In our last commentary we discussed two divergent opinions on the economy. The optimistic view was represented in a recent WSJ poll, where the consensus of economists predicted slow but steady US GDP growth of 2.5% in 2012, with average monthly employment gains of 185,000. The opposing view, presented by the Economic Cycle Research Institute (ECRI), an astute and highly

The Toews System during Market Rallies After a turbulent year in 2011, the markets moved steadily higher to finish the first quarter up 12.6%. The Toews dynamic hedging strategy bought US and international equities and high yield bonds during the first few weeks of January and stayed invested throughout the quarter. Toews systems were fully invested in all asset classes

Over the past year, there were several shocks to the economy, including an earthquake and tsunami in Japan, a downgrade to the U.S. credit rating, and numerous debt events in Europe. The effects of these events were felt in the stock market, which declined multiple times- once by as much as 19%(1). The year ended flat for U.S. stocks, while

In a scene from the movie Margin Call, a banker looks out of his car window and says “look at these people, wandering around with absolutely no idea what is about to happen.” That’s an accurate portrayal of the current state of the perspectives of many advisors, who fear that an EU sourced Armageddon may be just around the corner,

Sovereign debt issues have taken center stage to press stock prices down with increased ferocity. The S&P 500 declined 14% for the quarter, while the MSCI EAFE index (Developed International Stocks) dropped 19%. Our system exited developed international stocks in mid-July. By late July/early August, our system had completed exiting US stocks and HY Bonds and was allocated to cash