http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick? The Retired Investor/@theMarket Wed, 29 Jul 2026 10:00:09 EDT en-us http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4664 http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4664 Fri, 24 Jul 2026 13:53:00 EDT Oil spiked higher this week, regaining $90 a barrel as the dollar rose and U.S. Treasury bonds sold off. It is not hard to guess what the stock market did as a result.    Down.   I'm sure you are just as tired as I am watching this Kabuki show unfold in the... http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4663 http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4663 Thu, 23 Jul 2026 16:22:00 EDT In an era of populism, distrust in government is rampant. That lack of trust has seeped down into just about everything one reads or hears. Government data is no exception.   As I wrote in my last column, our own president fired the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, claiming... http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4662 http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4662 Fri, 17 Jul 2026 14:02:00 EDT Misery loves company, or so they say. There was plenty of that this week as declining technology stocks dragged down the indexes.   While the stock market had been stuck in a rut most of the month, the tone changed this week. Markets felt the pain as the leading AI -fueled... http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4661 http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4661 Thu, 16 Jul 2026 16:41:00 EDT The data system supporting U.S. economic decisions is losing staff and funding. What's worse is the diminished trust the financial markets have placed in that data.   There are roughly 13 primary statistical agencies embedded within various cabinet departments and federal... http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4660 http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4660 Fri, 10 Jul 2026 14:54:00 EDT The above risks can be a lethal brew for investors. And yet, markets barely budged by the end of the week. Quarterly earnings expectations are buoying the averages, with 23 percent earnings growth expected to vindicate the bulls.   Markets have moved beyond Trump's War despite... http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4658 http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4658 Thu, 09 Jul 2026 16:22:00 EDT It has been 10 years since Brexit took center stage in the politics of the Western world. The populist furor of an unhappy electorate triggered Great Britain's exit from the European Union. How has that worked out for the Brits?   The populist rhetoric of a "Global... http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4659 http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4659 Fri, 03 Jul 2026 14:26:00 EDT The benchmark S&P 500 Index had its best quarter since 2020. It did so with help from the Magnificent 7 and the technology sector, but other areas also participated. That was a good thing.   For the last few years, the handful of stocks that make up the MAG 7 have done most of... http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4657 http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4657 Thu, 02 Jul 2026 16:00:00 EDT Critics dismiss a federal sovereign wealth fund as a "solution looking for a problem." We can't afford one, they say, we are already in too much debt. The real solution is to cut spending and raise taxes. How has that solution been working for you? My argument is that buying... http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4656 http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4656 Fri, 26 Jun 2026 13:14:00 EDT Traders took profits in the red-hot technology sector. That money has been flowing into areas like healthcare, housing, and industrials. That's a good thing since it keeps the downside somewhat in check.   Professional money managers always stress that a proper portfolio should... http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4655 http://www.iberkshires.com/blogs/Bill_Schmick?bid=4655 Thu, 25 Jun 2026 16:41:00 EDT What do Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump have in common? Yes, they are both octogenarians, but even more important, they want to establish a sovereign wealth fund in the U.S. They may differ in their approach, but it is an idea whose day has come.   The number of sovereign wealth...