The flame of uncertainty in markets can be fueled by many different things. Bad economic data and bad earnings are usually the big drivers of an uncertainty-induced sell-off. And while the recent data on the jobs front was lackluster, the economic sentiment indicators have been good. Even the early earnings reports from bellwether banks JPMorgan

There’s no Goldilocks in the markets right now. There are only the three bears — and those bears are growling with ferocity. Although not technically in a bear market in terms of percentage off the recent high, my benchmark for what I consider a market trouncing into bear territory is the 200-day moving average. This

The big news rocking global markets early this week was China and its surprise move to devalue its currency not once, but twice in two days. Although markets have largely settled down during the past couple of trading days, the early-week selling in both domestic and international markets was a direct result of the near-5%

One of the most startling charts I’ve seen in a long time is the DB Commodities Tracking Index Fund (DBC). This is the widely followed benchmark index of the commodities space, and it includes the metals, grains, oil, soybeans and sugar. The broad-based nature of DBC means it’s a great way to get a handle

Stocks faltered this week, as the S&P 500 slumped about 1.6% (through midday Friday). The weak week was a far cry from where stocks stood seven days ago, when the S&P 500 enjoyed a 2.4% surge. After vaulting to new highs last Friday, I was expecting stocks to give back and consolidate. What I wasn’t

Greetings from the San Francisco MoneyShow! Long-time readers will likely know how fond I am of this great city, as well as how much I enjoy my face-to-face interaction with investors here at the MoneyShow. As I write today’s Weekly ETF Report, I am just about to hold my first MoneyShow workshop. Yet before I

There was a whole lot of crazy in the markets this week. From Greece to China to the corner of Wall St. and Broad St., things were indeed wild. Greece’s bailout woes, China’s stock market plunge and a computer outage on the trading floor of the NYSE all contributed to the strange week. Yet, by

The first half of the year is already over. Yes, I know it feels like we just kicked off 2015, but this weekend we celebrate our nation’s birthday. To me, the July 4th holiday represents the unofficial break before we get back to business in the second half of the year. So, how did things

We are just days away from 2015’s halftime, and that’s a good excuse for us to take a look at how what I call the “Big 3” exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have performed this year. The Big 3 are the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY), the iShares MSCI EAFE ETF (EFA) and the iShares MSCI

If you’re an exchange-traded fund (ETF) investor like me, then you are always looking for trends that can make you money. One component of that search for the hottest ETF trends is to “follow the money.” Lately, when we do a check of money flows out of, and into, various ETF segments, we see a