While looking for a place to sit near the Great Wall of China, my Chinese interpreter snatched a plate of food from my hands. She immediately tossed it into the trash. Stunned that the only food available in the last 14 hours was now sitting in a trashcan, I was… Read More

2016 has been a great year to be a stock market investor. All the major indexes have moved solidly higher, providing profits for short-term traders and long-term investors alike. Dark, bearish fears of the regulatory regime change have been proven wrong as the indexes accelerate on the upside. There is even a chance for the DJIA to break 20,000 before 2017, an unthinkable accomplishment just a few months ago. Thanks to the monster bull market of 2016, nearly everyone is sitting on substantial profits as the year winds down. I can feel the excitement and anticipation whenever I speak with… Read More

2016 has been a great year to be a stock market investor. All the major indexes have moved solidly higher, providing profits for short-term traders and long-term investors alike. Dark, bearish fears of the regulatory regime change have been proven wrong as the indexes accelerate on the upside. There is even a chance for the DJIA to break 20,000 before 2017, an unthinkable accomplishment just a few months ago. Thanks to the monster bull market of 2016, nearly everyone is sitting on substantial profits as the year winds down. I can feel the excitement and anticipation whenever I speak with my fellow investors. The optimism and positive energy are truly off the charts wherever stock market investors gather. One thing that I have noticed is that many investors are so excited about their success, they forget about the taxes due by April 15. Investors of all types still must return a portion of their gains to Uncle Sam come Tax Day.  And some will be shocked at the amount owed! The good news is that there are several legal ways to mitigate your 2016 federal tax bill. Before we get started, it is critical to note that I am not… Read More

In November 1906, Teddy Roosevelt found himself working the controls of a large steam shovel. Crowds of press members, natives and curious onlookers watched as flash bulbs went off, preserving the peculiar image for posterity.  Beneath the President’s handshakes and famous toothy grin was a sense of worry. After all, his legacy was on the line. Nearly two years in, workers had little to show in the way of progress. The inhospitable jungles and swamps, combined with sweltering temperatures, snakes, mosquitoes, smallpox, yellow fever and malaria meant that the work was not only back-breaking, but treacherous. Roosevelt was hoping his… Read More

In November 1906, Teddy Roosevelt found himself working the controls of a large steam shovel. Crowds of press members, natives and curious onlookers watched as flash bulbs went off, preserving the peculiar image for posterity.  Beneath the President’s handshakes and famous toothy grin was a sense of worry. After all, his legacy was on the line. Nearly two years in, workers had little to show in the way of progress. The inhospitable jungles and swamps, combined with sweltering temperatures, snakes, mosquitoes, smallpox, yellow fever and malaria meant that the work was not only back-breaking, but treacherous. Roosevelt was hoping his visit would boost morale. He was no stranger to hardship — and he had insisted that “No single great material work which remains to be undertaken on this continent is as of such consequence to the American people.”  —Sponsored Link— Here’s A Rare Chance To Build Unbelievable Wealth! When the stock market crashed in 1929, millions were devastated. But a savvy few used the crisis to catapult themselves into unprecedented wealth and fortune. How?  Inheritance? Business ventures? A deal with the devil?  No, they became some of the richest, most influential Americans in history by… Read More

Stock investors have truly been blessed in 2016. The major averages have been rocketing higher despite dire predictions of a crash due to the uncertainty revolving around the current president-elect. Rather than dropping on this uncertainty, stocks have embraced the pro-business and nationalistic stance of the pending administration with an incredible vigor. But it poses the question: Is this the end of the bull market? To answer this vexing question, I decided to take a close look at the most popular stock market barometer for answers. What I discovered was surprising. While no one knows for certain what the future… Read More

Stock investors have truly been blessed in 2016. The major averages have been rocketing higher despite dire predictions of a crash due to the uncertainty revolving around the current president-elect. Rather than dropping on this uncertainty, stocks have embraced the pro-business and nationalistic stance of the pending administration with an incredible vigor. But it poses the question: Is this the end of the bull market? To answer this vexing question, I decided to take a close look at the most popular stock market barometer for answers. What I discovered was surprising. While no one knows for certain what the future holds, my research reveals that the bull market could easily last another two or more years. What Has Happened So Far? At the time of this writing, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) has pushed another 100 points higher into the 19,900 area. Early in 2016, the DJIA hit a low in the 15,450 zone on pre-election jitters. Since that time, this index, affectionately known as the stock market barometer, has added over 14% in a steady climb higher. In the short time since the election, the index has risen by over 8%. #-ad_banner-#These figures mean that the DJIA… Read More

They said they would do it, and they did it. And they just told us to brace for more. The U.S. central bankers last week hiked the main interest rate for just the second time since the Great Recession.  This 25 basis-point increase in the Fed Funds rate, which just happened to come about a year after the first one tripped up the stock market rally, was telegraphed well in advance. Almost everyone expected this result as the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting concluded on Wednesday, Dec. 14.  Even before the December meeting, U.S. Treasuries of all maturities came… Read More

They said they would do it, and they did it. And they just told us to brace for more. The U.S. central bankers last week hiked the main interest rate for just the second time since the Great Recession.  This 25 basis-point increase in the Fed Funds rate, which just happened to come about a year after the first one tripped up the stock market rally, was telegraphed well in advance. Almost everyone expected this result as the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting concluded on Wednesday, Dec. 14.  Even before the December meeting, U.S. Treasuries of all maturities came under selling pressure, with interest rates rallying. One reason was the widespread optimism about economic growth and the ensuing equity rally. Another reason was the market speculating that the economy was strong, and that economic data would mean the Fed guiding for more than two rate hikes in 2017. In fact, it’s likely that not two but three interest rate hikes are in the cards for 2017. This is what the Fed signaled at the December meeting, and, given the latest economic data combined with policy outlook, this scenario seems plausible.  Investors, especially income-starved retirees, have many questions: What will… Read More

This is BIG… For the first time since 1933, the SEC is now allowing regular people like you and me to invest in brand-new, explosive-growth companies BEFORE THEY GO PUBLIC. Imagine getting in on the next Facebook for 33 cents a share or the next Apple at 78 cents. In StreetAuthority’s Pre-IPO Millionaire, I vet six to eight deals like this one, and offer my exclusive in-depth analysis of a single opportunity that I believe could return 1,000% or more. Click here for more information. — Joseph Hogue, CFA Organic food sales in the United States jumped 11% in 2015… Read More

This is BIG… For the first time since 1933, the SEC is now allowing regular people like you and me to invest in brand-new, explosive-growth companies BEFORE THEY GO PUBLIC. Imagine getting in on the next Facebook for 33 cents a share or the next Apple at 78 cents. In StreetAuthority’s Pre-IPO Millionaire, I vet six to eight deals like this one, and offer my exclusive in-depth analysis of a single opportunity that I believe could return 1,000% or more. Click here for more information. — Joseph Hogue, CFA Organic food sales in the United States jumped 11% in 2015 to a record $43.3 billion, almost four times the 3% growth in overall food sales. Despite this rapid pace of growth, organic sales still account for just 5% of total food sales in the United States. #-ad_banner-#The market for organic food is just getting started, and one company is bringing the trend from the farm straight to your home. It’s developed a countertop appliance that could become as common as a toaster or coffee-maker. You can’t buy shares in the stock market. This is still a private company. But you can get a piece of the action as a pre-IPO… Read More

Chasing Nike’s (NYSE: NKE) dominant position in the athletic footwear business has been a tiring exercise for competitors such as Under Armour (NYSE: UA), Adidas (OTC:ADDYY), and Skechers (NYSE: SKX) over the past couple of years. In 2016, however, chasing Nike stock has proven to be an even more frustrating… Read More

Legendary investor John Templeton had a simple explanation for the cycle of bull markets, saying they are “born on pessimism, grow on skepticism, mature on optimism, and die on euphoria.” At 2,800-plus days and counting, the current bull market, which was born from the ashes of the 2008-2009 financial crises and has been the second-longest in history, seems to be exiting the skepticism stage and entering the optimism stage. Longtime subscribers of my premium investing service, Maximum Profit, know that I was very skeptical of how much longer the bull market would last at the beginning of the year. I… Read More

Legendary investor John Templeton had a simple explanation for the cycle of bull markets, saying they are “born on pessimism, grow on skepticism, mature on optimism, and die on euphoria.” At 2,800-plus days and counting, the current bull market, which was born from the ashes of the 2008-2009 financial crises and has been the second-longest in history, seems to be exiting the skepticism stage and entering the optimism stage. Longtime subscribers of my premium investing service, Maximum Profit, know that I was very skeptical of how much longer the bull market would last at the beginning of the year. I cited slow economic growth, declining earnings in S&P 500 companies’ earnings, and the fact that my proprietary momentum-based investing system was finding very few companies that had the cash flow growth  needed to warrant a “buy” signal under my system’s rules. —Sponsored Link— New Gold Law To Impact 1.6 Billion People A new global law in effect this December could deliver an unexpected shock to the markets. No less than 32 major central banks are scrambling to prepare for the inevitable fallout. They’re shifting their money into one single asset that could explode in value,… Read More