The global economy continue to be fragile and chaotic. At the same time companies continue to make large, and often increasing, profit. Here are some good blog posts on investing, personal finance and the economy.

• The Economy is Weak and Prospects May be Grim, But Many Companies Have Rosy Prospects by John Hunter – “the prospects in emerging markets look incredibly good to me. Yes they will slow their growth a bit if the large economies stall, but I think it is foolish to avoid investments in China, Singapore, Brazil, Korea, India, Ghana, Malaysia, Indonesia. In fact that is where companies like Google, Tesco, Apple, Toyota and Amazon are going to be making lots of money. Emerging markets are volatile and the companies in them are too. This will continue.”
• Extreme Early Retirement in Practice: How Two People Did It by Robert Brokamp – “We recently spent three months in Guatemala nestled between three volcanoes, on the shores of beautiful Lake Atitlan, and our average spending was $40 per day for the two of us, which equates to $14,600 per year. Our hotel price included daily cleaning, wi-fi, room service, cable TV, and a view.”
• Are stocks cheap yet? Not if the economy is slowing, these numbers say by James Jubak – “A 20% drop in forecast earnings—the rough equivalent of an economic slowdown instead of a recession—would put the price-to-earnings ratio of the S&P 500 at 13. That’s below the average of 15 but not really very cheap given the degree of economic risk that an investor is taking on right now.”
• Private Pensions: Another Gradual Catastrophe by Evan Tarte – “Despite the arguably noble intent of defined benefit plans and the PBGC, these plans demand crippling contributions from employers and inevitably the taxpayer, and make little sense in today’s market environment. PBGC’s current deficit stands at $22 billion”
• Emergency Savings: is 6 Months Still Enough? by GE Miller – “with the average unemployment duration at 40.4 weeks, 6 months (or 26 weeks) is no longer enough, particularly when you take into account the possibility of medical emergency, pet operations, or other unforeseen circumstances. What is a good length these days? 1 year, at a minimum.”
• Forget TARP: Wall St Borrowed $1.2 Trillion from Fed by Barry Ritholtz – “An honest broker of the situation would have: 1. Fire the senior management of the banks 2. Banned all lobbying activity as a condition of any aid 3. Forced a Swedish style prepackaged bankruptcy”
• Bernanke Impoverishing Grandmothers to Benefit Wall Street Bankers by James Quinn – “The widow that was able to generate a risk free $6,000 only four years ago has only been able to generate less than $500 per year for the last three years.”
• Traveling Back to the Future on Intercity Buses by Mark Perry – “Private bus operators have effectively taken a 100-year-old technology, the bus, and adapted it seamlessly to the 21st century. Compare high-speed rail. It is tethered to enormous stations that must be built or refurbished and limited to particular routes that, once the rails are laid down, cannot be changed except at prohibitive expense.”

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