For the past few years, many Chinese portals included a special field for the Chinese stocks: “Olympics Concept”. The objective was to inform the reader whether this company stands to benefit, directly or indirectly from the Olympics in Beijing. Airlines, Travel Agencies, Mobile Phones, and possibly even the manufacturer of those shiny suits adorned with LEDs worn by the performers.
Now that the games are over, the craze is also expected to slow. For those investors holding Chinese stocks, what are your plans? Do you think stocks are over-valued or will continue to ride the momentum? Chime in.
Now I wonder if Denver-based companies get a boost from the Democratic National Convention….
August 25th, 2008
The current Firstrade.com website, love it or hate it, has been delivering quality execution, an abundance of tools, and exciting promotions for the past few years. Well, I think it’s time for an upgrade.
I’ve just been given permission to “leak” a bit of information here on the blog that something(s) new and exciting is(are) coming between now and the end of this year. The team is hard at work and we’re sure everyone will be happy with the results. Stay tuned.
August 19th, 2008
Hi the past few weeks, we’ve announced many exciting promotions, including:
- Refer-a-Friend - Our enhanced referral promotion rewards you with cash when your friends open and fund their Firstrade account.
- Wire Transfer Fee Rebate - Get a rebate of up to $25 for the fees charged by banks when you wire funds into your Firstrade account.
- Authentium SafeCentral - All Firstrade account users get a 1 year subscription to SafeCentral, a revolutionary secure trading browser that keeps intruders away from your secure session.
More are coming soon! We want to make sure that there’s always something fun and exciting going on at Firstrade.
August 8th, 2008
Do you feel safe when you use your computer? When you use online banking or enter your credit card number online, are you certain that the information won’t fall into the wrong hands? Firstrade has always taken a proactive role in protecting customers from online fraud, offering free Trend Micro Anti-Virus software to all of our customers. Earlier this year we also began testing SafeCentral secure browser with Authentium, I hope people were able to take the opportunity and test the beta program.
There are obvious trade-offs between convenience and security, but unfortunately the reality is that if we are not careful, there are malicious people looking to make money off our carelessness. Where do you stand, will you sacrifice convenience for peace of mind?
Let us know, we’re always looking for feedback, and creating new ways to protect you, the customer.
May 15th, 2008
Are the sub-prime issues behind us? Was Paulson’s plan to introduce more regulation on the lending market just what the we needed? Regardless of what people think of those questions, the market started Q2 of 2008 in a big way. The Dow was up 391.47, the NASDAQ up 83.65, and the S&P was up 47.48.
Companies such as Lehman Brothers, on the brink of a collapse in stock price just weeks ago, is now on a turnaround (at least in stock price). The Dollar was showing signs of stabilizing, good news all around it seems.
The first quarter was brutal, Dow down 7.6%, S&P 500 down almost 10% and the Nasdaq down over 14%. Does the April Fools day rally mean the beginning of a recovery? Chime in!
April 1st, 2008
Apple’s keynote yesterday certainly disappointed many investors, as the stock dropped continuously throughout the trading day. People are expecting quite a lot from Apple, though personally think the products are quite exciting and can’t wait to get my hands on them.
Can Firstrade claim to be the world’s first brokerage firm with a Webclip Icon? Add our website as an Webclip to your iPhone and this is what you get!
January 16th, 2008
A belated Merry Christmas to all our readers, hope there were gifts aplenty under the tree, and everyone did lots of shopping to keep the economy strong.
With that said, early numbers from the retail sector doesn’t seem that promising, and the housing market reported another major decline. Many major retailers are staging sales and extended operating hours to get shoppers into their stores. I’d love to provide first hand reports, but I’m working here, so unfortunately I have no idea how well the plans are working.
Many shoppers are also spending more money on gift cards this year. Gift giving people love its simplicity and convenience, retailers love gift cards because: 1. It gets you into stores to buy more stuff; 2. Some people forget to use it or leave a balance; 3. Some cards expire, meaning the retailer keeps the money for nothing! Shoppers are expected to flood major retailers in the next few weeks, armed with their gift cards, so another surge of shopping should be taking place right now, or just as soon as we get out of work.
December 26th, 2007
Down 200 points one day, up 300 the next. The volatility in the market recently has been shocking. It seems that any news, either positive or negative, is automatically amplified by nervous investors, swaying the market in one direction.
Today the DJIA rallied on hopes that the Feds will lower rates in their next meeting. Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Donald Kohn mentioned that the Feds need to be nimble in its approach. What exactly does nimble mean? we won’t know till the next Feds meeting, but as of today, most people seem to think it means a lower interest rate.
In other news, oil falls $4 to around the $91 level. There are so many macro events that are impacting the market right now: sub-prime mortgage, oil prices, dollar weakness, consumer confidence, the list goes on. Who knows what tomorrow will bring?
November 28th, 2007
The market closed early today at 1PM. Early morning crowds at major retailers seems to have given the market a confidence boost. We’ll know by Monday how some of these retailers fared over the busy shopping weekend.
Anyone managed to grab “door-buster” or “early-bird” deals on technology items? Share the experience here!
November 23rd, 2007
The sub-prime mortgage problems has spread across various parts of the financial industry. Earlier this month, one of our competitors was seriously hit by the bad news, and their stock plunged over 50% in one trading session. It seems that the firm invested a large portion of their portfolio in asset-backed securities. A solid chunk of these “assets” were in forms of collateralized debt obligations, or CDOs, and home-equity loans. Concerned that the write-downs will jeopardize the firm’s ability to remain well capitalized, shareholders sparked a sell-off that wiped out over half the company’s market cap in one day.
Firstrade does not invest in any asset-backed securities, therefore we are not affected by the sub-prime mortgage problems. Rest assured that your account with Firstrade is safe, plus don’t forget our unlimited account protection free for all Firstrade customers.
November 21st, 2007
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