Fear is a priceless asset to smart investors

August 25, 2015 by Ehren Stanhope

The mettle of investors has been severely tested over the last few weeks. Since the market's recent June highs, a litany of issues in Greece, Iran, and China have plagued the stock markets. Emerging markets have reached bear market territory while U.S. large cap indices have broached the "correction" juncture. U.S. small cap is in a bear market as well. Long term U.S. Treasuries have rallied. The dollar has weakened. Commodities, including oil, have tanked. It's enough to make an investor's head spin.

Currency Wars

August 18, 2015 by Ehren Stanhope

A friend of mine recently asked what implications exist for the Chinese Yuan devaluation— specifically as it relates to Iran Nuclear negotiations. I had not thought about the connection until being asked the question. After thinking about it, I settled on "significant".

The bubble nobody can resist

June 15, 2015 by Ehren Stanhope

Almost nobody can resist the allure of a market appreciating at triple digits. The rapid increase in the Chinese equity market is driving up global valuations. Even index players are getting into the game. FTSE, the index provider for the popular Vanguard Emerging Market ETF (VWO) has decided to include Chinese A shares in its indexes–further proof that owning a market-capitalization weighted index may be a poor investment strategy. The tech and small cap heavy Shenzhen exchange trades at a price to earnings ratio of 50x. The Shanghai exchange trades at at 33x, and the Hong Kong exchange is at 20x.