U.S. News: 5 Important Economic Metrics to Know

By SIMON CONSTABLE

With a new administration in the White House, investors will be watching closely to see how the economy does. But which metrics and indicators will help them determine whether the economy is sluggish or hopping along?

The vast array of indicators can be confusing, particularly for the uninitiated. There are many of them, and not all are created equal.

That's why it makes sense to see what the experts watch. Read more here.

WSJ: What Is ‘Price Discovery’ and Why Does It Matter?

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Sometimes investment professionals use the term “price discovery” to describe how markets work. Here is what it means and why it is relevant.

Price discovery is the mechanism by which competing buyers and sellers determine the price of a security or an asset. Typically, this is done on an exchange such as the New York Stock Exchange. Read more here.

WSJ: Fund Investors Found Commodities Golden in 2016

By SIMON CONSTABLE

U.S. fund investors caught commodities fever in 2016 in the biggest way in six years, as prices of gold, oil and other commodities rallied.

Funds specializing in precious metals were back in fashion, as were those that invest across the commodities spectrum. Funds that hold single commodities other than precious metals were out of fashion. Read more here.

TheStreet: A Gold Price Slump Is Good News, Even If You Own the Metal

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Gold prices have been in a slump these past few months. But investors who own the metal shouldn't be sad.

In fact, quite the opposite. They should be thrilled. Read more here.

U.S. News: Good Outlook for M&A Should Boost Stocks

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Just like the 1980s video game Pac-Man, corporations look set to start gobbling up each other this year.

If that happens, and it looks likely to do so, then the stock market should rally. That's because greater numbers of mergers and more acquisitions tend to go hand in hand with gains in the major stock indices, such as the Standard & Poor's 500 index. In short, more deals equal higher stock prices. Read more here.

Forbes: A Simple Way to Help Your College-bound Student Ace Personal Finance

By SIMON CONSTABLE

It's normally this time of year that first year undergraduates start to realize that their finances are a mess. At least that's when it dawned on me when I was at college.

Author Kingsley Amis nailed the sentiment when he wrote: "[...] he [Jim] must review his financial situation, see if he could somehow restore it from complete impossibility to its usual level of merely imminent disaster."  That was from Amis' superb novel, Lucky Jim.

Yes, right now many students may feel just like the protagonist of that novel right now -- totally skint, or broke.

The problem has long been simple. We spend a lot of time insisting that students learn algebra and punctuation. But we spend close to zero time teaching basic personal finance.

That's where the O.M.G. Official Money Guide for College Students by Susan Beacham et al., comes in handy. Read more here.

Erdogan Top Ten For Journalists in Turkey

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Top ten list of safe topics for journalists in Turkey:

1. Erdogan is awesome.
2. Err... That's it.
3. ...
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By Secretary of Defense [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons