Ockham Research Staff @ January 30, 2009 # No Comment Yet
A break down of the 4th quarter GDP release. The overall GDP number was not as bad as some had feared but the areas that have propped it up are not all that encouraging, as inventories build as demand declines.
Ockham Research Staff @ January 30, 2009 # No Comment Yet
In this post we are piggy-backing off of an interesting article from TechCrunch.com which got us thinking about an emerging world of data collection and research in the web 2.0 existence. Mint.com is the subject of the article as they are able to collect and organize a massive amount of data to yield some meaningful research.
Ockham Research Staff @ January 26, 2009 # No Comment Yet
There were a couple of very interesting pieces of news from the this morning that I believe are important. One, a study by the WSJ, has shown that banks thus far are lending less than before they received the TARP funding. The second comes from a newsletter from John Mauldin that warns of the possibility of more TARP programs headed our way.
Ockham Research Staff @ January 22, 2009 # One Comment
In this post we reprint an article from the Wall Street Journal in which they expose yet another conflict of interest from the TARP bailouts. There are always going to be conflicts of interest when politicians and business start to intermix, and we fear that we are just starting to see the beginning of the problem.
Ockham Research Staff @ January 21, 2009 # One Comment
We continue to be amazed by the evolving situation surround the America automakers. The latest deal will partner Chrysler with Italian automaker Fiat, but there will be no money changing hands, instead Fiat will share its fuel-efficiency technologies with Chrysler and in exchange they will receive more than a third of the struggling U.S. firm.
Ockham Research Staff @ January 12, 2009 # No Comment Yet
There is a stark contrast in the performance of the Basic Materials sector over the last 6 months versus the last 3 months. We think that the recent rally in the sector makes this not an ideal place to put your investment, unless there is a significant pull back.
Ockham Research Staff @ January 5, 2009 # No Comment Yet
Americans are an impatient lot. 2008 was a wretched year for most of us, as virtually every asset class was brutalized in a synchronous, global recession. Furthermore, this has not been your “garden variety” recession but rather one induced by severe imbalances in the world’s financial system that will take years to work through. Now, as we blessedly enter a new year, many people are pining for some good economic news. For stock investors, this would entail the end of what has been an almost decade-long bear market. Absent some large shock, expect the markets to be pretty range bound for a few months before beginning a rally near the end of the year that begins to price in a better economic environment in 2010.
Ockham Research Staff @ December 31, 2008 # No Comment Yet
Everyone at Ockham Research would like to thank you for a wonderful (although rocky) 2008. We wish our clients and readers a joyous New Year.
Ockham Research Staff @ December 30, 2008 # 3 Comments
Chrysler just published an advertisement stating, “Thank you, America, for investing in Chrysler”. This is just a perfect example of why Chysler has failed, and will fail in the future.
Ockham Research Staff @ December 29, 2008 # No Comment Yet
2008—a year which will go down in history as a particularly nasty one from an economic point of view—is almost a memory. While the economic challenges which confront the world at present will likely get worse before they improve in the coming year(s), it is still a worthwhile exercise to plumb the depths of one’s mind to try to assemble a list of ten reasons to be thankful as we face 2009.