Alibaba Affiliate Bans High-Interest Consumers Loan Products
Ant Financial, the financial arm of Alibaba, has barred consumer loans with an annual interest rate above 24% on its Alipay platform. This latest step by Alibaba’s Ant Financial is another sign of how stricter regulations are chaining the once-booming Chinese internet lending industry. By Charliepug (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0], via Wikimedia Commons Why did Alibaba’s Ant […]
Investors Rush Into Crypto
While a good deal of Americans opted to avoid talking politics around the Thanksgiving Dinner table this year, one topic filling the void was bitcoin. Whether it was a cousin bragging about buying it more than a year ago, or your uncle adamantly steadfast in his belief that the whole thing is a bubble, there’s a good chance someone […]
US PMIs Tumble To 4-Month Lows, Signal Just 2% GDP Growth
After reassuringly positive Eurozone PMIs, US Manufacturing and Services disappointed with the composite PMI slumping to 5-month lows in November. Flash U.S. Composite Output Index at 54.6 (55.2 in October). 4-month low. Flash U.S. Services Business Activity Index at 54.7 (55.3 in October). 4-month low. Flash U.S. Manufacturing PMI at 53.8 (54.6 in October). 2-month low. Flash U.S. Manufacturing […]
Is The Market At A Top?
Record Highs On Tuesday The stock market played to this year’s theme on Tuesday as the S&P 500 hit 2,600 for the first time, rallying 0.65%. The Dow had its 60th record high of the year which is 4th most records since 1910. The Russell 2000 rose 1.03% and the VIX fell 8.64% to 9.73. Tech led the market as […]
Aurora Cannabis Is Quickly Growing Into A Canadian Cannabis Conglomerate
Aurora Cannabis Inc. (ACB.TO) (ACBFF) continues to execute on all cylinders and put its capital to work. The licensed Canadian medical marijuana producer has over $300 million of cash on hand and the company has been using its stock as a currency to make strategic investments and acquisitions. Although Aurora has been making significant moves […]
Buy Gold As Fed Shows Uncertainty And Concern Over Financial ‘Imbalances’
– FOMC minutes show uncertainty and concern about markets are affecting officials’ decision-making – Officials were cautious when evaluating market conditions and the ‘damaging effects on the economy’ – Worry about ‘potential buildup of financial imbalances’ and a sharp reversal in asset prices’ – Members seem oblivious to impact of inflation on households and savings […]
‘The Enigma Of 8’: Here’s What Goldman Sees For China’s Markets In 2018
Goldman knows one thing for sure about Chinese equities in 2018 and that’s this: But, one thing we could say confidently: our current 2018 views are unlikely to stay unchanged as we go through the year. So you know, they might as well have just put a big “take this with a grain of salt” […]
The Pros And Cons Of Trading Penny Stocks
Let’s face it, we’ve all heard the stories of rags to riches in the investment world. More often than not, these stories come from some sort of transaction involving a penny stock. We’ve all probably seen Wolf of Wall Street, but we all can’t be Jordan Belfort. Most of the people who choose to go […]
Invest In Stocks? Depends On Where You Live
from the St Louis Fed Stock market participation varies widely by income, with higher-income families being more likely to own stocks. But what about by state? A recent article in The Regional Economist found that stock market participation varied across the country as well, even among households of similar incomes. Senior Economist YiLi Chien and Senior Research Associate Paul Morris examined […]
Tough Love On Saving For Retirement (For Millennials)
Periodically, I read articles that appear antithetical to the premise of paying yourself first and saving as much as you can, as early as you can to have enough saved for retirement. In the last few weeks, I’ve read two articles – one saying that traditional retirement savings for millennials is useless, and the other saying […]
