The Kirk Report

A Thanksgiving Feast Posted: 28 Nov 2008 02:05 PM CST The bears clearly went on Thanksgving vacation. After all, they have a lot to be thankful for in 2008! For the week, the S&P 500 rallied back +12.03%, Dow +9.73%, Nasdaq +10.92%, and the Russell 2000 +16.38%. Looking through the weekly performance among the ETFs, the biggest winners this week were financials (UYG), real estate (URE), home construction (ITB), telecom (LTL), and basic materials (UYM), and metals & mining (XME). As you might expect, all of the ultra short ETFs were hit hard lead by a 44% decline in the SKF. As always, I hope this finds you happy, healthy, and wealthy. Now it is time to feast on some of those turkey leftovers!

Kirk's New Workstation Posted: 28 Nov 2008 12:11 PM CST Since everyone's focus today is on spending money, I thought it would be a perfect time to talk about my new computer workstation which will arrive via FedEx by the end of the day. In this post, I'll provide details to the new workstation & monitor array along with detailed explanations for all of my choices. I hope you find it helpful and of interest......[READ]

Talking Turkey Posted: 28 Nov 2008 08:53 AM CST The Biggest Turkeys of 2008 50%-off deals are not expected to save retail sales on Black Friday Retailers offer big discounts and then pray What does Black Friday mean anyway? Market performance on Black Friday Holiday shopping with deflated stocks The plunge protection team is operating at half-staff Volcker to play the heavy, again Government tries rewarding the risk-takers Fed commits $800 billion more Is the Fed only spitting in the wind? The TALF helps credit card issuers, but not their ripped-off customers Is the Fed's $800 billion plan cause for concern? Fed moves not used since 1929 U.S. banks to write down about $44 billion more in Q4 A bailout for small business? TARP's first audit reaches Congress next week Where do you think mortgage rates are headed? Obama confident, but he'll need time A plan for hard times - print cash! New Jersey is an amplified microcosm of the broader problems we face as a nation Time for a change at the Fed Earnings expectations are collapsing for both the fourth quarter and 2009 "We are in the early stages of one of the worst recessions in the post-war period, even factoring in a massive stimulus program." - Nariman Behraves Anonymous banker weighs in on the coming credit card debacle Another type of debt is starting to overtake people: student loans More pension warnings A food stamp indicator? More casualties of wealth destruction Another hedge fund in trouble Dividend cuts are the most in 50 years Insider trading jumps According to Mark Hulbert, history tells us little about fate of recent rally or if it marked low The market's crystal ball is broken Here's a good sign - analysts at their least bullish ever! Be thankful it's not worse! Paul B. Farrell's continued gloom and doom A very popular interview with Jeremy Grantham Financial disasters have silver linings Q&A with Robert Fetch Perot Fund liquidates as debt bets turn sour Percentage of stocks above the 50-day moving averages Best sector bounces off the November bottom Positive changes taking place in the charts More dollar talk by Jim Rogers Four ways to bet on emerging markets Sovereign wealth funds switch from Western investments Foreign banks lobby for U.S. tax cuts Dubai may have to be bailed out by Abu Dhabi A skyscraper indicator? Europe's shaky stimulus plan Spain unveils its own stimulus South Korea to tap swap line with US to help banks Boom to bust - China's steel industry slows down Argentine president unveils economic aid plan Lehman's asset trap AIG recycles debt without paying anyone back The smart guys continue to lose Gold stocks regain their shine Bulls still stubborn when it comes to gold Legislators are taking a hard look at oil trading The price of gasoline continues to plunge Tensions at OPEC run high Commodity market competition enters bold new era You know times are tight when even Steve Jobs starts cutting prices Record breaking income at ResMed Chesapeake seeks cash Six stocks that are ugly enough to love According to Barron's, stocks to be thankful for Christopher Edmonds' holiday portfolio Trade like a Charitable Hedge Fund Find the smart money - alphaCLONE The 22 rules of trading One of the greatest threats to trader success and longevity is isolation and insularity Too many traders equate contentment with complacency Demystifying derivatives ProShares launches 12 new ETFs 3X ETFs are on fire No real surprise here - managed funds have not managed to outperform this market Take a pass on principal-protection funds Using government backed TIPS to insulate a portfolio Everything you need to know about TIPS Be wary of high-yielding certificates of deposit offered by non-bank firms 10 immutable laws of money Need a tax advisor? Start looking now Holiday air fares are dropping along with ticket demand Find out when stuff you want goes on sale Giving thanks for a glass half full Investors still have a few reasons to be thankful 6 awesome thanksgiving leftover meal ideas 99 reasons to be thankful for golf "There is a comfort of sorts, in the familiar, even if the familiar is pure misery. Pity the poor soul who is unhappy with his life, yet fears to change. He is both the jailed and the jailer, keeper of the key and afraid to use it." - Alice Ruddy This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Black Friday Posted: 28 Nov 2008 07:36 AM CST Good morning. After the largest four-day recovery since the Great Depression, stock futures are indicating a soft start to the final trading day of November. There's not a lot of market moving news this morning other than terrorism in Mumbai and, of course, focus on retail sales this Black Friday. Premarket gainers: FNM, FRE, TCK, AZ, ACGY, TMA, GOLD, AIG, AEG, F, GM, GME, YHOO, & ANR. Premarket losers: CPE, PC, IFX, CHK, FRO, SANM, MT, AAUK, TOT, PHG, SFI, STM, PBR, LFC, DAI, RIO, UBS, SI, EBAY, LLY, & HTX. No economic data releases are scheduled today and very thin trading volume is expected. If history repeats, however, we will likely see a handful of low quality stocks enjoy large scale moves just to keep those who are at work today interested. Remember, the market closes at 1:PM. Go make it a great day!

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