Cumberland Advisors

The state of Illinois has priced a $1.3 billion tax-exempt bond issue. The state has ratings of A3 Moody’s and A- Standard and Poor’s. For more than one year, we have not owned the state...

It has been quite a stretch. Two Fed (Federal Reserve) meetings, lots of Fed-speak, turmoil in financial markets, and re-pricing of certain asset classes to levels unexpected – all done in a...

On my vacation, we talked about the pullback in markets in reaction to fears that the central bank punch bowl will be drained sooner than some participants expected. I was particularly concerned about...

In the past week, the municipal bond market back-up was exacerbated, on top of an already sloppy six weeks. The culprits this week were the usual suspects: retail selling of bond funds and terrible,...

A few of us were sitting around after a day of fishing on pristine waters, with marvelous weather and wonderful conversation here in Maine. We discussed the results of Fed (Federal Reserve) policy and...

“I shot the sheriff, but I didn’t shoot the deputy.” (Bob Marley, “I Shot the Sheriff,” 1973) Fed (Federal Reserve) Chairman Ben Bernanke called himself...

The Fed has decided to keep its asset purchase program in place and also its accommodative low target for the Federal Funds rate. The statement issued after yesterday's meeting was accompanied by the...

Last week MSCI, a leading provider of market indices to which an estimated US$7 trillion in investments is benchmarked, announced a number of changes and forthcoming reviews in country equity market...

The classic instructions given to a speech giver in a speaker's training course are as follows: 1. Say what you are going to say. 2. Say it. 3. Say what you said. 4. Say thank you very much, are...

A knowledge of the laws of prices is essential for personal business success because every business transaction involves a guess as to the future of prices. Such knowledge not only is essential for...

The past few weeks saw the tax-free municipal bond market back up in yield – and down in price. May 2013 was the worst May for the muni market in more than 25 years. And May is traditionally a...

This jobs report clarified nothing-everything-added confusion to the debate. You may pick your preferred poison. There is a little more suggested weakening in manufacturing and some negative tone in...

The Japanese equity market suffered another 3+% drop on June 5th and slipped a further 0.8% on June 6th as investors showed their dissatisfaction with a speech by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe outlining...

The demonstrations that escalated into a political crisis in Turkey over the weekend remind us why emerging markets continue to present extra risks for the international investor. In one day, Monday,...

“At the same time the IRS was targeting tea-party groups, the tax agency took the unusual step of trying to impose gift taxes on donors to a prominent conservative advocacy group formed in 2007...

There seems to be a debate at the European Central Bank (ECB). The issue is whether or not the ECB should impose a negative interest rate. I listened to the interview of Christian Noyer, Governor of...