By Pamela Schmitt Take emotions out of investing, focus on ‘true value’ Stock volatility is the new norm. It is no longer a rare event for the overall market to fluctuate by 2-3 percent in a day. And in the last 100 trading days of 2011 we saw seven days where the S&P 500 moved [ Read More...]

By Pamela Schmitt Men, you should listen up too! Women and investing — It’s a topic of conversation that has become more prevalent in recent years, as the traditionally male task of managing finances and investments has moved to a higher priority for women in all stages of life. This new focus is for good [ Read More...]

By Pamela F. Schmitt, CFA, CDFA Contributing columnist Individual investors have become more skittish in recent years…and for good reason. After experiencing nothing but a positive stock market for 17 of the 18 years from 1982 to 1999, the illusion of virtually guaranteed returns from stocks was obliterated in the decade that followed. The bursting [ Read More...]

By Pamela F. Schmitt, CFA, CDFA Retirement nest eggs everywhere shrank with the market decline in 2008. It was a frightening time for all, but those who stayed the course or even invested further were fortunate enough to see their portfolios recover. On the other hand, many close to retirement panicked and sold their stocks for [ Read More...]

By Pamela F. Schmitt, CFA The economy is a cyclical thing. Uncertainty is a fact of life. These two realities can have a significant impact on movements within financial markets on a day-to-day, week-to-week or month-to-month basis, as investors react to new information and anticipate what it means for the future. While understanding long-term trends [ Read More...]

This is the new Finance Section of The American Israelite. Look for useful financial-related content to be added to this page soon. Thank you! The American Israelite

By Leon Loewenstine Contributing Columnist “Mr. Market is your business partner; you and he own equal shares in a private enterprise. Every day, without fail, Mr. Market offers to buy your interest in the business, or sell you his, at a certain price. Some days he is cheerful and optimistic, and offers an unreasonably high [ Read More...]