by David Zeiler
You may not have heard of this Chinese tech company yet, but before 2015 is over the talk about a Xiaomi IPO will reach a fever pitch.
Xiaomi Corp. has made incredible progress in its brief existence.
Founded in 2010, Xiaomi launched its first smartphone in 2011. By the third quarter of last year, Xiaomi had become the third-largest smartphone vendor in the world. It beat out such veterans as LG Electronics Inc. and Lenovo Group).
The company's astonishing growth is why so many expect a Xiaomi IPO within the year...
Stock market today, Friday, Jan. 9: Good morning! Stock market futures Friday morning forecast a 31-point gain from yesterday's close. On Thursday, the Dow Jones rallied 323 points on expectations that the European Central Bank will take more aggressive action to stave off deflation and debt crisis, coupled with swirling optimism for the U.S. economy.
Today will center on jobs, jobs, and more jobs. This morning, the December jobs report indicated that the U.S. economy added 252,000 jobs last month, surpassing consensus expectations of 240,000. As a result, the U.S. unemployment rate slipped to 5.6%.
While that may fuel a short-term surge in the markets, investors remain cautious about the Federal Reserve's desire to raise interest rates this year. In a speech yesterday, Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota said that the central bank should not increase rates in 2015; however, he is not a voting member of the FOMC this year. That sentiment was followed by voting-member Charles Evans. The Chicago Fed President told a CNBC audience this morning that the U.S. job markets have shown strong growth. But, he said, he'd like the central bank to wait until 2016 to raise interest rates.
by Diane Alter
Current crude oil prices in the United States were on pace for a two-day winning streak Thursday amid modest gains.
In early afternoon trading, WTI prices were up $0.04, or 0.08%, to $48.69 a barrel. Brent crude, meanwhile, was lower by $0.25, or 0.49%, to $50.91 just after noon.
CES 2015: From the latest version of the Occulus Rift to sneakers with games built into them, Michael Robinson is taking it all in at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
Per usual, he's reporting back with innovative investing ideas about the innovations he's seen. He's found the odd and the unexpected.
And the potentially hugely profitable...
The Dow Jones today rallied triple digits for the second straight session on expectations that the European Central Bank will take more aggressive action to stave off deflation and debt crisis, coupled with swirling optimism for the U.S. economy.
This morning, weekly jobless claims came in 4,000 fewer than economists expected for the week ending Jan. 3.
Here’s a look at the top stories from the stock market today…
by Jim Bach
With cheap crude oil prices, investors are pondering which stocks to buy when oil is low.
Money Morning Technical Trading Strategist D.R. Barton told viewers of FOX Business' "Varney & Co." today (Thursday) he isn't crazy about oil given the recent slide. But he's also aware that investment prospectuses and investors looking to diversify will still be drawn to the sector.
One oil giant stands out. And another should be avoided. Here's what those companies are.
Self-made millionaires are a rare commodity.
Plenty of men and women succeed in business after having studied economics, the stock market, or finance in college.
But then there are the folks who did it all themselves – who earned every penny of their impressive fortunes from scratch with little more than a stubborn disposition and a tiny supply of cash.
by Jim Bach
Those tempted to buy Yahoo stock because they see it one day dethroning the likes of Google or Facebook should be reminded of where Yahoo’s true value lies.
Especially since every small victory Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) seems to secure is invariably greeted as evidence that Chief Executive Officer Marissa Mayer is successfully breathing new life into a struggling, once-great web portal and online services giant.
Getting started this year took a bit longer than usual.
When I returned home from the Bahamas, I had to hook up an entirely new system of computers and peripherals. To top it off, everything is in a new version of Windows.
Talk about a monopoly! After a few beers, I would be happy to tell you what I really think of it.
Finally, things are now getting back to normal.
Of course, the oil price "Grinch" is still with us. He outstayed his welcome weeks ago, but with the shorts still driving oil prices lower he's decided to extend his stay.
And as the first two trading sessions this week have shown, the instability in the energy sector remains as well.
But as I'll show you, it's not all bad news.
For one portion of the industry, lower oil prices actually mean higher profits...
by Jim Bach
The headwinds are building up, and a 2015 stock market correction could be coming soon.
And Money Morning Capital Wave Strategist Shah Gilani told viewers of FOX Business' "Varney & Co." he "wouldn't put it past the markets turning in the first quarter."
Check out his video appearance to see why he's "negative" on the markets in the short term...
