Mountain Money Blog

Living Near the Fault Line

By Steven Smith | August 26, 2015

Unless you haven’t been paying attention (and kudos if you haven’t) you know that the last week or so has seen a significant sell off in the world stock markets. Ordinarily, I’m loath to fall into the financial media’s trap and ascribe market moves to any particular cause(s). But a few things have been happening […]

2d Quarter Client Note

By Steven Smith | July 14, 2015

There was plenty of noisy global economic and financial news in the second quarter. The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is teetering on the verge bankruptcy. The Chinese stock market looks like a monopoly game. And the debt negotiations between Greece and the European Central Bank simmer on. With that backdrop the S & P 500 […]

1st Quarter Client Note

By Steven Smith | April 19, 2015

Amidst continued slow global growth, particularly in Europe, the Federal Reserve is remaining cryptic as to when it will begin to raise interest rates. Foreign central banks are keeping their interest rates extremely low as well. US economic growth remains sluggish, but is still better than most of the rest of the world. The Fed […]

4th Quarter Client Note

By Steven Smith | January 16, 2015

Unquestionably the biggest economic story of 2014 was the price of a barrel of oil dropping over 50% since June –from over $100/barrel to $50/barrel. This was the result of three phenomena: 1) the enormous increase in US production over the last few years, 2) falling demand due to the increased use of alternatives and […]

3rd Quarter Client Note

By Steven Smith | October 15, 2014

What goes up must come down. I always attributed that idiom to Blood, Sweat & Tears and their 1969 hit song, Spinning Wheel (which peaked at No. 2 before it came down.) But apparently the real author is Sir Isaac Newton back in the 17th Century. Go figure. But with the post 2008 bull market going […]

Supreme Court Gives Two Thumbs Up to Modern Portfolio Theory

By Steven Smith | August 25, 2014

In our estimation, the last week of the United States Supreme Court’s 2013/2014 term was a watershed for Modern Portfolio Theory and the Efficient Market Hypothesis; two essential components in the notion that publicly available information is rapidly incorporated into the prices of securities traded in a robust public market. For a generation now, intelligent […]

2nd Quarter Client Note

By Steven Smith | July 14, 2014

The stock market continued its extraordinary rally off the 2009 Great Recession lows, shaking off an actual 2.9% fall in GDP and a sharp increase in sectarian violence in Iraq. Stocks, bonds and commodities all rose in the first half of 2014; the first time that has happened since 1993. The S & P 500 […]

1st Quarter Client Note

By Steven Smith | April 17, 2014

Stocks picked up – not quite where they left off in 2013 – with a respectable gain. Following a remarkable 32.39% gain in 2013, the S & P 500 Index increased 1.81% in the quarter; but not without a little bit of excitement and the re-emergence of volatility. The news was ever changing: Congress passed […]

4th Quarter Client Note

By Steven Smith | January 22, 2014

It seems like only yesterday that we were peering over the abyss of the fiscal cliff. Last New Year’s Eve, even after the 2012 elections were over, the political standoff appeared to be continuing. Taxes were set to rise, sequestration was about to kick in and the debt ceiling was once again about to be […]

Recognizing and Preventing the Growing Epidemic of Senior Financial Abuse

By Steven Smith | November 24, 2013

Senior financial abuse has become an epidemic in this country. But there are ways to recognize it and try to prevent yourself or a loved one from becoming a victim.

« Previous
1
…
6
7
8
9
10
…
13
Next »