Archive for Finance
February 5, 2010 at 9:49 am · Filed under Finance
The next time I’m in The States, I wonder if I should change banks. When I opened my first checking account, it was at a little bank, Ye Old Bank of Alton. It was then bought buy a “Big Bank”. This is my issue with the bank, now. I wonder if it is doing enough for my back home community like I think it should be.
I honestly don’t do much banking with the “Big Bank” now. My account is really just a temporary hub which I withdrawal and transfer money in and out of. I don’t do any investing or make substantial interest with their savings account. I do all this online.
However, if I had an account with a community bank. I think I would try and help it out by purchasing CD’s and loans to the bank. My hope would be that the bank uses this money to give back to the neighborhood businesses and homes, like the Bailey Building and Loan.
Maybe the “Big Bank” does substantially help out the community with home loans and business owners. I honestly don’t think they were involved in the the market crash like other “Big Banks” were. But I want some reassuring that they’re doing everything possible to help the little guys.
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April 21, 2009 at 10:43 am · Filed under Finance
Recently, I’ve been getting lucky sleeping with FAZ. If you don’t know, FAZ is an Ultra ETF which is traded like a stock. It is extremely high risk/ high reward.
Direxion Financial Bear 3X Shares (the Fund) seeks daily investment results of 300% of the inverse (or opposite) of the price performance of the Russell 1000 Financial Services Index (the Financial Index). The Financial Index is a capitalization-weighted index of companies that provide financial services.
In a nut shell, it’s a bearish ETF centered around the financial banks. When the bank stocks go down, FAZ will move up. BIG! When the banks move up, FAZ will move down. BIG! With the recent collapse of some of the banks, you can understand why this is a popular ETF to trade. Gamblers have the potential to make a lot of money quickly. FAZ has a bizzaro brother which is FAS. They work opposite of each other.
Due to the nature of this ETF, I’ve only been trading a small amount of cash, but it has paid off. Fortunately, I’ve been able to miss most of the down days (last week it was down -40% in ONE DAY) and get lucky when it moves up (like today).
I think “sleeping with FAZ” sounds appropriate, because I go to sleep around the time the stock market opens. When I wake up, it has already closed. Therefore, in the mornings, I’m always thinking what did FAZ do. Was it a great one night stand or do I need to see the doctor?
Since, I’m trading a small amount the pay off hasn’t been substantial. My gains have been a drop in the bucket compared to last year’s losses. But it has been fun sleeping around. And if the banks are going crash, I might as well capitalize on it.
February 29, 2008 at 11:22 pm · Filed under Finance, News Events
I’ve been listening to a lot of the new Mars Volta: The Bedlam in Goliath
As you know, I’m a pretty frugal individual. So, I was pleased to find this website dedicated to smart living. They post a lot of new articles per day, one of them is always a good read. Wisebread
The HD War between HD DVD and Blue-Ray is over. I’m so glad that I’m not an early adopter who jumped into this mix and could have got burned with an HD DVD player or discs.
Motivated by a Tax, Irish Spurn Plastic Bags Some places in Korea have a similar tax on bags in general. So, it’s good that I keep my backpack with me.
I like Google. But, as a whole, I’m liking free/open projects more. I think Wikia is an interesting project with some potential in the future. It also has ability to be a social website like facebook or myspace.
There are a pair of shoes online that I’d like to buy. But, I hate buying clothes online. No matter who makes the shoes or t-shirts, the conventional chart size varies from the next. A 10.5 from brand X always fits different than a 10.5 from brand Y.
Lastly, I’ve received a couple offers to return to Korea after my contract. I’m still weighing my options and opportunities. I, now, have 3 months left and a few reasons to return. But, who knows how it will go.
December 18, 2007 at 12:30 am · Filed under Finance
2008 is right around the corner and you know what that means, contribute to your IRA. Time to scrape up some money for the new year. The limit will increase by $1000 for 2008. If you haven’t contributed for 2007, what are you waiting for?
A Roth IRA is an individual retirement account (IRA) allowed under the tax law of the United States. Named for its chief legislative sponsor, U.S. Senator William V. Roth Jr. of Delaware, a Roth IRA differs in several significant ways from other IRAs.
2008: Age <49 $5,000 , >49 $6,000
I’m also, glad that I bought some CDs when I did. The fed has been cutting the key rates of lately. Therefore, I wouldn’t get as good as percentage as I did before.
September 11, 2006 at 6:54 pm · Filed under Finance
So, …Apple has an announcement tomorrow. You may have heard about it. The one thing I’m betting on is a new iPod Nano, and you can bet I’m a gonna get me one. But, people are also speculating on a video service and possibly an Apple iPhone. What’s relevant about all this is that the anticipation is building up the stock price. If the announcement fails to live up to the hype or surprises investors we’re going to see a dramatic shift in the price. I got in at 67.4 a few weeks ago. It’s been doing well for the old portfolio. Unfortunately, oil is not.
UPDATE: The new iPod Nano has:
- capacity: 2GB -$149 , 4GB -$199, 8GB – $250
- dimensions: 3.5″ x 1.6″ x 0.26″
- battery life: 24 hour music playback! woah!
- skip free playback
Oil was completely inflated over speculation for the summer driving/Iran/Israel/hurricane season. Since none of these have been a threat to the supply in oil, the price is falling tanking! It’s fallen greatly these past 2 weeks from $78-$65 and who knows where it will stabilize. But, once it does, that should prove to be a good time to buy in. There should be a gradual rally when winter starts to kick in. (I need to emphasize should b/c I’m no expert and I dont think any of these so called “experts” deserve that title either. Otherwise, they would have forseen this dropoff. ) Since, I got in at the wrong time, I’m sitting around twidling my fingers. Many companies are at 6 month or year lows. So, if you’re interested, keep an eye out for these discounts.
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