Yesterday, Malaysia Airlines lost another of its Boeing 777s. After flight 370 it is now flight 17 that went down. It all happened when Obama was announcing he would expand the economic sanctions on Russia, again. With 298 fatalities, among whom 189 Dutch, the assault has stirred emotions worldwide. The US now blames Russia, Russia blames Ukraine, Ukraine blames the separatists, and the separ... »
3 Questions You Should Ask about Flight MH-17
July 18 2014
Olav Dirkmaat
Fooling Some of the People All of the Time
July 11 2014
Corporate fraud, questionable accounting practices and plain deception are nothing new on Wall Street. Hedge fund manager David Einhorn of Greenlight Capital even wrote a book about it. Aptly called ‘Fooling Some of the People All of the Time’, the book narrates a story about a private equity investment firm named Allied Capital, which Einhorn shorted in 2002. In 2008, after six long y... »
Olav Dirkmaat
Volatility Down, Stock Prices Up: The Signs of a Perfect Storm
July 4 2014
“Step aside,” tells Mark Spitznagel to his investors. He hardly expects anyone to listen. “It is the hardest thing to do right now,” he says, “and makes you look like a fool.” In times like these, in times of severe overvaluation, the ones warning investors are scorned. People who risk... »
Olav Dirkmaat
Leading Indicator Says Stock Market Crash Imminent
June 26 2014
The current stock market boom is a result of a reckless zero interest rate policy. Driven by loose credit, the Dow Jones Index reached new record highs earlier this year. Margin debt — the total amount of credit which is used to buy securities ‘on margin’ at a stock brokerage — also made record highs. It’s not the first time that both — margin debt and stock ... »
Olav Dirkmaat
