There will be no Sunday linkfest so here are a few links we found in the meantime.  We hope you enjoy your weekend.

Quote of the day

Gillian Tett, “The more zeros I heard, the more desensitised I felt. Big numbers, like sex, have lost the ability to shock.”  (FT)

Dilbert

Markets

October has killed many a bear market.  (The Reformed Broker)

Just how volatile Q3 has been.  (Bespoke)

Corn has been volatile in part because of the USDA.  (WSJ)

The “horror show” that was commodities in Q3.  (Fund My Mutual Fund)

Two of the best months for bonds, ever.  (World Beta)

The US is holding up better than Europe.  (allETF)

Companies expected to raise their dividends in October.  (Dynamic Dividend)

On the importance of taking losses.  (Barron’s)

Strategy

The case for low volatility investing.  (WSJ)

A trader’s emergency survival plan. (bclund)

Where a TAA model stands going into October.  (MarketSci Blog)

The last trading day of the month is no longer the winner it used to be.  (MarketSci Blog)

Research

Generating equity yields to examine the term structure of expected dividend growth and equity risk premia.  (SSRN)

How low risk-free rates affect valuations.  (Musings on Markets)

An interview with Jason Apollo Voss author of The Intuitive Investor.  (PsychCentral via Attitrade)

Companies

If Ingersoll-Rand ($IR) is a tell, then things are getting worse.  (Global Macro Monitor)

Why the Kindle Fire is actually good for Google ($GOOG).  (SplatF)

Finally a logical buyer of Yahoo! ($YHOO).  (AllThingD, TechCrunch)

Putting into perspective some of the iPhone 5 rumors.  (Daring Fireball)

Finance

Not all share buybacks are created equal.  (WSJ)

TED, “But it is no exaggeration to say that the capital markets gravy train of the past ten years or so is coming to a rapid, screechy, and highly painful end.”  (The Epicurean Dealmaker)

Investment banking fees are back to 2008 levels.  (Deal Journal)

China

China’s stock market has completely broken down.  (Bespoke)

The big name Chinese Internet companies are now under scrutiny.  (WSJ)

More talk about a hard landing in China.  (MarketBeat)

Economy

The numbers do not yet support a recession, in spite of what people think.  (The Atlantic)

Some positives for the US economy.  (Modeled Behavior)

Two indicators pointing towards an extended downturn.  (NYTimes)

How North Dakota became an oil powerhouse.  (Carpe Diem)

Earlier on Abnormal Returns

What you may have missed in our Saturday long form linkfest.  (Abnormal Returns)

Mixed media

When great brands go bad.  (Chicago Sean)

When it makes sense to go with your gut.  (WSJ)

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