Quote of the day

Henry Blodget, “The REAL lesson most investors should take away from the largest institutional insider-trading investigation in history is that competition in the global financial markets is so intense that it’s basically idiotic to trade.”  (Huffington Post)

Tweet of the day

Peter Thal Larsen, “With a market cap of $1.4bln, Paddy Power is now Ireland’s largest financial stock. Too big to fail?”  (@peter_tl via @alea_)

Worth a listen

Paul Kedrosky talks with inventor Dean Kamen.  (Infectious Talk)

Markets

James Picerno, “History is littered with regulatory changes that were designed to prevent the next crisis.”  (Capital Spectator)

The bond market is no longer a safe place to hide.  (Barron’s)

Mark Hulbert, “Sovereign debt crises are the Lord’s way of teaching geography to U.S. investors.”  (Marketwatch)

Korea reminds us that emerging markets are considered risky for a reason.  (Money Game also Economist, NYTimes, WSJ)

Yet another mutual fund manager joins the actively managed ETF game.  (IndexUniverse)

Strategy and Tactics

Why you don’t need beryllium exposure in your portfolio.  (Financial Adviser)

Sean McLaughlin, “The opiate of the trading masses is chart indicators and studies.”  (Chicago Sean)

Don’t become too dependent on some one else’s jottings. (the research puzzle)

On the challenges of finding your optimal idea “hunting ground.”  (StockTwitsU)

“Making money in the market is an unnatural act.”  (Mad Hedge Fund Trader)

Jeff White, “Carrying the burden of losses from your past will cloud your judgment.”  (StockTwitsU)

Why would a GM (GM) retiree invest in the GM IPO?  (Bucks Blog)

Finance

Wall Street isn’t getting smaller any time soon.  (Felix Salmon)

A hedge fund manager that keeps things short and sweet.  (Dealbook)

Is the age of “uncritical bullishness about all things China” over?  (Lex)

Who knew the auto stocks had been so strong?  (CNBC also Dealbreaker)

Kinder Morgan is coming back public.  (24/7 Wall St.)

Beware analysts talking about things in which they have no expertise.  (Macro Man, Felix Salmon)

Ireland

Kenneth S. Rogoff, “There is just no escaping debt restructuring for Greece and Ireland,” (NYTimes also FT Alphaville)

Seven thoughts on Ireland.  (Megan McArdle)

The Irish bailout did not stop speculation about Portugal and Spain.  (Bloomberg, UpsideTrader)

How Germany could come to kill the Euro.  (FT also CNBC)

Are there any stock opportunities in the wake of the Irish bailout?  (Street Capitalist)

Insider trading

Doug Kass nailed expanded insider trading charges as a “surprise for 2010.”  (TheStreet)

Are FBI raids the final stages of insider trading cases?  (Dealbook, WSJ also Felix Salmon)

Just what are independent research firms doing to induce the wrath of the companies they follow?  (WSJ)

How it is that expert networks rose to prominence on Wall Street.  (Fortune Finance)

Linking insider trading and high frequency trading makes no sense.  (Kid Dynamite)

What does the big insider trading investigation mean to investors?  (Zero Hedge)

On the SEC’s new theory of insider trading.  (NetNet)

In the hedge fund world, every one seems to know every one.  (Clusterstock)

Are mutual fund managers going to get pulled into the insider trading probe?  (InvestmentNews, Barron’s)

Economy

Are corporate profit margins as high as they can get?  (Crossing Wall Street, Carpe Diem, Economix)

3Q GDP and the importance of taking a look at what the economy IS doing versus what it SHOULD be doing.  (AR Screencast)

The best holiday sales season in five years?  (Atlantic Business)

Temp staffing continues to show improvement.  (ValuePlays)

Are we now facing “secular deflation“?  (Rick Bookstaber)

How do firms started in a recession fare?  (Rortybomb)

Two very different views of California.  (ROI, Gregor Macdonald)

It is still too early to bet on a housing recovery.  (Fortune Finance)

Confidence does play a role in the business cycle.  (Real Time Economics)

Just because

What if the largest countries had the biggest populations? A cool map.  (Big Think via kottke)

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