This section is full of things that I found interesting, and I thought that you might too. The Iraqi stock exchange. How to stay up all night. You never know, there might be a few nuggets of gold in this section that just might interest you.

$17.9 Million Donated to Pro-Romney "Restore Our Future, Inc." in Second Half of 2011

According to documents filed with the FEC (Federal Election Commission) earlier this week, nearly $18 million in new contributions poured into the pro-Romney "Restore Our Future, Inc." SuperPAC during...

Mitt Romney Storms to Victory in Florida

Mitt Romney seized back the momentum in the race for the Republican Presidential nomination Tuesday night after easily cruising to a victory in the Florida GOP primary. The Florida GOP primary tur...

The Ticking Japanese Time Bomb

According to the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, the population of Japan is expected to shrink 30% by the year 2060. The current population of Japan is 128 million. The Ministry of...

Team Hedge Fund vs Team Adelson

The Florida primary is set to take place this Tuesday. A few weeks ago, it appeared as though Mitt Romney was going to sail to the Republican Presidential nomination. Things quickly changed after ...

BEA: US Real GDP Increased 1.7% in 2011

Earlier today, the BEA (Bureau of Economic Analysis) of the US Department of Commerce released their advance estimate for annualized real GDP (Gross Domestic Product) growth in the United States for t...

SuperPAC Spending Heating Up Ahead of Florida Primary

Last week, Newt Gingrich scored an unlikely victory in the South Carolina primary. For a number of days it appeared as though Mitt Romney was going to cruise to a victory in South Carolina. A few ...

Parsing Barack Obama's 2012 State of the Union Address

Earlier tonight, President Barack Obama made his fourth State of the Union address to the nation. As Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul and Rick Santorum continue to battle for the Republican no...

Obama's Third Year Average Approval Rating Lowest Since Carter

According to Gallup.com, President Barack Obama averaged an approval rating of 44.4% during his third year in office. This is the second lowest third-year approval rating since Eisenhower held off...

The Rich List - 2012 Presidential Race Edition

With the withdrawal of Rick Perry from the 2012 Presidential race, there are now four candidates vying for the Republican nomination. They are: Mitt Romney, Ron Paul, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingri...

Record $3.28 Million Donated to Help Reduce US Debt Last Year

Did you know that you can make a donation to the Bureau of the Public Debt to help pay off the US debt? Did you know that the Bureau of Public Debt actually has a page set up on their web site whe...

Intrade: Mitt Romney Continues to Solidify His Lead

According to online prediction market Intrade.com, Mitt Romney is a near lock to secure the 2012 Republican Presidential nomination. According to Intrade.com, the �Mitt Romney to Win Republican No...

What Assets Does Newt Gingrich Own?

Presidential candidates are required to file something called an Executive Branch Personnel Public Financial Disclosure report. This report requires the listing of any assets, sources of income, posit...

How Rich is Mitt Romney?

Mitt Romney is rich. Very, very rich. Many politicians are rich (relatively speaking anyways), but Mitt Romney takes rich to an entirely different level. Mitt Romney is so rich, in fact, that ...

Burger King Reportedly Testing Home Delivery

Burger King, one of the largest fast-food chains in the world, is reportedly testing out a home delivery service to boost sales. Burger King is currently testing out the home delivery service in f...

How to Trade Currency Pairs Such as EUR/USD, USD/JPY and USD/CAD

Click Here to Easily Trade Currency Pairs Have you ever wondered how to trade currency pairs such as the...

2011 IRS Enforcement Statistics

Earlier this week, the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) released their �Enforcement and Service Results� report for the 2011 fiscal year. This report details the total number of audits, criminal investi...

Mitt Romney vs Barack Obama Now Looking Like a Very Good Bet

The race for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination is Mitt Romney�s to lose. According to a recent Gallup poll, 60% of Republican and Republican-leaning independents believe that Mitt Romney...

Will a Falling National Unemployment Rate Be Enough To Give Obama a Second Term?

�It�s the economy, stupid.� This phrase was uttered by the Democrats time and time again during the run-up to the 1992 Presidential election. George H.W. Bush was considered a lock to win a se...

The Importance of the Upcoming New Hampshire Primary

Candidates for the 2012 Republican Presidential nomination are pulling out all the stops ahead of the New Hampshire primary next week. Mitt Romney won an ultra-close decision over Rick Santorum in...

Iraq War Second Most Expensive US Conflict on Record

In a January 2003 interview with George Stephanopoulos on ABC �This Week�, former Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, said this when asked about the estimated cost of the Iraq War: �Well, the le...

Gallup: Romney Retakes Lead in GOP Presidential Nomination Poll

According to a recently released Gallup poll, Mitt Romney has retaken the lead from Newt Gingrich amongst Republican voters for the 2012 GOP Presidential Nomination. According to Gallup, Mitt Romn...

Consumer Activism, 21st Century Style

Large companies are quickly learning that they can no longer implement unpopular changes in the dark of night without the Internet shining a very bright spotlight on them. Thanks to the Internet, ...

American Households Continue To Avoid Movie Theaters

According to CNN.com, movie ticket sales continued to slump in 2011, dropping to their lowest levels since 1995. Movie ticket revenues clocked in at $10.2 billion in 2011, down an estimated 3.5% f...

Brazil Passes UK To Become World's Sixth Largest Economy

According to the Economic and Business Research's annual world economic league table, Brazil now has the world's sixth largest economy. To grab the number six spot on the list, Brazil had to pass ...

How Does Obama's Current Approval Rating Compare to Previous Presidents at the Same Points in Their First Terms?

According to Gallup.com (link below), President Obama's most recent (Dec 19-25 poll) approval rating is 45%. President Obama is currently in his 12th quarter as President and has been in the White...

How Long Could the Richest People in the World Cover the US Deficit?

The United States is expected to post a deficit of roughly $1.1 trillion for the 2012 fiscal year. The country is expecting to spend around $3.729 trillion and take in about $2.627 trillion. This ...

ComScore: US Online Holiday Spending Up 15% Over Last Year

According to ComScore Inc., US online holiday spending continues to trend roughly 15% higher compared to the same period last year. According to ComScore, US online holiday spending has totalled r...

Can Newt Gingrich Win the Republican Nomination?

According to a recent Gallup poll, Newt Gingrich currently has the support of 31% of Republican and Republican-leaning independents who are registered to vote. Here is how the most recent numbers brea...

How Much is President Obama Worth?

As President of the United States, Barack Obama is required to make annual disclosures that detail his current personal assets and sources of income. This applies to members of the Senate and House of...

Making How Much Per Year Would Make You "Rich"?

According to a recent Gallup poll, Americans "say that they would need to earn a median of $150,000 a year to consider themselves rich". Gallup conducted a poll and asked this question - "Just thi...

Which Countries Have The Best Credit Ratings?

Thanks to the summer downgrade of the United States and the current debt crisis that is engulfing Europe, everybody is talking about sovereign credit ratings. One question that I hear all the time...

Intrade: Two-Horse Race for Republican Nomination

According to Intrade.com (and various polls), Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich are the two current frontrunners for the Republican Presidential nomination. Mitt Romney has been rock solid ever since ...

US Consumer Credit Continues To Trend Higher

Shortly after the 2008 financial crisis, outstanding consumer credit in the United States started to decrease dramatically. Outstanding revolving credit, which mainly consists of credit card balan...

Standard and Poor's Warns Europe

One thing is for sure - Standard and Poor's certainly isn't afraid to ruffle any feathers. In August, Standard and Poor's surprised many by being the first ratings agency to pull the trigger on a ...

National Unemployment Rate Drops to 8.6% in November

The national unemployment rate finally broke out of its very tight range in November, dropping from 9.0% down to 8.6%. This was the largest one month drop since December of 2010, when the national une...

"Black Friday": Retail Sales Up 6.6%, Online Sales Up 26%

Despite weak economic growth and a national unemployment rate of over 9%, Americans turned out in droves for "Black Friday". According to ShopperTrak, which is the world's largest provider of reta...

October 2011 State Unemployment Report: Jobless Rate Down in 36 States

The BLS (Bureau of Labor Services) released the October 2011 state unemployment report earlier this week. According to the BLS, 36 states and the District of Columbia reported unemployment rate de...

Q3 GDP Growth Revised Down to 2.0% From 2.5%

The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) of the U.S. Department of Commerce released their "second estimate" for Q3 GDP growth earlier today. The BEA had originally forecast that gross domestic produc...

Which Countries Have Been Buying/Selling The Most US Government Debt Over the Past Year?

Foreign governments currently own roughly $4.66 trillion of US Treasury securities. As of September 2011, the five largest foreign holders of US debt were: China - $1.1483 trillion Japan - $95...

Can the "Super Committee" Reach a Deal This Weekend?

The clock is ticking. The Congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, aka the "Super Committee", was created via the Budget Control Act of 2011. The Budget Control Act of 2011 c...

US Debt Clock Surges Past $15 Trillion

According to the Bureau of the Public Debt of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the United States now has a total outstanding public debt load of $15,033,607,255,920.32. That's $15.03 trillion....

SEC Disciplines Eight Employees Over Madoff

When Bernard Madoff's massive multi-billion dollar fraud was finally revealed to the world, the first thing that popped into the minds of many was: "Heads are going to roll over this!" I mean, Harr...

Forrester: US Online Holiday Retail Sales Set to Increase 15% This Year

According to Forrester Research, online holiday sales in the United States will grow 15% this year to $59.5 billion. According to the research firm, Americans are increasingly interested in hunting...

Mitt Romney a Near Lock for 2012 Republican Nomination

According to Intrade.com, Mitt Romney currently has a 70% chance of becoming the Republican Presidential nominee in 2012. Mitt Romney has been slow and steady so far, while other candidates for th...

How Successful Was "Bank Transfer Day"?

As you may or may not know, November 5th was "Bank Transfer Day". The purpose of Bank Transfer Day? To transfer as much money as possible from for-profit banks to non-profit credit unions. The...

Record Number of Americans Living in Poverty

According to a Census.gov report released earlier today titled "The Research Supplemental Poverty Measure: 2010", a record 16% of the population of the United States was living in poverty in 2010. Thi...

What Would The US Deficit Be if the Economy Wasn't In the Dumps?

On September 27th, 2011, Congressman Chris Van Hollen wrote a letter to the Congressional Budget Office in which he requested an estimate "of the portion of the federal deficit that is due to the curr...

US Consumers Spending Their Worries Away

Late last week, the BEA (Bureau of Economic Analysis) released their Q3/2011 advance estimate for annualized GDP growth. The BEA announced that real gross domestic product in the United States had...

Banks Backing Down in Debit Card Fee Squabble

Anger towards big banks has been festering for some time now, but things really boiled over last month when Bank of America announced that they were going to be levying a $5 per month fee on customers...

Q3 GDP Growth In Line With Expectations

According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis (U.S. Department of Commerce), real gross domestic product in the United States increased at an annual rate of 2.5% in the third quarter of 2011. This ...

Whitney Tilson Flips on Netflix

Remember when Whitney Tilson and Reed Hastings engaged each other in a public battle (albeit friendly) over whether or not Netflix was overvalued? Tilson, founder and managing partner of T2 Partne...

September 2011 State Unemployment Report

Earlier today, the BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) released their Regional and State Unemployment and Unemployment Summary for September. The report was pretty much a mixed bag of good and bad ne...

Student Loan Debt Continues To Soar

It's an unfortunate Catch-22 - students have to borrow increasingly high levels of money in order to attend college or university, while finding decent jobs after graduation is becoming increasingly d...

Cash Rich: Apple Has Over $80 Billion in Cash and Cash Equivalents

Apple reported their hotly anticipated Q4 earnings earlier today. The company, which has made a habit of absolutely torching earnings expectations over the past number of years, reported weaker th...

Gallup: "Generic" Republican Candidate Leads Obama 46 to 38%

For the second month in a row, US registered voters said that they would pick a "generic" Republican candidate over Barack Obama in the 2012 Presidential election. According to Gallup.com, 46% of ...

Intrade: Mitt Romney Clear Favorite For Republican Nomination for President

On October 10th, Gallup.com released an article in which they detailed the shocking rise of Herman Cain in the battle to win the Republican Presidential Nomination in 2012. According to the articl...

Millionaire Surtax Coming?

Is the new proposed millionaire surtax sound fiscal policy or a "desperate tax hike" gimmick? Earlier today, Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid inserted a millionaire surtax into President Obama's...

Comedy of Errors at Bank of America

It's not a very good time to be a Bank of America shareholder right now (or employee, for that matter). The stock is currently trading at $5.83, which is right near its 52 week low of $5.81. The s...

Would You Pay $5 a Month To Use Your Debit Card?

According to the Associated Press (link below), Bank of America is planning on rolling out a monthly $5 debit card fee early next year. Here is how it will work - if you are a Bank of America cust...

It's Good to Live Near Washington, D.C.

As the title of this article states - it's good to live near Washington, D.C. According to the U.S. Census Bureau (via CNN.com), median income in Washington, D.C. has soared over 12% since 2007. ...

August 2011 State Unemployment Numbers

According to the BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics), 26 states (and the District of Columbia) reported increases to their unemployment rates in August. 12 states reported rate decreases, while the remai...

It's On: Obama's Proposed Tax Increases Kick off 2012 Re-election Bid

Republicans: "This is class warfare." Barack Obama: "This is not class warfare - it's math." President Barack Obama unofficially kicked off his 2012 re-election bid earlier today when he unveile...

The "Buffett Rule"

According to the New York Times, President Obama will "call for a new minimum tax rate for individuals making more than $1 million a year to ensure that they pay at least the same percentage of their ...

September 11th - The Markets Then and Now

10 years have passed by in a heartbeat. It seems like it was just yesterday when I was sitting in front of my computer screens, waiting for another day of trading to get underway when CNBC first c...

Prop Trading Firms in Canada

If you currently live in Canada (or anywhere else) and are looking to open a prop trading account, there are a few options that are available to you. One of those options is Golden Market Management,...

Unemployment Rates and Re-elections

Incumbent Presidents have been up for re-election in the United States a total of 10 times since 1948. Of these 10 re-election campaigns, a total of seven were successful. President Barack Oba...

How Does Obama Match Up Against Leading GOP Candidates?

Remember when Barack Obama enjoyed large leads against everybody but Mike Huckabee in hypothetical 2012 match-ups? That was April, and a great deal has changed since then. President Obama's approv...

New Report Paints Dismal Picture of "Retirement" in America

Earlier this weekend, an article surfaced on WSJ.com titled "For Many Seniors, There May Be No Retirement". The article points out that "more than three in five US workers in their 50s and 60s pla...

Obama Up Against It Heading Into 2012

According to Gallup.com, President Barack Obama's job approval ratings have hit new lows. According to Gallup, President Obama's job approval rating currently sits at 40%, which is the lowest weekl...

Intrade.com - Less Than 50% Chance of Obama Being Re-elected in 2012

According to online prediction market Intrade.com, President Barack Obama currently has less than a 50% chance of being re-elected in 2012. As it stands right now, the "Barack Obama to be re-elected P...

Apple (Briefly) Claims the Title of World's Most Valuable Company

For a brief moment on Tuesday afternoon, Apple Inc. was the world's most valuable company. Over the past 2 1/2 years, Apple has gone on an absolute tear, rising from less than $100/share up to its...

How to Start Your Own Website

In this article, I'll answer questions such as: how do I start my own website? How do I register a domain? Where should I host my site? At first glance, starting your own website can seem a bit dau...

Timothy Geithner: I'm Staying

Despite rumors to the contrary, Timothy Geithner has reportedly decided to remain in his post as Treasury Secretary for the foreseeable future. Many Republicans spent the weekend calling for Geith...

Debt Ceiling Changes By President, 1940-Present

As of this morning, a total of 90 changes have been made to the nation's debt limit since 1940 (FYI I didn't arbitrarily pick this year - this is as far back as the data from WhiteHouse.gov goes). ...

Congressional Leaders, Barack Obama Agree to Debt Limit Deal

In a very unsurprising turn of events, congressional leaders and Barack Obama reached an agreement tonight on a debt limit deal that will allow the country to avert its first-ever default. The deb...

History of the Debt Limit Since 1940

According to WhiteHouse.gov, there have been a total of 90 changes to the nation's statutory debt limit that have been enacted from 1940 until present day (if the Democrats and Republicans reach an ag...

What Might the United States and Belgium Have in Common Very Soon?

What might the United States and Belgium have in common very soon? The answer? AA+ credit ratings, courtesy of Standard and Poor's. As has been mentioned in the media quite often as of late, t...

America's Days as a AAA Nation Likely Drawing to a Close

Despite the increasingly tense situation in Washington, a debt ceiling agreement is still likely to be agreed upon in the final hours before the August 2nd deadline. In the end, neither side wants to ...

US Debt Talks Break Down - Again

Last week, President Obama reportedly walked out of debt-limit talks after getting into multiple back-and-forth exchanges with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor. Earlier today, the talks broke dow...

CBS News Poll: Majority of Americans Disapprove of Both Democrats and Republicans in Debt Ceiling Negotiations

When it comes to the contentious debt ceiling issue, which party is winning in the eyes of the average American? The answer - neither. According to a CBS News poll that was released this morni...

Intrade: Less Than 50% Chance of Debt Ceiling Being Raised by End of July

Intrade.com, in case you didn't know, is a "prediction market" where people can wager real money on the outcome of certain events. For instance, you can bet on who will be elected President in Nov...

Tensions Rising in Debt-Limit Talks

Tensions are rising in ongoing debt-limit talks in Washington, as President Obama reportedly walked out of a contentious meeting earlier tonight. The clock is ticking, and the pressure is close a ...

Game of Chicken Over Nation's Debt Limit Continues

According to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, politicians in Washington need to get a debt ceiling done by August 2nd in order to avoid a default. Geithner has gone on record as stating that t...

Warren Buffett: US Unemployment Rate Will be Under 8% By 2012 Presidential Election

According to the Wall Street Journal (link below), Warren Buffett is of the opinion that the US unemployment rate will drop below 8% by the time that voters head to the polls in November of 2012. ...

The Most Hated Companies in America Are..

Close your eyes for a second. What is the one company that instantly makes your blood pressure rise at the mere mention of their name? What is the one company that you swear that you will never, e...

Ronald Reagan on Debt Limits and Defaults

The fierce debate over the nation's debt ceiling is one that has been raging for many decades now. Over that time, the debt ceiling in the United States has been raised dozens and dozens of times....

San Antonio Car Insurance Quote

From San Antonio? Click Here for a Free Car Insurance Quote Do you live in San Antonio (or close to it)...

May State Unemployment Numbers: 24 States Post Rate Decreases

According to the BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics), 24 states posted unemployment rate decreases last month (May 2011). 13 states (and the District of Columbia) posted increases, while 13 states had no...

Simultaneous Work Stoppages Likely for Two Major North American Sports Leagues

Earlier tonight, the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat to win their first NBA title. Instead of basking in the glow of a fantastic postseason, the NBA (and its fans) now gets to look forwar...

The Big Owe: Unfunded US Liabilities Sitting at $61.6 Trillion

The United States is going to post a deficit of around $1.65 trillion in 2011. That's a lot of money. The United States currently has a public outstanding debt load of $14.3 trillion. That's a lot...

Groupon Files For IPO

In late 2010, numerous media reports indicated that Google was on the verge of acquiring local deals site Groupon. A few days later, Groupon shocked many when it was revealed that they had turned ...

Remembering the Good Old Days of Massive First-Day IPO Increases

On May 19th, 2011, LinkedIn made a huge splash after posting a gain of 109% on its first day of trading. A few days later, Yandex NV, which is the owner of Russia's most popular search engine, pos...

Your Memorial Day Cookout Will Cost You Much More This Year

According to Dailymail.co.uk (link below), your Memorial Day cookout will cost you nearly 30% more this year thanks to high inflation. According to the publication, the average cost of a Memorial ...

Could You Come Up With $2,000 in 30 Days?

Could you come up with $2,000 within 30 days? Let�s say that your car is giving you some problems, so you decide to take it into the shop. Your mechanic calls you with the bad news - the car is in ...

The Physical Awesomeness of America's Debt

The United States owes a huge pile of money to itself, its citizens, mutual funds, pension funds and the entire world. As of this second, the exact amount that the United States owes (current outs...

China Trims US Debt Holdings For Fifth Straight Month

The US Treasury Department recently released their "Major Foreign Holders of Treasury Securities" report for the month of March. China continued to lead the way in the latest report from the Treas...

Huckabee, Trump: We're Out

Over the past couple of days, two very notable names have announced that they will NOT be running for president in 2012 - Mike Huckabee and Donald Trump. Mike Huckabee was seen by many as being th...

Handicapping the Debt Ceiling Situation

When will the debt ceiling be raised in the United States? This is a question that is on the minds of many Americans right now. Some people believe that the debt ceiling should not be raised at al...

A Look at Gasoline Taxes in the United States

With the average cost of a gallon of gasoline currently sitting at $3.933 in the United States, people are naturally more curious as to why gas prices are so high. The main factor in the cost of g...

The High Cost of Gasoline

According to CNNMoney.com, the average American household spent a whopping $368.09 on gasoline in April. This is up from $281.06 in April of 2010 and $173.80 in April of 2009. According to a study...

Geithner: Drop Dead Date is Now August 2nd, Not July 8th

Earlier today, US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner revealed that the United States will be able to continue borrowing until August 2nd without raising the nation's debt ceiling limit. A few wee...

GOP Primary Poll: Trump on Top

According to RasmussenReports.com, Donald Trump is currently the favorite amongst "Likely Republican Primary Voters" to be the GOP's nominee for president in 2012. The latest poll from Rasmussen h...

Bad Deal: News Corp. Set to Get Crushed on Myspace

News Corp., which is the international media company that is run by Rupert Murdoch, purchased Myspace back in 2005 for $580 million. The $580 million price tag for Myspace had many people doing do...

A Moment in Time: Comparing Barack Obama's Current Approval Rating to Those of Past Presidents at the Same Point in Their Presidencies

Barack Obama has been President now for a little over nine quarters (2 1/4 years). At the end of Obama's first quarter in office (Jan 20-Apr 19 2009), he had an approval rating of 63%. At the ...

National Debt Clock on the Floor of the US House of Representatives?

Late last week, Rep. Tom Reed (Republican) submitted legislation that would direct the Clerk of the House of Representatives to "place a real time display of the United States gross national debt in t...

Who Will Win the Battle for the Internet in 2012?

The Federal Election Commission (FEC.gov) has all sorts of interesting data posted on their site. For instance, you can visit their "Presidential Campaign Finance" page to see exactly how Barack O...

"Your Taxpayer Receipt" Made Available on WhiteHouse.gov

Earlier this week, WhiteHouse.gov unveiled their newest page - "Your Federal Taxpayer Receipt". According to a blog posting titled "Your Taxpayer Receipt" (link below), Katelyn Sabochik revealed t...

Can President Obama Raise a Billion Dollars?

Over the past few weeks, we've been inundated with stories regarding spending cuts, budget deals and debt ceilings. The country's expenditures are far higher than its revenues at this point in tim...

Gas Prices Continue to March Higher

According to GasBuddy.com, the average cost of a gallon of gasoline in the United States is currently $3.788. This is up from $3.704 in the past week, $3.531 in the past month and $2.864 in the pa...

Employee Loyalty Waning as National Unemployment Rate Continues to Fall

According to the 9th annual "Study of Employee Benefits Trends" that was recently released by MetLife, 36% of all employees in the United States hope to be working for a different employer sometime in...

China, United States in New Spat over Human Rights

On Friday, the U.S. State Department released a report titled "2010 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices". The aim of the report - to provide "encyclopedic detail on human rights conditions i...

Gallup: 58% of Americans Favor Budget Compromise over Shutdown

According to a recent Gallup.com poll, 58% of Americans said that they were in favor of a budget compromise that would avert a government shutdown, even if it meant passing a budget that they disagree...

A History of the Debt Ceiling in the United States

As sure as the sun will rise in the morning, the debt ceiling will rise in the United States. Reagan, Clinton, Bush (H.W. or W.), Carter - what do they all have in common? The debt ceiling in the ...

Barack Obama Officially Kicks Off His 2012 Re-Election Campaign

Earlier this morning, US President Barack Obama officially kicked off his 2012 re-election campaign. In a post titled "Welcome to the 2012 Campaign" on BarackObama.com, Obama staffers announced th...

CEO Compensation Soared in 2010

According to the USA Today, the CEOs of America's top publicly traded companies had very good years in 2010. According to the paper, median CEO pay jumped 27% last year to $9.0 million, "based on ...

Walmart CEO: "Serious" Inflation Coming to United States

When the CEO of Walmart says that "serious" inflation is coming to the United States, you should probably listen. According to the USA Today (link below), Walmart CEO Bill Simon was quoted as sayi...

Is Your Food Shrinking?

You decide that you are going to make your famous pasta dish for you and your family for dinner. On the way home from work, you hit the grocery store and buy a few bags of pasta and some canned ve...

Which Ten Industries are in the Greatest State of Decline in the United States?

Some incredible technological advances have been made over the past ten years. Many of the products that are probably a part of your daily life didn't exist ten years ago. iTunes. Netflix. The Kin...

April: Historically a Very Good Month for the Markets

The earthquake in Japan. Libya. Egypt. The markets have had to digest a great deal of unsettling and horrific news so far in 2011, yet they still keep trucking higher on a near daily basis. Th...

Whom Might President Obama Square Off Against in 2012?

Time flies. Believe it or not, the 2012 US Presidential election is not all that far off. We've had a number of intense and hotly contested US Presidential elections over the past decade and a...

What are Intragovernmental Holdings?

The current total public debt outstanding of the United States is approximately $14.22 trillion dollars. Of this total, $9.6 trillion is "debt held by the public", while the remainder (approximate...

Which 16 Metropolitan Areas Had Unemployment Rates of Over 15% in January?

Every month the BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) releases a report called the �Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment Summary�. The report breaks down unemployment rate trends for each of t...

42% of Millionaires Don't Feel Wealthy

According to a recent Fidelity Investments survey, 42% of millionaires surveyed said that they do "not feel wealthy". Fidelity recently surveyed more than 1,000 millionaires and asked them a numbe...

February PPI: Food Prices Increased By Largest Amount Since November 1974

The BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) released the February PPI (Producer Price Index) numbers earlier this morning. The Producer Price Index for finished goods increased 1.6% in February (seasonal...

January US Foreign Debt Holders Update: China Down, Japan Higher

The US Treasury Department released their "Major Foreign Holders of Treasury Securities" for January earlier today. China continues to sit at the top of the list with total US debt holdings of app...

Economists: National Unemployment Rate Projected To Be 7.7% by 2012 Election

According to 54 economists that were surveyed by the Wall Street Journal, the US jobless rate will be 7.7% by the time that the 2012 presidential election rolls around. The national unemployment r...

The World Now Has 1,210 Billionaires

According to Forbes magazine, the number of billionaires in the world rose to 1,210 in 2010, up from 1,011 the year before. These 1,210 billionaires have a total combined wealth of $4.5 trillion, ...

So You Think That Gas Is Expensive In The United States?

Do you live in the United States? Does your bottom lip quiver every time you go to the gas station to fill up your car? If the current price of gas makes you want to sell your car and start taking ...

Intrade.com - President Obama's Re-Election Chances Strengthening

Back in December of 2010, I wrote an article titled "Trying to Predict The Results of the 2012 Presidential Election With The Help of Intrade.com". At the time that I wrote the article, the Democr...

February 2011 Job Numbers: National Unemployment Rate Hits Lowest Level Since April 2009

The last time that the national unemployment rate in the United States was under 9%? April of 2009. Earlier this morning, the BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) released the February employment numb...

Food Prices Hit Another Record High in February

According to the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) of the United Nations, global food prices hit a record high for the second straight month in February. The FAO publishes something called t...

Surprise! China Actually Owns $1.16 Trillion of US Debt

Earlier in the year, the US Treasury Department released their data for the largest foreign holders of US debt as of December, 2010. At the time, the top three looked like this: China - $891.6 b...

Handicapping The Fate of Certain North African/Middle East Leaders

The current unrest in North Africa and the Middle East is a story that has an impact on practically every person in the world. The turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa has had a dramatic im...

$2.84 Million Was Donated To The US Government In 2010 To Help Reduce The Public Debt Load

According to TreasuryDirect.gov (link below), a total of $2,840,466.75 was donated to The Bureau of the Public Debt in 2010 to help pay off the nation's large debt load. According to TreasuryDirec...

WSJ: Many Boomers Just Don't Have Enough Money To Retire

An interesting article (link below) hit WSJ.com yesterday that highlights the plight of many of the "401(k) generation" who are now quickly approaching retirement age. According to the article (wh...

The DJIA Is Close To Doubling From Its March 2009 Low

On March 9th, 2009, the DJIA (Dow Jones Industrial Average) hit a "Great Recession" low of 6,440.08. That�s right - in case you had forgotten, the DJIA was trading below 6,500 points less than two...

China Has Added Over $800 Billion To Their US Debt Holdings Since December of 2000

As we mentioned yesterday, China is currently the largest foreign holder of US Treasury securities. As of December, 2010, China held $891.6 billion in US Treasury securities, putting it slightly a...

The Largest Foreign Holders of US Debt In December Were..

Earlier this month, the US Treasury Department released their list of the largest major foreign holders of US Treasury securities as of December, 2010. China continued their stay at the top of the...

China Is Now Officially The World's Second-Largest Economy

According to the Wall Street Journal, China passed Japan in 2010 to become the world's second-largesst economy. Early Monday morning, Japan reported that their economy had contracted at an annuali...

The Lowest Unemployment Rates on Record (Federal and State)

One of the questions that people often email me to ask is - what is the lowest unemployment rate on record in the United States? Since I am asked this question so often, I thought that I would turn...

Forecasters: 2 Million Jobs Added, 2 Million Foreclosures in 2011

A couple of prominent economic forecasters recently offered their predictions for 2011 that could make you helpful for the future and give you chills at the same time. According to Bloomberg.com, ...

The Longest Winning Streaks In The History of the DJIA, NASDAQ and S+P 500

It's February 8th, 2011, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average has finished higher the last seven days in a row. This is the longest winning streak for the DJIA since July of 2010. I thought th...

The Value of a Degree in Today's Job Market

It should come as no surprise to you to learn that the unemployment rate for people with a college degree is significantly lower than the rate for the rest of the population. According to the BLS ...

The Most Miserable City In The United States Is..

Forbes Magazine released their latest list of the most miserable cities in America this past Thursday, with Stockton, California topping the list for the third time in two years. Cleveland, Ohio, ...

NASDAQ Computer Networks Reportedly Hacked "Repeatedly" Over The Past Year

According to the Wall Street Journal (link below), "hackers have repeatedly penetrated the computer network of the company that runs the Nasdaq Stock Market during the past year". According to one...

The Rising Cost of US Debt

According to the CBO (Congressional Budget Office), the cost to taxpayers of servicing the US national debt (net interest outlays) was $197 billion in 2010. Net interest outlays mainly consists of...

A Closer Look at President Obama's Three State of the Union Addresses

Just like with any other US president, President Obama's State of the Union addresses are heavily scrutinized by the entire world. Media outlets enjoy pointing out certain words that presidents us...

The December State Unemployment Numbers

The December state and regional unemployment numbers were released by the BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) earlier today. According to the BLS, twenty states registered unemployment rate increases...

US Student Loan Debt Clock Will Soon Pass $900 Billion

According to Finaid.org, there is currently a little over $884 billion ($884,309,745,875 to be exact) in outstanding student loan debt in the United States. This includes both federal and private ...

Inflation-Adjusted Spending Increases By Government Agency, 1962 vs 2010

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has been kind enough to provide data junkies like myself with many different spreadsheets that are stuffed with all different types of historical data. On...

Why is The UK Buying So Much US Debt?

Each and every month, the U.S. Department of the Treasury publishes a list of the largest foreign holders of US Treasury securities. The countries at the top of the list are the countries that you...

Who Are The Top 20 Foreign Holders of US Debt?

I think that most people already know that China and Japan are the two foreign governments that own the largest amounts of US debt, as we are constantly bombarded via the media with these facts. W...

The United States Public Debt, 1791 to 2010

At the end of the 1791 fiscal year (which is the first year of available data from TreasuryDirect.gov), the United States had a total public debt load of $75,463,477. This works out to around $1.75 bi...

Food Prices Are Soaring

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, global food prices have increased dramatically over the past 12 months. The FAO has something called the FAO Food Pr...

$14,025,215,218,708.52

On December 31st, 2010, the United States officially pushed past the $14 trillion debt mark for the very first time. The exact total as of December 31st, 2010? $14,025,215,218,708.52. Based on...

Here Come The Boomers

According to the US Census Bureau, a "baby boomer" is a person that was born between 1946 and 1964. When WWII finally came to an end, there was a dramatic uptick in the number of births in the Uni...

Historical Gas Prices in the United States

Earlier this week, I linked to an article in which John Hofmeister, former president of Shell Oil, proclaimed that the price of gasoline could hit $5 a gallon by 2012. The national average gas pri...

WSJ: Online Job Offers On The Rise

According to the Wall Street Journal (via data collected by Indeed Inc.), online job offers have rebounded strongly over the past 12-18 months in yet another sign that the slumbering US economy may fi...

Americans Flocked To States With No State Income Tax From 2000-2010

The US Census Bureau recently released the results from their decennial census. As of April 1st, 2010, the United States had a total resident population of 308,745,538. This represented a 9.7% inc...

United States Posts Slowest Rate of Population Growth Since 1940

The US Census Bureau announced earlier today that the resident population of the United States as of April 1st, 2010 was 308,745,538. From 2000 to 2010, the United States posted the lowest rate of...

Trying to Predict The Results of the 2012 Presidential Election With The Help of Intrade.com

A few new polls were released this week that reveal the popularity of President Obama roughly two years into his presidency. A Fox News/Opinion Dynamics poll revealed that President Obama currentl...

The November State Unemployment Breakdown

The BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) released their "Regional and State Employment and Unemployment Summary" for November earlier today. According to the BLS, 21 states and the District of Columbi...

Surprise! IRS Audits Up 11% This Year

According to recently released statistics, the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) has been a bit busier in 2010, as audits are up nearly 11% over last year. Given the fact that the nation is currently...

Mark Zuckerberg Named Time Magazine Person of the Year

What do George W. Bush, Ronald Reagan, Martin Luther King, Jr., John F. Kennedy, Queen Elizabeth II and Mark Zuckerberg all have in common? The answer - they all share the distinction of having bee...

How To Win in Forex Trading

First off, let's put to bed a misconception before we start. Despite what you may have heard, forex trading is not easy.

Random Historical DJIA Facts and Figures

This is one of those articles that I fire off on a rainy Saturday afternoon when there is really nothing else going on. I decided to run some numbers on the DJIA historical database from October 1...

Corporate America Is Swimming In Cash

According to the Wall Street Journal, nonfinancial companies in Corporate America are currently sitting on mountains of cash and liquid assets, despite the fact that this mix of cash and assets is gen...

The Rise of the Top 1%

In 1987, the top 1% of income earners in the United States earned 12.32% of the total AGI (adjusted gross income) in the country. In 2008, the top 1% of income earners in the United States earned ...

Non-farm Payroll Job Growth vs Population Growth By President Since 1948

On November 8th, 2010, I wrote an article titled "Non-Farm Payroll Job Growth by President 1948-2010". In the article, I broke down total non-farm payroll job growth by president since 1948 (1948 ...

WikiLeaks: A Major US Bank is Next

After the latest highly publicized release of US Embassy documents by WikiLeaks, many people asked the question - why can't the secrets of major corporations be publicized by the site as well? Aft...

Remembering Better Trading Days

10-11 years ago, the holiday season (Thanksgiving through to Christmas) used to be THE best time of the year to be a trader. Back in the late '90s/early '00s, everybody and their mother was openin...

The Largest Single Holder of US Debt Is Now..

Who is the largest single holder of US Treasury securities? Is it China? Is it Japan? No and no. According to Zerohedge.com, the largest single holder of US Treasury securities is now the Fe...

The Presidential Smackdown: Democrats vs Republicans By The Numbers in the Modern Era

Have the markets performed better when a Democratic or Republican president was in control of the White House? Which party has presided over higher unemployment rates when they are in control of th...

Entrepreneurship On The Rise In the United States

According to the Wall Street Journal, the number of Americans who are starting their own businesses every month has jumped considerably over the last couple of years. The article points out that, ...

Inflation Adjusted Market Returns Since The End of WWII

Earlier this weekend, one of the readers of this site asked me to break down the inflation-adjusted returns of the DJIA (Dow Jones Industrial Average), S+P 500 and NASDAQ since the end of World War II...

Where Do Your Federal Tax Dollars Go?

Each and every year, the US federal government collects trillions of dollars from individuals and corporations in order to keep the country running. In 2010, the US government estimated that they ...

The Party of "Fiscal Restraint" In The United States Is..

The spending practices of the United States is one of the hot-button issues right now in the country. And why not? The current outstanding public debt of the United States is nearly $14 trillion a...

Non-Farm Payroll Job Growth By President, 1948-2010

Every time that the BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) releases the monthly employment numbers, one of the pieces of data that you will always hear quoted is �non-farm payroll employment�. Non-farm ...

Budget Surpluses and the United States

Given the current budget situation in the United States (two consecutive $1 trillion+ deficits and massive projected deficits as far as the eye can see), it can sometimes be easy to forget that the co...

What Percentage of Federal Individual Income Taxes Do Rich People Really Pay?

You probably hear people spouting off these types of stats all the time: "The top 1% of income earners in the United States pay XX% of the taxes" I've heard this statement come out of a person's...

$142 Million And Nothing to Show For It

There are many interesting stories that could be talked about after the midterm elections earlier tonight. The Republican takeover of the House of Representatives. The continued rise of the Tea Pa...

Handicapping The Results of Tomorrow's Midterm Elections

According to a recent poll on CNN.com, a full 75% of Americans "say things are going badly in the country". To give you some perspective, CNN reports that this percentage is "higher than it has be...

How Did The Markets Perform After The 1994 Midterm Elections?

In case you are living under a rock, midterm elections are scheduled to be held this Tuesday (November 2nd) in the United States. The Republicans are looking to ride the wave of voter discontent a...

Q3 GDP Growth "Sluggish" at 2.0%

The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) of the US Department of Commerce released the Q3 GDP numbers earlier today. The GDP posted annualized growth of 2.0% in Q3 (real gross domestic product), whic...

How Have The Markets Historically Performed Over The Final Two Years of a Presidential Term?

A reader of this site sent me an email the other day that asked: "How have the DJIA, NASDAQ and SP 500 historically performed in the second half of a president's term?" Instead of just respondin...

It's the 23rd Anniversary of "Black Monday"

On October 19th, 1987, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by an unbelievable 22.61%. Over the 23 years since "Black Monday" took place, the Dow Jones Industrial Average hasn't even come CLOSE t...

Average Annualized Quarterly GDP Growth By Controlling Senate/House/White House Party, 1948-2010

Over the past couple of weeks, I've written articles that have examined deficit spending and unemployment rate totals based on which political party (Democrats or Republicans) is in control of the Whi...

High Interest Savings Accounts

In this day and age, the term "high interest savings account" is a bit of a misleading term. The economic meltdown over the past couple of months has resulted in rock-bottom interest rates as the ...

1948-2010 Average Monthly Unemployment Rates By Political Party (President, Senate Control, House Control)

The last article that I wrote, "1946-2010 Average Inflation Adjusted Deficits By President, Controlling Senate Party and Controlling House Party" ended up being pretty popular, so I have decided to wr...

1946-2010 Average Inflation Adjusted Deficits By President, Controlling Senate Party and Controlling House Party

A few months ago, I wrote an article titled "Which Political Party Has Posted The Highest Average Budget Deficits in the post WWII Era". The article looked at the average inflation adjusted deficits t...

August State Unemployment Numbers Released

Earlier this week, the BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) released the state unemployment numbers for August of 2010. A total of 27 states registered increases in their unemployment rates in August,...

How Will People Invest In The Future?

The last 3-4 years have forced a complete rewrite of the investment principles that most people adhere to. Before the "Great Recession" started in December of 2007, investors were expected to do t...

About That "Obama Has Added More To National Debt Than All US Presidents From Washington Through Reagan Combined" Article..

Earlier this week, an article surfaced on CNSNews.com titled "Obama Added More to National Debt in First 19 Months Than All Presidents from Washington Through Reagan Combined, Says Gov't Data". Th...

Institutional Investors Loved Dollar Tree Inc. During the Second Quarter

One of the things that we tracked during the second quarter of 2010 with our Fund Report was "Best Net Change". To start with, we tracked the buys and sells of 96 of the largest institutional inve...

CBO: Q2 Economic Impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) was enacted by Congress on February 17th, 2009. The ARRA is more commonly referred to as "The Stimulus" or "The Recovery Act". The primary...

Forex Brokers: What You Need to Know

Every day I'm bombarded with questions such as: Forex trading - Illustration

How do I choose the right forex broker? ...

September - A Historically Bad Month For The Markets

Are you starting to feel a bit anxious because October is just around the corner? After all, the markets have historically performed terribly in October, right? Well, I have good news, and I have b...

Americans Continued To Pay Down Their Credit Credit Balances In June

The Federal Reserve reported late last week that the total amount of outstanding revolving consumer credit in the United States continued to fall in June, continuing a trend that has been in place sin...

Why Is Deflation a Bad Thing?

A few months back, the "boogeyman" hiding under the bed of the US economy was inflation. Many smart people felt as though hyperinflation would be coming to the United States, due to the fact that ...

US GDP Growth by President, 1948-2009

From 1948 through to 2009, the United States economy has grown by an average of 3.28% per year. The US economy has managed to expand in 52 of the 62 years from 1948-2009. The economy has contracte...

What is the "New Normal"?

You may have heard the term "New Normal" recently used on the nightly news, on the radio or on a website that you frequently visit. The term was coined by Mohamed El-Erian, who is the CEO and co-C...

State Unemployment Rates for June

According to the BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics), 39 states posted a drop in their unemployment rate in June. This data is not really surprising, given that the national unemployment rate dropped fro...

Forex For Beginners

So you want to be a forex trader? The forex market (foreign exchange market) is the largest financial market in the world. Trillions upon trillions of dollars surge through the forex markets ea...

How to Trade Commodities Online

Sure, you know how to trade stocks, bonds, forex and options - but how about commodities? How does a person go about purchasing gold, silver and oil? Sure, you can purchase stocks that are tied to ...

US Federal Deficits By Year, 1940-2010

The Treasury Department announced on Tuesday that the federal deficit has already topped $1 trillion with three months left to go in the budget year. This is down slightly from the same time last ...

Online Stock Brokers For Beginners

Believe it or not, there was a time when a person would actually have to pick up the phone to place an order with their stock broker *shudder*. The broker would often try to steer you into one of ...

The Incredible Growth of Outstanding Consumer Credit In The United States Over The Past 40 Years

According to the Federal Reserve, there was a total of $128.3 billion in total outstanding consumer credit in the United States in April of 1970. Of this total, $124.0 billion was in non-revolving...

June Unemployment Rate Drops to 9.5% - That�s Good, Right?

Earlier today, the BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) reported that the national unemployment rate edged down to 9.5% in June. This number came as a surprise, as many were predicting that the June u...

Which Institutional Holders Are Taking a Beating on BP?

To say that BP shareholders are taking a beating is an understatement of epic proportions. At the end of March, BP was trading at around $57 per share, which was close to its 52 week high. The com...

Have Republican or Democrat Presidents Been Better For The Markets Over the Past 50 Years?

Another question that people e-mail us to ask all the time is - do the markets tend to perform better when a Democrat or Republican president is in the White House? We went back to 1960 and ran the...

US Government Spending Increases By President, 1961-2012

A number of people emailed after I posted �Some US Government Spending Statistics From 1960 to 2010� yesterday, asking if I could break down the numbers by president. In 1961, the United States go...

Some US Government Spending Statistics From 1960 to 2010

Over the past 50 years, which political party in the United States (Democrats or Republicans) has increased total government expenditures at a faster rate? To answer this question, I decided to ta...

An Incomplete History of US Government Spending

While the �Great Recession� was in full bloom (fall of 2008), most people didn�t really care about the amount of money that the United States government was committing to help pull the country out of ...

Apple Continues to Close the Gap on Exxon Mobil

Less than 18 months ago, the idea of Apple being worth more than Exxon Mobil would have been completely laughable. After all, in January of 2009, Apple was trading for less than $100 per share, me...

China, Japan Continue To Boost Holdings of US Debt

China and Japan, who are the two largest foreign holders of US Treasury debt, continued to add to their already substantial holdings in April according to the US Treasury Department. China decided...

US Military Spending Over the Years

The OMB (Office of Management and Budget) has a page on their site that is devoted to the publishing of historical data (link below). There is all sorts of data published on the site - total governmen...

Want To Have Lunch With Warren Buffett? It'll Cost You

Earlier this week, an anonymous bidder shelled out more than $2.6 million to have lunch with Warren Buffett. This eclipses the $2.1 million that Zhao Danyang paid for the honor of having lunch wit...

The Top Five Biggest Winning and Losing Weeks in the History of the DJIA, NASDAQ and SP 500

This past week, the Dow Jones industrial Average index traded up nearly 3% (2.8% to be exact) to close the week at 10,211.07. This was a welcome break, considering the fact that the DJIA has basic...

The Ten Worst Months in the History of the Dow Jones Industrial Average

When April came to a close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) was trading at 11,008.61. As of May 21st, the DJIA has declined about 9.3% for the month to 10,193.39, dragged down by worries a...

A Look at The First Quarter Buys and Sells of Goldman Sachs

Goldman Sachs Group Inc filed their 13F-HR for the first quarter of 2010 earlier today. This filing lists all of the Section 13(f) securities that Goldman Sachs Group Inc (and the various companie...

The Ten Best And Worst Years for the GDP of the United States Since 1930

We receive quite a few questions through this site regarding the historical GDP (Gross Domestic Product) rates of the United States, such as: what was the best year ever for the US economy? What was t...

Did General Motors Really Repay $6.7 Billion In Government Loans?

If you watch television regularly, then there is a good chance that you have seen a commercial that features the chief executive of General Motors, Ed Whitacre, claiming that the company has repaid ha...

Warren Buffett: Economy Showing "Big" Signs of Improvement

Is the US economy finally starting to gain some traction and begin a meaningful expansion after suffering through a two-year recession? Warren Buffett thinks so. According to the Associated Press ...

Itching To Help Pay Down the National Debt? You're Not Alone

Are you exasperated by the size of the US national debt load and want to do something about it? Do you want to go above and beyond and contribute some of your hard-earned savings towards helping to pa...

Ten Years Since the "Dot-Com Bubble" Popped

It's hard to believe that it has been a full ten years since the implosion of the "dot-com bubble". On March 10th, 2000, the NASDAQ hit an all-time high of 5,132.52. Life was good. Many Americans ...

Five Stocks That Are Widely Held by Hedge Funds That You May Never Have Heard Of

We are currently tracking 37 hedge funds in our database, with more being added every day. Institutional investment managers "who exercise discretion over $100 million or more in Section 13(f) sec...

The World's Safest and Riskiest Sovereign Debt Offerings Are..

CMA released their "Global Sovereign Credit Risk Report" for Q1/2010 (link below) earlier this week. The 17-page report is absolutely loaded with interesting information, and is well worth the rea...

Google Is Getting Into the Bond Trading Business

Google, in an attempt to make better use of their nearly $25 billion in cash reserves, is looking to hire a number of bond traders, according to a recent job posting on their web site. The positio...

Intrade.com - 81% Chance of Health Care Reform Being Signed Into Law by June 30th

Will Democrats be able to muster up enough votes to pass their health care reform bill in a historic vote on Sunday? Democrats will need 216 votes to pass the "Obamacare" health care reform bill in...

One Year Ago Today..

One year ago today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 6,547.05. Today the DJIA closed at 10,564.38. One year ago today, the NASDAQ closed at 1,268.64. Today the NASDAQ closed at 2,340.68....

Hedge Funds Are Zeroing In On Citigroup

As I've been combing through the recently released 13F-HR's for the fourth quarter of 2009, something has really jumped out at me - a number of the most notable hedge funds in the world are snapping u...

Bernard Madoff And The Power of "Influence"

One of the biggest questions that people often ask when it comes to Bernard Madoff is - how was he able to fool so many people? Better yet - how was he able to fool so many SMART people? Madoff's s...

Which Political Party Has Posted The Highest Average Budget Deficits in the Post-WWII Era?

From 1946 to 2009 (a total of 64 years), the United States has racked up an impressive $10.303 trillion dollars in red ink. I'm not just adding up the deficits in this equation and leaving out the...

Are There Higher Unemployment Rates When Republicans or Democrats Are In Office?

I've received a number of emails over the past few months asking if I could do a breakdown of historical national unemployment rates based on which political party is occupying the White House. Fo...

Growth of the United States National Debt vs Rate of Inflation Since 1970

On June 30th, 1970, the US national debt load sat at around $370.1 billion. On September 30th, 2009, the US national debt load had shot up to around $11.9 trillion. The average rate of inflati...

Japan Is Once Again The Top Foreign Holder of US Treasury Debt

According to the US Treasury Department, Japan has regained its spot as the planet's largest foreign holders of US treasury debt. The Chinese government had held this spot for the past 17 months o...

Germany vs Switzerland In Fight Over Identities of Potential Tax Evaders

Germany and Switzerland are currently in the midst of an squabble over German tax evaders. Over the past couple of days, this squabble has gotten a great deal more interesting. Before we get into...

What Do California, Aruba, Hungary, Russia, Thailand, Tunisia, Lithuania and Mexico All Have in Common?

California. Aruba. Hungary. Russia. Thailand. Tunisia. Lithuania. Mexico. What does the state of California have in common with the seven sovereign nations listed above? The answer? BBB credit ...

January Unemployment Rate Dips to 9.7%

The national unemployment rate dipped to 9.7% in January after 20,000 nonfarm payroll jobs were lost, according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics report that was released earlier today. This is the ...

US Government's Annual Net Interest Spending Projected to Top $700 Billion Dollars by 2020

Earlier this week, the CBO (Congressional Budget Office) released a report titled "The Budget and Economic Outlook: Fiscal Years 2010 to 2020". This report was filled with the CBO's projections fo...

2.4 Million Job Openings In The United States

It may seem curious to some that the Bureau of Labor Statistics recently reported that there were 2.4 million job openings in the United States as of the end of November. Tell that to the millions...

Fed Economist Karen Pence: Buying a Home Is a Terrible Investment

According to the Wall Street Journal (link below), Karen Pence of the Federal Reserve believes that "homes are actually a terrible investment". The WSJ claims that Pence made the comments at an Am...

The Historically Strongest (and Weakest) Days of the Year For the Markets

Let's file this article under "pretty useless information" and "I clearly have too much time on my hands." I decided that it might be interesting to figure out the strongest days of the year histor...

State Population Growth Trends Since 2000

Which state has witnessed the biggest surge in population growth (as a %) since the year 2000? Which state would you guess? Texas? Florida? If you picked Nevada, then you would be correct. ...

The Historical Performance of the Stock Market in January

December and January form a lethal (in a good way) one-two combination when it comes to historical stock market performance. We've covered the historical performance of the markets in December on ...

Median Household Income in the United States: Then and Now

The U.S. Census Bureau currently publishes household median income and household mean income data from 1975 to 2008. The U.S. Census Bureau includes the information in "current dollars" (not adjus...

State Unemployment Numbers for November 2009

The national unemployment rate dropped to 10.0% in November, down from 10.2% the month before. There was plenty of movement in the state unemployment rates in November as well. A total of 36 s...

Where To Buy a Kindle?

No matter where you live in the world, you need to visit this page to purchase your Amazon Kindle: Click Here To Buy Your Kin...

Times Are Good For Many Employees of the Federal Government

According to USA Today (link below), the number of federal employees making $100,000 or more in salary (before overtime pay and bonuses) jumped to 19% (from 14%) during the first eighteen months of th...

China: The New King of Cars

For the first time ever, a country other than the United States is leading the world in total car and truck purchases. According to the Associated Press, China has officially overtaken the United ...

State Unemployment Numbers: April 1983 vs October 2009

In October of 2009, the United States posted a national unemployment rate of 10.2%. The last time that the unemployment rate was 10.2%? April of 1983. In late 1982, the national unemployment r...

Everyone Wants to Own Gold Right Now

From sovereign nations to hedge funds to individual investors - everyone wants to own gold right now. The reasons for purchasing gold vary. Some nations are looking to diversify their forex holdin...

How to Buy an Amazon Kindle in Canada

Wondering how you can best go about purchasing your Amazon Kindle if you live in Canada? Wondering about the costs involved? Wondering how long it will take for your Kindle to show up at your doorstep...

"Black Friday" - Boom or Bust?

Will the American consumer break open their depleted wallets this holiday season, or are retailers going to suffer one of their worst holiday shopping seasons on record? As you are already likely a...

Wall Street Journal Subscription Discount

Click Here To Receive Over 80% Off From Your Wall Street Journal Subscription The Wall Street Journal recently reclaimed ...

Goldman Sachs Cancels Its Christmas Party For the Second Straight Year

Goldman Sachs will apparently be canceling their annual Christmas party for the second straight year, according to multiple news outlets. The reason? The company wants to keep a low profile, and d...

Gold Still Well Off Of Its Inflation-Adjusted All-Time High

The price of gold has been making the headlines quite a bit as of late. This is for good reason - gold is currently trading at $1,118.20 USD per ounce, which is an all-time high for the metal. The...

9 Things About the Credit Cardholders Bill of Rights You Need to Know

For many of us, the credit cardholders bill of rights came just a little too late. Due to the unfortunate foot dragging in congress and the timeframe given to card companies to enact the bill's polici...

Platinum Card Application Form

Click Here To Quickly Apply For a Platinum Card There is only one card that I can think of that is most prestigious than ...

Gold Card Application Form

Click Here To Quickly Apply For a Gold Card If you want to apply for a credit card that will give your wallet or purse a ...

Gold Continues to March Higher

After taking out the $1,000 mark in mid-September, gold has continued to charge higher, and is currently trading at $1,088.90 per ounce. In just the past year alone, the price of gold has increase...

Optionshouse Promotion Code - Qualifying For Your Free 100 Trades

Optionshouse is currently offering a fantastic deal to all of its new customers. The company, which was voted as #1 in trade experience and #1 for options traders in the 2009 Barron's Online Broke...

Retailers Bracing For An Abysmal 2009 Holiday Shopping Season

Many retailers are extremely worried about the upcoming holiday shopping season (as they should be), and some are already taking extreme measures to try and salvage the year. Case in point - Sears...

Have Great Credit and Pay on Time Every Month? Credit Card Companies Want You To Pay More

Bank of America and Citigroup are apparently testing out a radical new idea - making their "best" customers (meaning those with very good and near-perfect credit) pay more money. The idea? Charge ...

How to Become a Great Forex Trader

You want to know the one thing that all great forex traders have in common? Lean in real close, because I'm about to tell you the secret.. They all worked INCREDIBLY hard to get to where they ar...

Andrew Ross Sorkin: Hank Paulson Met Secretly With Goldman Sachs in Moscow

Andrew Ross Sorkin's new book, "Too Big To Fail: The Inside Story of How Wall Street and Washington Fought to Save the Financial System - and Themselves" was released to the general public earlier tod...

Colorado's Minimum Wage Set To Drop Due to Deflation

When a law was passed in 2006 in the state of Colorado that called for the minimum wage to be adjusted for inflation, many people didn't entertain the possibility of deflation actually lowering the mi...

Online Advertising Pushes Past Television in the UK for the First Time

It has happened in the United Kingdom, and it will certainly happen in the United States as well. For the first time ever, more money was spent on online advertising than on television advertising...

When Was the Last Time That The United States Experienced Double Digit Inflation?

Over the past 25-27 years or so, inflation in the United States has been pretty tame. Over the past decade, the annualized average inflation rate in the US has not topped 4%. Since 1986, the highe...

Which State's Residents Earn the Most Money?

If you had to guess which state had the highest median income, which one would you choose? New York, which is the financial center of the world and home to some of the planet's most obscenely wealt...

FDIC To Banks: Hey, Could We Borrow Some Money?

The New York Times (link below) is reporting that the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) may take the unusual step of borrowing money from "healthy" banks in order to restore their depleted ...

Who Does The United States Owe Nearly $12 Trillion Dollars To?

The United States currently has a total outstanding public debt load of nearly $12 trillion dollars ($11,827,966,342,208.43 to be exact). This means that every man, woman and child in the United S...

Europe Now The World's Richest Continent

According to a recently conducted survey by the Boston Consulting Group, Europe has now surpassed North America as the world's richest continent. In 2008, Europe reportedly had a total of $32.7 tr...

Who Offers Automated Forex Trading?

Click Here to Open a Forexyard Strategy Automator Account One of the biggest benefits of trading in the forex markets is ...

The Norwegian Tax System

Norway has been brought up quite a bit in the American media as of late. Why is this small (population of less than 5 million people) Scandinavian country such a popular topic of conversation? ...

Past Recessions and Recoveries in the Unemployment Rate

With the unemployment rate in the United States currently ticking upwards towards the 10% mark, many people are starting to ask the question - how long will it take for the jobless rate to fall back t...

Refi Rates - How to Find The Most Competitive Quotes

Got Five Minutes? Click Here For Your Refinancing Quote! You probably already know this, but right now ...

How Does the Average American Household Spend Their Paychecks?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics is absolutely stuffed with useful and interesting information. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (or BLS for short) tracks all sorts of different things, including emplo...

The World's Safest Bank Is..

Global Finance Magazine (link below) just recently released their list of the 50 safest banks in the world for 2009. How did the widely read (50,000 subscribers) publication determine which banks w...

How to Refinance a Mortgage

Got Five Minutes? Click Here For Your Refinancing Quote! Refinancing your mortgage is one of those thin...

The Five States With the Highest Unemployment Rates Are..

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a full 16 states posted an unemployment rate of over 10% in July of 2009. Just one year ago (July 2008), a grand total of zero states had an unemploymen...

The Three Most Prestigious Credit Cards In the World

Credit cards are just like cars. You have your cards that efficient and cost the least amount of money, and you have your cards that have high annual fees and a tremendous "wow factor". There ar...

Mortgage Refinancing Advice: Three Free Tips That Will Help You Out

Got Five Minutes? Click Here For Your Refinancing Quote! Refinancing your mortgage can be a long and ti...

In Which Months Does the Stock Market Typically Perform the Best?

Last week, we dispelled the myth that the major North American stock market indexes perform the worst in October (the worst month is actually September). This week, I thought that we would take a q...

The Worst Month Historically For the Stock Market? It's Not October

Take 100 people and ask them this question: "Historically speaking, in which month does the stock market perform the worst, on average?" Of these 100 people, I'm guessing that at least half woul...

Investors Tuning Out CNBC As Recession Lingers

When the "Great Recession" really started picking up steam in mid-2008, many investors flocked to CNBC in an effort to stay on top of quickly breaking events. An imploding real estate market. The s...

US Banks Likely To Collect Nearly $40 Billion Dollars in Overdraft Fees This Year

I knew that banks collected an exorbitant amount of money every year in overdraft fees, but I had no idea that they were "banking" this hard (pun intended). According to a recent article on FT.com ...

The Top 10 Largest Inflation-Adjusted Deficits in US History

In order to understand just how big the US deficit is going to be in 2009, it helps to have some historical perspective. The United States has endured a great deal as a nation. Multiple wars. The G...

How to Qualify for a FHA Loan

Click Here To Find Out If You Qualify for a FHA Loan First off, you may be asking the question - what exactly is a FHA loan? The FHA (Federal Housing Administration) has a pr...

Will "Baby Boomers" Re-Enter The Stock Market?

The markets, for lack of a better term, have been on a tear as of late. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is up roughly 1,000 points in just a few short weeks. The Nasdaq is up nearly 250 ...

How To Protect Your Credit Record Against Identity Thieves

If you're not careful, identity thieves can destroy your credit history. Sure, if someone steals your identity and subsequently wrecks your credit history, then you may be able to repair the damage...

Wall Street Is Booming Once Again

It's a great time to be working on Wall Street. It's a horrible time to be working pretty much anywhere else in America. It's a great time to be alive if you call Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan or Gol...

Surprise! New Report Claims That Many Banks Misused TARP Funds

In news that will likely shock no one, a new report from the "special inspector general overseeing the government's financial rescue program" claims that many banks "misused" TARP funds. According ...

Which Countries Have the Highest Unemployment Rates?

Yesterday we wrote an article that listed the countries throughout the world with the lowest rates of unemployment. Today, as promised, we will be covering the countries at the opposite end of the ...

Which Countries Have the Lowest Unemployment Rates?

Most people are aware that the United States currently possesses an unemployment rate of almost 10% (9.5% to be exact, based on June 2009 numbers). This figure is the "official" number that is publ...

When Was The Last Time That the United States Had Zero Federal Debt?

When was the last time that the United States had NO federal debt to speak of? Was it 1950? Was it 1900? The actual answer is - 1836. 1836. Andrew Jackson was President of the United State...

Where To Refinance Your Mortgage in California

Got Five Minutes? Click Here For Your Refinancing Quote! Times are tough in California right now - ther...

Looking for the Best Refi Rates Online?

Got Five Minutes? Click Here For Your Refinancing Quote! This is currently one of the best times in his...

Free Home Equity Loan Quotes

Click Here For Your Free Home Equity Loan Quotes Obtaining free home equity loan quotes from competing lenders is much easier than you might think. Some people think that a p...

Which Major US Cities Have The Lowest Unemployment Rates?

The BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) recently released a report titled "Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment: May 2009". I have provided a link to the release below. The data contained in ...

Free Refinancing Quotes - How to Save Yourself Time and Money

Got Five Minutes? Click Here For Your Refinancing Quote! Obtaining multiple (and free) home refinancing...

When Was The Last Time That the U.S. Unemployment Rate Hit 10%?

In early 2000, the unemployment rate in the United States was hovering at just around 4%. Fast forward to January of 2003. The unemployment rate was now 5.8% - still high, but not that bad consider...

The Least Indebted Countries on the Planet Are..

If you had to guess as to which country on the planet had the least amount of debt, who would you choose? China? Switzerland? Saudi Arabia? According to the CIA Fact Book, there are four countri...

Americans Are Keeping Their Wallets and Purses Closed

The good news? The average American is building up their nest egg once again, after years of running up debt. The bad news? The money-spending machine that used to be the American consumer has disa...

Questrade Promotional Code - Qualifying for Your Free Commissions

Questrade Promotional Code: MANUEL So you are applying for a Questrade account (good choice, by the way) and you are wondering what to enter in the "Questrade Prom...

Where Will the Growth Come From?

The problem with assuming that the US economy will rebound strongly is that you first have to figure out a definitive answer to this question: Where will the growth come from? In the late '30s a...

Should Apple Have Disclosed That Steve Jobs Received a Liver Transplant?

Steve Jobs. Is there one single person who is more important to a publicly traded company than Steve Jobs? Think about that one for a second, and you'll probably come up with an answer of "no". ...

Finding The Best Mortgage Rates and Deals

Click Here to Receive Competitive (and free) Mortgage Quotes So you are ready to dive into the real estate market and purchase a new home? You have heard that mortgage rates ...

The G-7: $30 Trillion In Debt and Climbing

The countries that are in the "G-7" are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. These are arguably the seven "wealthiest" and most industrialized nations in...

Where Do You Find the Lowest Refinancing Rates?

Got Five Minutes? Click Here For Your Refinancing Quote! The mortgage refinancing industry is just like...

The Great "Mancession"

One of the most interesting developments of the "Great Recession" is the striking difference between the number of men that are being laid off vs the number of women that are being laid off. The me...

CIA Looking To Hire Financial Analysts

Did you recently lose your cushy job as a Wall Street analyst? Are you finding that there isn't much of a demand for MBAs in this current economic environment? If so, then take heart - the CIA i...

Music Labels Win $1.92 Million Dollar Verdict Against Minnesota Woman

Before the days of Itunes, many people used "illegal" (at least at the time) file-sharing platforms such as Napster, Limewire and Kazaa in order to download music files. The Recording Industry Asso...

Refinancing Your Home: Everything You Need to Know

Got Five Minutes? Click Here For Your Refinancing Quote! Refinancing your home is not as hard as you mi...

Rasmussen Consumer Index - Only 26% of Americans Say That Economy is Getting Better

Green shoots? According to the Rasmussen Consumer Index (link below), many Americans would probably laugh at the idea of green shoots blossoming forth from our recession-scorched economy. The Ra...

Is John Paulson the Next Warren Buffett?

Warren Buffett used to be in a class by himself when it came to influencing the markets with his words and actions. Thousands upon thousands of people flock to Omaha, Nebraska every year to hear hi...

What Was The Largest Bankruptcy In History?

You may think that General Motors was the largest bankruptcy in history, but that's not the case. In actuality, General Motors (as of the time that this article was written) was actually the fourth...

How to Get the Lowest Mortgage Refinancing Rates

Got Five Minutes? Click Here For Your Refinancing Quote! Just like in any other industry, there are com...

It Pays to Stay in School

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) recently posted a pretty interesting graph that illustrates the value of staying in school. The graph, titled "Education Pays", breaks down 2008 unemployment ra...

How to Obtain a Home Equity Loan in Texas

Click Here to Apply for a Home Equity Loan in Texas The Texas real estate market hasn't escaped the icy clutches of the global economic meltdown. However, things could be muc...

Federal Reserve Intends To Hire Former Enron Lobbyist

Bloomberg.com is reporting that the Federal Reserve "intends to hire" a "veteran lobbyist". This lobbyist goes by the name of Linda Robertson. According to the article, Robertson headed the Wash...

The Best Refinancing Deals: How to Find the Lowest Rates

Got Five Minutes? Click Here For Your Free Refinancing Quote! Mortgage rates are currently at historica...

Five Companies That Are Thriving in the "Great Recession"

When you are faced with an unending stampede of negative economic information, you can start to think that every single company in the United States is suffering through the "Great Recession". It m...

The Best Reward Credit Cards

It's not exactly a fun time to be an American consumer right now. If you are an average American, then chances are: -you or your spouse has been laid off, or you are worried about the future of ...

Lessons Learned From General Motors

There are some very important lessons that can be learned from the General Motors debacle, especially as it applies to your investing strategy. Over the past decade or so, many people have gotten l...

Is a National Sales Tax Coming to the United States?

Just months ago, the mere mention of a national sales tax in the United States would have gotten you laughed out of the room. People who would raise the idea of a VAT (Value Added Tax) in the Unite...

Reviewing Our Portfolio

Time for a bit of a change of pace. In late 2008, I wrote an article in which I detailed three stocks (well, two stocks and one ETF) that I would be adding to my portfolio. You can read the orig...

Credit Card Holders (Yes, ALL of You) - Get Ready to Pay

So, you have great credit do you? You pay all of your credit card balances on time? You've never missed a payment in your life? Well I have news for you - you are about to pay much more for the ...

State Tax Revenues Plummeting

In news that should be a surprise to absolutely no one, the Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government reported that state tax revenues fell by a whopping 12.6% in Q1 2009. The Institute reporte...

Mortgage Refinancing in the United States - Finding the Best Deals

Got Five Minutes? Click Here For Your Refinancing Quote! With interest rates currently at historical lo...

Will the Fed Re-Inflate the American Consumer?

It should be painfully obvious to everyone by now that the US consumer is an integral part of the global economy. The US consumer, up until 2008, was the oil in the engine of the global economy. As...

Stock Brokers Are Leaving the Industry in Droves

In news that is sure to surprise absolutely no one, the Wall Street Journal reported earlier today that stock brokers are leaving the industry in droves. According to the Wall Street Journal, the i...

The Great Recession

The current economic downturn that we are still suffering through began (according to most experts) in December of 2007. As the global economy imploded, people scrambled to come up with a name that...

What is the Difference Between a Secured and Unsecured Credit Card?

Many people have had their credit ruined during this current economic downturn. Credit card delinquencies are on the rise, and credit card companies are being much more choosy about who they do bus...

How To Cut Your Credit Card Debt

Due to the current economic crisis, many Americans (and people around the world for that matter) find themselves with their backs against the wall. Jobs are being lost. Home values are dropping. Ev...

You Think That The United States Has a Heavy Debt Load?

There is no question that the United States has a heavy debt load. As of this second, the United States currently has a national debt load of over $11 trillion dollars. This means that every man...

Where Does The Economy Go From Here? Four Possible Scenarios

Is the deep recession / depression in the United States coming to an end? Is the US economy about to break free from the crushing grip of a near 18 month old downturn? If so, then where do we go...

Who Are The Largest Foreign Holders of US Debt?

Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that the United States is trillions of dollars in debt. As a matter of fact, the current outstanding public debt of the United States is just over $...

The Best Balance Transfer Cards

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Is the Nasdaq THAT Hard Up For Money?

Have you been to Nasdaq.com lately? The site looks like it's being run by an Internet marketer, and not by one of the largest stock exchanges in the world. I mean, it's their site - they can do wha...

The Top Ten Worst Moments of Jim Cramer's Career

To honor Jim Cramer's appearance on the "Daily Show" later tonight, I thought that I would compile a list of the top 10 worst moments of Jim Cramer's career. Cramer is an extremely polarizing figur...

95% of Banks Didn't Pay FDIC Premiums Between 1996 and 2006

Another unbelievable example of government short-sightedness and the greed of banking institutions is starting to surface. As you are now probably aware, the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corpora...

Jon Stewart vs Jim Cramer

In case you didn't know already, Jon Stewart is the host of the uber-popular "Daily Show", while Jim Cramer is the host of "Mad Money with Jim Cramer" on CNBC. Cramer is also a frequent contributor on...

Vancouver Home Insurance Quotes - Finding the Best Rates

So you have found your dream home / condo / apartment, and now you need to set about getting insurance for the property. Where do you start? Who has the best rates?

Watch Your Credit Card Interest Rates

Consider this a public service announcement. Many credit card companies are raising their interest rates, and many customers are unaware of the changes. Credit card companies are alerting their ...

Vancouver Insurance Brokers: Where Should You Go?

If you are moving to Vancouver for the first time, then you just might be wondering how the insurance system works in British Columbia. Or maybe you are a current resident of the province, and are loo...

Canada: "The World's Best Financial System"

Banks all over the world have taken an absolute drubbing over the past couple of years. The banking systems in a number of very large countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom, ...

Capital Assistance Program (CAP) Details Unveiled By Treasury Department

Details of the Capital Assistance Program (CAP) were released by the Treasury Department on Wednesday afternoon. The program includes a number of different components, including "stress tests" on 1...

Three Companies That Are Actually Trading At 52 Week Highs

I realize sometimes that this blog can be a constant dose of bad news. Trust me - I can't wait until I can start writing about happier times, but they just aren't here yet. Things are bleak, and it...

Berkshire Hathaway Down 47.6% In The Past Five Months

Many people are of the opinion that Warren Buffett is the greatest investor to have ever lived. Holding the title of "world's greatest investor" hasn't excluded Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway from ...

The Newspaper Industry Is Under Siege - Can It Recover?

There have been many different industries that have taken vicious beatings during this current recession/depression. However, the newspaper industry has hit particularly hard, and you have to wonde...

Prepaid Credit Cards - What Are The Advantages, And Where Can I Apply?

If you do any kind of online shopping (and who doesn't these days), then you surely know the importance of having a credit card. It is very hard to purchase anything online if you don't have a cred...

0% Balance Transfer Credit Card Offers - Do They Exist?

Click Here To Apply for a Discover Platinum More Card (0% Balance Transfer for 12 Months) You have likely heard by now th...

The HSBC Credit Card Application Process

Click Here To Apply For A HSBC Credit Card Are you in the market for a new credit card? Are you on the verge of applyi...

The American Express Centurion Card (AKA The Amex Black Card)

Click Here To Apply For a Visa Black Card! The mythical "black card". Nothing says "I've made it" more t...

The Visa Black Card

Click Here To Apply For a Visa Black Card! Recession? Did somebody say there was a recession? Visa...

How To Actually Make Money From A Blog

Let me start by saying this - I am not selling you anything. Let me follow that with this - you don't need to spend ANY money on expensive e-books, online training lessons or other money-sucking pr...

US Tax Evaders In a Bind Due To UBS Decision

Swiss wealth management company UBS announced late last week that they will be closing 19,000 offshore accounts that belong to rich US clients. This comes as a result of an ongoing, high-profile in...

It's OK To Fire Your Stock Broker

The holiday season gives me the opportunity to talk to people that I normally wouldn't have the opportunity to have a conversation with. Whether it's the festive season or the spiked eggnog, people ju...

Tunisia Was The Best Performing Stock Market in 2008

2008 was an absolutely horrific year for the global markets, and it should come as no surprise that the vast majority of major market indexes were down in 2008. In fact, of all of the stock markets...

You Don't Need a Stock Guru

The "stock guru" industry is big business. Millions of dollars are made every year through the sale of instructional DVDs, books, newsletters and chat room memberships. About ten years ago, I ran a...

Holiday Retail Sales Numbers Are Horribly, Unbelievably Bad

SpendingPulse has released preliminary retail sales data for the 2008 holiday season, and it ain't pretty. According to their report, they expect total retail sales to be down between 5.5 - 8% from...

Why Would Someone Buy a T-Bill With a Zero Percent Yield?

In case you missed it, earlier this week the annualized yields on three-month Treasury bills dropped to 0% (and actually hit -0.01%) before rising to 0.01%. The last time that short-term Treasury y...

The Recession Explained: What Is a Recession?

Over the past few months, you have undoubtedly (unless you've been living under a rock or out in the wilderness somewhere) heard the term "recession" mentioned on television. You've probably heard tha...

What is a TFSA (Tax Free Savings Account) and What Are the Benefits?

Canadians, Click Here to Open a TFSA Account at Canada's Largest Independent Online Broker

What Is the Definition of a Short Squeeze?

The term "short squeeze" has been bandied about quite a bit in the media as of late, especially when referring to the current situation involving Porsche and Volkswagen. Volkswagen's shares explode...

Looking For a Safe Place to Park Your Money? Try a 24 Month Online CD at WaMu at 4.00% APY

The current market turmoil has left people scrambling to find safe places to put their money. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has just completed one of the worst years in its history, and many people...

What Now for the Financial Markets?

It's Friday evening. The $700 billion dollar bailout (actually, it's more than that, but whatever) has now been passed by both the Senate and the House of Representatives and signed into law by Presid...

United States National Debt Tops Ten Trillion Dollars for the First Time

According to Treasury Direct (a United States Government website, link below), the total public debt outstanding for the United States of America topped ten trillion dollars for the first time as of ...

Home Equity Withdrawals Drop to $24 Billion From $700 Billion Dollars in 2005

The rapidly increasing housing market from 2001 to 2006 enabled many Americans to spend more than they were making.

Most Americans who purchased their home anytime before 2005 saw the valu...

Proposed Federal Bailout Numbers: Nearly $2 Trillion Dollars and Counting

We are living in extraordinary times right now. College students will be studying the events from 2008 in economics classes 20-30 years from now. Some people don't understand the sheer magnitude of wh...

Entreprise Value - What is It?

A number that you may have come across during your investment research is "Enterprise Value". "Enterprise Value" is usually on the line below "Market Cap" on most online financial information sites. <...

Nasdaq Delistings Way Up in 2008

The major stock exchanges (such as the Nasdaq and NYSE) are encountering weakness from all sides in 2008. Not only has the IPO market slowed considerably (many companies are sagely waiting until the m...

Hedge Fund Fees: A Primer

Most hedge funds usually have the same type of fee structure. First you have the "management fee", and then you have the "performance fee."

The management fee is taken regardless of the per...

14% of Americans Believe That the Country is Moving in the Right Direction

According to a recent ABC News/Washington Post poll, only 14% of Americans surveyed believe that the country is headed in the right direction. This doesn't refer to just the economy...

A Brutal Cardio Routine For You

If you really want to torture yourself at the gym one day, try out this cardio routine. If you can complete it from start to finish without dying, then I would say that you are probably in pretty good...

How The Internet Bubble Was Similar to the Housing Bubble

There are actually quite a few similarities between the Internet bubble (last half of the 90's until mid 2000) and the most recent housing bubble in the United States. By drawing si...

Knowing the Difference Between a 10-K, 10-Q and an 8-K

If you want to become a serious investor, then you need to start reading SEC filings religiously. You should have a pile of 10-K's, 10-Q's and 8-K's sitting on your bedside table. Y...

Bottom in the California Real Estate Market?

To say that the real estate market in many parts of California has taken a beating would be an extreme understatement.

The market has been completely taken apart in the ...

Don't Get Married to a Stock

The most valuable piece of advice that I ever received when it came to trading was this: "Don't get married to a stock".

This advice doesn't just apply to trading - it a...

A Bottom in the Housing Market? 10 Signs That Will Help You Identify a Bottom

Trying to time the bottom in the housing market can be risky business. You may be waiting to put your money to work. You might think that a $300,000 home which used to be $500,000 i...

Some Older Google Penalties Expiring?

I've noticed this weekend that a number of our LONG penalized sites have suddenly re-appeared in Google's search index.

We're not talking about penalties of a month or t...

The Ten Worst (Projected) Real Estate Markets in the United States

There is no such thing as a general "real estate market" - rather, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of smaller real estate markets that can perform completely independently of ...

What is the "Problem Bank List", and Is My Bank On It?

The FDIC (or The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) reported that 90 banks, or a full 1.1% of the banks that fall under its watchful eye, landed on their "problem bank list" in ...

Short-Selling is Not the Problem

Short-selling has been in the news quite a bit over the past week. Just now, as I am viewing my Google News page, a story on short-selling is the main story at the top of the page.

Just re...

Blog About Topics That You Are Passionate and Knowledgeable About

One of the biggest mistakes that I see people make is that they choose blogging topics based on how much money they can make. This is an almost surefire way for your blog to die a slow and painful dea...

What Exactly is a "Bear Market"?

If you have been watching the news over the past few weeks, then you have likely heard that the stock market is currently in a "bear market". What does this mean exactly?

Many people have m...

The Logistics Behind an Email "Pump and Dump"

If you have an email address, then there is a good chance that you've received at least one email recommending you to purchase a specific stock.

If you happened to look up the stock in Yah...

Adsense Arbitrage - What is It, and Why Doesn't Google Like It?

First off, what is "arbitrage"?

According to Wikipedia, arbitrage is "the practice of taking advantage of a price differential between two or more markets". It's the act of buying something...

Google Cracking Down on Non-Compliant Adsense Sites?

Jennifer Slegg at Jensense.com commented in a June 24th post that it seems as though Google is starting to aggressively target sites which utilize Adsense that a...

Seven Habits of Highly Successful Bloggers

The world of "blogging" has always been fascinating to me.

People tucked away in all corners of the world developing huge followings (and massive income streams) by blogging about their da...

ScribeFire is Awesome

Normally we don't do product reviews or product endorsements on this blog, but what the hell, this product is great.

I believe that ScribeFire used to originally be known as Performancing ...

Tips For Hiring Translators Online

Hiring translators online can be a much more complex (and dangerous) task then you might think. There are very good translators out there, but the industry is fraught with fraudsters trying to make a ...

What is a "PEG Ratio"?

If you have been using a site such as Yahoo! Finance or Google Finance to check up on your favorite stock, then you may have run across something called the "PEG Ratio".

If you are involved in the stock market (and most importantly, initial public offerings), then you may have come across the term "Dutch Auction".

The "Dutch Auction" m...

Traffic Before Monetization, Not the Other Way Around

I see this happen all the time in the "blogosphere". People launch their own "Make Money Online" blogs, and immediately they want to jump into monetizing their sites. Paid reviews. 1...

Arjun Murti - The Man Behind the "Super Spike"

Arjun N. Murti has made a number of headlines over the past few years after making a couple of bold predictions regarding the price of oil.

He first made headlines ba...

Champion Air Goes Out of Business Just In Time for the NBA Finals

Big deal right? Yet another airline goes under.

If you are a sports fan, and most importantly a fan of the NBA, then it is a big deal.

How Long Will It Take the Real Estate Market in the United States to Recover? Some Perspective from the Past 30 Years

Over the past thirty years, the overall real estate market in the United States has fluctuated wildly due to varying reasons. You had the crippling recession in the early 1980s. You had the stock mark...

Did A Stock That You Own Get Halted? What Happens Now?

There is nothing scarier than waking up in the morning and hearing that a major stock in your portfolio has been halted. You scour different websites for possible news but can't find anything. You soo...

Vallejo (A City) Is Planning on Filing for Bankruptcy

Vallejo is not a person. Vallejo is not a publicly traded company. Vallejo is a city located in the northern half of California. And Vallejo, located in the western part of Solano County, is planning ...

National Association of Realtors: "Home Sales Should Start Improving by the Summer"

The National Association of Realtors put out a press release today titled "Soft Existing-Home Sales Expected Near-Term But to Rise Midsummer".

The National Associatio...

Six Things that Most Wealthy People Understand That you Should Too

Some people think that the only way to become "wealthy" is to inherit millions of dollars from your parents or win the lottery. This is completely untrue - right now there are literally hundreds of th...

Five Signs That We May Be Near a Bottom in the US Housing Market

You may watch television or read your newspaper on a daily basis and come to the conclusion that the US housing market will never recover. The industry housing industry seems to be cloaked in doom and...

So You Want to be a Contrarian Investor?

You've probably heard it many times before.

"The real money is made by contrarian investors".

The real money was made by people who bo...

Be Wary Of Companies Who Launch Anti Short-Selling Campaigns

From time to time you will find companies who will issue press releases, imploring their shareholders to "take a stand" against unsavory short-sellers. They will threaten lawsuits against these un-nam...

Steps That You Can Take To Avoid a Foreclosure on Your Home

Foreclosures are a growing problem in the United States and other parts of the world.

A foreclosure, in simple terms, is typically when an owner of a property violate...

What is a "Margin Call"?

First off to receive a margin call, you must have a margin account. A margin account, as compared to a cash account, is an account in which you are able to buy stocks on "margin". This means that y...

What is a "Bear Raid"?

If you have been watching the financial news as of late (which is likely considering the recent fall in Bear Stearns and the ensuing panic that followed) then you have probably heard the term "bear ra...

The Greater Fool Theory

The "Greater Fool Theory" can be applied to any form of investing, whether it be investing in the real estate market, stock market or otherwise. The "Greater Fool Theory" is when a person buys an a...

United States No Longer the Biggest Economy in the World

So after a week that saw the Fed rush to inject cash into the system, several high profile hedge fund failures and the near collapse of Bear Stearns, Americans now have to deal with the fact that they...

Why Doesn't Berkshire Hathaway Split Its Stock?

This is quite a common question. With Berkshire Hathaway's "A" stock currently trading at $129,360 (that's right - one hundred and twenty-nine thousand, three hundred and sixty dollars), why don't the...

What is a Reverse Stock Split? And Why Is It Usually a Bad Thing For the Stock?

If you are currently holding shares of a company and they have just recently announced plans to institute a reverse split of their stock, then you probably want to seriously evaluate whether or not yo...

The Top Seven Reasons Why 90% of Daytraders Fail

First off, I have no idea whether or not the "90% of daytraders don't make it" is even true or valid - however, most people that I talk to assume it to be true, so let's go with it. 90% of restaura...

Why is it So Hard for Me to Get Shares of an IPO?

Let's say that there is a hot Initial Public Offering hitting the market soon. You know that the offering is going to be a strong one, and you know that the stock is going to trade much higher from it...

JP Morgan Tops List of Biggest US Hedge Fund Managers in 2007

Credit crunch? What credit crunch? Even though three of the top ten largest hedge funds in the US lost an estimated $24 billion in assets last year, the overall assets of the top US hedge funds act...

Calculating EPS (Earnings Per Share) and P/E Ratios (Price to Earnings) and Why They are Important

If you are new to the stock market, you may have come across a couple of unfamiliar terms when you were trolling through Yahoo Finance or Google Finance. EPS (Earnings Per Share) and P/E or P/E ratio ...

New Version of Yahoo Buzz to Compete with Digg?

According to Techcrunch, Yahoo will be launching their Yahoo Buzz service sometime on Monday. Techcrunch have said that they will be making an announcement at 9 pm on Monday, which leads me to believe...

Linking Out to Other Sites is Not Only Good Karma - It's Smart Business

I can understand the mindset that some people might have. "I am never going to link out to other sites," they will say, "I am going to keep all of my Google link juice to myself." I must admit t...

Getting Started With Your First Web Site - What You'll Need

So you have decided to take the plunge and start your very first web site. You have the basic theme of the site and a great deal of content mapped out in your head. You have decided that you are going...

What Exactly is a "Poison Pill" and How Does it Apply to the Stock Market?

You may have been watching CNBC one day and heard the term "poison pill" being discussed. You have probably figured out that it somehow involves one company taking over another, but you aren't sure as...

Tips on How to Create Interesting Content for Your Readers

When it comes to building a website on the cheap, content is king. Quality content is the great equalizer when it comes to competing with other web sites in your niche. Even if they have more employee...

Don't Ever Sell Your Content If You Can Help It

Let's say that you are a fairly good writer. You have been writing for years, and a friend of yours told you that you can make some pretty decent money doing content creation for web sites. Most...

HotorNot.com Sells for $20 Million to Avid Life Media

The recent sale of Hotornot.com to a Canadian investor group called "Avid Life Media" recently just goes to show you a couple of things: 1. Sometimes the best web sites are the simplest ones. 2....

When Creating a Personal Blog, a Little Originality Goes a Long Ways

I had finished my work early last night and was surfing around, looking for nothing in particular, when I noticed a steady and undeniable trend. There are literally DOZENS of sites that have the sa...

Why Do Companies Announce Stock Splits or Reverse Stock Splits?

Let's cover the topic of regular "stock splits" first. Why would a company want to split their stock? Let's look at a fictional example. Let's take a company that is called XYZ. XYZ has had a gr...

Cruises.co.uk Sells To Cruise.co.uk In Largest .co.uk Domain Sale Ever

Dnjournal is reporting that Cruise.co.uk, based out of the UK, has purchased Cruises.co.uk in the single largest *.co.uk transaction ever for 560k euros (1.1 million US). This was apparently a private...

What is a Stock's "Float" And Why is it Important?

What exactly does it mean when people refer to a company's "float", and why might the size of a company's float have a direct impact on how the stock trades? First off, what exactly is a "float"? ...

What is an IPO (Initial Public Offering) and How Do I Buy Into One?

First off, what exactly is an IPO? An IPO is an "Initial Public Offering" in which a company will sell shares to the public in order to raise capital. Let's say that you have a private company, XYZ...

Stock Dividends - How Exactly Do They Work? Ex-Dividend Dates, Dividend Yields and More Explained

Before we get into the explanation of how dividends work, we need to understand exactly what they are. A dividend is a payment that is made to a shareholder by a company. Dividends are usually made...

Will a Three Percent Fed Funds Rate Help to Revive the Housing Market in the United States?

With the housing market plummeting and many Americans watching their net worths evaporating before their eyes, the Federal Reserve has undertaken an aggressive campaign to lower interest rates. First,...

What is a "Whisper Number" And Why is it Important?

You may have heard this term being used on television or on an online financial news site and wondered what exactly it meant. Well, let's take a company that will soon be reporting earnings. This c...

Buying Small-Cap Growth Stocks: Your Six Point Checklist

Including some small capitalization, more speculative growth stocks in your portfolio should always be part of your long-term investment plan. Small-cap companies require a little more research in ord...

More Stock Market Terms Explained: Limit Orders, Market Orders and Stop Losses

If you are fairly new to trading, then you may be a little uncertain as to what these three terms mean. Here's a quick explanation for each term: 1. Limit Order - Let's say that yo...

Buying Penny Stocks: The "Dos" and "Don'ts" of Penny Stock Speculation

So you are interested in speculating in the world of penny stocks? It's dangerous territory out there, however here are some tips that I have come up with to ensure that you give yourself at least a f...

Panicking During A Market Meltdown Probably Means That Your Portfolio Diversification Strategy is Out of Whack

I don't care how old you are. I don't care if you are 20 years old or 55 years old. If word of a market meltdown has you sitting up at night, sweating profusely and worrying about your portfolio, t...

Options Beginners Lesson: Strike Prices, Time Decay and Premiums

If you are new to the world of trading options, then you are likely somewhat confused by some of the new terms that you are hearing about. Options volatility? Time decay? Premiums? What does it all me...

"Domain Tasting" and "Domain Kiting" - What Are They Exactly?

"Domain tasting" and "domain kiting". Two practices that are very well-known to most domain name purchasers, but unknown to most of the general public. With ICANN-regulated domain names, all domain...

2007 Worst Year for US Housing Market Since Great Depression

On Thursday there were a couple of datapoints that were released that spelled out exactly how bad the US housing market was in 2007. First off, sales of existing single-family homes dropped 13% in ...

Front-End Load, Back-End Load, "Level Load" And No-Load - Breaking Down Mutual Fund Fees

If you are planning on buying a mutual fund, your head may be spinning after reading the fund's prospectus. You thought that it would be as easy as simply buying a fund and paying a small commissio...

Averaging Down or "Doubling Down" Can Be Financial Suicide If You Don't Have a Plan in Place

If you invest in the stock market, then I am sure that you have faced this situation: You love a company. LOVE it. You've done all of your research and read all of the company's financial reports. ...

How to Become a Daytrader | Becoming a Daytrader

Before I get into this article, let me dispel a couple of myths associated with daytrading. "Daytrading is easy." If you think that daytrading is going to be a piece of cake and "easy money" then p...

Lower Valuations + Weak American Dollar + Desperation = Foreign Buying Bonanza of American Companies

I remember back to the late 1990's when the US dollar was a pillar of strength. I remember hearing about the speculations and conspiracy theories that the US government was keeping their dollar strong...

High Negative Investor Sentiment Usually Signals That the Time to Buy Stocks Is Near

This is one of the ideas that many investors can simply not wrap their heads around, but is a very important principle to understand if you plan on making some above-average gains in the stock market....

Ten of the Top Performing Hedge Funds of 2007

In 2007, news of poorly performing hedge funds seemed to dominate the financial headlines. There was the Global Alpha fund, which dropped 38%; there was the Global Equity Opportunities Fund, which dro...

Using Arbitrage To Make Money in the Stock Market is Not As Easy as It Sounds

On the surface, "merger arbitrage" or "risk arbitrage" would seem like easy money. One company has announced that it will be buying another company for $11 per share, and the company that is being acq...

Is the Credit Card Industry Next to Feel the Pinch?

A few years ago, there were plenty of easy ways to raise money to support your lifestyle, especially if you were a homeowner. You could buy a house and then flip it a year later for a nice big prof...

Daytrading (Daytrader) Stock Chatrooms - How To Find the Best Rooms and Avoid the Worst

Daytrading chat rooms run the full spectrum from either really, really bad to really insightful and helpful (and profitable). There are chat rooms out there that are nothing but rip-offs, specifically...

Where is the Real Estate Market Going in the United States?

There is a rule of thumb that is used in the stock market that can easily be applied to the real estate market as well. When everyone is buying, you should be looking to sell. And when everyone is sel...

The Worst Trade of My Life

Every trader has a trade that sticks with them for a very long time. A trade that they will always remember every vivid detail of, a trade that will haunt them for a lifetime. This particular trade le...

How To Successfully Stay Up All Night (aka "Pulling An All-Nighter")

I speak on this issue as a certified expert on the matter. I have stayed up all-night more times than I can count in my life. There are easy ways to stay up all-night and then there are the harder ...

The Effects of a Falling US Dollar on the Economy of the United States

Many people tend to shrug off news reports that talk about the plunging US dollar. "A rising or falling dollar doesn't really effect me, so why should I care?" The fact of the matter is that a droppin...

"Detox" - Detoxifying Your Body

Earlier this year, I went through my first official "detoxification." After years and years of consuming way too much sugar, caffeine and fast food, I decided to just cut it out of my diet. We a...

What Is a "Dead Cat Bounce?"

If you follow the stock market, then you have probably heard the term "Dead Cat Bounce" at one time or another. If you hear this time and wonder what exactly it means, then this article is for you. ...

UFC / MMA Are a Huge Business and You Need to Get Involved

Mixed Martial Arts fighting, especially the UFC, is a very big but still rapidly expanding business that you need to get some exposure to if you are involved in Internet marketing. We just recently...

Naked Short Selling: What Is It Exactly?

Naked short selling is probably one of the most misunderstood concepts in the stock market. You ask some people and they will tell you that naked short selling is everything that is wrong with the sto...

Who Are the Best Investor and Best Trader of all Time?

When it comes to the stock market, there are two people that I admire more than anyone else. Sure, there are quite a number of famous investors and famous traders who have netted billions of dollars f...

Why Short-Selling Is Necessary in the Stock Market

Many people slam short-sellers. "They are wrongly profiting at the expense of hard-working investors all over the world." "They engage in deception and the spreading of false rumors to make thei...

What is Meant by "Short Interest" and "Short Ratio"?

In the last article we touched a bit on short-selling. Basically, short-selling is when you bet that the price of a share will fall. So instead of buying a stock, you sell it without owning it. So let...

Bids, Asks and Spreads - A Primer on Stock Trading

I get asked the same questions all the time. What is a bid? What is an ask? Why are there two different stock prices when I log in and check the current quote on my favorite stocks? For those peopl...

The Top Ten Fastest Ways to Lose Money in the Stock Market

10. Trading options or forex if you don't know what you are doing. Forget the get-rich books that claim you can easily make millions trading options or forex. This is simply not true,...

The Top Ten Most Outrageous Stock Market Scams of all Time

Scams occur in the stock market every day. Stock market scandals are woven into the fabric of our culture. However, these are the TRULY outrageous stock market scams. The scams that when you hear a...

Digg.com On the Block for $300 Million?

Techcrunch and Venturebeat are both reporting that Digg.com is cu...

The Top Twelve Stock Market Scams of the Last Twelve Years

The title is self-explanatory. Here are the top 12 scams since 1995: 12. The Emulex Press Release Hoax. In the summer of 2000, Mark Jakob, a former employee of Internet Wire, sent ...

Traders at Goldman Sachs Banked Big Profits Betting on Mortgage Meltdown

Have you been wondering why Goldman Sachs have been avoiding the punishment that is being meted out to other big brokerages this year? Wonder why Bear Stearns, Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers have a...

Google Releases 2007 Year-End Zeitgeist

Google have released their 2007 Year-End Zeitgeist, which is basically a summary of their quickest rising and fastest falling...

Does Privacy Matter to You When You Are Using a Search Engine?

Ask.com is announcing the release of a new product on Tuesday that will be called "AskEraser." This product, if you have it enabled while you are searching on Ask.com, will scrub all of your search...

A Low Share Price Doesn't Necessarily Make a Stock "Cheap"

Here is one of the biggest problems that novice (and even some advanced) investors in the stock market will encounter during their investing career. They will mistakenly assess a stock as being "cheap...

The Five Stages in the Life of a Successful Young Webmaster

Most people that I know who are fairly young and have had at least a moderate amount of success owning their own web sites have gone through the four stages that I am just about to talk about, myself ...

Legitimate Reader Interest Is Your Most Valuable Capital When Running a Blog - Don't Squander It

Let's say that you are running a blog, and over the last number of months, you have built up a fairly respectable readership. You've gone from just a couple of hundred unique visitors a day to over 15...

Don't Be Afraid to Experiment With Affiliate Sales and Direct Ad Sales

Google Adsense is a wonderful tool, but there is more to life than just Adsense and many people find that they are able to multiply their revenues when they remove Adsense from their sites. The big...

AGLOCO Bites the Dust?

From the looks of it, AGLOCO seems to have gone out of business. Their web site has been down for days (the site is currently done, and according to the most recent cache that Google has of their i...

Be a Contrarian, Not a Sheep

One of the biggest tips that I could ever give to anyone that is learning how to trade and/or invest is: be a contrarian. Take action, don't just react. Analyze trends and try to get in on the bottom ...

How the Market Tends to Perform After Interest Rate Cuts

Everyone is always curious as to how the stock market tends to perform after there have been sizable cuts to interest rates. Interest rate increases are done to slow down an economy and prevent inflat...

Five Tips For Surviving Your First Front-Page Digg

The goal of many webmasters and website owners is to be on the front page of Digg.com. Not only do you receive a MASSIVE amount of traffic over a short period of time, but you will also pick up an ...

Countrywide Financial Currently Has Over 14,000 Homes Offered for Sale on their Website

Not to be a harbinger of doom here, but this is a number that clearly illustrates: a) the overall problems with the United States housing market and b) the overall problems that Countrywide Financial ...

Paid The Cost to be the Boss

Most people out there who are involved in affiliate marketing know what I am talking about. You tell someone what you do for a living and they look at you and say "Wow, you are so lucky to be doing...

Kenneth Heebner Cashes In Big on Countrywide, Sears Short Sales

For every person that is losing money in equities such as Countrywide and Sears, there is someone on the other side, raking in the cash. One is those people is Kenneth Heebner, manager of the CGM F...

How to Deal With Shady Affiliate Programs

If you have been in the affiliate marketing business for any period of time, then there is a good chance that you have run into a shady affiliate program or two. You know, the companies that promise e...

Almost 64% of Facebook is Female

I came across some Facebook users stats today on Techcrunch that quite surprised me to be honest. As the title of this article states, almost 64% (63.88% to be exact) of all Facebook users are female....

October Search Engine Market Share: Google Continues to Dominate

It's Google's world, and we are all just living in it. Google continues to dominate the search engine market, increasing their market share by 3% from over a year ago. As an RBC analyst remarked, "...

Be Your Own Guru

"Gurus" are a dime a dozen when it comes to making money on the Internet. Everyone has an ebook that they want to sell you. Everyone has all of the secrets that you would ever need to make millions...

Why Is it That Stocks Sometimes Go Up on Bad News?

It's an interesting phenomenon. A stock will come out with worse than expected earnings and actually end up going higher on the news. What gives? Why would a stock do that? The answer is that us...

College? Who Needs College?

One of the biggest myths perpetuated on the general public is that you somehow need a degree from college to be successful in life. Obviously there are some areas that you MUST have a degree in order ...

Google Is Worth Every Cent of its $741.79 Share Price

$231.54 Billion dollars? $741.79 per share? Most people look at those numbers and their gut reaction is to pan Google and call the stock overpriced, with absolutely no basis for their valuation. "I...

SEO? Just Build a Site that People Like

Many people when they are starting out a blog or web site are completely frozen by the "SEO" aspects of their site. Which words should I have in the title? What kind of keyword density should I have o...

The Way That Some People Are Spinning This Google Pagerank Situation is Ridiculous

It's pretty funny to me how people in the blogosphere are spinning their Pagerank situation with Google. In case you didn't know, Google recently punished a large number of blogs for a variety of d...

Radiohead Has Single-Handedly Changed the Music Business Model

When Radiohead announced that they were going to be offering their new album online in exchange for whatever amount of money that a buyer saw fit to donate, many people laughed. "Most people will just...

The Digg Effect

Well after being in this Internet game for years, my partner and I had our first full-fledged Digg.com explosion of traffic. I thought it would be interesting to look at how this took place, and what ...

Stop Chasing Links, Start Adding Value

The amount of link requests that we get each day for sites across our network is mind-boggling. Most link requests just automatically get deleted, but occasionally I'll open a link request email ju...

Credibility Is The Most Valuable Currency Online

It can be tempting sometimes. The easiest way to get traffic to your web site is to make something ridiculous up and post it online. Word will get out and people will flock to your site. You'll ...

Yahoo Search Marketing Finally Announces Site Exclusions

I never thought that there would be a day when I actually thought that I would use Yahoo Search Marketing again. My biggest gripe with them was always that they didn't allow the advertiser to exclu...

Guest Blogging - A Great Way to Drive Traffic to Your Blog

One of the best ways to get your blog noticed in its early days is to volunteer your services to write a guest blog on a blog that receives a fair amount of traffic. Meaning, if you were new to the...

Without Traffic, There is No Money

Whenever you start up a blog or similar site, you need to ask yourself one very important question: How am I planning on driving traffic to this site? Or even more importantly, how am I planning...

The Proper Way to Write Online Content

Your biggest asset for your blog will be the users that return on a daily basis. To ensure that these loyal "customers" continue to read your blog on a daily basis, you need to ensure that you are ...

How to Pick Your Online Business Niche

The most common question that I get is: Which online business niche should I target? There are many factors that you should consider when you are choosing the niche that you will target with you...

The US Dollar vs. The Canadian Dollar: A Tear Falls from my Eye

As someone who lives in Canada but makes most of his money in American dollars, the frantic rise of the Canadian dollar vs. the American dollar has been particularly painful. Rewind to about 1999, and...

How to Effectively Use Google's Content Network to Your Advantage

When we first started out doing PPC, everyone that I talked to said: don't use the content network when using Google Adwords, just use the search network. You will have a much higher ROI on investment...

Split-Testing is a Valuable Tool When It Comes to Enhancing the Profitability of Your PPC Campaigns

What exactly is split testing? Split testing is when you test more than one ad for a keyword or group of keywords that you are targeting. Meaning, let's say that you are running an adgroup on Go...

Early Iphone Owners Are Pissed Off at Apple

People who bought the Iphone when it first came out are livid with Apple. Steve Jobs, when unveiling the revamped line of Ipods that will soon be hitting the streets, announced that that the 8 giga...

Breaking Down the Payout Structures of Most Hedge Funds

If you were ever wondering how hedge funds make money, then this article is for you. If you were ever wondering what "2 and 20" or "3 and 50" meant when it came to hedge fund compensation, then you...

Blogging Tip: Write About Something that Actually Interests You

Nothing derails a blog faster than trying to write about something that you have absolutely no interest in. Sure, you may be able to research new topics for a while, but eventually writing these ty...

Why Can't I Invest in Hedge Funds?

For years, the SEC has had a rule in place blocking the "Average Joe" from investing in a hedge fund.

In order to invest in a hedge fund, the SEC says, you must have at least $1 million dol...

Tips to Staying Productive: Check Your Email and Stats Just Twice Per Day

One of the biggest pitfalls of running a blog is that it is so easy to fall into the trap of checking your emails and stats (such as Google Adsense, etc.) every couple of minutes.

Everyone ...

Consistency is the Key - Blogging Your Way to a Small Fortune

There is no real secret to developing a large readership for your blog.

Imagine a popular television show, like Friends for example. The key to their success is that there is continuity. Yo...

Davemanuel.com Blogging Stats for August 2007

Month #2 for Davemanuel.com is now in the books. We are looking forward to the fall and winter, which is generally a bonanza if you operate any kind of advertising supported website. More people are s...

Should the US Government Bail out Homeowners?

The answer to this question is a bit more complicated than you might think. I bet that the average person read the title of this article and had an immediate reaction to the question. The problem i...

The Curious Story of the Most Expensive Art Purchase in History that Never Happened - "Le Reve"

Steven Cohen is a very successful hedge fund trader. His knowledge of the stock markets have grossed him billions of dollars, and made him one of the richest men in America. Steven Cohen has a pass...

Want to Buy a Piece of Steven Cohen's SAC Capital? Here's Your Chance

When you talk about successful traders, and I mean, really successful traders, Steven Cohen is one of the first traders that should pop in your mind. Cohen is a spectacularly successf...

What To Look For When Selecting a Stock Market Newsletter to Subscribe To

Who better to write this article than someone who operated a stock market newsletter for almost four years? The stock market can be a lot to digest. There are many reasons for signing up to a stock...

Stock Options Lesson: The Straddle

About a month ago, we detailed an options strategy called the "strangle." Today, we are going to explain what is meant by an "options straddle", and when you would utilize such a strategy. A "stran...

Secured Loans as a Means of Consolidating Credit Card Debt - It Does Make Sense

You may recoil at the thought of taking out a second mortgage on your home. The simple fact of the matter is though that if you are upside down in credit card debt and are not making any progress in p...

Liar Loans, Teaser Loans and Stretch Loans: What Exactly Are They?

Liar loans. Teaser loans. Stretch loans. With all of the recent turmoil in the mortgage markets in the United States, you have probably heard one or all of these terms talked about on the nightly news...

The Iraq Stock Exchange: Slowly Coming to Life

Considering the problems that Iraq currently has (terrorism, civil unrest, destroyed infrastructure, political turmoil), you may be surprised to find out that Iraq actually has its own stock exchange,...

Twenty Things That I Have Learned During My Time as a Stock Trader

Here is my list: 1. If you are wrong about a stock, you need to get out, no matter how strongly you feel about a position. Getting married or attached to a stock can kill you. 2. Stop losses are...

Research Home Equity Loan Companies Carefully Before Taking out a Loan

If you have bought a home in the United States (or pretty much anywhere for that matter) over the past few years, chances are that your home is worth quite a bit more than what you paid for it. Your f...

Hitting a Brick Wall: What to Do When Your Trades Stop Working

Everyone has gone through it before. No matter how good of a trader you are, you have without a doubt had a rough stretch where none of your trades have worked, and you start doubting whether or not y...

Window Dressing: What Exactly Does It Mean?

You have probably heard the term at one time or another when you have been watching CNBC or reading your favorite financial magazine. "XYZ was up in late day trading, and traders are speculating that ...

What Happens If a Stock That I am Short Goes Bankrupt?

This is a common question that I often here from people that short-sell. What happens if a stock that I am short gets halted and announces their bankruptcy? First off, as a short-seller, this is yo...

What is the Pattern Daytrader Rule?

When the Internet bubble popped in mid 2000, the NYSE and NASD moved quickly to introduce something called the "Pattern Daytrader Rule" to the SEC. On February 27th, 2001, the SEC approved this rule c...

What's the Point of This Blog?

Along with my partner, I own and run about 20-25 web sites. Some of the web sites are very active and pay a good chunk of my bills; other sites are frequented only by a random search engine bot, comin...

Real-Time News Services: Do They Matter to a Serious Trader?

There are two sets of traders out there it seems. The first set of traders don't worry at all about the news of the day. They are interested only in graphs and charts and technical analysis, and if...

Another Stock Market Trading Tactic for You All To Know About

About a month ago, I outlined one of the strategies that I use to trade on the stock market; trading secondary offerings for major profit. I have received a few emails in the last little while, asking...

Bloggers Need to Understand SEC Disclosure Rules

Blogs are an amazing tool for amassing personal wealth if you have a substantial amount of traffic. You can make money from Adsense, Chitika, Text Link Ads and literally hundreds of other affiliate / ...

SEO Marketing vs. PPC Marketing: Which one is Better?

Both types of marketing have their distinct advantages and distinct disadvantages. Both are well worth your while, and I would recommend using both to tackle an industry. Here are the pros of both SEO...

Stop Losses and Profit Stops - Two Extremely Powerful Weapons in Any Traders Arsenal

What is a stop loss? What is a profit stop? Let's say that you buy 1000 shares of MSFT at $50 even. Well when you buy the stock, you can enter in a "stop loss" into your trading software. You can e...

Why Do Stocks Get Halted?

It is probably one of the worst feelings in the world. You own 1000 shares of a stock, and you hear that the stock has been halted. The absolute worst case scenarios race through your mind; you are ce...

Starting up a Hedge Fund: What are the Costs Involved?

To be sure, running a hedge fund sure sounds like an appealing job. The money, the power, the prestige; there is a reason why many highly educated people choose to work at a hedge fund. Sure the stres...

How to Sell Your Web Site: Some Practical Tips

So let's say that you have a fairly successful web site that spins off a decent amount of revenues every month. Even better, the site makes you a nice bit of cash that allows you to make your mortgage...

Paralysis By Analysis: Sometimes You Have to Just Do It

There are plenty of people interested in making money on the Internet. In their minds, it's an easy, low-risk way of making money. They always ask me how I got started, and how they should get started...

The Pros and Cons of Running a Business Online

I have been making my living from the Internet since November 23rd, 1998. That is the very day that I started my online stock newsletter, and it basically took off from its inception. Since then, I ha...

Ten Things That You Need to Know About the Stock Market

You thinking of investing some of your hard earned money into the stock market? There are some things that you need to know, universal truths that I have come to realize after nearly ten years of inve...

The Best Real Estate Investment: Domain Names

You may be reading this and saying to yourself, this guy is crazy. I need a piece of land and a house or apartment in order to consider something a "real estate" investment. It is exactly that kind of...

Purchasing a Domain Name Privately? Five Things You Need to Know First

Domain names are like real estate on speed. The rate of returns on really good domain names are unbelievable. A domain name worth $5k one week can be monetized and flipped for $20k the next week. B...

Commission Junction is Incredibly Frustrating to Work With

We signed up to Commission Junction about a week ago, looking to do some PPC marketing for a few specific US-based financial services companies. We have a great deal of experience with financial landi...

Direct Access Trading: What You Need in a Broker

When it comes to direct access trading solutions, there is plenty of competition out there. Different companies have different selling features in order to get people through the virtual door to open ...

Trading Forex: It Can Be Lucrative, But Understand The Risks

Forex trading can be a pretty lucrative business. You have probably heard about some people making millions from trading forex. Because there is such high leverage involved, if a trade goes right, ...

Stock Market Gurus: Are They Necessary For You to Become a Better Trader?

Here's a little secret. I used to be a "stock market guru." From the end of 1998 until the end of 2001, I ran a stock market newsletter that was pretty successful. I had hundreds upon hundreds of peop...

Level II (2) Quotes: Are they Necessary for You?

Level II quotes are a big selling point for most online stock brokerages out there. You will find that cut-rate costs for Level II quotes are a big selling feature for many online. But before you make...

Stock Options Lesson: The Strangle

The strangle is probably one of my favorite options plays. I enjoy this play because if I am unsure as to whether or not a stock will go up or down, but I am sure that it will make a big move one way ...

Parasitic Blogging: What Do You Think of It?

Now before I start this entry, I just wanted to say that I'm not picking on any one person in particular. I picked the example that I did because this person is a high-profile blogger. I guess I was a...

Forget Optimizing Your Homepage; The Real Money is in your Subpages

Sometimes I really can't believe how much people agonize over optimizing their home page just the right amount. I need to have the perfect % of keywords that I am targeting on the main page. I n...

How to Choose the Right Online Stock Trading Broker for You

I've been trading stocks online since 1998. I've been through a bunch of online stock brokers. I started with TD Canada Trust, which treated me to "bargain-basement" commissions of $39.95 per trade...

The Proper Way to Approach Someone for a Link Exchange

Now, I'm not a big proponent of doing link swaps. I prefer just to create unique content, and eventually the one way links pointing to my site (the best kind) will pile up and my sit...

Trading Secondary Stock Offerings for Profit

Becoming a successful trader is all about finding edges. Once you find an edge, you need to exploit it over and over and over until it doesn't work anymore. You don't need to re-invent the wheel every...

How to Write a Great Eulogy, Even if you are Pressed for Time

Has someone close to you passed on, and you have been asked to read the eulogy. Are you pressed for time and don't really know where to start? Follow the steps laid out in this article and you will be...

How John Chow Overoptimized Himself Right out of Google

I am sure that you have all heard of John Chow. He runs the extremely successful blog John Chow.com. The site has gone from making a couple h...

The Best Linking Strategy For Your Blog

Linking strategies are like opinions. Everyone who runs a blog has one. Some people will read this article and say, no way, that's not the way to do it. That's fine. There are many...

Beware of Web Sites with Fake Pagerank

If you are in the market to purchase a domain name or website, then you need to be aware of how easy it is to fake a page rank for a site, and how to figure out whether or not a site...

Five Tips for Generating Unique Content for your Blog

Writing content for your blog can be tough. Usually you'll have a good 10-15 ideas for articles when you launch your blog, and then after that, the well will run dry and your blog wi...

Adsense Tips: Blending Your Ads

One of the biggest mistakes that I see some websites make is that they don't blend their Adsense ads in with the rest of their page. For instance, their web site will have a light gr...

Too Many Paid Reviews can Ruin a Blog

When you run a blog and start monetizing it, there is a fine line between generating as many dollars as you can from the blog and then overexploiting it. By building up traffic and r...

The Text Link Ads Experiment is Over

Just about a week after we put Text Link Ads up on some of our major sites, we took them down. While I am sure that some people are doing very well with Text Link Ads on their sites, we just didn't fe...

My Experiences with Adbrite

Adbrite. According to their website, they serve over 614 million impressions per day across almost 30k sites. They boost a pretty impressive list of clients that they work with: Alexa, Break.com and E...

10 Business Lessons that You Can Learn from a Hooker

Prostitution. The world's oldest profession. You may not think that you could learn anything about business from prostitutes and pimps, but they are in fact some of the shrewdest businesspeople out th...

Short-Selling Should be a Major Part of Your Market Strategy

Alright, since this site is all about making money online, I'd be remiss if I didn't talk about online trading, and how you can extract large sums from the stock market. Trading is how I got my sta...

Blogging as a Job? Be Prepared to Put in the Time

One of the questions that is most often asked of me is: can I make a living online? Can I make a career out of blogging? The answer is always, of course, if you are willing to put in the time.

Why Web Sites Are Oftentimes Incredibly Undervalued And What We Plan on Doing About It

These days, there are literally hundreds of ways to make money with a web site. More and more companies are finding that the Internet is a cost-effective way to spend their advertising dollars. It can...

John Chow Gets Nailed by Auctionads

John Chow is obviously a smart guy. He runs The Tech Zone, which is a popular technology website that I am sure he does very well with. He is probably more well-known for running his namesake websi...

The Top Ten Hardest to Fill Jobs in the US

Did you ever wonder what the top ten hardest jobs to fill are in the US?

1. Sales representative
2. Teacher
3. Mechanic
4. Technician
5. Management/executive
6. Truck driver

Not Impressed with Yahoo Free Search

Is there a worse search engine out there than Yahoo?

Can a search engine that actually manually places sites into the top 3 of many major keywords actually be taken seriously? (some of our s...

SEO vs. PPC - Sure, SEO Is Free, but PPC Is Scalable

I often here people debating this subject: should I focus on SEO or PPC?

Well, I would say, do both, but if you had to choose one..

I would go with PPC.

Why?

Those who s...

300 Will Continue to Change the Way that Movies Are Marketed

300 basically came out of nowhere and rocked the movie theaters last weekend for a total North American take of over $70 million dollars. The movie didn't feature any big name actors. The story was...

Is There Such a Thing as an Overly Commercialized Blog?

I make no bones about it. I visit a number of different blogs on a daily basis. These blogs all have the same theme; they are all run by one-man shows who have made a living off of the Internet, an...

Shoemoney Gets Banned from MyBlogLog

I've been following MyBlogLog for a while now. As soon as they were bought by Yahoo for $10 million dollars, they hit my radar screen. To be honest, it takes me a long time to utilize some new popu...

My Letter to Overture UK

Hi there,

I realize that there is an ongoing investigation in regards to "partner site" traffic on my account, but I wanted to just provide you of further evidence of clear fraudulent behavior ...

Some Adsense Placement Tips For All You Aspiring Content Publishers Out There

After testing, re-testing, and double re-testing, I have figured out the best way to incorporate Adsense ads into your page. Well, this is what has worked best for me, but I think that most Adsense...

The Adsense Experiment: Making a Hundred Dollars Per Day with Adsense

Making money with Adsense is hard work. It involves creating a great deal of unique content, like I have illustra...

Running a Newsletter: Seven Things You Can Do to Increase Your Audience

From November of 1998 until the end of 2001, I ran a pretty popular online stock market newsletter. Back then, I had no clue about SEO and PPC; I didn't spend a dime on marketing costs. I grew the ...

Beginner's Guide to Jogging: How to Get Started and How to Avoid Injury

So you have decided that you want to start jogging. This is great, as jogging has many, many benefits for both your health and emotional well-being. I find that when I am jogging regularly, my stress ...

Five Things that You Can Do to Get More Productive Right Now

You ever have one of those days where you seem to get so much stuff done, that you wonder where you would be if every day was like that? Taking care of business is all about momentum; getting start...

The US Government Deals Yet Another Blow to the Online Gambling Industry; Neteller Blows Up

Well, Neteller didn't actually blow up. But if you were using your Neteller account to fund your online poker account and you are living in the US, then you are now out of luck and MUST find anothe...

Overture - Massive Click Fraud?

Let me give you some background. My partner and I have been advertising with Overture UK for a long while now. As a programmer and math guy, I love looking at our site stats. I am the type of person t...