The Rules, Part XXII
Rapid money supply growth with no consumer price inflation can only really occur within the confines of an asset price bubble, or else, where does the money go? Interest rates are low at such a time because of the...
Read MoreAuthor: David Merkel
How to Make More Returns on REITs
Before I start this evening, I want to offer corrections to my last piece on REITs. Sorry, data glitch, and the results are a little different but the conclusions are unchanged. Here is the correct regression for Mortgage...
Read MoreBook Review: Miles Away… Worlds Apart
This book is unusual. Let me give you my quick view: this is a book written by an Orthodox Jew regarding an unscrupulous Jew who used his abilities to communicate to swindle others in a Ponzi scheme. This is a...
Read MoreRegulate Banks More Tightly, not Money Market Funds
I think that the powers that be do not like a low-cost superior source of liquidity that is outside of the banking system. Why else would there be such regulatory pressure against money market funds, when their losses over...
Read MoreOdd Note on REIT Yields
When I think about REITs, I think about their asset-liability structure. With equity REITs, they own buildings where rents adjust annually, within limits. They borrow using mortgages with 10-year terms. Most of...
Read MoreBook Review: Interest Rate Markets
I was surprised by this book. There is very little math in this book, which would make it a popular book for giving someone an introduction the bond markets. It covers all of the non-credit, non-mortgage markets. It...
Read MoreThe Rules, Part XXI
Before I start this evening, I have a request for readers, and a comment for new readers. (Note: if you are reading this anywhere but directly at my blog, please realize that you have to come to my blog for me to hear what...
Read MoreHow AIG Could Achieve Insurance Greatness
It seems that I can’t escape AIG anymore. I asked my kids (who are still at home) today, “Of all the jobs I had, where did I get treated the worst?” The oldest answered “AIG.” He...
Read MorePost 1500, Post Launch
Every 100 posts, I take a step back and try to think about where we have been over the last five months. The investment world has been bullish, favoring stocks and commodities, and not bonds. Money market rates have...
Read MoreBook Review: Debunkery
Ken Fisher and Lara Hoffmans write well. This book is accurate (with a few quibbles), and succinct. I know these topics well; it took me less than three hours to read it. There are many half-truths that travel...
Read MoreFree E-Book
TraderPlanet’s Quick Guide to Candlesticks
