Michael Ashton

E-PIPHANY

Contributor since: 26 Feb 2010

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• Tug-Of-War Tie? Unlikely

  Published 02 November 2011 | viewed 0 times

  Markets always have opinions; it's just that the opinions aren't always consistent. This is a far cry from saying they're right, and in fact I…

• Raspberry

  Published 02 November 2011 | viewed 0 times

  The Grand Bargain on Greece that was struck last week provoked a skeptical (if not a downright queasy) reaction in many quarters. I wrote about…

• PIIGS At The Trough

  Published 27 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  Well, what else am I going to write about today? Markets got to react to the EU deal announced late last night, and went predictably…

• The Devil Is In The Double-Entry

  Published 27 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  Strong Durable Goods Orders, ex-Transportation, of +1.7% will help end Q3 on a strong note (the first look at Q3 GDP is due tomorrow, and…

• Up On Fumes; Now Down In Flames?

  Published 25 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  Volumes remained light on Tuesday, but the clouds definitely darkened some. Bonds responded to weak economic data and a negative turn in Europe by rallying…

• Not Time To Make Big Calls

  Published 24 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  I'm don't know whether it makes sense to read a lot into Monday's action itself. Volumes were light; presumably, this is mainly because many investors…

• After All, Tomorrow Is Another Day

  Published 21 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  "I can't think about that right now. If I do, I'll go crazy. I'll think about that tomorrow." - Chancellor Merkel Actually, that quote is…

• Inflation Worrying People Less, But Shouldn't Be

  Published 19 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  Well, it's definitely getting difficult to attract followers to websites these days. I noticed that one of the visitors to my main commentary website got…

• Those Millimeters Do Add Up

  Published 18 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  What's a millimeter among friends? Stocks soared late in the day today as the Guardian newspaper in the UK ran a story proclaiming "France and…

• A Wandering Mind

  Published 17 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  It is very hard to write a comment these days, at least about market events. While there are plenty of market events to write about,…

• Are CMBS Strains Coming To The Fore?

  Published 12 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  One thing is certain these days. By sitting on my hands, I'm missing a lot of tradable swings! I am not too disturbed by this…

• Tiny Bubbles

  Published 11 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  The definition of a bubble is naturally elusive. Certain Fed Chairmen have been known to observe that while a bubble is usually apparent after the…

• Fire Hoses Pumping Again

  Published 07 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  The authorities in Europe are currently manning the fire hoses and pumping like mad. Whether their efforts douse the fire, or even hit the target,…

• Making Things Worse

  Published 05 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  Markets continued Monday's late strength on the renewed optimism about Dexia being saved or broken up cleanly, on the talk that the IMF would be…

• We're Not There Yet

  Published 04 October 2011 | viewed 0 times

  A lot can change in two weeks. I have been half a world away since mid-September, during which the Fed announced "Operation Twist II," Italy…

• A Many-Ouch Day

  Published 16 September 2011 | viewed 0 times

  Once again, the news was almost uniformly bad; once again, equity markets reacted as if each piece of bad news just brings closer the days…

• Prescience, or Nostalgia?

  Published 14 September 2011 | viewed 0 times

  Other pundits have already observed it, I am sure, but the equity market these days is trading as if it is tuned into a news…

• Not The Weakest Link

  Published 13 September 2011 | viewed 0 times

  Equity markets remained buoyant with anticipation today, but I have begun to lose track of what it is anticipation of. By definition, we can't wait…

• All The Money In The World?

  Published 12 September 2011 | viewed 0 times

  China doesn't really have all the money in the world. It just seems like they do. From what I can tell, the Chinese - at…

• Help Is On The Way (But Maybe Not Soon)

  Published 08 September 2011 | viewed 0 times

  Yesterday's spike in the equity markets seemed dramatic, until you realize that all it did was reverse most (and not all) of Friday's selloff while…