Risk Asset
Investopedia explains ‘Risk Asset’ Investor appetite for risk assets swings considerably over time. The period from 2003 to 2007 was one of huge risk appetite, as rampant investor demand drove up prices of most assets associated with above-average risk, including commodities, emerging markets, subprime mortgage-backed securities, as well as currencies of commodity exporters such as [...]
EU pushes through restrictions to protect bees
The European Union has approved restrictions on three pesticides to better protect dwindling bee populations, to enter into force by December. EU Health Commissioner Tonio Borg called Friday’s decision a “milestone towards ensuring a healthier future for our honeybees.” The move is backed by environmentalists but opposed by chemical companies. Friday’s official approval of the [...]
China to sign free trade deal with Switzerland
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is in Switzerland to sign a free trade pact with the Alpine nation—- the first comprehensive agreement the country has reached with a major Western economy. Li met with Swiss officials Friday in Bern, where he is due to ink the deal after three years of talks. In an op-ed published [...]
Elan Continues To Make Baffling Strategic Decision
When Elan (NYSE:ELN) announced back in February that it was selling its interests in Tysabri to Biogen Idec (Nasdaq:BIIB) my biggest concern was that Elan management would waste the proceeds. Elan management had made a series of questionable (if not bizarre) decisions prior to the Tysabri announcement, and I had minimal confidence that they would [...]
EU moves to ban refillable olive oil bottles
The European Union wants to ban the refillable olive oil bottles that sit on so many restaurant tables across the continent. The European Commission, the EU’s executive, said Friday that restaurants will only by allowed to serve oil in non-refillable bottles with proper content labeling as of next year. EU spokesman Olivier Bailly said consumers [...]
Retirement bad for health, free-market think tank suggests
A study out of the U.K. suggests that while it may provide an initial sense of relief and well-being, over the long-term, retirement is bad for your health, increasing the likelihood of developing depression and at least one physical illness. The study, titled “Work Longer, Live Healthier,” was conducted by the Institute of Economic Affairs, [...]
Advanced Energy Industries Hanging On For The Turn
There’s a quote you will hear once in a while around racing tracks that goes “to finish first, first you have to finish”. Given the nasty cyclical decline in semiconductor and flat panel manufacturing, and the near-death spiral of solar power, that seems like a relevant starting point for a discussion of Advanced Energy Industries [...]
Canada-EU trade talks hung up on beef market access issue
The Canada-European Union free trade talks are nearing an end with agriculture issues the last major stumbling block to an agreement both sides say will boost economic growth, the EU ambassador Matthias Brinkmann said Thursday. In a free-wheeling discussion with Canadian reporters, Brinkmann suggested that most other issues in the four-year talks have been resolved [...]