Archives for May 2018

Wars, famine, recession, expansion, earnings beats, earnings misses, rising interest rates, falling interest rates, and, if you're so inclined, lunar cycles. These are just a few of the anxiety-inducing topics that can be worked into any conversation about the stock market.

Arguably the "coolest" worrisome topic of the moment is debt.

Byron Wiens, a market prognosticator and strategist who now hangs his hat at private equity giant Blackstone, pointed out recently that total U.S. government debt is now some $20 trillion. 

Then there's margin debt, which is always a gas to talk about. Total margin debts for customers are near record levels. That's surely a sign of speculative excess indicating customers are way too bullish.

However, in some contexts, those debt levels are hardly worth shaking a stick at. It's just 2.2% of the total market cap of all stocks, which is still below the excess levels of 2007.

Of course, the mere mention of debt levels being "near all-time highs" makes for a very scary story about stocks.

This list of worries goes on and on, with each one more fearmongering than the last.

But there's an easy way to beat the fear-filled bears and zany, hype-driven bulls that dominate the mainstream media.

It's a simple piece of advice that's allowed me and my readers to secure triple-digit winners time and time again.