I heard something similar to my posted title the other day on CNBC, and after hearing that the Federal Reserve will continue to keep interest rates low a bit longer, I’m seeing those concerned about inflation moving even further toward taking off-the-grid survivalist measures. Gold “up” – Silver “up” – Food Commodities “up” – Gun […]
For those of us who can relate to being asked for investment advice by family … I’m sharing letter I received today that might help. For some delusional reason, a few in my family feed my ego by asking for investment advice, even though my competence is questionable. I usually keep quiet on the subject […]
The financial markets continue to hold their own, which considering the continued of negative news we’ve hearing is amazing. Gold and especially silver (at a 31 year high) have become safe haven investments for some investors concerned that the economy will stumble and inflation (or likely ‘stagflation’) will be what we’ll see in the second […]
Truth be told, I could see myself driving the 2012 Toyota Prius v (Versatility) … but don’t tell any of my Volkswagen TDI diesel friends! 42 MPG City, 38 MPG Highway, 40 MPG Combined Second row seats slide, fold flat, and recline 45 degrees for comfort 34.3 cubic feet of cargo volume First-ever resin […]
On the days that I am connected to the Internet during Wall Street’s market close, I often stream a tiny Slingplayer window of CBNC’s Closing Bell. Today I chuckled at someone on the trading desk holding up a “Hi Mom” sign (left). Also changes in technology has helped investors and traders in recent years by […]
As mentioned the other day, the 2012 Volkswagen Passat will be built on a new platform in Chattanooga, Tennessee and be available with the very efficient and desirable TDI diesel engine. According to what I’ve read on other blogs, the published fuel economy will be 43 mpg on the highway and will be offered with […]
The stock OEM Goodyear Integrity tires on my Honda Pilot have giving me a good 109,000 miles of wear and I replaced them today since an ugly split started to show up. They have always driven well on everything but wet roads, especially heavy rain. Their flaw is that they seem to be unable to […]
Up a week, down the next week. The markets closed with a strong surge of buying today as the approaching corporate earning season is expected to be optimistic . An analyst that I talked with today sees continued volatility for the balance of summer, but he hinted that projections are for a 17% increase by […]
Oil is ‘cheap’ according to graphs depicting Unleaded Gasoline against the dollar this past year (right) and crude oil over the past two years (below). The crisis in Europe and lack of robust economic recovery worldwide is contributing to high inventories and the faltering Spring rally in oil. Lackluster demand aside, oil production countries remain […]
Shares of Palm Inc. rose Friday after an analyst said the cell phone maker might be worth more then generally thought if it is bought out. The Sunnyvale, Calif., company’s stock has dwindled from January’s high of $14.17, with even Palm’s latest phones selling poorly. It brought out a completely new operating system, and phones […]
I was reading a column in SmartMoney magazine by James Stewart after he attended the New York Auto Show about the return of profits to the automotive industry, at least some of them. It may be in part due to a cycle of replacing their aging cars and in part due to a renewed focus […]
After the stock bouncing on Friday, Palm Inc shareholders and smartphone users continue to speculate just was will happen to their financially troubled company. Rumors continue to be battered around (article below) as having interest in Palm – the latest being HTC Corp. On a personal note, I am beginning to embrace my Palm Pre […]
When oil prices doubled not too long ago, many along with our government saw expanding clean, renewable and domestic biofuels as one component that could help our nation become more self sufficient. Just as many pointed out that an agricultural based source would not provide real solutions to the problem in part due to the […]
Exchanging a few US dollars for Eurodollars this week has me thinking about the struggling economy as I prepare for vacation. I noticed that stocks struggled again on Friday, and crude oil closed below $60 a barrel as everyone continued to worry about the economy. Reflective of the economy, the Dow Jones industrials closed down another […]
WSJ Online Here’s a bright thought: if, scratch that, when … the economy rebounds, it most likely will rise quickly from the shocking lows we are currently seeing. The dark side is that this selloff doesn’t seem to be finding a bottom and there aren’t many confident traders ready buy stocks again. Today’s news from […]
Traders saw most stocks fall on Thursday, putting the Dow Jones Industrial Average back on a bear-market closing low track. The financial sector continued to decline and there was little desire by investors to buy equities with the gloomy economic data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 89.68 points, or 1.2%, to close at 7465.95 […]
Fuel prices are pretty low not too far from my house today. I filled up with unleaded regular at a Circle K Marathon station for $1.65 over the lunch hour and decided not to gripe about my 20.8 mpg. (Honda 4wd Pilot) This price is about the lowest I’ve seen and after listening to the […]
Now that wholesale prices for refined fuels are retreating a bit from their speculator driven lofty levels, I’ve been asked by a few people when this change is going to be felt at the retail level? My best guess would be soon … but then I’m wrong more than I’m right these days. Gasbuddy.com reports: […]
Big news in the technology world as Microsoft (MSFT) made a bid to bring Yahoo (YHOO) into the Mr. Softy stable. The huge 44.6 Billion dollar bid would help these two companies attempt to reign in the dominate online giant Google (GOOG). The deal would pay Yahoo shareholders $31 a share, which represents a 62% […]
An analysis article written my Timothy Gardner and published in Reuters summarizes the challenges of running a biodiesel business. Although fuel prices have risen significantly and demand for alternative have tripled sales of biodiesel to 250 million gallons last year, the oil feed crops have risen as well. Soyoil, the primary oil feed crop in […]
I’ve been participating in a discussion in our CinciTDI Yahoo group over the concern that food crops a being used for fuels … particularly as it relates to biodiesel. With the demand for soybeans (and corn for ethanol) rising, these two staple food and feed crops are returning higher prices per bushel. This is good […]
I often tune into the CNBC financial programs, particularly the opening and closing bell hours to monitor the daily happenings in the financial markets. Occasionally the host allows and encourages a guest the freedom to mention stocks … a policy that I find questionable especially when its a smaller company during trading hours. (I hope […]
Renewable fuels including E85 and Biodiesel are tough on rubber and polymer refueling hoses. Many pumps, including my current garage based transfer pump, have ‘weepy’ hoses which soften when exposed to the new alternative fuels. Goodyear has announced a new product they have dubs “Flexwing VersaFuel” which handles most common fuels. Goodyear Introduces Versatile Transfer […]
Hewlett-Packard has been growing their market for HP personal computers (especially notebooks) through retailers in contrast to the direct sales approach of Dell Computer. As reflected in recent stock performance, HP in a sluggish market is up nearly 100% in two years vs. Dell’s decline of nearly 30% over the same period. Profitably selling computers […]
I liked Megan Murphy’s post over on the Renewable Energy Access site enough that I didn’t want it to get lost … so I’m archiving it here for reference. An algae biodiesel article is in the works and I’ll keep my eye open for it. May 8, 2007 How Does Biodiesel Affect U.S Energy Consumption? […]
Daniel Fisher in the February 26th issue of Forbes wrote an ‘investor beware’ article titled “Kissycat and the Magic Diesel.” (Marketplace.org MP3 audio interview with Dan Fisher here.) The article points out a new capital generation favorite of penny stock pushers … “Renewable Energy Companies.” Everyone loves this new alternative energy market, from President Bush […]
According to the holiday (Presidents Day) business news , Sirius and XM satellite radio companies are set to announce their merger today. Industry experts have been anticipating this announcement for some time now and according to an article in the NYPost, the “two sides were locked in negotiations over the weekend trying to hammer out […]
Confirmation of the Google/YouTube rumor has been announced today after market close. The $1.65 billion dollar stock deal is Google’s large purchase ever and pushes them to #1 in delivering online video. In only two years YouTube blasted into the market without any particular business plan becoming a favorite site for 100 million videos per […]
The Nasdaq tracking index CLEN debuted on May 18th and is a tracking index similar to the QQQ only for Clean Energy companies. It contains companies who are producing renewable fuels, advanced storage devices, energy efficiency and advanced materials. The second step will be to build trading vehicles around this clean energy index. John Jacobs, […]
My daily interest in stock trading and investing occasionally turns up ‘timing’ opportunity (beware this is risky). I often trade for daily moves but have a philosophy of building long term positions in companies that are leaders in their industry. This strategy short term often looks ugly, but long term generally outpaces the market and […]
Chrysler is ‘diesel-izing’ the hot selling 300 for the European markets while North America waits … 2008 maybe … who knows? Nevertheless, those of us wanting a few more US diesel options are speculating what cars besides the Mercedes Benz 300E CDI will be ready for the US market. Joseph White reporting for the Wall […]
Another slipped date about the Treo 700p smartphone being rolled out by Sprint this month; this one looks to have been a mistake (or scam) release which included the date of the new 700p Sprint model. In the online version of TechWorld, a article appeared and then was quickly pulled down, but not before this […]
I haven’t written much on the markets, but will note that the Dow closed at a 4-1/2 year high, just under the 11,000 mark at 10,959.31 today. It was the fourth up day in a row and marks a positive tone for the new year. I suspect that investors and trader alike are sensing an […]
Cincinnati-based Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) slipped more than 6% this Thursday morning after a disappointing financial update and seven … SEVEN … analyst downgrades. Not only did P&G warn that the consumer business was weak, Delta Airline file for bankrupcy protection, but the once well run bank is now exposing its weak management as banking […]
The new Popemobile??? I hope this is not what VW is counting on. Is there any question as to how Volkswagen has been managed in recent years? Their strategy to up scale their image and move from the “people’s car†mentality has surely made even the most loyal shareholders doubt. One writer sums up that […]