March 3, 2018 — I am honored that John Bogle has commented on my recent column, ”The February Stock Market Correction.” In it I repeated my claim that 2017 saw a “bubble” in the #VIX – i.e., a market perception of low risk in US stocks that was unjustified by fundamentals – and I added that the bubble had burst in February. Bogle of course is the genius who made low-cost index #mutualfunds widely available. His comment & my reply are at Barron’s: “Bogle on Bubbles.”.
February 25, 2018 –– Much has been written about the stock market correction in the time since the US market peaked on January 26 and abruptly fell 10 % (as of February 8, followed by a partial bounce-back). Some of what is said is useful, some is not. Three pronouncements concern advice to investors, the role of machines, and the connection to the real economy.
Is it time to sell?
Feb. 13, 2018 — Congratulations to Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who retired in January 2018 after 12 years as President of Liberia, for winning the Mo Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership. It is for this that the award, which pays $5 million, was originally established.
The Prize is a fascinating experiment. Some have criticized the fact that in a majority of years nobody has been found worthy. But I wrote a favorable evaluation in “The Ibrahim Prize for Excellence Among African Leaders,” published in 2014 in the African Policy Journal.