Quote of the day

James Surowiecki, “But, if recent history has taught us anything, it’s that self-regulation doesn’t work in finance, and that worries about reputation are a weak deterrent to corporate malfeasance.”  (New Yorker)

Chart of the day

Debt issuance as profit center: 5 year Swiss yields go negative.  (Sober Look)

Markets

Volatility is returning to the market.  (Bespoke, Focus on Funds)

Are equity investors hanging around waiting for QE3?  (Pragmatic Capitalism)

The drop in earnings estimates is pointing toward recession.  (FT)

Has the market overpaid for defensive stocks?  (WSJ)

Is the junk bond market in a bubble or not?  (The Reformed Broker)

Strategy

Bill Gross and Dan Fuss disagree as to the direction of Treasuries.  (InvestmentNews)

The benefits of backtesting are not always obvious.  (Rogue Traderette)

The problem with financial models is that humans end up using them.  (The Psy-Fi Blog)

Questions to ask when hiring a financial adviser.  (Bucks Blog)

Companies

Data point #237: share buybacks don’t work as advertised.  (Crossing Wall Street)

Jim Bean ($BEAM) is in part a play on emerging markets growth.  (YCharts Blog)

What is Yahoo! ($YHOO)? Seriously, what is it?  (NYTimes)

Why are investors willing to pay for Amazon ($AMZN) earnings vs. Apple ($AAPL)?  (YCharts Blog also Reuters)

The iPad will soon rival the iPhone as an earnings drive for Apple.  (GigaOM, SAI)

Finance

Facebook ($FB) who? The IPO market has put that failed deal in the rear view mirror.  (WSJ)

Can John Paulson turn it around?  (Pension and Investments)

Why finance can’t be fixed with better regulation.  (Felix Salmon)

A look at the hedge fund firms raising distressed debt funds focused on Europe.  (NYTimes)

European banks are in a full retreat in the US market.  (FT)

ETFs

Private equity hearts the ETF business.  (FT)

How to lose money trading ETFs.  (ETFdb)

Global

Spain and Italy whistling past the graveyard with short-selling bans.  (FT Alphaville)

The “emerging market century” is coming unglued.  (Economist)

Economy

The Chicago Fed National Activity Index for June shows continued sluggish growth.  (Calculated Risk, Capital Spectator)

What are some long-lead economic indicators saying?  (Bonddad Blog)

On the connection between the housing market and pickup sales.  (WSJ)

Earlier on Abnormal Returns

What you missed in our Monday morning linkfest.  (Abnormal Returns)

Mixed media

A nice interview with Eddy Elfenbein.  (Crossing Wall Street)

Why investment advisers might want to read Michael J. Pomian’s Behavioral Finance and Investor Types: Managing Behavior to Make Better Investment Decisions.  (Reading the Markets)

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