many industries.)7 While both the Dow and the SP 500 include some high-tech stocks, the NASDAQ is dominated by these stocks and, therefore, more closely reflects conditions in the high-tech sector. During the rapid expansion of technology firms late in the 1990s, the NASDAQ soared. However, by late 2000, the dot-com expansion came to a jarring halt and the high-tech manufacturing sector began to experience a slowdown in sales, revenues, and profits. As a consequence, the tech-heavy NASDAQ fell much more sharply than the other two indexes, declining by nearly 59 percent from March 2000 to March 2001. CHART D -- Performance Varies What Causes Bull and Bear Markets? If I only knew! Let's take a quick look at the NASDAQ. A thought-provoking article by Simon Kwan (2000) examined the tremendous run-up of tech stocks' market value from 1995 to the spring of 2000. He compared high-tech stocks' share of overall market valuation to the sectors' share of other key economic measures. assets, employment, and sales. Kwan found that after the run-up, Technology companies dominate in terms of market capitalization, but not in terms of tangible assets, employment, and sales. Finally, a parting thought on the prospect of bull markets going bust.8 Samuelson and Nordhaus (1998) quote Burton Malkiel's work on the subject of market bubbles, panics, and the madness of crowds, to provide their readers with perspective on stock market bubbles and crashes. Malkiel (1994) noted, Greed run amok has been an essential feature of every spectacular boom in history.

The Bull and Bear Tavern on Flinders Lane is separated into three rooms. the front street level bar is public. the second level has a spacious buffet-style food dining area around long tables. and deep down in the basement, the third area has it's own bar. It's a great 'boy's hangout' as it's dominated by pool tables and pinnies. Lunch is served 5 days a week with dinner available on Friday.

Elizabethan Bear & Bull Baiting were immensely popular sports during the Elizabethan era. Even Queen Elizabeth was pleased to spend an afternoon watching these bloodthirsty forms of entertainment. Bull baiting had been introduced to England during the Medieval period of the 1200's - nearly every town in Elizabethan England boasted a Bull and Bear baiting ring. Seen as a great sporting and gambling event it was patronised by all classes of Elizabethans including the Queen, courtiers and foreign ambassadors. Vast amounts of money were waged on the outcome of the these contests.

Bear baiting and Bull baiting took place in purpose built arenas. The most famous London arena, called a Bear Garden, for Bear Baiting was in Paris Garden in Southwark. The most famous London arena for Bull Baiting was called the Bull Ring Theatre. The Audience capacity for Bull and Bear Baiting was up to 1000 people. Gambling was a major feature. The arenas had protective walls around them made made of stone (flint). The seating arrangements for the spectators were tiered benches.

Bull baiting was a contest in which trained bulldogs attacked tethered bulls. The bull, with a rope tied round the root of his horns, would be fastened to a stake with an iron ring in it, situated in the centre of the ring. The rope was about 15 feet long, so that the animal was confined to a space of 30 feet diameter. The owners of the dogs stood round this circle, each holding their dog by its ears, and when the sport began, one of the dogs would be let loose. The bull was baited for about an hour. Bull-Baiting and Bear-Baiting was extremely similar, except that Bull-Baiting was more common in England due to the scarcity and cost of bears.

Bull baiting was a contest in which the bear was chained to a stake by one hind leg or by the neck and worried by dogs. The whipping of a blinded bear was another variation of bear-baiting. Queen Elizabeth attended a famous baiting which was described by an Elizabethan chronicler called Robert Laneham as follows.

Cock fighting was another popular Elizabethan blood sport. Roosters were fitted with sharp blades on each foot and put into a cock pit to fight to the death. Fighting cocks were expensive, so it took a wealthy man to own these birds, but Elizabethans from both the Upper and Lower Classes came to see and bet on these cock fights.

Details, facts and information about the Elizabethan Bear & Bull Baiting and Elizabethan Sports can be accessed via the Elizabethan Era Sitemap.

First of all, let's remember that bears are sluggish and bulls spirited and burly. The terms are used to describe general actions and attitudes, or sentiment, either of an individual (bearand bull) or themarket. A bear marketrefers to a decline in prices, usually for a period of a few months, in a singlesecurity or asset, group of securities or the securities market as a whole. A bull market iswhenprices arerising. The actual origins of theseexpressions are unclear. Here are two of the most frequent explanationsgiven.

The terms "bear" and"bull" are thought to derive from the way in which each animal attacks its opponents. That is, a bull will thrust its horns up into the air, while a bear will swipe down. These actions were thenrelated metaphorically to the movement of a market. if the trendwas up, it was considered a bull market. if the trend was down, it was a bear market.

Historically, the middlemen in the sale of bearskins would sell skins they had yet to receive. As such, they would speculate on the future purchase price of these skins from the trappers, hoping they would drop. The trappers would profit froma spread - the difference between the cost price and the selling price. These middlemen became known as "bears", short for bearskin jobbers, and the term stuck for describing a downturn in the market. Conversely, because bears and bulls were widely considered to be opposites due to the once-popular blood sport of bull-and-bear fights, the term bullstands as theoppositeof bears.(For further reading, see

Disclaimer. Information presented here, if not attributed to others, is the opinion or analysis of Bear Mountain Bull and is not intended as investment advice. Investment decisions are the sole responsibility of the reader, and Bear Mountain Bull is not responsible for losses resulting from investments based on information found on this site.

The hijacking of health care by the government continues, obscured by the smoke and fog of stimulus. Tragically, no one from either party is objecting to the health provisions slipped in without discussion. These provisions reflect the handiwork of Tom Daschle, until recently the nominee to head the Health and Human Services Department. Senators should read these provisions and vote against them because they are dangerous to your health. (Page numbers refer to H. R. 1 EH, pdf version). The bill’s health rules will affect “every individual in the United States” (445, 454, 479). Your medical treatments will be tracked electronically by a federal system. Having electronic medical records at your fingertips, easily transferred to a hospital, is beneficial. It will help avoid duplicate tests and errors. But the bill goes further. One new bureaucracy, the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology, will monitor treatments to make sure your doctor is doing what the federal government deems appropriate and cost effective. The goal is to reduce costs and “guide” your doctor’s decisions (442, 446). These provisions in the stimulus bill are virtually identical to what Daschle prescribed in his 2008 book, “Critical. What We Can Do About the Health-Care Crisis.” According to Daschle, doctors have to give up autonomy and “learn to operate less like solo practitioners.” Keeping doctors informed of the newest medical findings is important, but enforcing uniformity goes too far. In his book, Daschle proposed an appointed body with vast powers to make the “tough” decisions elected politicians won’t make. The stimulus bill does that, and calls it the Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research ( us. ). The goal, Daschle’s book explained, is to slow the development and use of new medications and technologies because they are driving up costs. He praises Europeans for being more willing to accept “hopeless diagnoses” and “forgo experimental treatments,” and he chastises Americans for expecting too much from the health-care system. Daschle says health-care reform “will not be pain free.” Seniors should be more accepting of the conditions that come with age instead of treating them. That means the elderly will bear the brunt. Medicare now pays for treatments deemed safe and effective. The stimulus bill would change that and apply a cost- effectiveness standard set by the Federal Council (464). The Federal Council is modeled after a U. K. board discussed in Daschle’s book. This board approves or rejects treatments using a formula that divides the cost of the treatment by the number of years the patient is likely to benefit. Treatments for younger patients are more often approved than treatments for diseases that affect the elderly, such as osteoporosis. In 2006, a U. K. health board decreed that elderly patients with macular degeneration had to wait until they went blind in one eye before they could get a costly new drug to save the other eye. It took almost three years of public protests before the board reversed its decision. Hiding health legislation in a stimulus bill is intentional. Daschle supported the Clinton administration’s health-care overhaul in 1994, and attributed its failure to debate and delay. A year ago, Daschle wrote that the next president should act quickly before critics mount an opposition. “If that means attaching a health-care plan to the federal budget, so be it,” he said. “The issue is too important to be stalled by Senate protocol.” And apparently the issue is too important to allow the population to know its happening. Pretty amazing stuff going on. Emphasis added.

In Treasuries were lower, yields were a bit higher except at the very long end of the curve. 6-month. 0.46% 2-yr. 1.03% 5-yr. 1.99% 10-yr. 3.01% 30-yr. 3.68%. Internals were mixed near flat, and volume was light. Advances/declines were 5 to 4 on the NYSE but 4 to 5 on the Nasdaq, with up/down volume 5 to 4 on the NYSE and just better than even on the Nasdaq. New highs/lows were 4/17 on the NYSE and 10/44 on the Nasdaq. The groups were split, with recent losers leading the way. paper stocks (+3.1%), banks (+2.2%), defense (+1.1%), REITs (+1.1%) and natural gas stocks (+1.0%). At the top of the losers column were the gold and silver stocks (-2.8%), hospitals (-2.5%), homebuilders (-1.6%), networking (-1.2%), utilities (-1.1%) and computer hardware (-1.0%). Energy prices were mixed. Crude oil was lower, slipping to $39.56/barrel, gasoline was flat at $1.25/gallon, and natural gas was a bit higher at $4.81/mmBTU. The dollar index fell back below 85 to 84.79. The precious metals pulled back, with gold losing 14 bucks to $897/ounce and silver dropping 22 cents to $12.89/ounce.

Scamulous. I like that. Heres Gary Kaltbaums latest. The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of others people money. - Margaret Thatcher For all the talk about the Scamulous bill, I find a couple of things very interesting. Not one of the people who are being interviewed, whether in government, whether in this administration or the whether in punditry landgot the economy right over the past couple of years. Not one of these people that are making decisions on this Scamulous bill saw any of this comingbut now they are geniuses on what is needed? Have any of you looked at this bill? It is nothing more than a massive expansion of government. Government is the con man and you are the target and they are getting away with it. Why? That leads me to part 2 of my thoughts. I noticed one question not being asked. It is a simple question. It is an easy question. A question that should be asked whenever someone goes on a spending binge. WHO AND HOW ARE YOU GOING TO PAY FOR THIS? Why isnt this question being asked? After all, this is the only question that matters. Here is the easy answerand you are not going to like it. Regardless of what Obama says, all of our taxes are going upand they are going to go up farther than anyone imagines. You are going to see tax rates back into the 50% plus range. You are going to see them go up under the guise that we have no choice! These decisions are being made by lifetime government imbeciles that brought us to where we are. These are the same people who voted to allow the investment banks leverage up 30-1 and higher. These are the same people that defended FNM and FRE while they were bankrupt. These are the same people who forced banks to lend more and more to people that could not afford payments. These are the same people who voted on the TARP plan to nowhere. These are the same people who for the most part, have never run a business or balanced a checkbookor paid their taxes! We were all warned about this many years ago. Thomas Jefferson had it right. I expected this out of the Dems. They have to fall in line behind Obama. Senators Collins, Spector and Snow should just hang it up. I never usually write on a Friday unless I see something change. At the beginning of the week, things were dicey as many stocks were breaking down. When I started to see things hold, I took notice. When I started to see the COMMODS turn up again, I took notice and when I saw the employment numbers not hit the futures, I knew something was up. Currently, the DOW is down approximately 41% during this bear market. Both the NASDAQ and SP 500 are down 45%these are amazing numbersand even more amazing because major indices had a very good week. During this bear market, we have seen AIG, FANNIE MAE, FREDDIE MAC, LEHMAN, BEAR STEARNS, WACHOVIA, MERRILL LYNCH and INDYMAC go bye-bye. Arguably, CITIGROUP, MORGAN STANLEY, BANK OF AMERICA and others would have followed if not for government intervention. We have also seen GM and FORD shrink to next to nothing. We have seen the big casinos drop 95% under a mountain of debt. We have seen preferred and corporate bonds of these companies drop markedly. We have seen GE drop to near single digits because of their massive leverage. We have seen COMMODITIES drop anywhere from 75-90% along with their underlying stocks. We have seen CIRCUIT CITY closeBENNIGANS shut 600 restaurants, STARBUCKS close 1000 storesand on and on and on. Estimates are such that 100,000 plus retail stores will shut in 09. We have seen millions of jobs lost. We have seen the curtains come down on many criminals like the Madoff saga. We have found out that many so-called pundits (booyah!) were nothing more than media creations. We have seen it all. The best news for us is that the market saw it all coming in advance and this action gave me a heads up. I suspect we will continue to see bad news for the foreseeable futurebut for the past 18 weeks, the market as a whole is no longer plunging on all this bad news. Is this good news for the market? Potentially yes. As I have told you on numerous occasions, I know that bottoms in bear markets happen over time and near the same price. In other words, a process. For the past 18 weeks, the market has been hit with a barrage of this bad news but the 8000 DOW, 1450 NASDAQ and 800 SP continue to hold. On top of that, I am now starting to see the average stock start to outperform the indices which is often a precursor for higher prices. The market is now in a confirmed rally and for the first time in what seems like a very long time, my ears are pinned back and now looking for things to do. Remember, the market saw all the bad coming before the bad hit. There is no doubt in my mind, the market will see the good coming before the good happens. In no way am I calling a final bottom or a bottomjust letting you know that the market continues to defend itself at support. I am watching COMMODITY stocks closely. My thought process is one-fold. If COMMODITY stocks go up, the market has a chance. If they dont, the market has no chance. This is because higher COMMODITIES would mean the economy is slowly coming out of its doldrums. Time will tell. I am also paying close attention to the FINANCIALS for obvious reasons. I have never seen a good market without FINANCIALS participating. Remember, it was the underperformance of the FINANCIALS in early to mid 07 that clued me in that something was amiss. I do think BAC was on the verge this weekand then news of the latest bank save was leaked out. I am also watching the fact that the NASDAQ is outperforming which is potentially a good thing as I have always believed the NASDAQ is the leading indexbut right now, I am watching everything because there is so much going on underneath the hood. I know we are now in the midst of the scamulus, I mean stimulus packageas well as another save for the ailing banks. I know markets are going to be news-driven which will continue to cause gyrations based on all this nonsense. I will be paying more attention and close attention to the supply/demand equation that did not let me down in the bear market. Lets hope support holds and lets hope this market has factored in all the bad that is out there and is to come. It is about time.

Trading can be difficult at times, especially when the market is a mess. But there are two simple things to remember. know when to sell, when not to, and cut your losses so you can stay in the game. From Deron Wagner this morning. Even if you make a lot of mistakes in your trading business, youll still be net profitable at the end of the year if you simply do two things right. cut your losing trades as soon as they hit their stops and let your winners ride until there is a technical reason to sell. The challenging part, of course, is applying this in actuality, not only understanding it theoretically.

Peggy Noonan in the WSJ. On the economy, I continue to find no one, Democrat or Republican, who has faith that the stimulus bill passed by the House will solve anything or make anything better, though many argue that doing absolutely nothing will surely make things worse by not promising at least the possibility of improvement through action. Meanwhile, the inquest on President Obamas great stimulus mistake continues. His serious and consequential policy mistake is that he put his prestige behind not a new way of breaking through but an old way of staying put. This marked a dreadful misreading of the moment. And now hes digging in. His political mistake, which in retrospect we will see as huge, is that he remoralized the Republicans. He let them back in the game. One senses in a new way the disaster that is Nancy Pelosi. She was all right as leader of the opposition in the Bush era, opposition being joyful and she being by nature chipper. She is tough, experienced, and of course only two years ago she was a breakthrough figure, the first female speaker. But her public comments are often quite mad—were losing 500 million jobs a month. heres some fresh insight on Catholic doctrine—and in a crisis demanding of creativity, depth and the long view, she seems more than ever a mere ward heeler, a hack, a pol. Shes not big enough for the age, is she? Shes not up to it. The national conversation on the economy is frozen, and has been for a while. Republicans say tax cuts, tax cuts, tax cuts. Democrats say spend, new programs, more money. You cant spend enough for the Democratic base, or cut taxes enough for the Republican. But in a time when all the grown-ups of America know spending is going to bankrupt us and tax cuts without spending cuts is more of the medicine thats killing us, the same old arguments, which sound less like arguments than compulsive tics, only add to the public sense that no one is in charge. Link via Instapundit. Glenn comments. I believe that the “stimulus” — and, worse, the psychology it represents — will be dreadful for the country. I hope I’m wrong. So, I imagine, does Obama. Indeed. I find it interesting how many non-financial blogs are talking about the economy and the stimulus these days. The governments actions are not going unnoticed.

Will be the Government Finance Bubble. And it looks like were off to a powerful start. From Doug Noland. analysts made a momentous blunder earlier this decade when they mistook the collapse of the technology Bubble (and attendant recession and corporate debt problems) for the onset of deflation. Reflationary policymaking without regard to the nature of inflationary consequences proved disastrous. Were about to repeat this error. Despite todays histrionic fixation on deflation, current dynamics have some similarities to the post-tech Bubble period. Granted, the collapse of Wall Street finance is of much greater scope and consequence than the bursting of the tech Bubble. Yet I would counter that The Burgeoning Bubble in Government Finance is poised to make the Mortgage Finance Bubble appear tiny in comparison. There has been no run on bank deposit money, not with the FDIC, Treasury, and Federal Reserve there to backstop confidence. The marketplaces love affair with agency debt runs unabated - compliments of federal government receivership and guarantees. Money market fund assets are right at record levels, confidence bolstered by Fed and Treasury assurances. And despite the prospect of a $1 TN borrowing requirement this year, the Treasury can still tap liquid markets for short-term funds at about 20 bps. The Feds balance sheet has ballooned, although nothing to compare to the unfolding explosion of Trillions of Treasury borrowings, obligations and guarantees (both implied and explicit). The Government Finance Bubble is enormous and powerful - and should be anything but underestimated. Akin to the previous Bubble in Wall Street finance, the epicenter of this Bubble is here in the U. S. But I would argue that this unfolding Bubble dynamic has greater potential to engulf the entire world than even U. S.-style mortgages and derivatives did starting back around 2002. Welcome to the new world of synchronized stimulus, deficits, and reflationary policymaking. I dont believe true systemic deflation (as opposed to collapsing asset Bubbles) is a high probability scenario as long as the Government Finance Bubble is rapidly inflating. All bets are off, however, if confidence in government debt falters. The worst case scenario - that should be avoided at all costs - is a massive inflation of government claims that sets the stage for a devastating bust. It is imperative for policymakers to ensure that the Government Finance Bubble does not follow in the footsteps of the runaway excess associated with Wall Street/mortgage finance. Yet its clear that policymaking (monetary and fiscal) is setting a course to guarantee just such an outcome. And, as has been the case for some time now, markets are keen to fall in love with - and aggressively accommodate - whatever might be the Bubble of the Day. I fear that the Trillions of Government Finance spent to save the world from deflation will, in the end, require perpetual needs for Trillions more. There will be no kick-starting asset Bubbles or a return of private-sector Credit excess. Instead, it will be a case of throwing repeated doses of government-directed finance/purchasing power at the system. Temporary but fleeting economic boosts will then require only stronger doses of artificial stimulus. Weve commenced a new cycle dominated by government electronic printing presses in all their various forms. The inflationary consequences will be a different variety than weve grown accustomed to from previous reflations. But the bottom line is - and theres ample history to support this view - that once the printing presses get humming along its going to be darn difficult to slow them down.

A much better week for the market but did it do much to turn the charts of the sector SPDRs around? Im not convinced, but Ill let you be the judge. The numbers as the market awaits even more government

On Monday is when we will get The Plan. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, as expected, will announce on Monday a comprehensive plan to stabilize the financial system. According to the source, the banking component will be smaller than originally expected, include some bad bank component but be centered around government guarantees and insurance of troubled assets—whats called a ring fence concept. Other sources told CNBC that the bad bank would be able to buy up to $500 billion in troubled assets from financial institutions. Every bank would be subject to a uniform stress test to see if the bank needs additional capital, these sources said. At this point, the Obama administration appears to have settled on the most controversial aspect of the bad bank. pricing the toxic debt. The government will buy toxic assets below the banks carrying value, which is basically market value, but not at fire-sale levels, the source said, representing something of a compromise. Such a pricing approach will likely placate both taxpayer and Congressional concerns about the government overpaying for the assets. But, the source noted, it could trigger an accounting problem for the banks, presumably because the institutions will have to report a loss on the transactions. The Obama administration is now working on ideas to address that, which might entail a temporary suspension of certain accounting rules. It is unclear what that might be, said the source. CNBC reported Friday that sources say a foreclosure component will be included in Mondays announcement.

May the chop be with you. After the Dow tested support just yesterday morning, the market has bounced up nicely and already has the bulls talking of the turnaround. Today the beaten-up Transports got a big bounce, and the big Nasdaq stocks continue to attract buyers.

Gary Kaltbaum on the market developments over the past few days. I came into this week saying the ice was getting thinnerand for a couple of days, it sure looked like it was, but something happened on the way. The market continues to defend support and I am now seeing positive divergences while the market puts in a contracting pattern. Contracting patterns usually lead to good movesone way or another. Sobottom line, the next high volume move will win for the near term. With the jobs report and with the Obama administration coming out with another bank save as well as a sham of a stimulus plan, expect some fireworks. Where are the positive divergences starting to occur? All the COMMODS are sitting tight off the lows, many above 50-day, many sitting right on the 50-day. If the next move is up, the market moves up. The set up is there. Despite horrid news and numbers, the SEMIS and BIG CAP TECH is getting a bid here. If they can continue this, market goes higher. Remember, it is not the news, it is the reaction to the news. The NASDAQ and NDX are now way outperforming the DOW and SP. FINANCIALS are still gross but are now smelling another bank save as well as new mark to market rules. Unfortunately, this only gives the bad guys a chance to hide losses freely. In my opinion, this is another shambut we are all just spectators. In my opinion, BAC was again on the verge of going bye-bye before news of different accounting rules came out. This is a company in dire straits (just look at the stock) but I believe they now will be saved one way or another by the latest Geithner plan. Speaking of shams, here comes the stimulus bill. I have not seen such a piece of garbage in many a year. Obama is now using words like CATASTROPHE as well as saying if not passed, WE MAY NEVER REVERSE THIS. This is laughable and tells me Obama has no respect for Americans intellect. It is not even close as to how bad this package is. I am amazed at the hypocrisy of the left as they blasted Bush for his scare tactics. Soanother bad jobs number is outbut on top of this, accounting changes, bank saves and an Obamas speech all by Monday. Expect some fireworks. In a contracting pattern, next high volume move wins for the near term.

Like the rest of us, it doesnt sound as if Larry McMillan is too certain about where the market is headed either (click here for column with charts). Once again, $SPX found support in the us. area this week. That is certainly an important area now, and if the index should fall below there a torrent of selling would surely be unleashed. Recent rallies have failed at the declining 20-day moving average, now near 850. This is also about the same area as the declining trend line of the bear market (see Figure 1). If those downtrending lines can be overcome in a significant way, then a more substantial rally could ensue. So, at this point, we will wait and see. Friday mornings unemployment report may cause the market to gap. Equity-only put-call ratios remain on sell signals, however. There had been some chance about a week ago that buy signals could arise, but they did not. Market breadth has remained rather neutral of late, getting neither very overbought nor oversold. Consequently, breadth is not giving us a fresh signal at the current time. Volatility indices are in a neutral range as well (see Figure 4). Usually, the $VIX chart and the $SPX chart would be upside down versions of each other, but thats not the case at the current time. Both are showing a flat support line underneath and a declining trend line above. If $VIX were to close below 38, that would be bullish for the market. And, if $VIX were to break out above 50, then that would have bearish implications. In summary, a breakout by $SPX should be coming soon perhaps as early as today. The formation that its in is called a wedge by technicians and generally has bearish implications. But we prefer to wait to see what actually happens. Once the breakout occurs, it is likely to produce a sustained move in that direction for at least 50 $SPX points and perhaps more.

(Source. Business Wire)Zacks Equity Research highlights Abbott Laboratories (NYSE. ABT) as the Bull of the Day and Hubbell (NYSE. HUB. B) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Wipro Ltd. (NYSE. WIT), Citigroup (NYSE. C) and Infosys Technology (Nasdaq. INFY). Full analysis of all these stocks is available at Here is a synopsis of all five stocks. Bull of the Day. Abbott Laboratories (NYSE. ABT) discovers, develops, manufactures and sells a diversified line of healthcare products. We expect high-single digit EPS growth over the next five years driven by strong sales of Humira and the company's rapidly growing vascular business. Several new drug applications have recently been filed with the FDA which should accelerate sales in the pharmaceutical business. We believe ABT possesses a low risk profile and will continue to trade at an industry premium. Accordingly, we reiterate our Buy recommendation with a price target of $65. Bear of the Day. Hubbell (NYSE. HUB. B) reported third quarter 2008 results that exceeded both top and bottom line expectations. The good storm season was the primary driver of growth in the last quarter, although pricing actions and acquisitions also contributed. The company is benefiting from restructuring actions, with management continuing to attribute some of the margin expansion to production efficiencies and improved cost management. The share price dropped sharply in September, but has stabilized since. We tend to think that there could be further downside, given the recessionary macro economic trends and the positive correlation between Hubbell's growth and the growth of the national GDP. Additionally, both residential and nonresidential construction activity appears to be slowing and could worsen in 2009. Consequently, we are reiterating our Sell recommendation. Latest Posts on the Zacks Analyst Blog. Wipro's Guidance Hurts Stock Wipro Ltd.'s (NYSE. WIT) Q3 results met expectations with nearly 9% quarter-over-quarter increase in profits, but lower Q4 expectations are impacting the shares negatively in trading today. The company now expects revenues from IT services in Q4 to be around $1.05 billion, which is approx. 5 percent less sequentially in dollar terms. The revenue guidance includes Citi Technology Services Ltd., Citigroup's (NYSE. C) in-house IT services provider in India, which Wipro acquired in December, 2008 for $127 million with an expected 2008 revenues of about $80 million. The current global downturn is clearly impacting the Indian IT Services providers, clouding visibility beyond the current quarter. Wipro had a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 25% over the last five years, exhibiting stability, profitability, and growth from its inception and through down markets for IT services. However, the current slowdown is expected to impact growth significantly over the coming quarters, and CY2009 may mark the low point for the company. Similarly, Infosys Technology (Nasdaq. INFY) had also announced a decent Q3 but provided a revised Q4 outlook significantly lower than previously expected. Get the full analysis of all these stocks by going to About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months. About the Analyst Blog Updated throughout every trading day, the Analyst Blog provides analysis from Zacks Equity Research about the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today by visiting About Zacks Zacks. com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system. the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter. Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros. Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Disclaimer. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security. A service of YellowBrix, Inc.

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Zacks Equity Research picks Myriad Genetics (Nasdaq. MYGN) as Bull of the Day and School Specialty, Inc. (Nasdaq. SCHS) as Bear of the Day. In addition, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research discuss the latest on Exxon Mobil (NYSE. XOM), Chevron (NYSE. CVX) and Transocean (NYSE. RIG). Full analysis of all these stocks is available at. Bull of the Day Myriad Genetics (Nasdaq. MYGN) relies on its predictive medicine for its revenue generation and is currently seeing solid growth in this business. On February 3, 2009, Myriad reported fiscal 2Q09 financial results ended December 31, 2008. For the 3-month period ended December 31, 2008, total revenues increased to $84.4 million from $56.7 million in the same 3 months in 2007, an increase of 48.7%. This growth resulted primarily from an increase in molecular diagnostic revenues, which were $84 million this quarter, compared to $53.1 million in the same quarter of the prior year. This 58% product revenue growth resulted primarily from an increase in the Company's sales and marketing efforts, including expansion of the Company's women's health sales force to 100 sales representatives, and continuation of the direct-to-consumer marketing campaign, which the Company believes has resulted in improved physician acceptance and adoption of its molecular diagnostic products. Sequentially, growth was 20% from the first fiscal quarter of 2008. Sales from molecular diagnostics were way above our estimate of $74.5 million. Bear of the Day School Specialty, Inc. (Nasdaq. SCHS) is a company serving the pre-K-12 education market by providing products, services, and ideas which enhance student achievement and development to educators and schools across the U. S. School Specialty's family of brands serves more than 116,000 schools throughout the U. S. and Canada, with a comprehensive range of more than 100,000 products. Back on November 20, School Specialty reported disappointing results for its fiscal second quarter, and management lowered its guidance for the fiscal year 2009. The shortfall was due to a decline in state revenue. SCHS is highly dependent on state and local governments for its revenues. A weak economy and de-leveraging in the credit markets will only exacerbate the problems in local government funding. We expect this trend to continue, and that will hurt School Specialty's results. We reiterate our Sell rating on SCHS and $11 target price. School Specialty is scheduled to report fiscal third quarter results on February 19. Recent Analysis from the Analyst Blog Oil Inventories Continue to Grow With the economy expected to continue shedding jobs in the coming months and the full impact of the upcoming stimulus package still some time off, the near-term outlook for demand remains grim. In this anemic demand environment, the inventory overhang has become a significant price driver, particularly for the shorter end of the forward curve. This situation is expected to change as OPECs supply cuts take effect -- most likely in the spring months -- and visibility on the U. S. economy improves. While a renewed push to new lows in oil prices cannot be ruled out in the coming days, we think that the commodity is close to bottom levels at present. While we continue to recommend defensive names like Exxon (NYSE. XOM) and Chevron (NYSE. CVX), we like the relatively more high-beta names such as Transocean (NYSE. RIG). Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter. About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months. About the Analyst Blog Updated throughout every trading day, the Analyst Blog provides analysis from Zacks Equity Research about the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today by visiting About Zacks Zacks. com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system. the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter. Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros at Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Disclaimer. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security.

Located in the legendary Waldorf-Astoria, The Bull and Bear is a classic NY steakhouse, serving traditional, hearty fare in a swank, clubby atmosphere. While maintaining the steakhouse traditions of generous portions and straightforward preparations of prime aged beef and chops, Chef de Cuisine Mark Melillo also offers more gastronomically sophisticated dishes on his menus. In June 2002, we became the first restaurant on the East Coast to serve the prime grade of Certified Angus Beef, prized for its fine marbling and juicy flavor. Adjoining the Steakhouse is The Bull and Bear Bar. Cited by The NY Times as one the world's three greatest classic bars, the Bull and Bear Bar is known for stock-tickers lining the outer perimeter of the bar and the city's best martini. Make reservations @ us. & mention the Citysearch promotion or online and insert Citysearch in notes text box.

Bull Bear, one of the most popular bars and grills in La Jolla, was created to offer its guests a fun local hangout right on Prospect Street. Serving a variety of American, Italian and Mexican dishes and coupled with outdoor patio seating, a friendly atmosphere, and great food, make Bull Bear your best choice to dine out in La Jolla.

With one of the most historic and well-recognized bars in New York City, this celebrated steakhouse offers hearty portions of traditional fare, as well as weekly specials. In addition to its impressive selection of fresh seafood, Bull and Bear was one of the first restaurants on the Eastern Seaboard to serve the Prime grade of Certified Angus Beef®. At the polished mahogany bar enjoy specialty beers and generous cocktails, including the best Martini in the city. Join us for our Running with the Bulls express lunch menu! From 12.00pm - 3.00pm daily, we offer three courses for $32.00, with choices in each course.

Private Party Facilities. Elevate gourmet gatherings with the luxurious seclusion of private dining. Whether you choose the Art Deco elegance of Peacock Alley, the classic and clubby Bull and Bear, the chic Brasserie ambience of Oscar's, or the luxury of a Waldorf Towers Suite, our creative cuisine, hand-crafted cocktails, and choice wine cellar will gratify and delight you. We desire to cater to your every whim.

The debate continues over the path of the market. bloggers continue to be bullish, and strategists are expecting a 20% gain in 2009, but $900 gold, the recent sell-off in stocks and wary economic news has kept bears calling for further declines. On December 1, Birinyi Associates did not necessarily call the bottom, but defined November 20th as the market's low and predicted that it would not decline below that. Since then stocks have traded mostly sideways, with the market currently at the lower end of that trading range. One point that has escaped many commentators and participants is that by all traditional definitions we have entered a new bull market. With stocks exhibiting such high levels of volatility, most people are likely waiting for sustained gains of 25 - 30% before calling for the bull market of 2009, but the chart below illustrates that the bull market qualification (a 20% gain from a low) has clearly been satisfied.

A mutual fund is a company that pools the money of many investors -- its shareholders -- to invest in a variety of different securities. Investments may be in stocks, bonds, money market securities or some combination of these. Those securities are professionally managed on behalf of the shareholders, and each investor holds a pro rata share of the portfolio -- entitled to any profits when the securities are sold, but subject to any losses in value as well. For the individual investor, mutual funds provide the benefit of having someone else manage your investments, take care of recordkeeping for your account, and diversify your dollars over many different securities that may not be available or affordable to you otherwise. Today, minimum investment requirements on many funds are low enough that even the smallest investor can get started in mutual funds. A mutual fund's assets are invested in many different securities. Because there are many different types of mutual funds with different objectives and levels of growth potential, a portfolio of different types of mutual funds offers diversification.

Bull and bear stock markets are two sides of the same coin. Long-time investors know that bear markets are setting up the next bull market. They also know that bull markets dont run forever. The longest running bull market ever was from 1990 2000.

It is impossible to know when a bull or bear market is officially over except through the 20-20 vision of history. All bull and bear markets will exhibit periods that look like reversals, but are just momentary before the bull or bear regains control. We now know that the bull market ended in March 2000, but at that moment, it wasnt clear the party was over. The three-year bear market that followed was pushed by the tragedy of 9/11 and a recession.

CNN pointed out that the Dow bottomed out at 776 in October of 2002. From that point, the market has gone on to record heights. Long the way, there have been some significant dips, but followed by a continuation of strong upward pressure. This is all easy to see now, but when you are gasping for air as your portfolio value plummets, its not so easy to step back for perspective. In the end, good companies have a better chance of weathering storms the sweep the market and the economy.

Bear markets perform the necessary service of deflating values and sweeping the market clean of stocks that are weak and riding on fads alone. Your faith in solid fundamentals will usually pay off over time, but even a great companys stock can get banged around in a tough market. The lesson here is that stocks, as illustrated by the Dow, are good long-term investments, but dangerous short-term bets.

Product Description Stan Weinstein's Secrets For Profiting in Bull and Bear Markets reveals his successful methods for timing investments to produce consistently profitable results. Topics include.

Using the best long-term indicators to spot Bull and Bear markets Odds, ends, and profits About the Author McGraw-Hill authors represent the leading experts in their fields and are dedicated to improving the lives, careers, and interests of readers worldwide

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This book has completely changed by perspective on trading or investing (there's a difference). With either one, I believe you will find this book VERY helpful and practical (recognizing breakouts, when to buy, when to sell, cycles of a stock's life, market timing, shorting stocks, establishing safeguards, various order types, etc.). The book has a heavy emphasis on analyzing charts. This is a major plus, but it's very practical, not numbingly theoretical. Weinstein is often compared to O'Neil in (momentum) investment style, but I find Weinstein's book much more systematic and well organized than anything I've read by O'Neil. I own 8 books about investing. This is the best, and the only one I go back to continually. Bottom line. my portfolio has grown 30% in two months using his methodology, and it's kept me from making a LOT of bad decisions. Don't let the date influence you. Start reading, and you will think he published it this year.

This is the best book on trading techniques that I have ever read. It is based on how to do "stage analysis," that is, looking at charts to determine whether a stock is going up, topping, declining, or bottoming out. The author stresses using stage analysis not only on individual stocks, but also on industry sectors as well as indexes like the Dow and Nasdaq. I cashed out of my stocks three weeks before the recent Dow and Nasdaq declines, simply because, as luck would have it, I had just finished studying the chapter on spotting market tops. All the signs that Weinstein laid out so neatly in that chapter were apparent--it was truly a textbook case. Anyone doing trading should know the information in this book..it's very basic, as the author teaches the minimum you need to know for success. But it works, and the information is presented clearly in very readable, friendly prose.

Stan Weinstein's Secrets For Profiting in Bull and Bear Markets This is an old book that was hard to find (I had a photocopied version). It has sompe personal experiences in stock trading. I was pleased to find it on Amazon.

AS PRICES in Sydney's prestige suburbs spiral down, a question prevails. will 2009 be a bear year or have the prices dropped enough to prompt a bull run? Australian Property Monitors economist Liam O'Hara is a "bear for the short-term", predicting further falls of up to 14 per cent in areas such as Bondi, Mosman and Palm Beach, which come on top of steep declines last year. Preliminary figures from APM confirm the median house price in Palm Beach fell from $2,512,500 in the year to December 2007, to $2 million in December 2008 - a 20.4 per cent drop. Mosman dropped from a median of $1.2 million to $865,000 - a fall of 27.9 per cent. The optimists and pessimists are locking horns over the Sydney housing market's future, with bears forecasting more price falls and bulls arguing such doom and gloom will only depress the market further. Even real-estate agents admit prices have declined steeply in premium suburbs. Barrenjoey Properties principal Richard McDonagh says prices in wealth belt suburbs such as Palm Beach were off by 35 per cent in December as players in the financial markets were hit by the credit crunch, forcing them to sell holiday homes. [W] estate agents principal Susan Lee says Mosman's best homes had already fallen in price "at least 20 per cent" through last year. She says there will be more price slides for the top-end suburbs that rose strongly during the past four years. "Sydney will have nominal price falls of 10 per cent but it will depend on where you live because some suburbs will have price increases - mostly those that are the cheapest relative to other stock." Mr O'Hara says outer suburbs in the west and south-west - where prices are less than $360,000 - are poised for strong growth, especially property close to trains, schools and shops. Rismark International head of research Matthew Hardman agrees, saying prices will rise and fall in different Sydney suburbs. He says property in the city's west and south-west is 25 per cent cheaper than it was four years ago. "Those areas are now as affordable as they were back in 1998," he says. Macquarie Group's head of property research, Rod Cornish, forecasts "moderate price falls" across Sydney. He says the suburbs that will fare best through a tumultuous 2009 will be in the cheaper, city fringe areas. One optimistic bull is CommSec chief economist Craig James, who says conditions are ripe for great home-buying opportunities in the year ahead. Lower house prices than in previous years, falling interest rates and lower petrol prices will boost home affordability, he says.

We need people with confidence to act so we can get more momentum in the economy and I think this will happen soon," he says. McGrath Real Estate chief executive John McGrath is confident about the health of the market, predicting bargains aplenty in suburbs such as Vaucluse, Hunters Hill, Longueville, Northwood, Northbridge, Cremorne, Mosman, Avalon, Whale Beach and Palm Beach. "These areas count among the best in the country, so now is the time to buy in before the market surges back, which I suspect it will in these areas by 2010," Mr McGrath says. Dr Hardman says now is the perfect time for cashed-up home owners with secure jobs to upgrade to a bigger, more expensive home because the discount is proportionately better in a falling market.

REAL-ESTATE agents such as John McGrath, apartment developers Meriton and the head of NSW's Real Estate Institute, Steve Martin, are happy to talk about their confidence in the market. "In all my time in real estate, this is the perfect buying platform," Mr Martin says. "Interest rates are attractive, first home buyer grants are attractive and there is a stagnant market." Mr McGrath admits that asking a real-estate agent whether it's a good time to buy is "akin to asking your barber whether you need a haircut", but he says falling prices have made the market ripe for buying. "With prices down by 10 to 20 per cent, interest rates falling by 2.5 to 3 per cent and rents up 10 to 15 per cent, an investment in residential property now makes so much better financial sense than it did a year ago when people were lining up at auctions each week." Meriton sales director James Sialepis says the stockmarket turmoil and lower interest rates mean property investors will return. "Astute investors are also aware that falling interest rates are having a negative effect on their bank term deposits and, with the sharemarket volatile, we expect investors to return to the property market and take advantage of the higher yields on offer."

After many an opening delay in the last quarter recession of '08, this market-themed gastropub opened two days after our man Obama’s swearing in. The real reason for the hold is because of a labor dispute with the contractors, but the timing is certainly revenue hopeful. There is a double entendre with the city's sports teams, of course, supported by dozens of 50-inch plasma TVs, but everything else in the two-tiered lofted space is all numbers and trade, marquee-ed by a live 40-foot stock ticker above a front room bar the same length. While a wall of classic, leather-buttoned executive chair-fashioned booths support the rear. We're not sure what their personal beer taps, attached to said tables with LED pay-by-the-ounce readings, have to do with Wall Street, but they're the second of their kind in the country, and supremely cool. The Wells Street Journal menu carries the gimmick further, offering power lunch-meets-game time treats like bison and brie burgers, buttered English rolls stuffed with cucumber tarragon mayo, and a barrage of "Liquid Assets" (cocktails) mixed with oddities like basil and blueberry-infused Patron. The ingredients can work up the price of the tab pretty quick, but luckily B&B does make like the market once again and offer plenty of under-$9 app and $5 imported brew options. Average cost. $10-$20 Centerstage Reviewer. Gavin Paul

A high-end sports bar for Loopers and traders, for more that a year. Although the place isnt slated to open until mid-October, the trio already has a slew of other projects in the pipeline, including a Las Vegas spinoff and two more nightlife concepts planned for Wicker Park and the Gold Coast. I caught up with Stoioff last night to get the scoop. Why do we need another sports bar in Chicago? There are no upscale sports bars in the area. Where do you go to watch a game? Rockit? ESPN Zone? Tell me about the concept. We wanted a place that caters to young professionals. a place where you can bring your girlfriend, for example. It's a more refined environment for people with a taste for high-quality bar food. Why River North? It's right across from the Loop, where traders and professionals can go [to watch games]. It's a sports bar that caters to business professionals. How does the name play into the concept? There's a 50-foot ticker displaying sports scores and stocks above the main bar, kind of like at Lucky Strike, accompanied by six 60-inch LCD flatscreens. There are 25 flatscreens total, and a high-def digital projector on an exposed brick wall showing games. And there's a big morph of a bull head and a bear head made out of stone behind the back bar. No matter where you are [in the bar], you have a perfect vantage point of the games, the stocks, and the people. It's 5,000 square feet with a big sidewalk patio that seats more than 100, but [the patio] probably won't be open until next summer. What do the food and drink menus look like? As a nod to the stock market theme, we call our drink menu liquid assets. We'll have specialty cocktails like the Nasdaquiri for $12you know. the usual froufrou cocktails. Our food, by Chef David Blonsky (Quartino), is upscale bar food with a twist. Pigs in a blanket with kielbasa wrapped in phyllo dough, and little Philly cheesesteaks and mini bison burgers. Tell us about those personal taps we keep hearing about. The booths have taps built into them, rigged from our coolers downstairs. Two taps for every table. one domestic and one import. We'll always have Bud Light since it sells the best, and the others will rotate weekly. Stone Lotus had been open for a year before you decided to use the 4 a. m. liquor license. Will Bull Bear be a late-night bar? If I can get [a 4 a. m. license] at BB, we'll do the same. It's about business longevity. In the nightlife biz, you must always create ways to reinvent yourself. [At Stone Lotus] we waited because we were new and hot as an early-night option. Then, when we started to age, we launched the late-night license and became a staple late-night place. *** New Bar Alert The Old Oak Tapthe new bi-level West Town bar from Chris and Susan Ongkiko, whose other spots have included, at one time or another, The Continental

Of late, drinking at work has been universally frowned upon, but it doesn't take a genius to figure out that forbidding someone's imbibing will usher in Great Depression. Get your boozy business done at the Bull & Bear, opening Thursday.

Made happy-hour classy with dark wood and exposed brick, the latest from the Stone Lotus guys is part sports bar, part biz-bar, with free wi-fi, plus a king's ransom of flatscreens, a 10-foot HD projector, and 40 feet of “stock tickers”, all flashing financial, sports, and entertainment news. The theme extends to the 12 specialty cocktails (e. g., the “Broker's Breakfast” Bloody Mary, and the Knob Creek & Calvados “Sucker Punch”). meanwhile, there are nine taps (Goose Island, Guinness, Hoegaarden, etc), with a rotating selection available at five reservable “Table Tap” booths where a computerized system lets you pay for brews by the ounce (goddamn it! what the hell have you done with my cocaine joke!). “The Wells Street Journal” is B&B's menu of elevated bar fare, featuring the likes of double-cut grilled pork chops, organic chicken wings, truffled mac & cheese, and seven sliders, from American Kobe, to the seared shaved rib-eye “Little Philly”, to Italian meatball, to the piggish “Pulled Hammy”, the Donte' Stallworth of bite-sized sandwiches. In the spirit of deal-making, they offer a free, never-expiring “Players Club” card giving 10% credit for every $500 spent, and a monthly “Mug Club” where $50 gets you your own mug (stored on site), unlimited $2 drafts, and a logo pasted Buckeye-style to your drinking vessel with every beer ordered -- because while "profitability" might benefit from out-of-the-box shenanigans, the balance sheet of manhood should be represented by cold, hard.stickers.

Technical analysts believe that stock prices will move in one direction until an important factor stops this and makes them change their direction. This is known as the trend of a market. The stock market is either in a trend, a breakout or a consolidation phase. The trend refers to when the stock market is moving in one particular direction. The breakout occurs when the stock prices reach a particular price and instead of continuing in the previous trend, the move sharply in the opposite direction to start a new trend. A consolidation refers to when the market is in no particular direction. It is flat without any major price changes. If the long-term trend of the market is up, we refer this as a bull market. If the long-term trend of the market is down, we refer this to a bear market. The bull or bear market can also be applied to a particular stock. If the price of a particular stock is going up, it is referred to as bullish and bearish if the price is going down. Normally if the price of the market has dropped by more than 20% in two months, it is referred to as a bearish market and the opposite is true in a bullish market. Most small traders make their profits during a bull market. This is because most small stock investors buy stock to hold for a long period. As such when the underlying market prices are going up, the small investor is also profiting even though he might not know it. It is possible to make money too when there is a bear market. Experienced traders use a technique called shorting the market, which involves making a profit from selling stocks. Short selling involves selling stock that you do not own with expecting further stock price reductions, so that when you are supposed to deliver the stock, you buy it for less than you sold it. It is only possible when the stock trader can borrow money from their broker. Bear markets are also a great time to buy stocks at a lower price. The only thing that you have to do is to be confident that the stock market will go up soon and that your stock can withstand a weak economy. Bear and bull markets are very good indicators of the underlying economy of a country. When companies are making profits, it is usually a result of higher sales. With higher company profits, it means that the stock prices are rising and thus it is a bull market. The opposite is true for a bear market. A bear market is a good indicator of a national economy that is going through a rough patch. As an investor, it is important to know what type of market you are in. This will allow you to use the proper investing techniques in order to make more profits.

The 2009 Global Investing Economic Outlook By Vivian Lewis, Global Investing Ms. Lewis offers a more restricted stock list for 2009 than normal. Reasons. Anticipates a resumption of inflation. Does not believe in a new boom in the U. S. economy or in stocks. Lewis advises. Don't be a buy and hold owner. Trade away. Sees a possible new testing of the lows of October in early 2009. Where to invest? Neglected small caps with a niche and few or no competitors. Gold or Gold ETFs. Alternative energy plays. No financial stocks. Invest defensively. Her favorite sector right now is drug research.

Keep a Journal of These Times! As the stock market bubble was bursting in 2000 Sy Harding suggested that investors keep notes or a journal, because some day they would be telling their grandchildren about the bursting of the tech bubble and its aftermath. It's only eight years later, and we have the potential for even more dramatic stories for our grandchildren.

Panning for Winners By Matt Blackman You get a hot stock tip from a friend or your broker, buy the precious metal stock only to find out it's a losing proposition. You tell yourself that there has to be a better way. Here is one way how, with the help of technology and a little initiative, you can beat the 'hot tip' blues.

Buffett Banter at the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting Warren Buffett said the best investment lessons still come from Ben Graham's book, The Intelligent Investor. If investors absorb the lessons from Chapter 8 and 20, they can't get a bad result. By Ingrid Hendershot, Hendershot Investments Inc.

10 Smart Year-End Tax Moves By adding these tax tasks to your holiday to-do list, you could give yourself a nice present when you file your 1040 next year. 4 Tax Moves NOT To Make In 2007 There are several good tax moves to make before the end of the year, but here are four strategies better left until after Jan. 1. Last Minute Tax Tips Vita Nelson, The Moneypaper, provides us with year-end tax tips.

Andrew Leckey answers questions for Bull Bear readers. Facing Challenges, Tivo Makes Moves To Join With Partners. High End Strategy Has Saks Looking Better. How Do Closed-end Funds Differ. Comments on Mutual European Fund, Fidelity Stock Selector Fund, Dogs of the Dow

Warren Buffett's Wisdom By Sy Harding, Street Smart Report Online Warren Buffett, billionaire chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, says some neat things in the annual reports to his investors. Some of my favorites are.Read More

Home Buying or Selling. 7 Top Tips for '07 By Steve McLinden, Bankrate. com Whether you're buying or selling in 2007, these strategies will help you get the best deal possible

Anxiety-Free Investing. Proven Tips for Staying Calm in Any Market Yes, the market's up and down, but you don't have to be. Eric Tyson offers his usual sound advice on investing - advice that transcends economic fluctuations.

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Zacks Equity Research picks Myriad Genetics (Nasdaq. MYGN) as Bull of the Day and School Specialty, Inc. (Nasdaq. SCHS) as Bear of the Day. In addition, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research discuss the latest on Exxon Mobil (NYSE. XOM), Chevron (NYSE. CVX) and Transocean (NYSE. RIG). Full analysis of all these stocks is available at. Bull of the Day Myriad Genetics (Nasdaq. MYGN) relies on its predictive medicine for its revenue generation and is currently seeing solid growth in this business. On February 3, 2009, Myriad reported fiscal 2Q09 financial results ended December 31, 2008. For the 3-month period ended December 31, 2008, total revenues increased to $84.4 million from $56.7 million in the same 3 months in 2007, an increase of 48.7%. This growth resulted primarily from an increase in molecular diagnostic revenues, which were $84 million this quarter, compared to $53.1 million in the same quarter of the prior year. This 58% product revenue growth resulted primarily from an increase in the Company's sales and marketing efforts, including expansion of the Company's women's health sales force to 100 sales representatives, and continuation of the direct-to-consumer marketing campaign, which the Company believes has resulted in improved physician acceptance and adoption of its molecular diagnostic products. Sequentially, growth was 20% from the first fiscal quarter of 2008. Sales from molecular diagnostics were way above our estimate of $74.5 million. Bear of the Day School Specialty, Inc. (Nasdaq. SCHS) is a company serving the pre-K-12 education market by providing products, services, and ideas which enhance student achievement and development to educators and schools across the U. S. School Specialty's family of brands serves more than 116,000 schools throughout the U. S. and Canada, with a comprehensive range of more than 100,000 products. Back on November 20, School Specialty reported disappointing results for its fiscal second quarter, and management lowered its guidance for the fiscal year 2009. The shortfall was due to a decline in state revenue. SCHS is highly dependent on state and local governments for its revenues. A weak economy and de-leveraging in the credit markets will only exacerbate the problems in local government funding. We expect this trend to continue, and that will hurt School Specialty's results. We reiterate our Sell rating on SCHS and $11 target price. School Specialty is scheduled to report fiscal third quarter results on February 19. Recent Analysis from the Analyst Blog Oil Inventories Continue to Grow With the economy expected to continue shedding jobs in the coming months and the full impact of the upcoming stimulus package still some time off, the near-term outlook for demand remains grim. In this anemic demand environment, the inventory overhang has become a significant price driver, particularly for the shorter end of the forward curve. This situation is expected to change as OPEC?s supply cuts take effect -- most likely in the spring months -- and visibility on the U. S. economy improves. While a renewed push to new lows in oil prices cannot be ruled out in the coming days, we think that the commodity is close to bottom levels at present. While we continue to recommend defensive names like Exxon (NYSE. XOM) and Chevron (NYSE. CVX), we like the relatively more high-beta names such as Transocean (NYSE. RIG). Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter. About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months. About the Analyst Blog Updated throughout every trading day, the Analyst Blog provides analysis from Zacks Equity Research about the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today by visiting About Zacks Zacks. com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system. the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter. Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros at Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Disclaimer. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security.

Zacks Bull Bear of the Day Highlights. Myriad Genetics, School Specialty, Exxon, Chevron and Transocean Zacks Bull Bear of the Day Highlights. Myriad Genetics, School Specialty, Exxon, Chevron and TransoceanCHICAGOIL-ZACKS. COM

The 2009 Global Investing Economic Outlook By Vivian Lewis, Global Investing Ms. Lewis offers a more restricted stock list for 2009 than normal. Reasons. Anticipates a resumption of inflation. Does not believe in a new boom in the U. S. economy or in stocks. Lewis advises. Don't be a buy and hold owner. Trade away. Sees a possible new testing of the lows of October in early 2009. Where to invest? Neglected small caps with a niche and few or no competitors. Gold or Gold ETFs. Alternative energy plays. No financial stocks. Invest defensively. Her favorite sector right now is drug research.

Keep a Journal of These Times! As the stock market bubble was bursting in 2000 Sy Harding suggested that investors keep notes or a journal, because some day they would be telling their grandchildren about the bursting of the tech bubble and its aftermath. It's only eight years later, and we have the potential for even more dramatic stories for our grandchildren.

Panning for Winners By Matt Blackman You get a hot stock tip from a friend or your broker, buy the precious metal stock only to find out it's a losing proposition. You tell yourself that there has to be a better way. Here is one way how, with the help of technology and a little initiative, you can beat the 'hot tip' blues.

Buffett Banter at the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting Warren Buffett said the best investment lessons still come from Ben Graham's book, The Intelligent Investor. If investors absorb the lessons from Chapter 8 and 20, they can't get a bad result. By Ingrid Hendershot, Hendershot Investments Inc.

10 Smart Year-End Tax Moves By adding these tax tasks to your holiday to-do list, you could give yourself a nice present when you file your 1040 next year. 4 Tax Moves NOT To Make In 2007 There are several good tax moves to make before the end of the year, but here are four strategies better left until after Jan. 1. Last Minute Tax Tips Vita Nelson, The Moneypaper, provides us with year-end tax tips.

Andrew Leckey answers questions for Bull Bear readers. Facing Challenges, Tivo Makes Moves To Join With Partners. High End Strategy Has Saks Looking Better. How Do Closed-end Funds Differ. Comments on Mutual European Fund, Fidelity Stock Selector Fund, Dogs of the Dow

Warren Buffett's Wisdom By Sy Harding, Street Smart Report Online Warren Buffett, billionaire chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, says some neat things in the annual reports to his investors. Some of my favorites are.Read More

Home Buying or Selling. 7 Top Tips for '07 By Steve McLinden, Bankrate. com Whether you're buying or selling in 2007, these strategies will help you get the best deal possible

Anxiety-Free Investing. Proven Tips for Staying Calm in Any Market Yes, the market's up and down, but you don't have to be. Eric Tyson offers his usual sound advice on investing - advice that transcends economic fluctuations.

The Little Book that helps investors avoid big losses in an economic downturn In the wake of falling stock and real estate prices, the American economy is poised for a decade-long bear market, so says Peter Schiff. After he accurately predicted the current market turmoil, savvy investors should pay attention--and start protecting their assets now, before the markets take their toll. The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets shows investors how to stay safe and stay liquid during economic downturns. Using economic history as a guide, Schiff looks at the bear markets that followed the bull markets of the 1920s and 1960s to predict what the American economy will look like after it corrects for the tech and real estate bubbles of the 1990s and early 2000s. Combining financial, economic, and political perspectives, Schiff looks at what worked in those earlier bear markets and predicts what strategies are most likely to work over the next ten years. In the end, Schiff argues that the next decade will most closely resemble the 1970s, complete with inflation, rising interest rates, and soaring commodity prices. This reversal of trends will make past investment strategies obsolete and pose a challenge for investors trying to build and protect their wealth. Smart investing will always pay off. the key lies in using the best strategies for the market at hand. For investors who see the writing on the wall but don't know what to do about it, The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets offers a timely, critical answer. Peter D. Schiff (Darien, CT) is President of Euro Pacific Capital, Inc., and one of the few non-biased investment advisors to have predicted the current bear market and positioned his clients accordingly. He appears twice a week on the FOX Business News network and has been quoted in such publications as the Wall Street Journal, Barron's, the Financial Times, and the New York Times. He is also the author of Crash Proof ( us. ), from Wiley.

Peter D. Schiff is President of Euro Pacific Capital, Inc., and one of the few unbiased investment advisors to have predicted the current bear market and positioned his clients accordingly. Schiff appears frequently on Fox News, Fox Business News, CNN, CNBC, and Bloomberg TV, and has been quoted in such publications as the Wall Street Journal, Barron's, the Financial Times, and the New York Times. He is also the author of Crash Proof, which is published by Wiley.

The Little Book that helps investors avoid big losses in an economic downturn In the wake of falling stock and real estate prices, the American economy is poised for a decade-long bear market, so says Peter Schiff. After he accurately predicted the current market turmoil, savvy investors should pay attention--and start protecting their assets now, before the markets take their toll. The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets shows investors how to stay safe and stay liquid during economic downturns. Using economic history as a guide, Schiff looks at the bear markets that followed the bull markets of the 1920s and 1960s to predict what the American economy will look like after it corrects for the tech and real estate bubbles of the 1990s and early 2000s. Combining financial, economic, and political perspectives, Schiff looks at what worked in those earlier bear markets and predicts what strategies are most likely to work over the next ten years. In the end, Schiff argues that the next decade will most closely resemble the 1970s, complete with inflation, rising interest rates, and soaring commodity prices. This reversal of trends will make past investment strategies obsolete and pose a challenge for investors trying to build and protect their wealth. Smart investing will always pay off. the key lies in using the best strategies for the market at hand. For investors who see the writing on the wall but don't know what to do about it, The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets offers a timely, critical answer. Peter D. Schiff (Darien, CT) is President of Euro Pacific Capital, Inc., and one of the few non-biased investment advisors to have predicted the current bear market and positioned his clients accordingly. He appears twice a week on the FOX Business News network and has been quoted in such publications as the Wall Street Journal, Barron's, the Financial Times, and the New York Times. He is also the author of Crash Proof ( us. ), from Wiley.

us. 13.01.04 - Zacks Equity Research picks Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ. ONXX) as Bull of the Day and Newfield Exploration (NYSE. NFX) as Bear of the Day. In addition, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research discuss the latest on D. R. Horton (NYSE. DHI), KB Home (NYSE. KBH) and MGIC (NYSE. MTG). Full analysis of all these stocks is available at.

Bull of the Day Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (ONXX) is engaged in the development of novel cancer therapies that target the molecular basis of cancer. With its collaborator Bayer Healthcare, the company develops the small molecule drug Nexavar (sorafenib). Nexavar sales in the third quarter of 2008 remained strong. This is mainly attributed to the market penetration in the liver cancer market, while Nexavar market share in kidney cancer market has stabilized due to heavy competition from Pfizer and Wyeth. We expect continued Nexavar sales growth in 4Q08 and over the next several years since the label has expanded to liver cancer. In addition to the U. S. and E. U., Nexavar has been approved in South Korea and China for liver cancer. Nexavar has the potential to become a blockbuster. We maintain our Buy rating on Onyx shares with a price target of $45 per shares. Bear of the Day Newfield Exploration (NYSE. NFX), based in Houston, Texas, is an independent energy company engaged in the exploration and production (EP) of crude oil and natural gas. In an asset-diversification strategy, management has turned what was once an exclusive concentration in the Gulf of Mexico into a balanced portfolio. We are downgrading Newfield shares to Sell from Buy to reflect the company's weak competitive position in the current unfavorable macro backdrop. We believe that the Newfield asset portfolio centered around the Rockies and Gulf Coast regions are lacking in a meaningful exposure to the emerging shale plays. Thus, it is not suited for the current environment of low commodity prices and restricted access to capital. We have also reduced our estimates to reflect a lower commodity price deck. Recent Analysis from the Analyst Blog Wow! Good News in Housing The improvement in sales happened for both single-family homes (up 7.0% month over month but down 1.4% year over year) and for condos (up 2.1% month over month but down 18.4% year over year). The Northeast was the only region that did not see an increase in sales on a month over month basis, falling 1.4%, and down 14.3% year over year. It has also seen the least deterioration in median price over the last year, down 7.8% to $235,000. The Northeast is the smallest region of the country in terms of housing. The West had the biggest improvement, with sales up 13.6% on a month-over-month basis, and up 31.6% year over year. However, it also had the largest drop in median price of 31.5% to $213,100. The South, which has by far the most home sales, posted the next best performance, with sales up 7.4% on a month-over-month basis, but down 11.2% year over year. The median price in that region is down 8.0% year over year to $158,600. The Midwest was up 4.0% month over month and is down 10.3% year over year. It is the cheapest region with a median home price of $140,800, down 11.4% from a year ago. This shows that the market does work -- if prices get low enough, people will buy. Lower prices are not without costs, most significantly the wiping out of the equity of millions of Americans. I don't think the decline in home prices is over, but perhaps this is at least the end of the beginning. While there seems to be a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel, it still strikes me as too early to jump into the Homebuilders like D. R. Horton (NYSE. DHI) and KB Home (NYSE. KBH). The decline in home prices is also a significant negative to the Private Mortgage Insurance firms like MGIC (NYSE. MTG). Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter. at. zacks. com/"id=2649. About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months. About the Analyst Blog Updated throughout every trading day, the Analyst Blog provides analysis from Zacks Equity Research about the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today by visiting at. zacks. com/"id=2677. About Zacks Zacks. com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system. the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter. Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros at at. zacks. com/"id=4582. Visit www. zacks. com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Disclaimer. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security. Zacks. com Mark Vickery Web Content Editor us. Visit. www. zacks. com

I've heard this question countless times the past few weeks. And I find it a stunning rejection of Darwinian logic that proponents of such blather have managed to evade extinction. Investors simply never get asked a more distracting and pointless question. Effective investors find their style, then read the market and adapt accordingly. Of course, in discussions about Wall Street, the bull and bear are mesmerizing. How often do we hear a newscaster somberly intoning. "The bears got gored by the bulls on Wall Street today." The very next day, we hear the same talking head reverse course. "On Wall Street, the bears came out of their caves to chase the bulls, as the Dow dropped." The markets we saw last Wednesday and Thursday are textbook examples of why the colorful imagery of the bulls and bears is magnetically attractive to copywriters and repellent to good investing. Why is this such a problem? Because of the "folly of forecasting". Once people commit to a position, there is an unfortunate tendency to root for that perspective. Even worse, people stick with their forecast, regardless of what is actually happening in the market. We addressed this in the very first Apprenticed Investor, Expect to be Wrong. But instead of preparing, people dig their heels in and cost themselves money by being more concerned with trying to be right rather than making money.

CHICAGO - (Business Wire) Zacks Equity Research picks Biogen Idec (Nasdaq. BIIB) as Bull of the Day and CEMEX, S. A. de C. V. (NYSE. CX) as Bear of the Day. In addition, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research discuss the latest on Ford Motor Company (NYSE. F), Tata Motors (NYSE. TTM) and Carmike Cinemas, Inc. (Nasdaq. CKEC). Full analysis of all these stocks is available at. Bull of the Day Biogen Idec (Nasdaq. BIIB) posted solid results in the fourth quarter of 2008, despite the slowdown in Tysabri sales due to fears of PML. We think the Biogen core business will remain strong over the next several quarters, and that Tysabri prescriptions will resume their previous pace shortly. In the meantime, the name is significant under-valued and would be a very attractive takeout candidate for a large-cap pharmaceutical company looking for a great phase III pipeline. We expect 2009 to be an eventful year on the pipeline front. As investors become more comfortable with both Tysabri trends and emerging pipeline, we believe shares will recover back into the low $60s. At todays price, the name is too attractive to ignore. Bear of the Day We are keeping our Sell rating on CEMEX, S. A. de C. V. (NYSE. CX). The company posted weak results in the fourth quarter of 2008 including a net loss of US$707 million. The continued weak cement volumes in Spain and U. S. are problematic. The short-term outlook for the company remains highly uncertain based on the downtrend in the residential, industrial/commercial, and the infrastructure sectors as well as due to the fall in the real estate prices throughout the world. However, all efforts to reduce its costs and net debt in 2009 are very encouraging. Nevertheless, the current credit crunch and the recession in the U. S. are matters of huge concern. Recent Analysis from the Analyst Blog Volvo Made InChina? Ford Motor Company (NYSE. F) is very close to selling Volvo in an effort to generate enough cash to stay away from the bailout trough in Washington. The potential buyer would be Geely Automobile Holdings, which is a Chinese company. Ford would take a loss and get less than the $6.4 billion that it paid for it in 1999. Geely, a maker of $6,000 compacts in Asia, is seeking to grow in the US and Europe. They wanted to buy the company a year ago, and were rebuffed by Ford. As Ford became more desperate last December, talks were rekindled. Geely has received all Chinese government approvals already. The Export-Import bank of China will finance the acquisition. Sales for Volvo have been down over 60%, and Volvo lost $736 million pre-tax in last years fourth quarter alone. This is a continuation of a retreat from the luxury market. Ford had previously sold Land Rover and Jaguar to Indias Tata Motors (NYSE. TTM) last June. Carmike Cinemas Viewed a Sell Headquartered in Columbus, Georgia, Carmike Cinemas, Inc. (Nasdaq. CKEC) is the fourth-largest motion picture exhibitor in the United States. At September 30, 2008, the company owned, operated, or held an interest in 250 theatres with 2,276 screens located in 36 states. We maintain our Sell rating on shares of Carmike Cinemas. Given the difficulties currently present in the company's operating environment, along with Carmike's own challenging financial situation, we do not expect material share price appreciation from current levels. Although the company has had success with recent ticket price increases, the gains have not been sufficient to offset declining attendance. Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter. About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months. About the Analyst Blog Updated throughout every trading day, the Analyst Blog provides analysis from Zacks Equity Research about the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today by visiting About Zacks Zacks. com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system. the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter. Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros at Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Disclaimer. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security.

Product Description Written by seasoned Wall Street prognosticator Peter Schiffauthor of the bestselling book Crash Proof. How to Profit from the Coming Economic CollapseThe Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets reveals how you should protect your assets and invest your money when the American economy is experiencing perilous economic downturns and wealth building is happening elsewhere. Filled with insightful commentary, inventive metaphors, and prescriptive advice, this book shows you how to make money under adverse market conditions by using a conservative, nontraditional investment strategy. From the Inside Flap "Peter Schiff is one of the few financial analysts who understands the Federal Reserve's responsibility for the boom-and-bust cycle plaguing the American economy. Anyone wishing to know why the American economy is in trouble should add this book to their reading list." Ron Paul, United States Congressman "Schiff was warning us about our fragile economic foundation long before the first cracks started to appear. There are plenty of market cheerleaders out there, but if you want advice from a market realist who has been proven right again and again, read this book." Glenn Beck, host, The Glenn Beck Program "Peter Schiff understands the big financial picture better than most Wall Street professionals. Investorswith or without experiencewill benefit from his insights, making this book a must-read." Jim Rogers, international investor and author of A Gift to My Children See all Product Description

Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day Highlights. Natural Resource Partners, CarMax, Mid-America Apartments, Anglo American and General Motors

Zacks Equity Research highlights Natural Resource Partners NRP as the Bull of the Day and CarMax, Inc. KMX as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Mid-America Apartments MAA, Anglo American, Plc. AAUK and General Motors Corporation GM. Full analysis of all these stocks is available at Here is a synopsis of all five stocks. Bull of the Day. Natural Resource Partners NRP We are maintaining our Buy recommendation on Natural Resource Partners. The partnership looks to improve distributable cash flow next year as its lessees have locked in ‘09 coal production at prices above ’08 levels. Its low CapEx requirements, strong cash flow profile and $250 MM of available liquidity should put the partnership in a strong position in 2009. The partnership will have the option to engage in several unitholder maximizing investments such as strategic acquisitions, further distribution increases and debt repayments. Although the slowing global growth story will put some downward pressure on coal prices, continued supply issues should help offset decreases in demand for electricity and steel. Bear of the Day. CarMax, Inc. KMX CarMax continues to face a difficult used-vehicle environment, largely due to aggressive incentives from new vehicle manufacturers. Declining used-car value due to the ongoing weakness in the overall economy and higher funding cost at the CarMax Auto Finance is eroding the margins of the company. The current economic slowdown and reduced consumer spending had a negative impact on the company’s retail business. It is aggressively cutting prices on trucks and SUVs to reduce inventory. A drop in earnings and a conservative guidance for 2009 along with a higher valuation make us apprehensive about the stock’s performance in the near term. Thus, we rate the stock a Sell and maintain our six-month target price of $6.50. Latest Posts on the Zacks Analyst Blog. Mid-America Apartments MAA Mid-America Apartment reported 3Q08 FFO [funds from operations] of $0.90 per share. Excluding $0.01 per share of hurricane charges, 3Q FFO came in $0.01 below our estimates. Occupancy noticeably dropped in the quarter, and the company will have a much more difficult time raising rents in the early part of 2009. With job losses mounting, apartment rentals will suffer and we have lowered our 2009 FFO estimates by 6% in response. We still rate the company a Buy due to valuation, yield, and the company's strong balance sheet. Anglo American, Plc. AAUK Headquartered in London, Anglo American is a global leader in mining and natural resource sectors. The company has operations in Africa, Europe, South and North America, and Australia. It operates under the following business segments. coal, gold, platinum, base metals, diamonds, industrial minerals, ferrous metals and industries. We are maintaining a Hold recommendation on Anglo American. The company is benefiting from strong demand for commodities around the globe and an increase in production. However, risks to global economic growth remain, and as inflation moderates, the need to hedge against it using commodity stocks is less attractive. General Motors Corporation GM General Motorsis one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world. We believe that the company should file for bankruptcy to rid itself of Unions, pension and healthcare issues. As we regard Fordshares, the US government should provide $25-50B in aid which will act as DIP financing. Any aid should force the company to only make 35MPG+ vehicles. Management should be purged and outsiders brought in. Tariffs and quotas should be implemented for imported vehicles from overseas. Consumers should be allowed to deduct their automotive interest. Lastly, global alliances should be forged among producers in North America, Europe and Asia. From an equity holder perspective, this compel us to rate the shares a Sell with a six-month target price of $0.00. Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter. About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months. About the Analyst Blog Updated throughout every trading day, the Analyst Blog provides analysis from Zacks Equity Research about the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today by visiting About Zacks Zacks. com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system. the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter. Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros at Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Disclaimer. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security.

In finance, a bear market is a market condition that occurs when the prices of shares decline or are about to decline. Figures may vary, but if prices decrease by 15 to 20% then the market is assumed as a bear market. Some multiple indexes, such as Standard & Poor's 500 Index (S&P 500) and the Dow Jones, are used to define a bear market. The term "bear" has been used in finance since the early 18th century. One of the most well-known bear markets in the history of the US was the Great Depression during the 1930s. We will, however, be focusing here on trading in a bear market. As mentioned, the term bear market signifies a period in which investment prices decrease. However, if the period of declining prices is not long and is immediately followed by a period where stock prices are on the increase, the trend is no longer considered as a bear market but labeled, in financial terms, as a correction.

In general, a bear market resumes if the government goes into recession and if the inflation rate is high. Trading in a bear market is extremely difficult and risky for shareholders. In the stock market, investors who usually attempt to make a profit from a price fall are known as bears. They are normally pessimistic about the given market condition. "Bearish" thoughts may be applied to several kinds of markets like commodity markets, bond markets, and stock markets. On the other hand, investors who think that a particular share or market is going downward are termed pigs. The stock market of several developed countries, the United States, for instance, has been fluctuating, since the bears as well as their counterparts known as the bulls, are fighting with each other to take control. The stock market of US has increased only by 11% annually during the last 100 years. This shows that every single bear has incurred a loss.

Bull and bear markets are both part of the stock market, and any long term investor in stocks will see both of these markets come and go alternately. It is possible to make money and trade successfully no matter what the market is doing, by following some sound principles. One of these is to buy only quality stocks. Investing in quality stocks which are sound and solid will help your portfolio hedge against losses. Quality stocks should be your aim regardless of whether there is a bull or bear market. A bear market is generally defined as when the stock market falls more than the previous high point by at least twenty percent. A bull market is the opposite, and market prices go up substantially. There are some strategies that should be considered during bull and bear markets. If a bear market is starting, look at your investment portfolio carefully, and determine the risks each investment poses if the market falls. Growth stocks may suffer the most during a bear market, so it might be a good investment move to sell growth stocks and replace them with value stocks during a bear market. This is because growth stocks are based on profits, both those made now and in the future, and that is where the value of the stock is determined. If profits fall, so does the stock. Value stocks on the other hand may actually do better than the market, because they have lower risks, are not based simply on profit, and have higher stability in a bear market. Dividends are another bonus with value stocks, and this is added return to your investment. Value stocks do well in a bear market, and may even go up when other stocks are taking a nosedive. Making money in bear and bull markets means using solid strategies and techniques to minimize loss and trade successfully regardless of market conditions. Some strategies may work better in one market or the other, but a good investment will not usually lose underlying value even in a bear market. The market price for the shares of stock may drop, but as long as the company is solid and high quality, the investment will go back up. During a bull market, buying early and selling high is a common goal for investors, and this may include you. But make sure that even in a bull market your investments are in solid companies that have value. A bull market increases the odds that you will make a profitable and successful investment, because the market on a whole is normally going up during these times. Getting in on the ground floor, right before prices rise, is important, but this does not mean you have missed out if the price has started going up. Even if the price has gone up some, a bull market means it may go up even further.

In a bear market, quality stock investments become more important, because prices are falling. The chance of losses on a bear market are higher, because of the dropping market and stock prices. It is impossible for you to tell when the bear market will end, or when the market has reached the very bottom. A bear market can provide some opportunities for those willing to take some risks though, because if the stock price has reached bottom and the company is solid it is a perfect time to buy. Some experts are predicting that there is a secular bear market right now. A secular market is one which extends at least five, and up to twenty, years. If this is true, then it is twice as important to be able to make money during a bear market, because it may last for years to come.

From the tulip bulb craze in the 1630s to the dot-com bubble in the late 1990s, human beings continue to make the same mistakes over and over again.”

In a recent article, Stocks Will Bottom Well Before Economy, we conceded the outlook for the economy remains bleak, but the SP 500's recent 46% decline has already priced in much of the bad news. Presently, we remain in a bear market, which means principal preservation is the primary objective. However, the recent declines in stocks have dropped valuations to levels where buyers will be more inclined to step forward. At some point, stocks will begin to transition from a bear market back to a bull market. It could occur relatively soon or may not happen for an extended period of time. Regardless of when the shift occurs, it is prudent to prepare for the transition.

Even during the most bullish of bull markets, it is possible to find enough information to build what appears to be a very strong bearish case. Conversely, bulls can selectively find information and historical data to support an approaching bottom during the most difficult bear markets. Global financial markets have a lot of moving parts, such as money flows, exchange rates, credit availability, economic stability, sentiment, regulatory risk, government intervention, earnings, valuations, money supply growth, etc. As a result, it is nearly impossible for any one person or organization to fully encapsulate all the factors affecting financial markets into any forecast, bullish or bearish. This is why it is very important to keep an open mind about all possible outcomes, even outcomes which are contrary to your view of the world. During a bull market, it is dangerous to become blindly bullish, especially after spectacular gains. Likewise, during a bear market, it is dangerous to become blindly bearish, especially after significant declines. The SP 500 lost 46% of its value from the October 2007 highs to the October 2008 lows. While the current bear market could continue for years, it could also be closer to its end than many are willing to even remotely concede. An open mind is an investor's best friend.

Charts are a good way to keep tabs on the human emotions of greed and fear. People have been greedy and fearful since the beginning of time. From the tulip bulb craze in the 1630s to the dot-com bubble in the late 1990s, human beings continue to make the same mistakes over and over again. Since greed and fear influence our decisions in 2008 the same way they did in the 1630s and 1990s, we can expect markets to make tops and bottoms in similar ways for centuries to come. During bear markets, one of the mistakes people have made over and over again is to remain overly fearful for too long as assets became attractively priced. Rather than stepping in to start some cautious buying, most people never consider moving some money off the sidelines when assets are much cheaper. People want to buy at the top and sit on their hands at market bottoms. It has always been that way and it will always be that way. Bottoms do not occur when conditions are perfect and it feels comfortable to invest.

No one can consistently forecast the direction of financial markets, including you and me. Therefore, rather than building our own bullish or bearish bias, we should continue to gather the facts, conduct research, and form an opinion while conceding we could be wrong. A patient and observant investor should approach the markets with an educated and open mind, paying close attention to what has happened and what is happening rather than placing an undue emphasis on forecasting. All we can do is process the information we have now, understanding the information will change in the future. The chart below illustrates it is not all that difficult to discern between a bull and bear market using simple moving averages.

The debate continues over the path of the market. bloggers continue to be bullish, and strategists are expecting a 20% gain in 2009, but $900 gold, the recent sell-off in stocks and wary economic news has kept bears calling for further declines. On December 1, Birinyi Associates did not necessarily call the bottom, but defined November 20th as the market's low and predicted that it would not decline below that. Since then stocks have traded mostly sideways, with the market currently at the lower end of that trading range. One point that has escaped many commentators and participants is that by all traditional definitions we have entered a new bull market. With stocks exhibiting such high levels of volatility, most people are likely waiting for sustained gains of 25 - 30% before calling for the bull market of 2009, but the chart below illustrates that the bull market qualification (a 20% gain from a low) has clearly been satisfied.

Can help you prosper in both bull and bear markets. You can try, examine and use any or all of our 5 paid newsletters for a full 30 days without risk for just $1 each.

A bull market is one in which prices of a certain group of securities are rising or are expected to rise. It is a prolonged period where the investment prices rise faster than their historical average. In such times, investors have faith that the market will continue to rise in the long term. Bull markets can happen as a result of economic recovery, an economic boom, or investor psychology. A bear market is an opposite of bull market. it is characterized by falling prices and an expectation that they will continue falling. When the market is bearish, it leads to a slow down of economy together with a rise in unemployment and inflation. In both the cases, people invest. Those who invest in a rising market and think that it will continue to be so are called bullish investors while those who trade in falling markets and think that it will continue to be so are known as bearish players.

Though bull and bear market conditions are driven by the direction of stock prices, there are some other associated characteristics of these markets. However, one should remember that the characteristics described in the following paragraphs are not the fixed rules for typifying either bull or bear market and give just a general idea to identify the market. In a bull market there is a low supply of securities and a high demand for the same. This is because few are willing to sell due to the rising trend of the market, expecting it to grow further. As a result, share prices soar high, as investors compete to buy the available equity. In contrast a bear market has more sellers and lesser number of buyers. Bull and bear markets are very much impacted by the investor’s psychology. It is the tendency of the investor to buy when the market has a rising trend, hoping to get more profit out of it. This leads to high prices and continuation of the trend. When the market has falling prices, it shakes the investor’s confidence and he begins to move his money out of equities and starts selling out. This leads to further falling of prices. As for the economy, stock market and the economy are strongly connected. The businesses whose stocks are trading on the exchanges are the participants of the greater economy. A bear market is associated with a weak economy as most businesses are unable to record huge profits, because consumers are not spending nearly enough-this decline in profits, of course, directly affects the way the market evaluates stocks. In a bull market, the reverse occurs as people have more money to spend and are willing to spend it, which, in turn, drives and strengthens the economy. To qualify as a bull or bear market it is supposed to be moving in its direction for a sustained period. Small, short term movements do not qualify. Bull and bear markets signify long movements of significant proportion. There are several well known bull and bear markets in American history. The longest duration bull market was the one which began in 1991 and ended in 2000. The best known bear market was of course the Great Depression. The Dow Jones Industrial average lost roughly 90 percent of its value during the first three years of this period. There are no set rules for investing in the bull or the bear markets, however in a bull market the best thing to do is to take advantage of the rising prices and buy securities early, watch as the prices rise and when they reach their peak sell it .Though its not possible to predict with certainty when the prices will reach their peak or bottom, investors are more likely to make profits in a bull market. This is because on the whole investors have a tendency to believe that the market will rise. As prices are on rise, any losses should be minor and temporary. Portfolios with larger percentage of stock can work well when the market is on rise. Bear markets are complete opposite of the bull markets. The chances of losses are greater here as prices are continuously falling and the end is not in sight. Investing in bear markets can involve many different strategies. This includes, investing in less volatile securities such as fixed-income bonds or money market securities. Another strategy investors employ is to wait for the downward prices to reverse themselves. Some investors also turn to “defensive stocks” whose performances are only minimally affected by changing trends in the market. The food industry, utilities, debt collection and telecommunications are popular defensive stocks. However, here also there is no guarantee that the defensive stocks will perform well during any market period. Bear markets also characterized by short selling. Short selling occurs when the investor believes that prices of the stocks are going to decline, or he believes the stocks are overvalued or because there is some fundamental problem with the company. To conclude, there is no sure method to predict bull or bear markets. Investing in both involves risks, and so investors should invest their money based on the quality of their investments. At the same time it is important to have an understanding of the markets and educating yourself to the trends. Since both the bull and bear markets will have a large influence over the investments. There are many investment methods which the investment professionals take advantage of, such as dollar cost averaging, selling short and diversification. Understanding these well founded strategies will surely improve the chances to perform better in both the markets.

Bulls, of whom there were many, and bears, of whom there were few, looked last week toward Philadelphia. Traders felt, and with reason, that the deliberations of 5,400 U. S. bankers, gathered for the meeting of the American Bankers' Association, held a more or less potent threat to the stockmarket. Many a banker, speaking for himself or his bank, had warned against frenzied speculation. The market had kept its strength, had soared through a record month. But traders feared the effect of a solemn and public pronouncement from the Philadelphia convention. Resolute bulls faced the 5,400 bankers with hostility.

The effect of the warnings from Philadelphia could be guessed and fought. What could not have been guessed was a 300-word statement from John Jacob Raskob, which came like a knife-thrust in the market's back. With Arthur Cutten, and the Brothers Fisher, Mr. Raskob has stood in the front rank of the bulls. His slightest intimations have lifted stocks nearly 40 points. His name, linked with the Du Pont interests, has been synonymous with a mysterious but potent pool operating in market leaders. Amazing, almost traitorous, appeared this statement, released on the very day the 5,400 bankers were preparing their formal edict. "Since I have taken this position as Democratic National Chairman (TIME, July 23), I have not purchased any stock whatever. "It is my opinion that security prices have so far outrun demonstrated values, earning power and dividend returns that a material readjustment is necessary before they will again be attractive to the prudent investor. . . ." "My name has frequently been mentioned as being prominently identified with Chrysler Corp. and Radio. As a matter of fact I have never owned and do not own a single share of Chrysler Corporation stock, and the stock in the Radio Corp. which I hold was purchased outright by me a long while ago and held as an investment. "I am not interested, directly or indirectly, in any pool or stock market operations." Stockmarketeers gasped and gaped. It was not so much that Mr. Raskob had exploded the current myth of the Raskob-Du Pont pool. It was not impossible to believe that he had been out of the market all summer. But that the great bull should have turned into a bear was a blow which could only be described as catastrophic. Seeking a parallel, traders suggested that Nominee Hoover might issue such a statement as this. "My name has been frequently mentioned as being prominently identified with the Republican party. As a matter of fact I have never been a Republican. I am a firm believer in Jeffersonian Democracy."In deference to the death of a bull, birth of a bear, the market sagged a few respectful points. But the same inexplic- able strength which fortified it against the 5,400 bankers remained to repel Mr. Raskob's attack. The market recaptured its stride. Thrifty v. Shifty. Most blistering in his attack on the stockmarket was Col. Leonard Porter Ayres of the Cleveland Trust Co. To the convening bankers he said.

A friend of mine is on a quest to visit all the historic bars in NYC during her visits. We went with a group to the Bull and Bear to find horrible drinks and extremely poor service. How hard is it.Read More

In the wake of falling stock and real estate prices, the American economy is poised for a decade-long bear market, so says Peter Schiff. After he accurately predicted the current market turmoil, savvy investors should pay attention--and start protecting their assets now, before the markets take their toll. The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets shows investors how to stay safe and stay liquid during economic downturns. Using economic history as a guide, Schiff looks at the bear markets that followed the bull markets of the 1920s and 1960s to predict what the American economy will look like after it corrects for the tech and real estate bubbles of the 1990s and early 2000s. Combining financial, economic, and political perspectives, Schiff looks at what worked in those earlier bear markets and predicts what strategies are most likely to work over the next ten years. In the end, Schiff argues that the next decade will most closely resemble the 1970s, complete with inflation, rising interest rates, and soaring commodity prices. This reversal of trends will make past investment strategies obsolete and pose a challenge for investors trying to build and protect their wealth. Smart investing will always pay off. the key lies in using the best strategies for the market at hand. For investors who see the writing on the wall but don't know what to do about it, The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets offers a timely, critical answer.

This information is paraphrased from The Wall Street Journal Guide to Understanding Money and Markets by Wurman, Siegel, and Morris, 1990. One common myth is that the terms "bull market" and "bear market" are derived from the way those animals attack a foe, because bears attack by swiping their paws downward and bulls toss their horns upward. This is a useful mnemonic, but is not the true origin of the terms. Long ago, "bear skin jobbers" were known for selling bear skins that they did not own. i. e., the bears had not yet been caught. This was the original source of the term "bear." This term eventually was used to describe short sellers, speculators who sold shares that they did not own, bought after a price drop, and then delivered the shares. Because bull and bear baiting were once popular sports, "bulls" was understood as the opposite of "bears." I. e., the bulls were those people who bought in the expectation that a stock price would rise, not fall. In addition, the cartoonist Thomas Nast played a role in popularizing the symbols 'Bull' and 'Bear'. Finally, Don Luskin wrote a nice history of these terms for TheStreet. com on 15 May 2001.

Sheesh. What a hoo-hah over property price movements! The smile fell off my Christmas guests' dial when I mentioned the carnage that had been happening in some suburbs, with price falls greater than 20 per cent. Read this story here for more details. The Christmas turkey suddenly tasted a whole lot drier and the beer and wine went down in a frenzy as guests furiously debated whether prices for residential property would rise or fall in 2009. "If they've fallen that far already, they can't fall any further," declared the property bulls at the table, who insist that markets will only fall so far before correcting themselves. "No way, property is so expensive that it has to fall to even more realistic prices before it can move ahead," declared the bears, raising talk of Steve Keens and Gerard Minack as economic gurus of their argument. But as the Christmas pudding bloated people's bellies (and the debate made the polite guests' eyes glaze over in boredom), I explained that the only certainty about residential property prices during 2009 was, um, uncertainty. And Rismark International's research guru Dr Matthew Hardman agrees, saying the current economic climate will generate volatility among many asset classes - not just property. "Every asset class is in a period of volatility – property, shares, inflation, oil and interest rates – all of these things will go up and down all over the place in a way we've never seen before," he says. "Property could easily fall by 5 per cent over 2009, but that does not mean it will. It’s more likely we will see the pricing come up and down by a couple of per cent every quarter and it will affect different areas in different ways." Dr Hardman predicts that interest rates will fall through 2009, but could easily spike higher by 2010. He says unemployment may increase, but easily swing by 1 or 2 percentage points each quarter. And those petrol prices will be as up and down as Paris Hilton's behavior. Most property analysts agree that premium suburbs are taking a big hit while more affordable fringe suburbs are going great guns, with some areas seeing price growth for the first time in years as premium areas plummeting back down to price levels not seen since 2003 or 2004. So was your Christmas celebration as bizarrely fixated on property as mine? And what are your thoughts on how property will perform this year?

While the risk of unemployment remains high I think the market will continue in slow decline this year. It was overinflated, and I doubt govt incentives and interest rates will prop it up while buyers are uncertain about income stability. It may be worse in Sydney being the economic and political basket case of the country and also suffering the dark side of positioning itself as a financial centre.

Mmm, donuts. I'm bearing about property for the foreseeable future. The bubble needs to lose its air. No one can predict exactly how it will happen, but property will become more affordable over time. No property market has a future if the majority cannot afford to even get in on the bottom rung.

We are fast approaching that stage where people will actually have to do an honest days labour to earn a living rather than speculating on ever increasing real estate values. Choose to ignore the world financial crisis at your own peril but there is absolutely no way we can dodge the bullet seeing that China has gone right off the boil with very serious problems of their own. It is possible that real estate may start to rise again due to the reflationary effects of central banks around the world expanding the money supply but it will only be notional as paper money starts to lose its purchasing power. If that happens there will be much better places to be putting your money. There is absolutely nothing whatsoever that supports the 'its different over here' argument. China was our last prop and it has been kicked away in no uncertain manner. Changing attitudes due to rising unemployment and the scarcity of available credit will create a sea change that will not be reversed overnight no matter what our current government does to intervene in the meantime. Lets not regurgitate those tired old arguments of demand and supply, immigration etc, etc. A good old fashioned recession will push up occupancy rates and free up a lot of housing as people batten down the hatches when their jobs are at risk of disappearing. I would not trust the opinions of bankers or anybody tied to the real estate market as they have their own vested interests to protect. If real estate does take a tumble then we should all be rejoicing as it will help us to return to an era of affordability. What could be wrong with that ?

Interesting points Bob. From my pervious blogs I started over a year ago in fact one in November 2007 I guess everyone has their predictions and I have not changed from mine. I does not make me find feel smarter either what I previously stated is happening. In fact I makes me SAD that previous federal governments could not change its policy to set place good generation change in the marketplace. We can only hope look for positive change not just three year term quick fix. Domain article today Bull or bear. what's hot and what's not in 2009 Author. Alex Brooks Date. January 4, 2009, Barrenjoey Properties principal Richard McDonagh says prices in wealth belt suburbs such as Palm Beach were off by 35 per cent in December as players in the financial markets were hit by the credit crunch, forcing them to sell holiday homes. Of course were does the 35% refers to, one example or many. But is sure proves that values have declined so what in those areas. It is interesting reading, what year has done. I must on forward to a lender in Queensland who ask me look at property in northern beaches Sydney, it was reported to have a value at least $7m.

To James, the replies to this blog site unfortunately I may have got my term incorrect. My replies in over year past have shown being correct analyst of the market facts. I have tabled them to review my replies for future understanding. So I have been a bit bearish if one would put it. BUT YOU CANNOT BE CORRECT ALL THE TIME. Government intervention for an example on the First Home Buyer Grant no one could predict their fast reaction. I is a good policy in part to keep basic housing going where it is needed. The Rudd government did have a forum on housing well before their election. Papers of research provided to them would have indicated the high level of debt and the starting of the economic mess occurring overseas what its possible affects here. The over inflated values in the marketplace and the lack of public housing that in fact lead to increased pressures on values and of course the major banks over servicing to housing finance which they were not willing to slowdown at that time. It has been only recently the Commonwealth Bank moved to stop all 100% financed loans on housing but still not say they will get rid of it fully. I just go back to discussion with the tiler working on building site August 2007 and said to him about the Loc Doc loans problem in USA how bad it was. His reply was I'm not worried I am in Australia. My reply do you have super if so you will be affected. UNFORTUNATELY it has done more that.

Bob just out of curiosity, do you own property???? If so where? Do you want to own beach side property! By the way where is Narooma? Where are the houses u have been watching on the beach for 2-3 years? Canberra!!! big difference from the goldy or coffs, does the sun even come out down there, I wouldn't buy there either, depends on location. I believe the future looks good for the North coast and the Gold coast, where people actually like to live.

I guess I am a property bull as I bought 3 properties for the last 6 months and are building another 3 new houses. I am actually in a better position now compared to the beginning of the year when Australian economy was going gangbuster (high interest rates anyone?). As it stands at the moment, I am more than confident to buy properties for $ us. that are renting at $300.00/week. While there are a lot of uncertainty about the unemployment and the economy, one certain thing is we are still having a high immigration number (90000 predicted for QLD) and low building approval rates. Developers are having hard times raising money to develop apartments and subdivisions as several mortgage funds collapsed and banks are reluctant to lend. . It should provide good supports for rental increases and housing prices for the next few years.

Ever since I first raised the concept of "donut-effect" back on the 20 Oct blog (A time for sharing?) it has certainly been interesting- arousing both supporters and much emotion from property players alike. Certainly led to some great debates and I spent much time re-clarifying my own postings since most counter-arguments were raised from distortions (or haivng parts quoted out of context) since the overall theory is by now somewhat well supported by evidence. It is pleasant to see overall acceptance by our hosts such as Alex and Liam and now one can see that there is much consensus amongst fellow bloggers about "donuts" as at the start of this blog. I don't think I need say more- my prior posts has been detailed enough notwithstanding the subsequent responses / clarifications of my "donut-effect".. This effect is merely a natural consequence of the market attempting to correct it's imbalances- Adam Smith's "invisible hand" at work to fix itself. It is actually a very positive process. For a start it provides relief for the long suffering FHB battlers out in the mortgage belt, as population builds it encourages infrastructure and transport (fuel cost is no longer an issue for quite some time- some even argue commodities being just another bursted bubble, in any case US being the greatest consumer of oil, is unlikely to recover it's demand for a prolonged period), thereby easing our capacity constraints and restore affordability closer to equilibrium. Also it encourages construction - which is a far more productive economic process enabling a greater Keynesian multiplier impact in stimulating the economy than existing dwelling transactions. This donut effect will likely take years, hence understanding of which would enable one to not only have an idea as to the likely evolution of the property market this year- but the underlying driving force for the next few years to come.

JASON S - I agree with you that buying good located property - near beach, water, CBD will always be a good long term investment. I don't agree that the Gold Coast is a more attractive place to live then NSW Sth Coast - the Gold Coast was a beautiful place 25 years ago - now just a dirty, noisy tourist trap. I own properties and live on the harbour and work in Sydney, but a recent trip down the Sth Coast of NSW was an eye opener to just how beautiful an area it is. You asked where Narooma is - it is a large coastal town on the Sth Coast and a very pretty area. My pick of the bunch on the Sth Coast is Bateman's Bay - wow has that place come on in the last 10 years. Has every facility you could possibly need and they are building a new super marina complex there. I still prefer the lifestyle of Sydney, but if I had to choose between the Gold Coast and Bateman's Bay I would be heading south, not north (and yes the weather is just as sunny without the uncomfortable QLD heat).

Interesting point raised by Bob, re working for income rather than speculating on capital growth. I have been living in Europe for the last 10 years and here in France, this sort of speculation is frowned upon, taxed and actively discouraged as "unearned income". So people who have lost money are seen to have got what they deserved. Now the first home buyers can enter the market. I have just sold a property and taken a loss, but the new place I am buying is more affordable and in a better area. I'm using the notion of "it's not what you sell for, not what you buy for, but what you pay".. I think it's been a huge shock as people are confronted with the reality that house prices can come down as well as rise. It caught me out, to the tune of about $a40,000. I never questioned the decision to buy, following my old man's advice of "bricks and mortar". But hands up those who thought a run-away property market was going to continue. It was always going to crash, or a wages breakout would happen which no government would ever allow. There are some places in Europe where the "normal people" havent suffered to the same extent to those in the greedy capitalist countries. Those places were the government regulates the economy, or in some cases runs it. I did economics during the Reagan and Thatcher era and learnt that government intervention is a bad thing, but is it? In Belgium, you buy a house, the government taxes you 16%. But Brussels, European capital, housing is actually quite affordable. There are expensive districts, sure, but if you want to live close to the centre, you can. People dont buy to speculate on market because you'd have to expect more than 16% market growth to cover your tax.. I'm not saying that this is necessarily the sort of thing everyone should be doing, but a bit of market regulation makes more sense than the NINJA (No Income, No Job / Assets) mortgages the US institutions were throwing around. My bet on the future of the market, I think it will bottom out in 2009. I think it will take a long time to lift again, so a long period of plateau. I'd expect the banks to implement a certain amount of self regulation even if it isnt imposed. I also wonder if this isnt maybe the high water mark of the western economies. We've had growth for so long, what is there left to grow ? When a government offers "first home buyer grants", what is it telling you ? My wife and I started in a house in Melbourne, Yarraville in the days it when it was a cheap area with big trucks on every road. Now its an expensive area with big trucks on every road. We renovated the house, made a profit and moved on. The next people doubled our profit in the same amount of time simply by living there. I have trouble using the word "growth" in that context.

I fail to see the point you are trying to make there Jason. The sun does shine on the eurobodalla and saphire coasts. Where does Canberra belong in the argument ? The bottom is falling out of the south coast RE market. From Bateman's Bay to Eden there are numerous properties that are not selling simply because owners expectations are still driven by the bubble mentality. As Kim says the natural beauty that abounds in that part of the world is still unspoilt. You can have your 'goldy and coffs', I know where I would prefer to retire, then again I am biased. I am not a speculator or investor in property by the way. I did own a house in the UK which my wife and I sold in early 2007 at the peak of the UK housing bubble - no debt, no mortgage supplemented by existing investments. Since then rather than churn our wealth back into an Australian property we have chosen to rent and have put our hard earned money into cash and gold bullion..a far better investment thus far than property. I focus more on the bigger financial mess that has overwhelmed the rest of the world, we are playing catch up and there is nothing that Rudd can do about that. In my opinion our overpriced, over inflated property market will not be spared. We are waiting on the sidelines, cashed up future buyers just biding our time. The days off sitting on your backside speculating in property without lifting a finger and expecting to become wealthy as a result are over. There is nothing different about Australia that will save us from the bursting of the world wide RE bubble. WE should all be rejoicing that we are finally headed towards an era of more affordable housing.

We will definitely be buying Jason - with cash. Yes it will be our retirement home so I view it as an unecessary burden to buy now (you guessed it) in Canberra and then re-sell in 5 years time in order to re-locate. With both my wife and I earning good money we can easily afford the inflated rental we are being charged as our other investments have so far more than compensated for that. We still save on a regular basis as well and have always lived within our means. As to when to buy - that is a good question. There are a myriad of factors involved but we are willing to wait until the recession, possible depression plays itself out. I sound extremely bearish I know but this comes from experience (read UK property market and all my friends who are losing their jobs back there) and the fact that I have watched this global financial crisis develop from more than 4 years ago. I have been ahead of the game in that respect - even my super has been in cash since July 2007 and still sits there waiting for the opportune moment to wade back into the sharemarket. Anybody's guess at the moment. I will monitor the situation but cannot see ourselves buying within the next 2 years. When we do we will have a nice holiday home purchased at a more reasonable price to enjoy until we decide to pull the pin and pursue the finer things in life.

I found this interesting, the cheapest beachside suburbs in Australia. Queensland. Halifax (45km from Ingham) has a median house price of $200,000. Tasmania. Beechford (48km from Launceston) has a median house price of $158,500. New South Wales. Corrindi Beach (29km from Coffs Harbour) has a median house price of $272,500. Victoria. Loch Sport (45km from Sale) has a median house price of $149,250). South Australia. Port Pirie has a median house price of $140,000. Western Australia. Withers in Bunbuy. The Bunbury region has a median house price of $270,000. Some of these seem to be good value!!

Property bust not here yet - worse to come. Why would a prime minister get on national television and tell every body that things are going to get worse is beyond me. why not give people hope by giving solutions like, cut up your credit cards, refinance now rates are dropping, learn a new trade and get a better job.

I can say I am glad I didn't listen to the master - Barry Goldman of Portfolio Realty who six months ago said it was time to buy property investments then and suggested those who did not buy as lemmings in this blog!!! Since then, property in his area has fallen by about 10-15%, although it is yet to be reflected in the lagging reporting data. I too am a bear and I own property. Put simply, until unemployment reaches its maximum, residential property will continue to fall in the major cities regardless of supply factors. We saw the Aussie stock market fall by 42% in 2008. I believe property is a lagging indicator in line with unemployment. We have seen property in US, UK, Canada and New Zealand (all economies and socio-economic countries most aligned with Australia) fall significantly in 2008. Why would we be any different in a world economy given that Australians are significantly geared? There is no valid argument except for limited supply, which might slow but not stop falling prices. I don't expect property to fall anywhere near the 30-40% suggested by some, but do believe that another 10-15% is likely across the board as unemployment reaches 8% and possible more if it unemployment becomes higher. Now is not the time to buy a property as an investment. You are much better off in cash, gold or perhaps some shares which produce everyday staples and have a secure dividend payout ratio. Good luck in investing in property in 2009. It will be a very painful year. 2010 might present a better opportunity if world economies stabilise.

If nobody buys there will be nothing to rent. We all need a roof over our heads-we can't all live under the bridge or in housing commission. The bank might own your home but in my opinion it is better to own than to rent if at all possible. Especially now, as soon the rent you will be paying will be similar to the mortgage. Owning your own place to live eliminates rent rises and gives you control over your life. Financially you have a chance to make money but renting is a dead-end street - the rent is paying the landlord's mortgage. It really doesn't matter when you buy, things will always change-rates go up and down, prices vary, but it's better than the letters of landlords raising the rent after 6 months and having to move because you can't pay the rent. That's why I buy, because I like my own home and being in control rather than being controlled by someone else. Making money out of property is another matter, but as history shows most people make money despite mortgages and high rates. The secret is holding-I wish I still had property bought in 1980s for $160K now worth $1m+-however sometimes we have to move on. Who on a pension/dole could pay the sort of rents we are now seeing in the city? Owning your own home still has to be a sensible and wise investment and if you are brave and willing to sacrifice a little, buying an investment property and providing a roof for renters is a great thing to do. Just be in it for the long term, not the fast buck. Caro

Property will be flat to lower this year, the risk of unemployment and the destruction of wealth over the past year will be enough to offset the positives of lower interest rates and Kev & Wayne's open wallet. If I had any spare money it would not be locked up property (but perhaps stashed in a shoe box under my bed. Liquidity is at a premium.

My wife and I are in or 60's. We owned a home 30 years ago. Lost it to a crooked broker. Had to rent ever since. We would happily buy a home now and can just afford to but we can't get any of the Government largesse equivalent to the First Home Owner's subsidies. Why? There must be hundreds of people like us who are trapped in the rental market who would become home buyers if we could get the First Home Buyers Grant. HELP! This would benefit everyone.

Simple policy - people make money on the purchase, not on the sale. Several corporates of which we are aware are even now out there quietly buying well positioned undervalued property - desperation, mortagee sales and the like. Sure, might be another 5 % downside, however the mo US rates tickup and there is a bit of a positive vibe, strength will quickly return to property prices WW for assets in good location. Bears sitting on their hands pending the sky falling in will then be at the front of the queue at the RE Agents door - remember, you will profit in property when you are doing the popular, unfashionable thing, not following the herd. Bob's right - be ready to move, or better still, get out there now and do some quiet buying.

Simple policy - people make money on the purchase, not on the sale. Several corporates of which we are aware are even now out there quietly buying well positioned undervalued property - desperation, mortagee sales and the like. Sure, might be another 5 % downside, however the moment US rates tickup and there is a bit of a positive vibe, strength will quickly return to property prices WW for assets in good location. Bears sitting on their hands pending the sky falling in will then be at the front of the queue at the RE Agents door - remember, you will profit in property when you are doing the unpopular, unfashionable thing, not following the herd. Bob's right - be ready to move, or better still, get out there now and do some quiet buying.

To Bob, Thank you for your reply sorry I did not get back earlier. I agree the Governments are in panic mode. Unfortunately the financial world has been guided by profit now and land values will continue upwards to clean up the existing over gearing. The attitude leave to someone else mentality will have to change. Looking at commercial property at the moment the low capitalisation rates that have been applied for quite awhile now looks a bit problem. The way the financial institutions treated valuers to apply hidden pressure to increase values should change. We are seeing the federal government moving to secure up some large retail and commercial property vehicles. The major banks funds invested in this property vehicles that have based on unrealistic capitalisation rates for their end values of course it was its now value then. But if look at these low capitalisation rate have been used it does not leave any the risk factor for any major downturn on commercial property therefore these low capitalisation rates should not be applied regards the low interest rates to the dollar borrowed at the time. Certainly agree that 911 had major change I said to property investor and filmmaker there in Sydney two years ago over coffee in Newtown about purchasing property in Surry Hills he should be aware the change that will come and we talked at length that 911 played in the financial world. So Bob I read your replies with interest. All the best.

Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day Highlights. Weatherford International, Hudson City Bancorp, Broadcom, Xilinx and Vodafone

CHICAGO -- Zacks Equity Research highlights Weatherford International, Ltd. (NYSE. WFT) as the Bull of the Day and Hudson City Bancorp (Nasdaq. HCBK) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Broadcom (Nasdaq. BRCM), Xilinx (Nasdaq. XLNX) and Vodafone (NYSE. VOD).

Full analysis of all these stocks is available at Here is a synopsis of all five stocks. Bull of the Day. Weatherford International, Ltd. (NYSE. WFT) Houston, Texas-based Weatherford International, Ltd. is a leading manufacturer and provider of equipment and services used in drilling, completion, and production of oil and natural gas wells. We are upgrading Weatherford shares to Buy from Hold following the recent commodity-price induced weakness in the stock, which has made valuation very compelling for this quality oilfield name. The stock is down roughly 35% in the last 12 weeks, compared to the peer group's average of a 26% pullback and the roughly 4% decline in the broader SP 500. Concerns about the company's over-exposure to North American onshore drilling in a tentative natural gas price environment are overdone, in our view. The company has a growing international footprint, where the outlook for its integrated project management expertise remains very favorable. Our unchanged $37 price objective reflects 2009 P/E and EV/EBITDA multiples of 12.8x and 7.5x, respectively, well within historical trading ranges. Bear of the Day. Hudson City Bancorp (Nasdaq. HCBK) Hudson City now operates over 100 branches throughout New Jersey, eastern New York, and Fairfield County, Connecticut. HCBK operates in a traditional thrift model. it is a community and customer-oriented retail savings bank offering traditional deposit products, residential real estate mortgage loans, and consumer loans. Consumer lending, the bread-and-butter of many regional and local institutions, will continue to face significant headwinds to revenue growth, as the mortgage banking remains under pressure in 2008. Home equity lending should not be expected to offset this compression, as residential values are expected to moderate over the near term. The negatives with respect to credit quality for the banking industry has yet to fully been realized and should continue to weigh on the industry as home sale continue to wane at this time. We will maintain our rating recommendation, until sustainable data points have emerged. Latest Posts on the Zacks Analyst Blog. Broadcom (Nasdaq. BRCM) Broadcom is a fabless company, designing and marketing semiconductor components that network voice, video, and data traffic for applications in digital cable and satellite set-top boxes, cable and digital subscriber line (DSL) modems, high-speed local area networks (LANs), metropolitan area networks (MANs), long-haul networks, wireless communications, server solutions, and many more areas. The system-on-chip solutions provided by Broadcom inexpensively integrate analog, digital, and mixed signal circuitries that address the requirements of a broad clientele. Broadcom's growth can slow down if the global economy weakens. The state of the housing market could dampen corporate and consumer spending. Xilinx (Nasdaq. XLNX) We believe Xilinx is a play on the secular trend of PLDs [programmable logic devices] replacing ASICs [application-specific integrated circuits]. PLDs do not have high development costs. The hallmark of a PLD is its flexibility. When designs have to be altered, they can be re-programmed and brought to market faster. Changes can be made even when the devices are in the field. For Q2 of fiscal 2009, management expects revenues to be up 1% to down 3% sequentially. September is a seasonally weak quarter for the company. Gross margin is expected to be in the range of 63%-64%. We have adjusted our FY2009 estimates accordingly. We continue to rate Xilinx a Buy. Vodafone (NYSE. VOD) We maintain our Buy recommendation for Vodafone, the largest revenue generating international wireless carrier. The company's recent operating results are highlighted by healthy increases in mobile data usage and growth in subscribers across consolidated segments (notably in the emerging markets), offset by contraction of organic service revenue in core European markets. Meanwhile, momentum is also building with deployment of Vodafone's 3G wireless services and the company's expansion initiative in emerging markets across Asia, Eastern Europe and Africa, primarily through acquisitions. Additionally, an attractive dividend payout and share repurchases emphasize the desire for improved shareholder return and support our valuation forecasts. Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter. About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months.

Customs officials in the Russian Far East confiscate hundreds of bear paws of both black and brown bears. Bear carcasses are found in British Columbia, with the gallbladders and paws removed. California businesses are raided and the owners fined for selling products containing bear bile. And in China, live bears languish in cages so small they can barely move, where they spend their entire lives cruelly “milked” for their bile. The global trade in bear parts — especially gallbladders and bile and the products made from them is widespread and complex and puts various bear species at risk. (As shown to the right, bile is drained from gaping holes in the abdomens of bears, who suffer in these conditions until they no longer produce viable quantities of bile.) There is an unwieldy, intricate worldwide web of smuggling that leads to the unnecessary slaughter of bears for profit. Bears as medicine? For thousands of years, bear organs have been used in traditional Asian medicine to treat a variety of maladies from liver inflammation to headaches and hangovers. Increasingly, bear bile has been found in nonmedicinal items such as shampoos, hemorrhoid creams, and wine. Bear paws are often consumed in high-priced soups. The active ingredient in bear bile, ursodeoxycholic acid, has been synthesized and is available without the harming of bears. According to research done by the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA), there are also herbal remedies that could replace bear parts and still conform to traditional medicinal practices, including pulsatilla root, isatis leaf, honeysuckle flower, forsythia fruit, dandelion herb, and many others. But, sadly, there remains a great demand for authentic bear parts. This demand, coupled with habitat destruction in Asia, has resulted in a dramatic decline in the wild population of Asiatic black bears. In 1984, the Chinese government turned to bear “farming” in order to supply the market with viable quantities of bile. Dr. Fan Zhiyong of the Chinese Ministry of Forestry noted in 1997, “China has a great market demand for the components in bear gallbladder and the world has a large market needing TCM [traditional Chinese medicine]. If it were not met with bear bile powders from bear farms, this demand would attract poachers to kill wild bears, which would really endanger the survival of bears in China, and even those in other countries.” The bear trade. Evidence gathered in the past decade strongly suggests that bear farming has done nothing to spare wild bears from the poachers’ wrath. Bear gallbladders and products containing bear bile have been discovered in shipments throughout Asia and into the United States. From coast to coast across North America, bears have been found with the gallbladders removed, the paws lopped off, and the poor animal’s body left to rot in the woods. Bear gallbladders (shown here on sale at a market in Singapore) have been found hidden in freezers, in bottles of whiskey, and even in jars of chocolate syrup to prevent detection. Although a gallbladder might fetch $50 or $100 at the first point of sale, its ultimate purchase price on the black market could range into the thousands of dollars. Bear gallbladders can be as valuable by weight as gold or illicit drugs. Where there is a demand for a product and a high value for the item, wildlife exploiters will to try to supply the market — despite the cruelty and the conservation risks involved. In the United States, for example, the current patchwork of state laws that address the bear parts trade creates a wildlife law-enforcement nightmare. Thirty-four states prohibit trade in bear gallbladders and bile. five states allow it freely. and the others either have no regulations or have laws that prohibit the trade of bear parts from bears taken in state but allow commercialization of bear parts if the bear was killed elsewhere. Since it is fundamentally impossible to discern a California bear gallbladder from a Pennsylvania bear gallbladder, this regulatory inconsistency makes bear protection in America quite difficult. U. S. legal loopholes put bears everywhere at risk. There is incentive to kill bears illegally in one state because individuals can then sell the parts legally or fraudulently in another state, completely circumventing the first state’s prohibition on the sale of bear parts. State wildlife agencies and district attorneys’ offices are hindered in the investigation and prosecution of bear-poaching and gallbladder-trade cases by this interstate inconsistency. Furthermore, smugglers of endangered Asian bear viscera into the United States have the perfect cover for their illegal activity. they only have to claim that the gallbladder, bile, or product was legally obtained from an American bear. This, too, puts highly endangered Asian bears at risk. In addition, wildlife traders in Asia and elsewhere could sell bear gallbladders and, if apprehended, merely claim that the bear parts came from legally taken American bears. This creates difficulties for wildlife law-enforcement officers and prosecutors abroad. A simple fix. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) regulates international trade in thousands of at-risk species, including all eight bear species. At the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES in Zimbabwe in 1997, a resolution was passed unanimously on the “Conservation of and Trade in Bears,” which called on the Parties “to demonstrably reduce the illegal trade in bear parts and derivatives by confirming, adopting or improving their national legislation to control the import and export of bear parts and derivatives, ensuring that the penalties for violations are sufficient to deter illegal trade.” The United States Congress now has an opportunity to fulfill the wishes of the CITES Parties by passing the Bear Protection Act, federal legislation to prohibit the import, export, and interstate commerce in bear viscera and products that contain or claim to contain bear viscera. The bill (H. R. 3029) was introduced in the House of Representatives by Congressmen Raúl Grijalva (Dem., Ariz.) and John Campbell (Rep., Calif.). Said Grijalva and Campbell, “There is a bounty on the head of every American black bear…. Poachers and unscrupulous profiteers are commercializing our natural resources to make a buck, selling bear organs illicitly throughout the world and putting bear species at risk.” The Bear Protection Act would assist state and federal wildlife law-enforcement efforts regarding bear management and conservation while creating a sound national policy against the trade in bear gallbladders and bile. Notably, the Bear Protection Act is narrowly crafted to address U. S. involvement in the bear parts trade without federalizing hunting, usurping lawful sportsmen’s ability to hunt bears in accordance with state laws and regulations, or undermining the ability of state game agencies to otherwise manage their resident bear populations. The legislation, which has been approved by the United States Senate twice before, has an excellent chance of passage in Congress. It is supported by dozens of representatives of state wildlife agencies and every national animal protection organization that has a stated position on the bill, including the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Born Free USA, the Humane Society of the United States, the International Fund for Animal Welfare, the Society for Animal Protective Legislation, the World Society for the Protection of Animals, and others. Some bear hunters and sportsmen also support additional regulation to restrict the ability of some to profit by commercializing wildlife parts such as bear gallbladders. In

[] Last but certainly not least, Britannica Blog has yet another post dealing with animal exploitation. This one, The Bull Market in Bear Parts, talks about the growing trade in bear parts as medicine and how this is leading to the farming of bears. []

It breaks my heart to see the evil that man does to these innocent creatures that god didnt put on this earth for man to profit from, but for us to learn from and appreciate. Living their life in a metal cage, confined, and suffering all alone, instead of roaming the mountains and living with other bears as god intended, is unacceptable. Why man has to prey on everything that is weaker, more vulnerable and defenseless, is shameful and disgusting. Shame on them. And if you believe in coming back in another form, they all better watch out. I dont believe that you can cause such great suffering and pain to any innocent that cannot defend itself, especially for profit, and not someday pay for it. Its one thing when its a fair fight, but man against any animal is not fair and it is up to us to use our advantage to show the real power in the form of compassion, and love, for gods creation. Bless the beasts and the children. Please donate or sign petitions and help all animal organizations, they need us, they cannot take on the evil in man themselves..they cry out for their pain to stop.

Set of marble bookends with tarnish proof gold plated bull and bear emblem. These bookends, which measure 6", are a great gift idea for stockbroker or anyone who loves to run with the Bulls & Bears! Customer Service. us.

The Little Book that helps investors avoid big losses in an economic downturn In the wake of falling stock and real estate prices, the American economy is poised for a decade-long bear market, so says Peter Schiff. After he accurately predicted the current market turmoil, savvy investors should pay attention--and start protecting their assets now, before the markets take their toll. The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets shows investors how to stay safe and stay liquid during economic downturns. Using economic history as a guide, Schiff looks at the bear markets that followed the bull markets of the 1920s and 1960s to predict what the American economy will look like after it corrects for the tech and real estate bubbles of the 1990s and early 2000s. Combining financial, economic, and political perspectives, Schiff looks at what worked in those earlier bear markets and predicts what strategies are most likely to work over the next ten years. In the end, Schiff argues that the next decade will most closely resemble the 1970s, complete with inflation, rising interest rates, and soaring commodity prices. This reversal of trends will make past investment strategies obsolete and pose a challenge for investors trying to build and protect their wealth. Smart investing will always pay off. the key lies in using the best strategies for the market at hand. For investors who see the writing on the wall but don't know what to do about it, The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets offers a timely, critical answer.

Let's Do the Time Warp Again What Happened to Our Purchasing Power? The New York Times "Week in Review" section over Memorial Day weekend 2008 reprinted a cartoon from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution showing a single-family house roped to the roof of an SUV. In the image, the hapless driver explains to a puzzled passerby, "I couldn't afford a fill-up so I bought a house instead." It's comical because of its incongruity, but the realities that inspired it are anything but laughable. I'd call it gallows humor, and the dark side is dark indeed. Unless I'm terribly wrong-and my predictions have been uncannily accurate in the past-skyrocketing gasoline and food prices and plummeting home sales are among the early symptoms of fundamental economic problems that are too advanced to be reversible and grave enough to profoundly. read full excerpt from.

Stan Weinstein's Secrets For Profiting in Bull and Bear Markets reveals his successful methods for timing investments.

No one really knows the exact origin of the terms bull and bear to describe the stock market, but their meaning is clear. The most important thing to know about these terms is that they describe long-term trends, not short-term changes. Bull and bear markets are usually measured in years. A bull market is a rising market. In a bull market, investors are positive. The economy tends to be strong. Unemployment is low. Consumers are spending money, which increases business profits. When businesses profit, investors demand to share a piece of the pie -- they buy stocks and hang on tight to watch the money roll in. The supply of shares, then, is low -- no one wants to give up their piece of the widget pie. The competition to acquire those much-coveted shares becomes fierce, which drives the prices up even higher. Investors take risks because they feel good about their chances of making the big bucks.

On Feb. 23, 2005, former Olympians cheer a bullish day on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average had climbed 64 points.

A bear market is a declining market. It tends to begin with a sharp drop in stock prices across the board. There is usually an eye in the storm, during which stock prices increase. But the storm returns, of course, and the bear market falls and falls and falls. History has shown that a bear market tends to level out at 40 percent lower than when it began. Particularly bloodthirsty bears, like the one that ravaged the U. S. during the Great Depression, might level out at about 90 percent lower [source. Incademy].

In a bear market, the economy tends to be weak. Unemployment increases. Consumers spend less, which results in lower business profits. As we've seen, this devalues a given company's stock. Investors tend to sell their stocks before the value decreases too much. Investors don't want to take risks because they don't feel good about their chances. Investment Strategies -- How to Ride the Bull and Tame the Bear The best strategy to make money in a bull market is to recognize the trend early and make smart buys. Buy low -- sell high. It may seem counterintuitive that you can make money during a bear market. Here are a few ways you can tame the bear.

Buy defensive stocks. This is a low-risk way for investors to keep their money in the stock market. A defensive stock is so named because its value doesn't fluctuate much. Utility stocks (energy, water, etc.) are popular defensive stocks.

The Long Run History has shown that the stock market always rises over the long term. Bear markets and crashes happen, but the market always makes a comeback and eventually rises higher than it ever was before. Many professional investors say that determining your investments solely on the basis of whether the market is bullish or bearish is unwise. It is better to base investments on research into strong, competent businesses with plenty of growth potential. Over time, educated and informed investments tend to profit more than investments based on rumor, fear, guesswork and superstition. To learn more about how stock market trends work, you can follow the links on the next page.

Bull and bear stock markets are two sides of the same coin. Long-time investors know that bear markets are setting up the next bull market. They also know that bull markets dont run forever. The longest running bull market ever was from 1990 2000.

It is impossible to know when a bull or bear market is officially over except through the 20-20 vision of history. All bull and bear markets will exhibit periods that look like reversals, but are just momentary before the bull or bear regains control. We now know that the bull market ended in March 2000, but at that moment, it wasnt clear the party was over. The three-year bear market that followed was pushed by the tragedy of 9/11 and a recession.

CNN pointed out that the Dow bottomed out at 776 in October of 2002. From that point, the market has gone on to record heights. Long the way, there have been some significant dips, but followed by a continuation of strong upward pressure. This is all easy to see now, but when you are gasping for air as your portfolio value plummets, its not so easy to step back for perspective. In the end, good companies have a better chance of weathering storms the sweep the market and the economy.

Bear markets perform the necessary service of deflating values and sweeping the market clean of stocks that are weak and riding on fads alone. Your faith in solid fundamentals will usually pay off over time, but even a great companys stock can get banged around in a tough market. The lesson here is that stocks, as illustrated by the Dow, are good long-term investments, but dangerous short-term bets.

CHICAGO, Jan 13, 2009 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Zacks Equity Research picks Baxter International, Inc. (NYSE. BAX) as Bull of the Day and MarkWest Energy (NYSE. MWE) as Bear of the Day. In addition, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research discuss the latest on D. R. Horton (NYSE. DHI), The Gap (NYSE. GPS) and Harley-Davidson (NYSE. HOG).

About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months.

CHICAGO -- Zacks Equity Research highlights Sciele Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq. SCRX) as the Bull of the Day and Avnet, Inc. (NYSE. AVT) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE. BRK. A), Eli Lilly & Co. (NYSE. LLY) and Anglo American, Plc.

(Nasdaq. AAUK). Full analysis of all these stocks is available at Here is a synopsis of all five stocks. Bull of the Day. Sciele Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq. SCRX) Sciele Pharma, Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical company engaged in the sale of prescription products for the treatment of cardiovascular, metabolic, obstetrical and gynecological, and pediatric and gastroenterological conditions and disorders. The company's broad focus and deep product pipeline offer substantial growth opportunities over the next several years. We believe the current share price represents an attractive entry point for long-term investors and we rate the stock a Buy. We recommend purchase up to the $28 level. Bear of the Day. Avnet, Inc. (NYSE. AVT) Avnet is being adversely affected by the price war between Intel and AMD. it is expanding its relationship with AMD even as its Intel business shrinks. The company has over $1.3 billion in long-term debt and liabilities (25% debt-to-total capital), which is substantially high. Avnet had approximately $1.28 billion of long-term debt and liabilities at the end of Q2, up from approximately $1.26 billion at the end of the prior quarter. While the Access acquisition will raise revenue and EPS, the valuation appears rich, in our opinion. Latest Posts on the Zacks Analyst Blog. Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE. BRK. A) We maintain our Hold recommendation on the shares of Berkshire Hathaway. We expect Berkshire's core revenue and earnings growth trends to experience momentum pressure, based on softness from the insurance cycle and a moderation of investment income growth and the weight of a large low-interest earning cash position. Although the stock is trading at the lower end of its ten-year average price-to-book range, we anticipate additional multiple compression, albeit slight, as we think book value growth will continue to stall and return on equity will remain in the low to mid-single-digits range. Eli Lilly & Co. (NYSE. LLY) Eli Lilly and Co. is entering a challenging period, brought about by recent pipeline disappointments, most notably uncertainty surrounding its antiplatelet drug, Prasugrel. Although we believe the underlying fundamentals of the company remain solid, pipeline setbacks and lack of clarity on prasugrel will likely limit the upside to the stock. We also believe that sales of Zyprexa, for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, will begin to decline in 2008 as generic Risperdal eats into market share. Underlying value should continue to be supported by growth of antidepressant Cymbalta in 2008. Zyprexa will continue to be a mega-blockbuster, but sales should start to slip due to international generics and the imminent launch of a generic Risperdal in the U. S. With prasugrel removed from our model, earnings growth beginning in 2009 is significantly negatively affected. For 2008, we look for earnings of $3.92. Management remains optimistic that prasugrel will make it to market although we think this is unlikely without significantly more data to support the net benefits of the drug. Anglo American, Plc. (Nasdaq. AAUK) We are maintaining a Hold recommendation on Anglo American. The company is benefiting from strong demand for commodities around the globe and increased production. However, risks to global economic growth remain, and the strength of the South African rand could have a significant impact on future earnings. The fundamental support for commodity prices is strong GDP growth worldwide, in particular the ongoing industrialization of China, Russia and India. Management is confident that commodity prices will remain strong this year and has ruled out a slowdown in demand from China. We are also pleased by the company's restructuring program. The company said that its plans for a "full de-merger" of its paper and packaging division were progressing, and that it was continuing with a phased exit strategy from its 41.8% stake in Anglogold. Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter. About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months. About the Analyst Blog Updated throughout every trading day, the Analyst Blog provides analysis from Zacks Equity Research about the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today by visiting About Zacks Zacks. com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system. the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter. Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros at Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Disclaimer. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security.

CHICAGO -- Zacks Equity Research highlights National Semiconductor (NYSE. NSM) as the Bull of the Day and Gander Mountain (Nasdaq. GMTN) as the Bear..

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Review "Certainly a savvy buy in the current climate.timely advice on how to survive the bear's bite." (CEO Middle East, November 2008) Review "Certainly a savvy buy in the current climate.timely advice on how to survive the bear′.s bite." (CEO Middle East, November 2008) See all Product Description

I've read several of the 'little books' range and generally they are good and well written for the non-finance geek and this is no exception. The reason I have only given it 3 stars is that it does not actually take it on to provide a definite game plan beyond the near(ish) future. The book starts out with a very good piece on the issues we now face and how we got here, including some proof that the author called this back in 2007 amidst much derision. This is all pretty informative and well written. Where I feel this book falls down is that the other books in the series I have read have given back tested styles of investing. Although these all suffer the intermittent glitches, as any style will, they can be applied in the future and used to develop your own style of investing. This book simply gives an overview of the recent past and what you should do now, but nothing too much about future economic cycles. More importantly there is lots of subjective advice, but very little concrete back-testing beyond retelling of how he called this right. Now I am not arguing with Mr Schiff's reasoning or intellect, but that this is great for now, but what happens when things move on as they invariably will? You will need to find someone else that 'gets' it then and tell you what to do again at that point. So to sum up, if you want to get a better understanding of the economic mess we are in in the latter part of 2008 and some suggestions about what to do now, this book is pretty good. However, if you are looking for something that could be the basis of an investing approach for the long term or if you are looking at this during some future economic cycle, then it's probably not going to be so useful.

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Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day Highlights. Einstein Noah, Hibbett Sports, Guess?, Synthesis Energy Systems and Cephalon

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Zacks Equity Research highlights Einstein Noah Restaurant Group (Nasdaq. BAGL) as the Bull of the Day and Hibbett Sports (Nasdaq. HIBB) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Guess?, Inc. (NYSE. GES), Synthesis Energy Systems (Nasdaq. SYMX) and Cephalon, Inc. (Nasdaq. CEPH). Full analysis of all these stocks is available at Here is a synopsis of all five stocks. Bull of the Day. Einstein Noah Restaurant Group (Nasdaq. BAGL) Einstein Noah is suffering the effects of constrained consumer spending, reporting its first quarter of negative comps in four years. We expect comps to remain negative and weigh on earnings into 2H09 or longer, depending on the economy. Longer-term, however, we think BAGL is positioned to increase EPS at a low-teens CAGR over the next several years, while boosting ROIC from mid-single digits, through 2.5% to 3.5% +comps and 10% unit growth, heavily weighted towards franchises. The company has culled under-performing units from its system roughly 45% of the system and a more profitable unit base remains. The stock price has fallen more than the overall market (down 65% in 3 months), in part due to concerns about BAGLs leverage (2.2x versus covenant maximum of 2.75x) and its ability to meet a preferred stock maturity in 2009. However, we think these concerns are overblown, as the company is building cash reserves and generating increasing free cash flow on declining cap ex requirements, despite declining comps. Bear of the Day. Hibbett Sports (Nasdaq. HIBB) Hibbett Sports Inc. s third quarter earnings per share were $0.01 below consensus estimates, but the company raised its full-year EPS guidance from $0.93-$1.03 to $0.97-$1.04. Hibbett shares have held up reasonably well this year, despite the challenging retail environment. The companys results have been boosted by the companys continued store expansion, share buybacks and easy comparables in fiscal 2008. Looking ahead to next year, the company should open another 60-70 stores, but it will not be buying back shares and comps from fiscal 2009 are much better than last year. That means EPS growth will have to come from stronger sales trends and/or higher profit margins. We dont see either of those occurring in this difficult retail environment. We reiterate our Sell rating on Hibbett Sports. Our six-month target price is $9.50, or 10x our fiscal 2010 EPS estimate. Latest Posts on the Zacks Analyst Blog. Guess?, Inc. (NYSE. GES) We believe apparel retailer Guess will not be able to deliver upside surprises in future quarters as it has in the recent past. The company has not updated its full-year EPS guidance of $2.47-$2.53 since reporting second-quarter earnings on September 3. The companys near-term results are likely to disappoint, and we are reducing estimates ahead of third-quarter earnings report, which is scheduled for December 4. While Guess is most likely outperforming many areas of specialty retail, the companys results are being negatively affected by slowing economic growth and the strong US dollar. Macro headwinds including home prices falling, tighter credit markets, and rising unemployment are hurting sales and margins. The appreciation of the dollar is also hurting Guess results, as the company generates about a half of its profits in Europe. Synthesis Energy Systems (Nasdaq. SYMX) Synthesis Energy Systems is a development-stage enterprise engaged in the commercialization of technologies to convert low grade coal, coal waste and biomass into a variety of valuable energy products. This patented U-GAS technology uses heat, pressure and air to chemically reform low-grade coal into synthetic gas or "syngas." We are maintaining our Buy recommendation on Synthesis Energy Systems, but are lowering our 12-month target price from $11.00 to $5.00 per share. Synthesis has a compelling story as the wide spread between the cost of its inputs (low-quality coal) and outputs (syngas, methanol, various chemicals) create significantly high gross margins. Cephalon, Inc. (Nasdaq. CEPH) Cephalon is an international biopharmaceutical company focused on the treatment of sleep disorder, neurological disorders, cancer and pain. The settlement of all Provigil patent infringement cases has been a significant positive for Cephalon. With Provigil protected from the entry of generics until April 2012, we believe that investor focus will shift towards the companys emerging oncology pipeline and Amrix. Amrix should be a major contributor to revenues going forward. Cephalon has also made significant progress with its oncology pipeline. We are pleased to see that Treanda, Cephalons lead oncology candidate, is off to a strong start. Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter. About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months. About the Analyst Blog Updated throughout every trading day, the Analyst Blog provides analysis from Zacks Equity Research about the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today by visiting About Zacks Zacks. com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system. the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter. Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros at Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Disclaimer. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security.

Zacks Equity Research picks CPFL Energia as Bull of the Day and Dell Inc. as Bear of the Day. Read full story from PR-inside. com

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A new and experimental feature, spawned out of the sudden, early-morning realization that I think Daniel Mark Harrison's optimism is the daft raving of naivete, and he thinks my pessimism the product of that burnt out, hollow shell of an organ I call a heart. Who prevails? We collide, you decide. As Ms. Private lost the coin toss, she begins.. Equity Private. The Abyss Yet Approaches. I find it extremely hard to even empathize with, much less support the bull case in this environment. Owning to the lag between the onset and the reportage of disaster, we simply haven't yet seen the impact of the credit crunch on earnings yet. Add to this the fact that, I hope short of outright accounting fraud, firms have been doing everything they possibly can to avoid bleeding out. I was amused to watch several banks push out the definition of some of their loan "defaults" to 120 days or beyond on to buy another 30 days (and therefore another quarterly report) on the write downs. This isn't all. Anyone who believes LIBOR is anything but a convenient fiction to ignore how desperate European banks (who ironically tended to be even more levered in some cases than their American cousins) have become is permitting hope to prevail over reason. Pouring money in may prevent total meltdown, but not a painful downturn. I haven't even begin to talk about the consumer shock that must eventually follow, again lagged, from this major lending contraction. Even a small spike in unemployment will push foreclosures (and therefore write-offs) up. Even if we offer foreclosure assistance, delay it for years if you like, someone eventually has to pay the mortgage for that capital to end up on the income statements of financial institutions. Then there is commercial real-estate, commercial real-estate loans, and LBO debt which hasn't burst its rivets quite yet. Finally, I don't think many people have appreciated the importance (and wonderful timing) of a sudden drop in oil prices. Crude futures are less than half what they were just three months ago. Certainly, that's more than the Fed could ever do to buoy things, but it is also dangerously out of the immediate influence of the likes of OPEC. They are at the budget breaking $70 (far below the $90 line for Russia) right now. As drastic measures are sure to follow, I wouldn't want to rely much on this cushion being around much longer. Daniel Mark Harrison. The End Of The Abyss. I'm going to be the first to call it. we're at the bottom. The Dow is unlikely to fall below the 8,500 mark, and will most probably not close below 8,852.22 points again this year. Oil prices are in a natural free-fall, and no amount of equity gains is likely to propel the price anywhere near $100, above which it had a destabilizing inflationary impact. Much of the dramatic sell-off we have seen in the past few weeks has been because central banks have been ill-prepared to fight illiquidity. in short, U. S. policymakers dithered. Now that the economy has become a political issue, transcending partisan debate, action will swiftly correct valuations in the event of further freezing of credit. We're already seeing signs of this in action, with LIBOR spreads lowering even as additional Asian and European bailouts are being granted. The Dow rose 4% Monday, even with additional abysmal news in the mortgage market. China's spiraling GDP and inflationary numbers will ultimately end up putting it back in the position of exporting deflation rather than inflation, as it did before 2003. Emerging markets are the great casualty in this crisis, while the U. S., with its ample arsenal of funds, markets, and insatiable consumption demand, will stay afloat while stocks surge at year-end. Collisions, after the jump. EP. Well, we can at least agree that the drop in energy has lifted things. So I take it that since we agree on the devastating effect oil can have, you must, by extension, be predicting a sustained depression in energy prices, particularly oil. What exactly is your price target for crude, and how long can it be sustained? DMH. I have predicted since June that oil would reach a "fair value" of $45 a barrel, and slowly rebound to $60 a barrel. Given the current valuations of stocks and oil, either equity prices have to increase or oil prices have to decrease to constitute fair value in both markets. Most likely both will do so at once- before rebounding to fair value. EP. Ok, Goldman boy. But you agree that another rise would be disastrous? DMH. In the current market climate, a rise above $100 a barrel for oil would be economic HIV, pure and simple. Then again, that's about as likely to happen as me sleeping with Kate Moss. EP. Ok, Mr. Doherty. So the Ketamine has obviously kicked in, I'm going to guess that's a "yes?" DMH. Yes. And I have to say I still don't understand the pessimism when it comes to the financial institutions. Hasn't mark to market accounting already served its purpose in socking the punch to balance sheets? You're from private equity or something, right? How is it you don't know this? EP. I don't think the purpose was, as you so tactfully put, to sock the punch to balance sheets. In the first place, mark to market accounting shouldn't hit balance sheets that hard if the balance sheets aren't filled with illiquid assets and lots of leverage. This is something that seems to escape even the cleverer on the Street and I still don't understand why. An asset that no one will buy or lend against is worth. nothing. You can play all sorts of games and talk about prices "not reflecting long-term value," but that requires a very subjective take on "long-term value." That's just another way to say "mark-to-myth." Or maybe, mark-to-hope. Blaming mark-to-market accounting for some kind of market "punch," presupposes that it's inaccurate to say that something that cannot be sold is worth nothing. DMH. But hasn't the damage to liquidity already been done, given the never ending round of stimulus packages and the final decline in lending rates? EP. "Final decline in lending rates," now your a fixed income expert too? DMH. I work for Dealbreaker. There is no such thing as fixed income in my world. EP. Ok, so to summarize, at some point last night, you slipped into a K-hole and came out with a deep understanding of the energy markets, you are now certain that oil is going to stay cheap indefinitely, and that next week Tears for Fears is going announce that they are getting back together again to tour. Just like old times. '80s revival. Does that about cover it? That's your economic acumen? DMH.You're a decade out. I think Simple Minds is going to announce their reunion tour. Yes. Just like the old times. The '90s revival. Guns 'n Roses too. Why not?

Posted by guest, Oct 21, 2008 9.57AM DH - mark-to-market "served it's purpose"? Check FAS 115 & 91 ("held-to-maturity", "available-for-sale" accounting). banks have held-to-maturity loan portfolios (doesn't use FAS 157). AFS flows through equity (ever seen the term "unrealized losses", like Fannie Mae). Read less headlines (especially your own) - you may make a fine financial analyst (you sound like everyone on CNBC), but find a balance sheet and a P&L before you start pretending you know how to report financial news better than EP. EP - Skepticism good. I'm with you, if it's hard to understand, they are probably lying about it!

Posted by Jesse, Oct 21, 2008 10.28AM what works for Dealbreaker is the short hard hitting comments on 'breaking news.' The thought pieces should be tight on specific topics. Taking cues from television with bulls and bears and sound bites from talking heads doesn't really work in print.

Posted by StupidEquityGuy, Oct 21, 2008 12.21PM At the current rate the market is dropping. DH might have to eat his words before the close of business today. Every team needs a good "Wrong Way" on board to sound out false bottoms and stuffed tops. I have a friend named Bmr. if he says he is buying calls, I hit the ask on the puts. statistically speaking its a give me trade. DH might be our guiding light here. The bottom caller in a bear market. Someone has to do it. ~SEG

Posted by guest, Oct 22, 2008 12.20AM @27. The satire is lame. This place would be better if you copied the old fuckedcompany thing & morphed it to financials. A cheesy idea, I admit, but better than jejeune market jibber-jabber.

Posted by guest, Oct 22, 2008 4.41PM "The Dow is unlikely to fall below the 8,500 mark, and will most probably not close below 8,852.22 points again this year." 10/22/08. DJIA 8,519.21 us. -5.69% In your face, Bull-Boy. Incidentally, why do you mystical types always make such *precise* predictions? " us. ?" What the fuck is that? Is that supposed to make us think you've got some kind of actual science beyond a curve-matching program that a bright ten-year-old could write on his home computer? The difference between quants and the fortune-tellers at the county fair is basically nicer clothes and much more elaborate crystal balls.

Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day Highlights. AmBev, General Motors, Ctrip. Com, Freeport McMoRan and Health Net

(Source. Business Wire)Zacks Equity Research highlights AmBev (NYSE. ABV) as the Bull of the Day and General Motors (NYSE. GM) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Ctrip. com International (Nasdaq. CTRP), Freeport McMoRan (NYSE. FCX) and Health Net, Inc. (NYSE. HNT). Full analysis of all these stocks is available at Here is a synopsis of all five stocks. Bull of the Day. AmBev (NYSE. ABV) We are changing our recommendation on Companhia de Bebidas das Americas, or AmBev, from Hold to Buy. The company posted positive results for the third quarter of 2008, with excellent results in Brazil and in Argentina. Parent company InBev's desire to acquire Anheuser-Busch appears to be positive for the company. Despite the difficult economic environment throughout the world due to the global credit crunch, the company, which is focusing on low cost, daily use products, is not tied directly to the international economic cycle. Moreover, we believe that the company being a producer of a low-cost, daily use product focusing on domestic markets will be less exposed to the recent international crisis. Indeed, we have an optimistic view on the medium to long term demand for soft drinks in Latin America. Bear of the Day. General Motors (NYSE. GM) General Motors Corporation is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world. But weak North American sales, falling production volumes and rising raw material costs are increasing our concern for the stock. Significant incentives to stimulate sales and keep inventories lean are eating into margins. Furthermore, GM sales are hampered by poor resale values. The company is at a disadvantage compared to its competitors owing to huge pension and health care costs. GM has also delayed new model launches and has slowed production. It apprehends a significant cash crunch and might even face bankruptcy if the U. S. economic slump continues and it fails to get any government aid. These issues compel us to rate the shares a Sell with a six-month target price of $2.00. Latest Posts on the Zacks Analyst Blog. Ctrip. com International (Nasdaq. CTRP) We are downgrading Ctrip. com International, Ltd. - ADR shares from Buy to Hold. Longer term, Ctrip. com is well-positioned to generate strong growth as more Chinese consumers use online travel-related services. Unfortunately, the company's near-term picture is not as bright. Slowing global economic growth is reducing the demand for travel-related services, and that is negatively impacting Ctrip. com's revenues and profit margins. We are lowering our estimates for 2008 and 2009 to reflect slower expected growth and lower profit margin assumptions. Our target price of $29 is about 26x our 2009 EPS estimate. Freeport McMoRan (NYSE. FCX) Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. reported third quarter EPS of $1.31, a 48.0% year-over-year decline, due to higher input costs at Grasberg, lower realized copper prices, and higher-than-expected unit costs at its North American mines (Morenci and Safford). Given our lowered 2009 copper price assumption, rising LME copper inventory levels, and the deteriorating global economic environment, we project an FY09 EPS estimate of $4.34 and rate FCX shares a Hold. We believe management is taking the right steps to preserve the balance sheet. Freeport plans to reduce 2009 CAPEX, limit investment on certain capital projects, defer exploration expenditures, and potentially reduce production at high-cost operations. Unfortunately, we expect the current global slowdown to persist for the foreseeable future, which should keep a lid on copper prices and end-user demand. Our target price of $28.00 is based on around 6.5x our 2009 EPS estimate. Health Net, Inc. (NYSE. HNT) Health Net is one of the nation's largest publicly traded multiregional managed care companies. The company reported a lower-than-expected third-quarter net income of $18.5 million, or EPS of $0.17. Adjusted EPS excluding non-recurring items was $0.35 versus consensus of $0.88. The result was characterized by a sharp increase in health care costs as reflected in a higher medical loss ratios, and driven in large part by higher-than-expected utilization across MA and Part D products, and a decline in commercial risk membership as a result of a weakening economy and increased competition. We retain a Hold recommendation at current levels. Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter. About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months. About the Analyst Blog Updated throughout every trading day, the Analyst Blog provides analysis from Zacks Equity Research about the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today by visiting About Zacks Zacks. com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system. the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter. Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros at Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Disclaimer. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security. A service of YellowBrix, Inc.

Sheboygan Falls - D. A. Bruce had just finished walking The Bull at Pinehurst Farms for the first time. It was December, not the best month to tour a golf course in Wisconsin, but Bruce knew a great design when he saw one. I came in and said, 'Has anybody submitted the 11-year letter yet?' he said, referring to a formal letter sent to the United States Golf Association requesting consideration as a future championship site. Nobody knew what that was. I said, 'This is a U. S. Open golf course.' Bruce, a Shorewood native who played on the European Tour in the late 1980s, was interviewing for the job of head golf professional at The Bull. He got the position, and his first act was to send that letter to the USGA. It remains to be seen whether The Bull is worthy of playing host to a USGA championship 12 or 15 years down the road. After all, the course just opened all 18 holes Tuesday. Already, however, the first Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course in Wisconsin ranks among the best public facilities in the state. Given its location, The Bull had to be good. It practically abuts the Blackwolf Run complex and will compete with the Kohler Co.'s four-course empire, including Whistling Straits, site of the 2004 PGA Championship. Owner David Bachmann Jr. expects to attract some spillover play from the Kohler courses. He also is catering to locals with a reduced rate of $95 for Sheboygan County residents and activities such as couples nights and Friday night fish fries. The rate for non-county residents is $115. That's an expensive round of golf, to be sure, but compares favorably with the rates at the Meadow Valleys ($171) and River ($202) courses at Blackwolf Run. The Bull, named in honor of the Bachmann family's cattle-breeding farm, gives Sheboygan County five world-class courses. Bachmann handed Nicklaus a palette of 418 acres encompassing thick forests, wetlands, a stretch of the Onion River and a dramatic ravine and said, Build the best course possible. The finished product exceeded Bachmann's expectations and it's easy to see why. The Bull measures 7,332 yards from the back tees. with a course rating of 75.0 and a slope rating of 142 it's among the most challenging in the state. There are five sets of tees, however, so The Bull can be enjoyed by players of all abilities. It can play as short as 5,087 yards. After No. 1, a straightforward par-4 that plays with a prevailing tail wind - Nicklaus' idea of a warm-up hole - The Bull keeps coming at you with one spectacular hole after another. The hole with the biggest wow factor is No. 5, a beautiful but intimidating 432-yard par-4 that doglegs left around the 40-foot ravine and is framed all along the right side by trees. Miss left on your drive or approach and you're looking at double-bogey. The bail-out right on the approach actually funnels the ball toward the green, but you can't see that from the fairway because a huge bunker hides the swale. Yes, it's brand new, but this could be the best two-shot hole in the state. Par-3 holes don't get any better than No. 6, a thread-the-needle 193-yarder, and No. 12, a 236-yard knee-knocker from an elevated tee. No. 13, a 581-yard par-5 with an elevated green, requires three precise shots and is Bachmann's favorite hole. No. 18 is a classic Nicklaus finishing hole, an unrelenting 485-yard par-4 that calls for a tee shot over water and a long approach to an elevated green. Nicklaus is scheduled to attend the grand opening Aug. 18, so you've got two months to play one of the Golden Bear's best designs before he does.

The Little Book that helps investors avoid big losses in an economic downturnIn the wake of falling stock and real estate prices, the American economy is poised for a decade-long bear market, so says Peter Schiff. After he accurately predicted the current market turmoil, savvy investors should pay attention--and start protecting their assets now, before the markets take their toll. The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets shows investors how to stay safe and stay liquid during economic downturns. Using economic history as a guide, Schiff looks at the bear markets that followed the bull markets of the 1920s and 1960s to predict what the American economy will look like after it corrects for the tech and real estate bubbles of the 1990s and early 2000s. Combining financial, economic, and political perspectives, Schiff looks at what worked in those earlier bear markets and predicts what strategies are most likely to work over the next ten years. In the end, Schiff argues that the next decade will most closely resemble the 1970s, complete with inflation, rising interest rates, and soaring commodity prices. This reversal of trends will make past investment strategies obsolete and pose a challenge for investors trying to build and protect their wealth. Smart investing will always pay off. the key lies in using the best strategies for the market at hand. For investors who see the writing on the wall but dont know what to do about it, The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets offers a timely, critical answer. Peter D. Schiff (Darien, CT) is President of Euro Pacific Capital, Inc., and one of the few non-biased investment advisors to have predicted the current bear market and positioned his clients accordingly. He appears twice a week on the FOX Business News network and has been quoted in such publications as the Wall Street Journal, Barrons, the Financial Times, and the New York Times. He is also the author of Crash Proof ( us. ), from Wiley.

Warning. If you are looking for confirmation that the US stock market is just taking a pause, don't read this book! Often called Dr. Doom by the mediaPeter Schiff will quickly disabuse you of that notion. Schiff has written a no-holds-barred assessment of the cause of the global financial crisis, laying the blame solidly at the feet of the US, primarily the Federal Reserve. Saying that US economic policy makers have "lost their way", Schiff declares that the Fed's policies have been "counterintuitive and irresponsible, creating the credit crisis, destroying the value of the dollar, and fueling staggering price increases in food and energy". He discusses why this current bear market is not merely a blip in a long-term bull, as many advisors are now saying. Instead, Schiff sees it as a decades-long bear market that will result in a different Americaone that has higher inflation, steep interest rates, a weak dollar, rocketing commodity prices, and plummeting stocks, bonds, and real estate. He supports his premise by taking the reader through historical bull and bear markets, defining the different variations of each, and explaining the mechanisms behind their cycles. He surmises that this current market is very different, and won't spring back like previous bear cycles. Schiff offers his take on inflation, saying that it's much worse than we are told, because of the government's creative way of estimating the consumer and producer price indexes. In fact, he contends that real inflation is about double the number commonly published. And he takes issue with the oft-voiced view that once the American consumer regains confidence and begins spending again, that all will be well. Instead, he holds the consumerwith much help from faulty government policiesresponsible for a good portion of our current troubles. I have to say that I agree, to some extent. We must share the blame for our reckless spending and avoidance of the warning signs of the escalating real estate prices, with their accompanying easy credit. And I don't think the fix will be that easy, either. In his argument that the consumer will not save us, Schiff builds his case upon a major pointthat the gradual transformation of the US from a manufacturing behemoth into a service-based economy was the beginning of the end. Now, those countries, particularly in the east, that have taken up our manufacturing slack, are ready to assume global leadership. Schiff contends that our huge deficits, unfunded liabilities, and tough credit markets are just the beginning. Next, the bond bubble will pop and our tendency to print money is going to cause tremendous inflation. As a remedy, Schiff advises investors to get out of US stocks and bonds right now. As an alternative, he recommends buying the shares of conservative, dividend-paying stocks that will benefit from their business in resource-rich countries. He particularly likes agricultural, natural resources and precious metals. He devotes a couple of chapters to his strategy of top-down investing, giving examples of countries or regions that look attractive, then moving on to the various sectors he finds appealing. He also discusses emerging markets, but cautions that they aren't for the faint-hearted. Schiff does make some allowances for a few American industries that may continue to benefit from their exposure to foreign countries, but warns that coming government policies may make it difficult to profit from them. In conclusion, Schiff paints a bleak picture of what living in the US is going to be like for a few years, and gives a host of advice on 'living frugally'. He even goes so far as to encourage US citizens to "pack their bags" and move out of the US to the developed nations that he believes will have stronger economies over the next few decades, particularly resource-oriented locales, including Canada, Australia, and Norway. Schiff's book may be seen as alarmist to a lot of folks. And while I can't agree with his overall bleak point of view, I think he has made some excellent points about inflation, consumerism, and credit that would be worthwhile for most readers. As well, I am a big believer in expanding investment portfolios overseas, and I think investors will find his research into certain regions of great interest.

-Irene Chapple Investec Bank is marketing a retail version of its range deposit, linked to the FTSE 100 and structured to take advantage of both bull and bear markets. It has been sold to pension funds and via offshore bonds since May. The one-year deposits are initially being offered in the U. K. and are capital guaranteed, with returns based on.

).I wonder what became of Matt Herlihy, the creative force behind the original site. Maybe he'll ego surf one day and find this piece. Drop us a note Matt, let's catch up.The new owners of Sweet Fancy Moses evidently changed course and overhauled the site some time ago. Unfortunately, the site redesign broke a lot of the old links, including the old link I had on my sidebar to that one meagre contribution of mine. I've had to wrestle with wholesale link breaking nightmares in the past, when I first moved this site from the old Blogspot host into its own domain. Ugh. I know there are still 404s scattered throughout my archives here, but this one broken link in particular has been bugging me more than any of them. Not least because I hadn't kept a copy of the original piece anwyhere, which was a shame - I kind of liked it. So, after a deep search through the online archives of the old SFM site, I present here for your next few seconds of mild entertainment, the fully restored piece in all its sepia-tinted, dawn-of-the-blogosphere glory.

Mountains of newsprint and countless hours of broadcast tape have been consumed in recent weeks, chronicling the woes of a world economy on the brink of recession. In particular, a great deal of attention has been focused on the impact of the current Bear Market on the investment community, corporate growth and the personal wealth of private investors the world over. Actual Bear Markets are relatively short-lived phenomena – the average Bear Market lasts only around six to nine months. The longest and worst Bear Market recorded was the period from January 1973 to October 1974, during which the value of the SP 500 fell by as much as 45%.Yet even after the analysts have pronounced an end to a Bear Market, the global economy can still take many more months to fully recover. Not every Bear Market is accompanied by a recession, of course, but there is clearly a close correlation between the market climate and overall global economic health. Bear Markets have the power to bring both the weak and the strong to their knees. Once proud companies suffer as sales contracts evaporate. Humbled CEOs stumble through layoff scandals. Loyal workers are cast aside like surplus inventory. Nobody likes living through a Bear Market. I've watched the markets change from Bull to Bear and back again over the past 15 years. I've lived the IPO highs and negative equity lows, and I think I've figured something out. Bear Markets are horribly hard on the global economy simply because nobody in their right mind wants to buy bears. Now I don't have an MBA, or even any real financial qualifications as such, but it seems clear to me that Bull Markets are simply more economically viable all round. Bulls are precisely the kind of thing any right-thinking person would want to own. Bulls are useful, friendly, and easy to care for. Plus, they have that whole amiable moo-cow thing going on (in a totally woolly-bully, completely butch kind of way, of course).Bears, on the other hand, are big scary bastards with loads of teeth. Bulls give us things like steak, leather, fertilizer, glue, hat racks and brush bristles. Bulls keep hundreds of toreadors in gainful employment and support the thriving international red rag market. Bears shit in the woods. People will gleefully buy and sell bulls for considerable sums at livestock auctions. Try getting any bugger to cough up even pocket change for a bear. Ain't happening. Seems obvious now, doesn't it? Bear markets don’t work because there’s just no market for bears. As an aside -- there was once a reasonably buoyant Bear Market, but it unfortunately dried up when the construction industry stopped building new homes with fireplaces. No fireplace. no bearskin rug. no one buying bears. The Federal Reserve Bank should act immediately to cancel all future Bear Markets and turn all their attention to the Bull trade. No one wants Bears, so let's stop kidding ourselves and killing the economy by trying to sell them.

ANNANDALE, Va. (CBS. MW) -- Has gold been going up over the past year because it's been in a bull market, or because the dollar has been in a bear market?

While one might still want to invest in gold under either scenario, the reasons for doing so would be different. Under the gold-bull-market scenario, for example, one would be betting directly on gold's ascendancy. Under the dollar-bear-market scenario, in contrast, the primary bet would be on the dollar's decline.

Events. If youre an analyst, broker, portfolio or fund manager, institutional investor, other qualified member of the financial community or individual investor, we would like to invite you to apply for membership. As a member, attending Bull and Bear Club

To contact us regarding becoming a Bull and Bear Club Member or attending an event, please call us. If your company is interested in presenting or participating at a Bull and Bear Club event, please call us.

This paper uses a Markov switching model which incorporates duration dependence to capture nonlinear structure in both the conditional mean and variance of stock returns. The model sorts returns into a high return stable state and a low return volatile state. We label these as bull and bear markets respectively. The filter identifies all major stock market downturns in over 160 years of monthly data. We find that both bear and bull markets have declining hazard functions. Despite the declining hazards, the best market gains come at the start of a bull market. Moreover, allowing the conditional mean and volatility to vary with duration captures volatility clustering.

Maheu, John M. and McCurdy, Thomas H.,Identifying Bull and Bear Markets in Stock Returns(2000). Available at SSRN. or DOI. us. /ssrn us.

1. Hedge Funds and Commodity Fund Investments in Bull and Bear Markets By Franklin Edwards and Mustafa Caglayan 2. A Quantitative Approach to Tactical Asset Allocation By Mebane T. Faber 3. We Don't Quite Know What We are Talking About When We Talk About Volatility By Daniel Goldstein and Nassim Taleb

1. Hedge Funds and Commodity Fund Investments in Bull and Bear Markets By Franklin Edwards and Mustafa Caglayan 2. A Quantitative Approach to Tactical Asset Allocation By Mebane T. Faber 3. We Don't Quite Know What We are Talking About When We Talk About Volatility By Daniel Goldstein and Nassim Taleb 4. Are the Gains from International Portfolio Diversification Exaggerated? The Influence of Downside Risk in Bear Markets By Kirt Butler and Domingo Joaquin 5. The Worldwide Equity Premium. A Smaller Puzzle By Elroy Dimson, Paul Marsh,.

In other words, 2007 has been a difficult year for investors and have you learned anything from the experience? The first lesson should be that bull and bear markets still occur in the era of the global economy. Some experts argue global growth insulates equity markets from the risks of the U. S. economy and related currency and fiscal problems. Unfortunately, investors who diversified globally discovered another meaning of global growth. Apparently those bullish and bearish stampedes in and out of stocks are not confined to the North American markets. we now have global crisis and panics. In a bull market, most stock analysis and investment strategies work because most stocks go up. In a bear market, most stocks decline in spite of all our analysis, investing rules and disciplines. The best way to identify a coming bear is to monitor the financial group of stocks. They tend to lead the bull and bear cycles that occur about every 40 to 48 months. Our chart this week is that of the weekly closes of the Royal Bank of Canada plotted above the weekly closes of Teck Cominco Ltd. Note the lead-lag relationship as RBC shares peaked in May, followed by Teck Cominco two months later. This was a normal lead-lag event until August, when all of the bank stocks failed to rally to new highs, effectively ending the us. advance for the group. The lesson here is that when the financial sector runs into trouble, the trouble eventually spreads into the broader indices. The RBC decline is small compared with some of its peers – the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, the Bank of Montreal and Citigroup Inc. With this in mind, experienced investors will monitor the financial sector over the next several weeks for signs of a bottom. Historically, that will set up a new bull market. A second lesson is how hard it is to find shelter from the bear, such as by shifting a portfolio from growth stocks to value stocks or into those consumer plays that survive economic booms and busts. Some investors load up on gold stocks in an attempt to insure the portfolio against a crisis. I have never seen this strategy work in a bear market, where gold stocks get liquidated from a portfolio just like any other stock. The third and most important lesson is to avoid the investment sheep, those investors who are late to embrace a compelling story such as the income trusts, oil sands, molybdenum and alternative energy. Teck Cominco is a good example of this. Its stock languished in the $5 range from 1998 to 2003. Nobody cared, because Teck was a dull mining play and energy was the place to be. Late in 2003, the stock broke out and began a four-year linear advance to peak at $53 last July. At the peak, Teck was a must-own base metals play because of growing world demand and the effects of the global economy. Bullish investors who bought into the Teck story 10 weeks ago are down 35 per cent. Here's the rule to avoid the sheep. never buy into a compelling story in the third year of a powerful advance, because you are bound to be eaten by the bear that comes out of hibernation every four years.

In the pre-Internet era, way back when I first joined a 401(k) plan, my investment options were simply this. fixed fund, equity fund and bond fund. No further information was provided. The office manager who distributed the enrollment forms was rather cryptic, and my investment knowledge at the time was sketchy at best.

The importance of asset allocation cannot be overstated. It's similar to the importance of location, location, location as the top consideration when you buy real estate. In the 1980s, Gary Brinson, L. Randolph Hood and Gilbert Beebower determined that asset allocation explained more than 90 percent of the variability of returns in a portfolio. This finding unleashed great controversy among math geeks. Simply put, the successful combination of several asset classes helps reduce risk because of their low correlation to one another. In fact, if you put together two investments that tend to go in opposite directions in different market situations, the combination has a stabilizing effect on your portfolio. This is true even if individually the investments are both risky, meaning they can and do deviate substantially from their expected returns. Investment managers have spent much time in their quest for the best combination of asset classes that can produce the highest returns with the lowest levels of risk. They bandy about such terms as correlation coefficients, covariance, standard deviation and the like, and use complex algebraic expressions to support their hypotheses. (Yeah, but do they know how to have fun?)

Investment is about risk and expected return, said Nobel Prize winner William F. Sharpe in a recent issue of Wealth Management magazine. No one likes risk and the higher an investment's expected return, the better. That said, it's important to try to gauge your level of risk tolerance before making an asset allocation decision. How would you feel if your 401(k) plan lost a bunch of money? Mind you, investments are supposed to increase in value, but some markets are difficult, as was the case recently. If you had invested in the Vanguard 500 Index fund, which mirrors the Standard Poor's 500, you would have lost 9.1 percent in 2000, been set back another 12 percent in 2001, and suffered a whopping 22.2 percent loss in 2002. A $10,000 investment would have dwindled to $6,223.38 by the end of those three years. Ouch!

So, if pitted against one another in a World Cup race of sorts, how would amateur investors like us perform compared to the pros? Watson Wyatt Worldwide analyzed the rates of return for pension funds run by professional investment managers as well as 401(k) plans run by ordinary folks like us. The benefits consulting firm gleaned information from the regulatory filings of about 2,000 companies that offered both types of plans to their employees. Remember -- pension fund managers have a mandate to invest prudently and so must diversify their holdings to reduce risk. We can do anything we want with our 401(k) portfolios, and often choose funds willy-nilly, with no asset allocation strategy whatsoever. The results. The amateurs outmaneuvered pension fund investors from 1997 to 1999, during the bull run that immediately preceded the ugly bear market. 401(k) plans outperformed pension funds by roughly 1 percentage point in 1997, 2 points in 1998 and 5 points in 1999. With a higher allocation to stocks -- 80 percent to 90 percent -- 401(k) investors rode the bull market wave. In other words, a rising tide lifts all ships, and in good times, the rubber rafts we amateurs cobble together can bob right on top of the wave. But then in the bear market that followed, we sunk, while sounder craft weathered the storm. Both types of investors posted negative returns, but pension funds fared better than 401(k) plans in the volatile period of January 2000 through December 2002. They outperformed the amateurs by 4.3 percentage points in 2000, 3.5 points in 2001, and nearly 4 points in 2002, according to the analysis. With their bond positions serving as ballast, pension funds were able to effectively minimize their losses.

BEAR - BAITING and [[Bull - Baiting]], sports formerly very popular in England but now suppressed on account of their cruelty. They took place in arenas built in the form of theatres which were the common resort even of cultivated people. In the bear-gardens, which are known to have existed since the time of Henry II., the bear was chained to a stake by one hind leg or by the neck and worried by dogs. Erasmus, writing (about 150o) from the house of Sir Thomas More, spoke of "many herds of bears maintained in the country for the purpose of baiting." Sunday was the favourite day for these sports. Hentzner, writing in 1598, describes the bear-garden at Bankside as "another place, built in the form of a theatre, which serves for the baiting of Bulls and Bears. They are fastened behind, and then worried by great English bull-dogs, but not without great risk to the dogs from the horns of the one and the teeth of the other, and it sometimes happens they are killed upon the spot. fresh ones are immediately supplied in the places of those that are wounded or tired." He also describes the whipping of a blinded bear, a favourite variation of bear-baiting. For a famous baiting which took place before Queen Elizabeth in 1575 thirteen bears were provided. Of it Robert Laneham (fl.1575) wrote, "it was a sport very pleasant to see, to see the bear, with his pink eyes, tearing after his enemies' approach. the nimbleness and wait of the dog to take his advantage and the force and experience of the bear again to avoid his assaults. if he were bitten in one place how he would pinch in another to get free. that if he were taken once, then by what shift with biting, with clawing, with roaring, with tossing and tumbling he would work and wind himself from them. and when he was loose to shake his ears twice or thrice with the blood and the slaver hanging about his physiognomy." The famous "Paris Garden" in Southwark was the chief bear-garden in London. A Spanish nobleman of the time, who was taken to see a pony baited that had an ape tied to its back, expressed himself to the effect that "to see the animal kicking amongst the dogs, with the screaming of the ape, beholding the curs hanging from the ears and neck of the pony, is very laughable." Butler describes a bear-baiting at length in the first canto of his Hudibras. The Puritans endeavoured to put an end to animal-baiting, although Macaulay sarcastically suggested that this was "not because it gave pain to the bear, but because it gave pleasure to the spectators." The efforts of the Puritans seem, however, to have had little effect, for we find the sport flourishing at the Restoration. but the conscience of cultivated people seems to have been touched, for Evelyn wrote in his Diary, under the date of June 16th, 1670. "I went with some friends to the bear-garden, where was cock-fighting, dog-fighting, bear and bull baiting, it being a famous day for all these butcherly sports, or rather barbarous cruelties. The bulls did exceedingly well, but the Irish wolf-dog exceeded, which was a tall greyhound, a stately creature indeed, who beat a cruel mastiff. One of the bulls tossed a dog full into a lady's lap, as she sat in one of the boxes at a considerable height from the arena. Two poor dogs were killed, and so all ended with the ape on horseback, and I most heartily weary of the rude and dirty pastime, which I had not seen, I think, in twenty years before." Steele also attacked these cruel sports in the Taller. Nevertheless, when the tsar Nicholas I. visited England as cesarevich, he was taken to see a prize-fight and a bull-baiting. In this latter form of the sport the bull's nose was usually blown full of pepper to render him the more furious. The bull was often allowed a hole in the ground, into which to thrust his nose and lips, his most vulnerable parts. Sometimes the bull was tethered, and dogs, trained for the purpose, set upon him one by one, a successful attack resulting in the dog fastening his teeth firmly in the bull's snout. This was called "pinning the bull." A sport called bull-running was popular in several towns of England, particularly at Tutbury and Stamford. Its establishment at Tutbury was due to John of Gaunt, to whose minstrels, on the occasion of their annual festival on August 16th the prior of Tutbury, for his tenure, delivered a bull, which had his horns sawn off, his ears and tail cut off, his nostrils filled with pepper and his whole body smeared with soap. The minstrels gave chase to the bull, which became the property of any minstrel of the county of Stafford who succeeded in holding him long enough to cut off a lock of his hair. Otherwise he was returned to the prior. At the dissolution of the monasteries this tenure devolved upon the dukes of Devonshire, who suppressed it in 1788. At Stamford the running took place annually on November 13th, the bull being provided by the butchers of the town, the townspeople taking part in the chase, which was carried on until both people and beast were exhausted, and ended in the killing of the bull. Certain rules were strictly observed, such as the prohibition of carrying sticks or staves that were shod with iron. The Stamford bullrunning survived well into the 19th century. Bear-baiting and bull-baiting were prohibited by act of parliament in 1835.

It may be the taxpayers who are bailing out executives on Wall Street but in Australia it's the shareholders. Stumbling Queensland banking and insurance juggernaut, Suncorp, has just shown precisely what not to do. That is, shower executives with unseemly pay rises while shareholders get it in the neck. Chief executive John Mulcahy enjoyed a pay increase from $5.3 million in 2007 to $6.2 million in 2008. During that time, net profit actually dropped from $1.1 billion to $556 million. Yet the more accurate reflection of how shareholders fared is an earnings per share measure, and EPS dived from $1.59 to 60 cents per share. A Suncorp spokesman was at pains to point out that Mulcahy's short-term incentive component had been scaled back. This is a prelude to the kind of sophistry to which we can look forward in the annual report season now upon us (the season when pay cheques are unveiled) as executives - who are in reality just managers of a business belonging to other people - seek to rationalise their avarice. Why John Mulcahy picked up an STI, or any kind of bonus at all this year, is the pertinent question. Besides earnings sliced in half, the share price began the financial year at $16.92 and closed it out at $13.04. It is now $10.40. No Coles discount for Goyder A bit more on the strife at Suncorp later. The bancassurance group is by no means alone in paying for lack of performance, or rewarding failure for that matter. As with Suncorp's massive acquisition of rival insurer Promina at the top of the market - a deal on which the verdict of the jury remains steadfastly out - Wesfarmers bet the company on Coles. Hitherto, Wesfarmers had been an admirably disciplined company both in its executive pay and in its acquisitions. It had shied away from bonuses - which debunks the theory on high-performance pay as this had been one of the best performers in the market for two decades - but it has just announced a large bonus scheme for CEO Richard Goyder. Reflecting the obvious need to turn around Coles - by no means a new ambition - annual bonuses of up to 120% of base pay will accrue to Goyder based on unstipulated ROE (return on equity) measures. True, the deal has thumped Wesfarmers' ROE, indeed the stock looks way overvalued by that gauge even now, but Coles is Goyder's baby anyhow. His career and reputation are inextricably linked with the fate of the Coles' transaction and a large bonus grant based on secret performance measures is hardly going to make him work any harder. All bull, no bear The rise of executive pay has been, for years predicated on rising earnings and stock prices in the upswing of the bull market and now boards are figuring out new ways to pay their executives more while shareholders lose. The notion of ``at-risk'' pay is joke if executives can't share any hardship with shareholders, or even a bit of a pay cut, during a downturn. At Oxiana, Owen Hegarty's $10.6 million farewell payment was knocked on the head by shareholders only for the board to find a way to pay him $8.6 million ex-gratia. At Consolidated Media, executive chairman John Alexander was rewarded with no less than a $15 million termination payment despite presiding over the decline of Nine Network. CMH is down, Nine is skirting with a breach of its banking agreements, Alexander picked up $19 million. At AGL, former chief Paul Anthony pulled out $11.3 million in 2007 and a further $6.2 million for four months' work in 2008 including a $5 million termination payment. It should be said that Anthony and Alexander - or Mulcahy and Hegarty for that matter - can hardly be blamed for striking a keen deal for themselves. It can also be said that boards are weak for capitulating to such feeble contracts. At the failed Allco Finance Group, David Clarke is asking for an options grant to be turned into cash while Bendigo chief Rob Hunt is watching his 2009 Long Term Incentive component also turned into a cash payment. Spin the tale When the market turns down and companies underperform, so should executive remuneration. Otherwise it is a perversion of the market for executive talent. It is bad capitalism, it is cake-and-eat-it-too, it is best-of-both-worlds, it is untenable and shareholders should be angered. At AGMs and in press releases and friendly TV interviews, you will hear that boards have had remuneration experts sign off on their independent remuneration schemes. You will not hear why it is that boards cannot price labour in their own markets. You will be told that the credit meltdown is to blame for poor performance. You will not be told that the job of a manager is to manage, and manage risk, whatever the macro conditions might be. You will be told that executive pay really must keep pace with best practice and international benchmarks, a la Wall Street. When it comes to pricing their own labour the executive lobby cries America, and when it comes to pricing their employees they cry Asia. Suncorp woes There will be much acrimony between shareholders and boards this year. In the case of Suncorp, which has two businesses - insurance and banking - the bad debts are flowing thick and fast on the banking side while the rise in the group's cost of wholesale funding is choking new lending. Excluding a $200 million exposure to the failed Raptis Group, Suncorp is now believed to have exposure to non-performing loans of $660 million against a budget for bad debts of $96 million. It won't give a number. The group denies it but there is also believed to be a large ``reduction in headcount'' in the pipeline. In insurance, Suncorp is still digesting its $7.9 billion acquisition of rival insurer Promina, a deal it struck at the top of the cycle in late 2006. The official line is that the integration of Promina is going well. The real line is there is $5 billion of goodwill sitting on Suncorp's balance sheet. The IT systems are yet to be integrated and almost all the top executive talent of Promina - which ran the likes of Vero, AAMI, GIO, APIA and Shannons - has walked.

Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day Highlights. AvalonBay, TRW Automotive, Akamai Technologies, Credit Suisse and Allergan

Zacks Equity Research highlights AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE. AVB) as the Bull of the Day and TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. (NYSE. TRW) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Akamai Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq. AKAM), Credit Suisse Group (NYSE. CS) and Allergan, Inc. (NYSE. AGN).

Full analysis of all these stocks is available at Here is a synopsis of all five stocks. Bull of the Day. AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE. AVB) Headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, AvalonBay Communitiesis a real estate investment trust (REIT) which primarily focuses on developing high-quality, multi-family apartment communities for higher-income clients in high barrier-to-entry regions of the U. S. As of September 30, 2008, the company owned or held ownership interests in 177 apartment communities, with 50,034 apartment homes in 10 states. Operationally, we expect AVB to outperform peers in 2009, although multifamily fundamentals will slow in the coming quarters due to stagnant job growth and growing unemployment trends. Shares of AVB are off over 35% since October due to a general sector sell-off. We are changing our recommendation to Buy due to valuation. While the next few months could be volatile, we think now is an attractive entry point for the best positioned multifamily operator. The company has plenty of liquidity and is in no danger of near-term debt defaults. In addition, the current yield is now over 5% and the payout is safe. Bear of the Day. TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. (NYSE. TRW) TRW Automotiveis affected by constant production cuts by OEMs [original equipment manufacturers], pricing pressure and lower production volumes in North America. The company has three business divisions. Chassis Systems, Occupant Safety Systems, and Automotive Components. The shift in consumer preferences from pickup trucks and SUVs to smaller and more fuel-efficient cars in North America and from large and mid-sized passenger cars to small cars in Europe is manifesting a greater-than-expected impact. Lower vehicle production levels and increased commodity costs are also likely to negatively impact the company. As a measure, TRW is realigning capacities and reducing fixed costs. However, these are likely to increase restructuring and asset impairment expenses. Thus, we rate the stock a Sell with a target price of $3.00. Latest Posts on the Zacks Analyst Blog. Akamai Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq. AKAM) Akamai Technologiesis a global provider of distributed e-business infrastructure services and solutions. Its services include dynamic content and application delivery, application performance technologies, traffic management, etc. Akamai's high-margin, value-added solutions such as Application Performance Solutions, Dynamic Site Solutions, and Stream OS are expected to drive revenue and margin expansion in the coming quarters. Though Q3 2008 results were better than expected, Akamai has disappointed us as of late. We believe that as AKAM serves consumer focused companies, it is more sensitive to consumer spending than much of the IT space. Credit Suisse Group (NYSE. CS) We are continuing our Hold on Credit Suisse Group, or CSG. On December 4, CSG announced a 4th quarter net loss of CHF3 billion through the end of November due to weakness at the investment bank, which is being restructured. The investment bank will reduce risk-weighted assets by 43%, headcount will be cut by 11%, and total costs will fall by CHF2 billion. In the third quarter (in line with its pre-announcement), CSG posted a net loss of CHF1.3 billion compared to net earnings of CHF1.3 billion a year ago. This poor performance reflected large trading losses and further writedowns in the leveraged finance and structured products businesses. In other news, Credit Suisse has raised CHF10 billion in Tier 1 capital, with a pro forma Tier 1 ratio of 13.7% at September 30, 2008, which exceeds regulatory requirements for 2013. Allergan, Inc. (NYSE. AGN) Allergan, Inc. is a global specialty pharmaceutical company that develops and commercializes innovative products for the eye care, neuromodulator, skin care and other specialty markets. Allergan has been expanding into new therapeutic areas through acquisitions over the past few quarters. We believe these acquisitions will provide the company with the opportunity to drive growth in its existing business and to expand into new areas of business. We are optimistic that Allergan's presence across different segments and geographies should help maintain decent growth going forward even in the face of global economic weakness and foreign currency headwinds. Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter. About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months. About the Analyst Blog Updated throughout every trading day, the Analyst Blog provides analysis from Zacks Equity Research about the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today by visiting About Zacks Zacks. com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system. the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter. Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros at Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Disclaimer. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security. Zacks. combMark Vickery us. 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When it comes to controversial stocks, top stock investors come down on all sides of the buy/sell/hold debate. That's why we've harnessed the wisdom of our insightful and opinionated bloggers, asking them to give us their take on one such stock every week. Then, we publish one bullish position and one bearish position and let you decide which opinion reigns supreme. Don't agree with the bloggers? Let your opinion be known! You may be featured in an upcoming Bull/Bear Report!

Submitted anonymously I owned Chesapeake Energy (CHK) for a while. I sold if half way into its recent run-up. To me, it seems a great company, but I don't read company reports much. I don't believe they are accurate. The issues I have in all companies, especially oil exploration, is credit availability. CHK is not so much an exploration company, but I feel their dividend should be more substantial considering their position in pipes and the stuff in production. They.

There is always an element of the bizarre in the stock market. What seems positive is viewed negatively and vice versa. It can be maddening. Lately we have been seeing more maddening activity than normal making it very difficult for investors to keep a Rational grip on their portfolios. One sector that has been trading in a crazy way this year is the homebuilding group. Can you believe that stocks in the sector are some of the best performing stocks.

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Fixed-interest bond whose value at maturity is dependent on the performance of a stock market index. The issue is divided into two parts. a bull bond and a bear bond. The bull bond’s redemption value rises if the market index increases and declines if the index decreases. Conversely, the bear bond has a higher redemption value if the stock market weakens and a lower value if stock prices rise.