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Fmr Fed Manager Andrew Huszar returns to The Crash Proof Retirement Show®

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In this follow-up interview, Phil Cannella speaks with former Federal Reserve finance manager, Andrew Huszar, on how investors should react to the Fed tapering QE3 to $75 billion per month.

[Watch the first interview with Andrew HERE!]

Andrew Huszar is a Senior Fellow at Rutgers Business School. Follow Professor Huszar on Twitter: @andrewhuszar

Market Watch: Stocks Show Volatility in Response to Jobs Report

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Unemployment fell to 6.7% from 7% today. Great news? Apparently not…

The new “unemployment rate” was coupled by a jobs report that fell very short of the economists expectations. The economy only added 74,000 jobs in December when economists were predicting 193,000.

So why the extreme contrast in data?

The unemployment rate is measured by the amount of working aged citizens actively searching for a job. After a certain length of unemployment, citizens are dropped from the unemployment measurement. This number does not account for the countless who have been unemployed for a long period of time or have given up on trying to find work.

The three major indices danced around the red and black throughout the day, finishing mixed to end the week.

 

The Dow Jones finished at 16,436.73 (+0.05%)

The S&P 500  finished at 1,842.37 (0.23%)

The Nasdaq finished at 4,174.67 (0.44%)

Stocks continue into 2014 with a theme of hesitation. It seems as though investors are happy with the 2013 bull market run, but cautious to see if it is sustainable for another year, especially as concern over the ending of Quantitative Easing grows.

Former Fed Manager Andrew Huszar on The Crash Proof Retirement Show®

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Phil Cannella interviews former Federal Reserve finance manager, Andrew Huszar, on why he, after becoming an integral part of the creation of Quantitative Easing, wrote an Op-Ed in The Wall Street Journal that began with the words, “I can only say: I’m sorry, America.”

[Watch the follow-up interview with Professor Huszar HERE!]

Andrew Huszar is a Senior Fellow at Rutgers Business School. Follow Professor Huszar on Twitter: @andrewhuszar

Market Watch: 2014 Off to a Bearish Start

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Wall Street continued to stay true to the 2014 theme as stocks ended the first week of trading down and not nearly as bullish as 2013,

Again, it may be too quick to start speculating on the psyche of investors just yet, as it understood that trading volume is low due to the holiday break as well as the monstrous snow storm that hit the north east at the end of the week.

 

The Dow Jones finished at 16,469.99 (+0.17%)

The S&P 500  finished at 1,831.37 (-0.03%)

The Nasdaq finished at 4,131.91 (-0.27%)

Starting Monday, we can start taking the trading numbers seriously as investors should be back in the full swing of things and ready to reveal what the consensus is regarding the trust in the stock market.

One of the most anticipated events tied to the market is set to take place this month, as the Federal Reserve announced last week that it intends to pull back on the stimulus program that has been driving the markets for the past few years. On top of that, Ben Bernanke is set to leave office in less than a month, adding more uncertainty in the mind of investors as they enter 2014.

Stay updated on our Market Watch  series as we keep our finger on the pulse of what we can expect in 2014.

France Issues 75% Tax Policy- Is US next?

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This week, France set a precedent for governments around the globe when it approved a new law that will levy a 75% tax on French companies that are paying employees €1 million or more in annual salaries. The new tax is widely understood to be symbolic, as a message to French citizens that something needs to be done to fix the national budget deficit, and it is the rich who have been targeted as major contributors in that effort.

The proposed 75% tax was originally designed to tax individuals that were making an excess of 1 million euros. However, after much backlash and a dismissal of the bill’s constitutionality, the bill was altered to target companies that are paying these high salaries, rather than the individuals earning them. The message behind this tax is one of “economic fairness.” Supporters of the tax hope that it will discourage companies from paying individuals excessively high salaries and will encourage a more balanced wealth distribution among French workers. In theory, if the average salary was higher, the average taxpayer would be contributing more to the staggering national debt crisis the country faces.

A 75% tax levy may seem like an extreme case that is likely isolated to France, a nation that has had its share of economic struggles in recent years, but it is not. The truth of the matter is that France is not alone in facing a major budget deficit and they are also not alone when it comes to using aggressive tax policy as a means to solve their problems.

Anyone who has kept a mild focus on national finances knows that the United States has been facing a budget crisis for years, and has yet to make any real moves towards solving the problem. In fact, many experts argue that our nation’s leaders are only making the problem worse as they continue to procrastinate by increasing the debt ceiling and allowing our deficit to increase annually by nearly $1 trillion in recent years.

Anyone who has kept a moderate tally on the changes in tax policy in the United States can recall that in our not-so-distant history the federal income tax on Americans was as high as 94%. The Individual Income Tax Act of 1944 levied the highest taxes in U.S. history as a response to an overwhelming national debt following World War II.

Putting the pieces together.

The United States, along with many other governments around the globe, are currently in very similar debt crises as France.  The United States has proven it is no stranger to using extreme tax policy as a solution. The spreading concern following the news of the controversial tax policy in France is whether or not it is laying the path for our political leaders to follow suit and bring on an era of increasing taxes.

Market Watch: First Day of the Last Week Ends Flat

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As expected, trading is off to a boring start for the last week of trading in 2013. All three major indices showed little change on the Monday following Christmas, as many offices that move the markets are somewhat vacant due to staff taking off for the holidays. A lack of economic news that may have implications on the market was also a contributor to why there wasn’t much action on Wall Street.

The Dow Jones finished at 16,501.25 (+0.14%)

The S&P 500  finished at 1,841.09 (-0.02%)

The Nasdaq finished at 4,154.20 (-0.16%)

2013 is shaping up to be one of the best years in the history of the stock market, as investors poured record breaking billions into the stock market driving it into all-time highs. The question going into 2014, however, is will investors continue to indulge in this high or will they slowdown in caution from the memories of what followed the last two market peaks of 2000 and again in 2008…

Market Watch: 2013 Bull is Finding New Legs to Run On

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Investors embraced this week in the same fashion they have been embracing 2013, stocks continued to rally. The difference that sets this week apart from most of 2013 rallying is the motivation that is driving higher investment volume. This week, markets are going up on reaction to good economic news, something that strays away from the theme of most of 2013’s market climb.

The Nadaq, S&P 500 and the Dow Jones all finished the day up.

The Dow Jones finished at 16,025.23 (+0.03%)

The S&P 500  finished at 1,808.37 (+0.18%)

The Nasdaq finished at 4,068.75 (+0.15%)

For most of 2013, investors have responded negatively to good economic news, as it was widely assumed that reports of a good economy would result in the ending of Quantitative Easing, the Federal Reserve stimulus plan that has been pumping $85 billion a month into the market.

However, this week is different. Either investors no longer believe that the Fed is ready to end Quatitative Easing, or they are finally ready to believe the economy can support the high share prices that the recent bull market has produced.

The positive news cited for today’s rally is the better-than-ecpected jobs report from Friday, showing unemployment has lowered to 7%. There are also some notable mergers on Wall Street which are typically appetizing to investors.

Market Watch: Trading Slumbers Before Black Friday

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Trading volume was light on the market today, as investors have been gearing up for Black Friday. However, this didn’t stop the bull from sending market indices into new record highs, a phrase that has become pretty common place in recent headlines.

The Nasdaq passed 4,000 today, while the S&P 500 along with the Dow Jones flirted with new record highs throughout the day.

The Dow Jones finished at 16,073.50 (+0.00%)

The S&P 500  finished at 1,802.83 (+0.01%)

The Nasdaq finished at 4,017.75 (+0.58%)

As expected, major retailers were among today’s leaders. Shares of Tiffany & Co. reached record highs of its own after investors reacted to positive sales and earnings reports from the major jewelry retailer.

JC Penny and Jos. A. Bank also saw a surge in share prices following some positive news surrounding their status entering the retail holiday.

We can expect volume to stay low as fund managers spend the week napping from a belly full of hot turkey. The market will still see its share of programmed trading but barring any major news that demands a reaction, we can expect the bull to glide on its recent momentum but otherwise stay pretty dull.

Jim Cramer Reveals Wall Street Corruption

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For many, Jim Cramer is just another familiar face that you have seen in the media. Because of this, we recognize him as someone carrying a reputation as an expert on the complex subject of investment finances.

It is because of his public persona that the general public tends to take what he says as fact, as we all default to the thought process of, “well he must be doing something right to be where he is today. He certainly knows more than I do anyway.”

It is that very thought that has been designed by Wall Street insiders, like Jim Cramer, to be a tool used to control where people invest their money.

What the public hasn’t seen is the “behind-the-scenes” Jim Cramer, whose real expertise is not giving advice to the public, but rather manipulating the public by using deceitful tactics to persuade them to invest in ways that benefits his hedge fund.

In 2006, a video interview was published with Jim Cramer when he was a Senior Partner at his Hedge Fund firm, Cramer Berkowitz. Cramer was under the impression that the general public would never see this interview, and that he was only speaking to other Wall Street insiders. Therefore Cramer speaks openly, and in a sense, he is training other insiders on what goes on behind the scenes at hedge fund firms. He then goes on to reveal the truth about how hedge fund managers operate, actively working to manipulate markets to benefit themselves, at the expense of the everyday investor. The video was suddenly removed from YouTube in February of 2021, however you can see portions of it in the video below, taken from an episode of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, where its host chastises Cramer using his own words against him.

Click play below to watch.

Those who rely on media personalities and other “experts” like Jim Cramer to make decisions on where to place their money, never stood a chance. It’s like a pig walking into a slaughterhouse to ask for directions.

In today’s financial system, the only way to be ahead of the game is to do your due diligence and educate yourself on your investment decisions; otherwise you could become another victim of the will of Wall Street.

Economist Harry Dent on The Crash Proof Retirement Show®

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Phil Cannella interviews best-selling author and renowned economic forecaster, Harry Dent on what he predicts for 2014.

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