Quote of the day

Felix Salmon, “Munis aren’t as safe, now, as they used to be, and the existence of ETFs is one reason why.”  (Reuters)

Chart of the day

The Treasury yield curve is still wicked steep.  (Gavyn Davies also Bloomberg)

Markets

Seasonal tendencies work against the market this week.  (Trading the Odds)

Why ‘safe’ bond funds keep blowing up.  (WSJ)

Why are all commodities going up at the same time?  (Calafia Beach Pundit)

Strategy

There is only one real reason, “reverse broking,” why investors discuss their positions publicly.  (Ultimi Barbarorum)

On the importance of business quality when investing in distressed debt.  (Distressed Debt Investing)

Eleven stock picks for 2011.  (market folly)

Companies

Can Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) get its act together?  (NYTimes)

Bloggers are more optimistic about Apple (AAPL) earnings than sell-side analysts.  (Apple 2.0)

Speculation about what Apple might do chip-wise in their next wave of products.  (Engadget)

Finance

How “Thor” aims to combat high frequency traders.  (MarketBeat)

Why does anyone still listen to Moody’s and S&P?  (Curious Capitalist)

“News and data are becoming commodities in the financial space. ”  (Leigh Drogen)

IPOs

The Internet 2.0 IPO wave will be nothing if not interesting.  (The Reformed Broker)

Now Goldman Sachs (GS) wants its part in Groupon.  (Bloomberg)

Seems like derivatives on private companies, i.e. Facebook, are coming.  (Deal Journal)

Groupon:  buy, sell or hold?  (Street Sweep, Dealbook)

Global

BP (BP) is making deals again.  (WSJ, ibid, beyondbrics)

The bear case on China.  (Telegraph)

As diverse as they are, it is difficult to talk about the ‘emerging markets.’  (Tech Ticker)

Where might food riots spread next?  (Money Game)

Economy

Economists have no idea what the economy is going to do.  (Business Insider)

Mark Thoma, “Why will the recovery of employment take even longer than the recovery of output?”  (Economist’s View)

Oil shocks play a big role in post-war recessions.  (Econbrowser)

The Fed needs better forward-looking measures of inflation.  (Real Time Economics)

Who made wage gains in the lost decade?  (Michael Mandel)

Want lower unemployment?  Invest.  (John Taylor)

When will residential investment make a positive contribution to GDP?  (Calculated Risk)

We have forgotten Eisenhower’s (and Washington’s) warnings.  (Zero Hedge, Financial Market Commentary)

Errata

Is there a college education bubble?  (Points and Figures)

More financial blogging secrets:  content.  (The Reformed Broker)

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