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Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Sunday Moneytalk Commentary

Honeybee's Commentary and Bob Brinker Excerpts from Sunday, January, 27, 2008
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On Sunday, I did not hear Bob Brinker mention the stock market even one time during the three hour program he calls “Moneytalk.” Moneytalk is no longer the program to listen to if you want any forward looking guidance on the stock market. The only guidance you will usually get is what you read between the lines. But as I said, there weren’t even any “lines” to read between this past Sunday.
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However, Brinker is on record saying that this latest decline was more than he “expected.” At the present time, he recommends dollar-cost averaging into the stock market.
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Brinker must have thought people were more interested in what was happening in France than the wild ride on Wall Street, because he spent most of his opening monologue bashing the French European Central Bank President and the management of Societe General. Here are some of his excerpts:
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Bob Brinker said “….the European Central Bank is in very, very weak hands, in my opinion right now, in the hands of the president, Jean Claude Trichet. And I don’t know why he’s as a poor a leader as he is or as misinformed on economics as he is, but it might have to do with his training. Because he was trained in France as an engineer and maybe that’s the reason. Now I don’t know if he was a locomotive engineer or an electrical engineer or what kind of an engineer it was but it doesn’t matter, he’s certainly not a financial engineer. And I just think it is amazing that the European Central Bank has to deal with this kind of poor leadership. The reality of the situation is that there’s a big difference of opinion right now between how to conduct monetary policy between Europe and the United States.
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Now I think Ben Bernanke is catching up to the curve he fell behind – he has more to go and I think he’ll do more Wednesday. ……..And I think he is right to do it and he deserves credit for catching up, not criticism as the European Central Bank President prefers to give……

After all, Ben is not alone in what he’s doing….... I mean the reality of the situation is that there have been others that have cut rates. How about the Bank of England – they’ve cut rates. How about the Bank of Canada – they’ve cut rates. ….so I don’t know if this is left over ill feeling between certain people in France and the United States…….The reality is the European Central Bank deserves better leadership than it has right now.
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And while we are on the subject of France, what a disgrace, what an absolute disgrace to the senior management of Societe Generale, the second largest bank in France, with home offices in Paris, France……..I’ve been there, it’s quite impressive. What a disappointment to see the managers of Societe’ Generale allow over $7Billion of bank capital to disappear because they can’t oversee a 31 year-old mid-level employee making $70,000 a year………If you didn’t see the story, you would never believe it, but it’s true. …..the good news is it appears they are going to stay in business."
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Honeybee sez: It seems like Brinker showed a bit of hypocrisy with his demeaning comments about not knowing “if he (Jean Claude Trichet) was a locomotive engineer or an electrical engineer or what kind of an engineer it was but it doesn’t matter, he’s certainly not a financial engineer.”
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Bob Brinker’s own son was not trained as a “financial engineer,” in college. His original education and training was in IT/computer sciences. However, IIRC, after taking some kind of correspondence course, he began using the family name (which automatically caused Mark Hulbert to include it in HFD) to write and publish the "Brinker Fixed Income Advisor."

These days it’s very difficult to distinguish between father and son (son is middle-aged – we are not talking about a child here). When his fixed income newsletter ads play on Moneytalk, it is never explained that the “Brinker” in the title who publishes the newsletter, is not the radio talk show host.

Last weekend, I heard a caller tell Brinker that he subscribed to “both of his newsletters.” Brinker made no explanatory comment. MOF: I’ve noticed that the “Jr” seems to have been dropped altogether. And on his newsletter website, he signs his name simply Bob Brinker -- with no distinguishing middle initial or "Jr." Is Brinker "Jr" involved in writing Marketimer? I don't know....
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One further note on this subject. I have read a sample BobJr's fixed income newsletter and I have read the latest copy of the Retirement Advisor, which is published by Kirk Lindstrom and David Korn. In my opinion, there is no comparison. Kirk and David's "Retirement Advisor" is superior, by far. If you are interested, I recommend that you get free copies of BOTH newsletters and make your own comparison. I am fully convinced that you will choose "Retirement Advisor." (Click for a Free Issue of The Retirement Advisor.)
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Here is a list of all the calls on Sunday by subject
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HOUR ONE:
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1. Money market funds safe? >>Yes, if you stick with big names like Fidelity, Vanguard, etc.

2. Stimulus package

3. Laddered CDs

4. European Central Bank

5. Paid off high rate property loan thanks to Bob

6. Lost $250,000 because of bank bankruptcy >>Answer: Be sure to check for FDIC insurance

7. Sub-prime bail out

8. Stimulus package

9. Roll SHLD holdings into 401K? Sears going bankrupt? >>not likely based on price of stock, but do it if you are worried.

HOUR TWO:

1. Stimulus package

2. Car calorie use versus human calorie use

3. Stimulus package

4. Stimulus package

5. Where to invest $7 million.

6. I-bond versus TIPS >>Use TIPS in tax privileged account. There is a limit on I-bond purchases.

8 comments:

Honeybee said...

Bob Brinker will be pleased. It looks like the "manager" of Societe Generale may have tendered his resignation.
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This news from the IHub Newsdesk:
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"The Federal Open Market Committee, the central bank's monetary policy body, will announce its decision on interest rates at around 7.15 pm GMT. The Fed's key fed funds rate currently stands at 3.5 pct.

Back in Europe, Societe Generale grabbed the early spotlight as the bank's shares rose 0.74 pct ahead of a board meeting that could see the departure of Chairman and Chief Executive Daniel Bouton.

Bouton already tendered his resignation to the board after the activities of Jerome Kerviel, a junior trader, led to the French bank posting a 4.9 bln eur trading loss in the fourth quarter. The board, at the time, declined to accept his resignation.

Yesterday, Societe Generale's shares surged over 10 pct with traders attributing the move to vague takeover talk or hopes Bouton will be forced out."


___Honeybee
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Honeybee said...

An interesting article about Societe Generale Chairman and Chief Executive Daniel Bouton.
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http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120159722468525059.html?mod=djemITP

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Honeybee said...

Notice to all my readers :

Someone is posting off-topic comments with my name (and also with a couple of my friends names) without my permission.

I am deleting them as soon as possible, but please consider the source.

This person stalks me everywhere he can find me. He has admitted that he has mental problems and is on heavy medication.

He may even be dangerous. I have considered reporting him to the authorities. I think online harrassment is illegal.
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jeffchristie said...

The caller who lost $250,000 is the bank failure said that the bank was controlled by the Pritzker family. He also claimed they were deeply involved in financing the campaigns of Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barrack Hussein Obaba. Bob said that was the view of the caller and not his view. Well the caller was correct.



Warring Pritzker Clan Splits its Ticket: Obama v. Hillary
by Jason Horowitz | April 16, 2007 | Tags: Politics2008 DemocratsBarack ObamaClinton CampaignFund-RaisingHillary ClintonObama CampaignPenny Pritzker

Getty Images
The support of the warring Pritzker family is split between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

The warring (and incredibly wealthy) Pritzker family seems to have carried its feud into presidential politics.

Penny Pritzker, Barack Obama's national finance chair, is the niece of Jay Pritzker, whose death in 1999 sparked an ugly internecine inheritance battle over the Hyatt hotel chain and other enormous family assets.

A plan to pass control of the empire to Penny and two other relatives collapsed in 2001 when another wing of the family filed suit. A settlement was eventually reached, but apparently there are still plenty of grudges, which may explain the division of Pritzker names donating to Hillary Clinton and Obama.

Hillary has the support of the California Pritzkers, a branch that includes Penny's brother, Anthony N. Pritzker -- the director, and co-founder of the Pritzker Group. Jay Pritzker's son John A. Pritzker, who served in various executive positions within the Hyatt Corporation, and his wife Lisa Pritzker, a women's health advocate, are also with Hillary.

Obama has the Chicago Pritzkers behind him. There is Penny, of course, and also her cousin Thomas Pritzker, who, like her, was supposed to inherit the bulk of the family fortune before the lawsuits came. Thomas' wife, Margot, founder and president of WomenOnCall.org, and his mother, Marian, widow of Jay, also contributed to Obama. Karen Pritzker, who is from Chicago but just bought an apartment in Manhattan for $12.5 million, also gave to Obama.

Honeybee said...

Jeffchristie said: "The caller who lost $250,000 is the bank failure said that the bank was controlled by the Pritzker family. He also claimed they were deeply involved in financing the campaigns of Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barrack Hussein Obaba. Bob said that was the view of the caller and not his view. Well the caller was correct."
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Jeffchristie...thank you for providing that information. I too, heard the caller say that the bank owners who he said had LIED to him and caused him to lose the quarter $million was involved with both the HRC and BHO campaigns.

Then as you said, I heard Brinker EMPHATICALLY distance himself by saying that it was "the caller that said that, not me."
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Too bad Brinker didn't get as upset with an American losing money because of a crooked banker as he did with the French bank losing money because of a "rookie trader."

Seems like they are ALL birds of a feather. Wonder if newsletter writers who don't report their bad trades on their performance record would fit into that nest? 8)

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Howard Kaplan said...

Thanks for your website. It is very direct, and informative. It is like the Reader´s Digest condensed version of BB´s Moneytalk show, giving "just the facts mam". Lean and mean!
I live in Zihuatanejo México, and am unable to get the radio show, obviously. So, your website is extremely useful to me. Keep up the good work, and thanks alot!

jeffchristie said...

Howard Kaplan

Moneytalk is available at the KGO website www.kgo.com. They have an archive that allows you to rebroadcast for seven days if you were unable to listen to the live broadcast. Check it out.

Howard Kaplan said...

Hello Jeff:
Thanks for the "tip" on where to find Moneytalk on line. I figured that was probably the case, but did not have the www address, as you most kindly provided for me.
Right now, I don´t have a computer at home, and go to what they call "cybercafes" to use the computer. They charge 10 pesos per hour, around US .94 cents, or so. Although that is relatively inexpensive, I´m usually pressed for time to do other things on the computer. That is why I like the Honey BB Beehive site, because it is succint, condenses things, and gets to the point, thus saving me time, (and money). So, I´ll continue to use the Honey site. Then when I get a computer at home, where I won´t be so pressed for time, I´ll use your suggestion and log on to the KGO website, per your "tip"! Thank You, Howard Kaplan