bonds
Fixed Income Investments
What are the best fix income investments in an era of low interest rates? It depends if you want income or security. We offer a few thoughts about how you could invest the fixed-income part of your investment portfolio. Because your approach to fixed income investments in this era of low or even negative interest rates will depend on your philosophy, we look at this issue from two directions.
How Will Higher Interest Rates Affect Your Investments?
The US Federal Reserve Open Market Committee raised interest rates again last week by a quarter of a percent. How will higher interest rates affect your investments? There are several ways that that higher rates will affect your portfolio both immediately and over the long term. Here are a few thoughts on the subject.
Immediate Effects of Higher Interest Rates on Your Investments
U.S. Treasuries
Corporate Bonds
Dividend Stocks
U.S. Treasuries and Corporate Bonds
If you currently have U.S Treasuries, AA, or AAA corporate bonds in your investment portfolio, they just became a little less valuable when the Fed raised rates last week. And, if the […]
How Do You Choose Which Assets Classes to Invest In?
You have enough money to start investing. But, before you consider how to start investing in the stock market, you want to get your financial house in order. Our article on that subject suggests that the first thing to do is pay off your credit cards and the second is to buy your own home. Once you have a rainy day fund in the bank for emergencies you want to consider investments. The stock market is a good choice but it not the only one. What other asset classes are there? Stocks, bonds, short term investments (cash), and real estate […]
US Savings Bonds
US savings bonds are often thought of as a poor man’s route to savings. Many aggressive investors and traders scoff at the idea of buying US savings bonds every payday and holding them for as long as thirty years. However, there are a number of advantages to buying and holding US savings bonds. As with […]
Investing and the Continuing Fiscal Cliff Drama
The President of the United States says that we “are not a deadbeat nation.” He states that the US must raise its debt limit to avoid another fiscal cliff situation. From the President’s point of view, Congress must pay for the bills that it has rung up. From the viewpoint of those who want to […]
Chinese Manufacturing Increase
Stocks around the world responded favorably to the announcement of the first Chinese manufacturing increase in more than a year. A Chinese manufacturing increase may tell us that prospects for investment in China are positive. On the other hand, at least part of a Chinese manufacturing increase will come from sales by this export driven […]
Invest in a Euro Zone Recovery
Is it time to invest in a Euro Zone recovery? Things have been looking pretty dismal in the Euro Zone for the last couple of years. Leaders have been scrambling to bail out nations across its Southern tier, Greece, Spain, Portugal, and Italy, as well as Ireland. The worst of the lot was Greece. Then, […]
Invest in European Junk Bonds
With Greece teetering on the edge of default abyss it appears that to invest in Greek bonds was to invest in European junk bonds. Voters have decided in Greece and France that enough is enough. This return to socialism in Europe drives stocks down in the Euro Zone. There is a run on the banks […]
Hedge Interest Rate Risk with a Bond Ladder
Is it time to hedge interest rate risk with a bond ladder? We are living in a period of historically low interest rates. The United States Federal Reserve has been buy US treasuries and thereby driving down interest rates. They are doing this to help promote investment in increased employment. They are succeeding to a […]
Pension Obligation Bonds
Image via Wikipedia Pension obligation bonds were a great idea for about a minute and a half in 1985 when the city of Oakland, California used them. Oakland issued tax exempt bonds at a prevailing rate for tax exempt bonds and then turned around and invested the money in vehicles such as Treasury Bills offering […]