The Kirk Report

Painting The Tape Posted: 11 Feb 2009 12:36 PM CST Cult of equity is under attack How the world almost came to an end on September 18, 2008 How we can restore confidence by Charles T. Munger Almost half of all the complex credit products ever built out of slices of other securitised bonds have now defaulted Strata is one of the many so-called toxic assets clogging the nation's financial pathways Are governments falling into the same trap as subprime borrowers? The truth about stimulus and the Depression It's a bull market for Washington lobbying Beware of Presidents who claim armageddon is here Is the Grim Reaper masquerading as Tim Geithner? 5 reasons the markets don't like the bank bailout Support wanes for Obama's huge stimulus plan Keep tabs on the plan at Stimulus Watch! Obama's economic stimulus plan mapped out Economy rescue: adding up the dollars Stimulus: how to know if it's working The biggest Keynesian experiment ever tried Treading water...Wearing Sandbags Treasury's Financial Stability Plan: will it work? Recognizing mistakes is key to future of financial institutions Yet, bank CEOs today show no mistake ownership The Importance of Failure Mark-to-Market reform is more important than stimulus Pricing system for toxic assets deemed key to U.S. Treasury bank rescue plan "Unbooked cars. Empty airports. Unfilled planes. Just a little slice of life that reminded me of what a severe recession this truly is." - Dr. Brett Steenbarger Wealthy are expected to spend 25% less this Valentine's Day Cash-strapped Americans are skipping needed prescription drugs Homeowners show less denial about the true value of their homes Foreclosure Tsunami hits mortgage-servicing firms The Colonel Jessep Market The Chutes and Ladders Market Gurus were unfazed by Tuesday's carnage When a feng shui master talks, people listen Modern Nostradamus' crash prediction was off by 1 day A swimsuit indicator? There's still a lot of bullish bloggers Blogging for dollars Truly shameful - Barry's book derailed due to criticism Betting on American recovery - it's gonna happen! Kasriel on the Great Depression Doug Kass on why you shouldn't buy the rally Q&A with Ray Dalio Q&A with John Osterweis 10 dirty tricks to jump-start a new bull, fast! FBI is overwhelmed by fraud probes Tough times for economists Hedge funds exhibit signs of recovery Is gold heading to $1,500? Is the gold market telling us that an economic catastrophe is imminent? Trading strategy - gold vs. gold stocks A rounded reversal setup in the USO Here's a new way to look at the stock market China's imports & exports plunge Why you should be skeptical of China Iceland: the land without an economy Bankruptcies mount in Canada Time to buy Switzerland? Shorts move out of big retail and consumer products Technology and green energy sectors are among the biggest winners in the stimulus package Battle plans for newspapers A bottom for medical device stocks? Ford & Centex seen as stimulus winners ArcelorMittal steels itself for a tough 2009 BlackBerry maker disappoints Intel's chief on his $7 billion dollar bet Nvidia shares slide as losses balloon IBM's smart moves Starbucks roasted by Green Mountain Citron looks behind the curtain at the business of Life Partners Merrill secretly moved up bonus payments Screening for winning stocks in a tough environment 15 stocks that might not survive 2009 Maybe Ben Graham isn't old-fashioned after all 5 stocks fitting Graham's defensive strategy 20% of the stocks in the S&P 500 trade below book value A basket of low-priced stocks 7 stocks with notable dividend increases I need to create a stock screen that looks for companies with a woman as a CFO Did you know that companies with relatively high cash-to-asset ratios tend to outperform? Outperform 99% of your neighbors! "I tend to cut bad trades as soon as possible, forget them, and then move on to new opportunities. The elements of good trading are: (1) cutting losses, (2) cutting losses, and (3) cutting losses. If you follow these three rules, you may have a chance." - Ed Seykota Six lessons for investors Don't be afraid to sell low In trading, as in life, keep it simple stupid! The value of a personal mission statement (even as a trader) Form the action habit! According to Mohamed El-Erian, how to reduce risk and reap rewards in a fast-changing world How you can invest in the weather Don't be tempted by a penny-stock portfolio No stomach for market turmoil? Thank your genes! Unhappy with financial advisers, more investors are taking the DIY approach Ultra ETF reality check Trading the new VIX ETNs Early thoughts on the VXX A Getting Back On Track Calculator Three dividend hungry mutual funds As the bear market rolls on, many funds are reopening the doors Why saving for your future is so hard In a sea of bad news, your smile of the day! "There are two requirements for success in Wall Street. One, you have to think correctly; and secondly, you have to think independently." - Ben Graham This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Spin Job Posted: 11 Feb 2009 08:10 AM CST Good morning. Premarket futures are positive as Washington gears up to convince Wall Street that it will ultimately get whatever it wants and needs. Case in point, Senator Dodd said that mark-to-market change may be part of Obama's financial rescue plan. Rumors also are rampant that as more details emerge investors will be more than happy with the plans. As they say, hope springs eternal. Beyond the spin, we have another round of disappointing earnings and guidance (including from Research In Motion (RIMM)). Mortgage originations and applications continue to point to low demand and the trade report suggests that overall global trade is contracting sharply. Today's economic reports are the 10:30AM EIA Petroleum Status Report and the 2:PM Treasury Budget Report. At 1PM Fed's Evans will speak on the economic outlook. And, much like yesterday, Wall Street will be fixated on Washington as both Geithner and bank CEOs will testify before Congress this morning. We'll see if this morning's spin job on the current plans work their intended magic. My view is that people are nervous to see what would happen if this market retested (and failed) at those November lows especially with so much hope that November marked the bottom. Ironically, that's probably exactly what we need to shake out the market again and reduce sentiment to a level that would be overall constructive. At this point, we need much less hope and far more fear. We'll see if we get it. Go make it a great Wednesday!

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