http://www.catamountcp.com Just another WordPress weblog Wed, 22 Oct 2008 14:34:27 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en By proceeding, I acknowledge that I have read and understood the Disclosure and Copywrite Statements. Dear Clients, Here’s a portfolio update. I invested 10% of your portfolios in the S&P 500 index on Friday. As such, we participated in yesterday’s rally by adding about +1.5% to the total value ... http://www.catamountcp.com/personal/by-greg-mattlage/a-rally-for-the-record-books-will-it-last/ The S&P 500 Index closed at its historic high of 1565 exactly 1 year ago. Today it closed down (-41.9%) to 909. If measured from its all time intraday high of 1576 on October 11, 2007, the index is down -42.3%. I feel extremely fortunate to report ... http://www.catamountcp.com/personal/by-greg-mattlage/markets-where-do-we-go-from-here/ Instead of Monopoly, U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke should patent a new board game called “Bailout.” American’s should be concerned about the game of “bailout” being played by the Fed, the U.S. Treasury, and the Lords of High Finance (aka. Wall Street). It ... http://www.catamountcp.com/personal/by-greg-mattlage/the-name-of-the-game-is-bailout/ By proceeding, I acknowledge that I have read and understood the Disclosure and Copywrite Statements. I’m sure you’ve been watching the headlines. The news is horrific. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which hold the majority of residential mortgage paper in the United States, had to be rescued and put ... http://www.catamountcp.com/personal/by-greg-mattlage/assets-prices-fall-across-the-board-cash-is-king-for-now/ In my May 22, comments, I forewarned that the “bear market rally” was fading and that I would wait for more confirmation before becoming more deliberate in rebuilding bearish investment strategies into managed portfolios. Unfortunately, today’s sobering unemployment report further validated my view that investors who were putting a bid under ... http://www.catamountcp.com/personal/by-greg-mattlage/36/ Since the Federal Reserve rescued Bear Stearns and buoyed the banking system with some rather unusual tactics in late March, the stock market has been on a roll. Absent the Fed’s extraordinary measures, the equity markets would have collapsed. Instead the markets have staged what I would term ... http://www.catamountcp.com/personal/by-greg-mattlage/rally-nearing-exhaustion-bear-market-likely-to-resume/ By proceeding, I acknowledge that I have read and understood the Disclosure and Copywrite Statements. Since my last writing, the US stock market indexes have plunged through the August lows and several key support levels further below. The S&P index finished one of its worst Januarys in history, posting ... http://www.catamountcp.com/personal/by-greg-mattlage/it-looks-like-a-bear-acts-like-a-bear-it%e2%80%99s-probably-a-bear/ By proceeding, I acknowledge that I have read and understood the Disclosure and Copywrite Statements. Dear Clients: Following the August credit crunch, stocks rebounded and attempted to challenge all time highs (Dow 14000 & S&P 500 1575). If the indexes had broken above these levels with conviction, I would have expected ... http://www.catamountcp.com/personal/by-greg-mattlage/bear-market-or-bull-market-correction/ By proceeding, I acknowledge that I have read and understood the Disclosure and Copywrite Statements. The conventional wisdom views investment grade bonds as conservative and safe investment in any climate. Historically, however, that has not been the case. Bonds tend to perform poorly in market environments that are characterized by ... http://www.catamountcp.com/personal/by-greg-mattlage/troublesome-environment-for-domestic-bond-investors/ By proceeding, I acknowledge that I have read and understood the Disclosure and Copywrite Statements. Dear Clients, Ordinarily, I would not inundate you with so many musings in a matter of days. However, yesterday’s market action was notable. You may be wondering what happened to the stock market and what ... http://www.catamountcp.com/personal/by-greg-mattlage/a-message-from-the-capital-markets/