Today's Market
by Dr Invest


Some of you have wondered about my investment position and the on-going market conditions. It is like waiting for the shoe to drop. In May, I had taken positions in two bond ETFs, TIP and BND. TIP has returned a pathetic 2.72% and BND has a loss at -.37%. These are lessons in what happens when government manipulates markets at the general public's expense. Both these very stable investments have proved to be awful investments, returning little more than a certificate of deposit. The expected return for TIP and BND should have been around 6% to 12%.

In November, I invested into two retail stocks, WMT and RTH. WMT has lost -2.21% and RTH has gained 2.46%.  As of this date, the total gain has been around 2.6%. Not a spectacular return, when you consider that had I paid a financial advisor 2%, my gain would have been closer to .6%.

Overall, the market has proven pathetic, even with the Fed devoting one trillion to buy bonds and debt in 2013. The Fed continues to be in competition with individual investors as they manipulate the market. Without the Fed stimulus, the market would collapse immediately. Presently, there are questions about the present course of the market.

In the last 6 months, the DOW has gained 5.72%. In the last 3 months the DOW has gained .62. And in 2013, the DOW has gained .71%. The political clouds rising in the month of February will likely erase any real gains we have seen in January. Expect more of the same in the days ahead: dramatic volatility in the market with stinging losses and exhilarating gains, only to end 2013 with pitiful gains that have been manipulated by the government. Look for the market to neither collapse nor to rise.

Having entered a stock position with WMT and RTH that is neither rising nor falling, I have found myself lost somewhere in stock limbo. The stock position is not rich enough to sell and has not fallen enough to trigger my stop-sell.

Is a collapse of the market possible with such determined efforts by the Fed to stimulate the market? Well, yes! But these determined efforts have floated the market in hopes that somehow the market will spontaneously recover. That economic recovery has failed to materialize and some believe it is unlikely to materialize until we deal with our national debt.

(Note: the above information is for entertainment purposes only and not to be used a investment advice.)