Thread: Investing, where to begin?

Originally Posted by vancouver

You have not bought a stock in almost 15 years...what exactly are you doing on this thread??

didn't know investing was limited to stocks...you sure you really work in securities?

Originally Posted by LAM

didn't know investing was limited to stocks...you sure you really work in securities?

A broker can buy you;

Stocks
Bonds
REIT's
LP's
Etc, etc.

Equities have and always will provide the best risk reward, given you understand the market. Before you argue this point, realize that all related text books say this. You cannot compare Equity index returns to other asset classes, because it takes out an important factor, the actions of the investor. 1981 to 1991 was the single greatest period for bonds in over 100 years. 1971 to 1981 was the single worst period. If you take these 2 periods out, Equities beat fixed income. The Dow is currently trading at 12.5X which is statistically low. It will trade at 20X again, who cares how long this takes, opportunites will exist for 10 plus years. N.A. Real Estate is still overvalued and will not recover significantly for a decade, Canada's real estate market will find it difficult to beat inflation over the next 10 years. As interest rates rise, N.A. long-term bonds will be decimated. Expect close to zero percent return on what you'll own over the next 2 years...over the next 10 years. The S&P 500 returned 10.7% annually from 1950 to year end 2010 (just glanced over at my most recent andex chart), small caps returned 13.4% in that period. The S&P returned 50% (total return) from 1932 to 1937, this was the worst period of the great depression.

Residential real estate has not appreaciate after inflation from 1890 to 2000, this is as far back as U.S. statistics go. One could have made money in real estate through specualtion and leverage, but had that person applied the same leverage to a diversified portfolio of equities, equities would have won (long-term). There are of course regional exceptions, but they do not apply to everyone, so they are not worth mentioning. I flipped 6 houses before 2007, I made money in a short window...

Sure, substantially more money could have been made investing in junk bonds and futures over the years, but not on a risk adjusted basis.

The fact that you stated rates are low today and a person would want to break even with their savings tells me you don't have the slightest clue. I person could build a very conservative emerging markets bond portfolio and make money with their saving in 2 ways. 1. take advantage of higher yields and capital gains from the easing cycle we just entered, Brazil has already cut rates 2X, India and china just cut rates. 2. Emerging markets currencies will no doubt continue to rise agains the U.S. dollar, money will be made on the currency. My favorite EM Bond fund is already up 3.6% YTD, due mainly to capital gains as a result of rate cuts thus far in 2012

LAM while you spend every waking moment thinking up conspiracy theories through your unaccredited amature research, I get wined and dined by portfolio managers weekly, besides the fact that I get current and up to date market and economic publicatons from global institutions on a weekly basis. I got to pick the brains of Amundi Asset Management just last week, they are the global leader in Emerging Markets bonds. I'd give up on this thread while you still can. Go back to calling me a scumbag contributor to the demise of the American middle class, you'll get more traction...

I found almost every book suggested so far on torrents. I actually had a huge compilation on my hard drive that I forgot about. Here's a link to it (I have no idea if you Americans can get it):

Trading eBooks Collection (download torrent) - TPB

Originally Posted by OfficerFarva

I found almost every book suggested so far on torrents. I actually had a huge compilation on my hard drive that I forgot about. Here's a link to it (I have no idea if you Americans can get it):

Trading eBooks Collection (download torrent) - TPB

Nice! Where were they 4 years ago?

Focus on the Alexander Elder books. Read them chronologically. The final book is priceless in that it gives you a peek into the system that actual traders use.

Originally Posted by DOMS

Gay!


Glad to help, man!

I still say oil!!! Mmm Mmm good

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Originally Posted by vancouver

LAM while you spend every waking moment thinking up conspiracy theories through your unaccredited amature research, I get wined and dined by portfolio managers weekly, besides the fact that I get current and up to date market and economic publicatons from global institutions on a weekly basis. I got to pick the brains of Amundi Asset Management just last week, they are the global leader in Emerging Markets bonds. I'd give up on this thread while you still can. Go back to calling me a scumbag contributor to the demise of the American middle class, you'll get more traction...

wow, so impressive you make a lot of money while providing nothing of added value to society. and I'm sorry unlike yourself I don't have to take a class every time I need to learn something, sucks to be you.

and of course equities yield a higher return then fixed income, especially when you can manipulate the books to pay the least amount of taxes like they do with SPE's/SPV's in tax friendly places like the Netherlands, Ireland, Cayman islands, jersey, etc.

you guys in the financial sector are worthless and most of you have no real skills. in any given year most funds under-perform..any idiot can make a best guess.

Originally Posted by fireman23

I still say oil!!! Mmm Mmm good

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oil is too high right now. Time to short it

Originally Posted by LAM

wow, so impressive you make a lot of money while providing nothing of added value to society. and I'm sorry unlike yourself I don't have to take a class every time I need to learn something, sucks to be you.

and of course equities yield a higher return then fixed income, especially when you can manipulate the books to pay the least amount of taxes like they do with SPE's/SPV's in tax friendly places like the Netherlands, Ireland, Cayman islands, jersey, etc.

you guys in the financial sector are worthless and most of you have no real skills. in any given year most funds under-perform..any idiot can make a best guess.

LAM tell us how you really feel

You made everything you said sound like it's bad...man I love capitalism

NASDAQ ticker: ERII
Hold off until March 8th report comes out, it will drop, buy it and double your money by years end.

Originally Posted by BP2000

oil is too high right now. Time to short it

Not a bad trade, but premature. Oil will continue to rise as a result of the current Iran spat. Syria is going to further destabilize and while they will be net oil importers within a few years, any further destabilization in that region will keep prices high. Further, many OPEC countries require oil to be trading at a certain price point (which is currently between $70-$100/bbl depending on country) in order to pay its bills. Saudi Arabia has not joined the Arab Spring because the King provided financial incentives to his people not too. Oil will likely rise going into the summer driving months; if the Iran issue subsides, Syria makes a deal and the Eropean economy further declines, which is expected, Oil could fall from $120ish range to $75ish, before climbing again to $100.

A lot of ifs and a lot more risk than some other no-brainer trades.

Natural Gas just reached a 13 year low. The U.S. will use more natural gas over the next 10 - 20 years, but more importantly, Asia will use much more natural gas. LNG carriers are experiencing explosive growth and with pipelines leading to Kitimat, LNG exports will also explode as Asia imports. If you buy a leveraged ETF and have a long time horizon, you just might be able to join the 1% and help me bash LAM

Nicely done my friend

Originally Posted by vancouver

Not a bad trade, but premature. Oil will continue to rise as a result of the current Iran spat.

Yea oil goes up and down like the Sun. I short it when we have these scares and it skyrocket's. Using an leveraged ETF makes this easy.

start reading barrons and the WSJ, do this for atleast a few months before you ever play around with your money.