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Pastimes : The Justa & Lars Honors Bob Brinker Investment Club -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Justa Werkenstiff who wrote (11801)	2/9/2000 9:57:00 AM
From: Wally Mastroly	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 15132

Productivity vs. Money Supply Growth (Demand) - via Les H./edit: ntrs.com - " ..But if deflator growth continues to increase absolutely, the Fed would be galvanized into taking more aggressive actions than the namby-pamby 25 basis point moves it has been making since June 30... "

To: Justa Werkenstiff who wrote (11801)	2/13/2000 12:11:00 AM
From: Justa Werkenstiff	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 15132

Looks like Levitt has been reading my posts and has discovered my better half's super bowl indicator <g> Somebody tell Levitt margin debt only increased 6.6% in January sequentially at $243.530 B <g>: February 12, 2000 SEC Chief Urges Investors to Avoid Hype Filed at 7:32 p.m. ET By Reuters LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - U.S. investors, lulled into a false sense of security by hefty returns, need to do more to manage investment portfolio risk, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Arthur Levitt said on Saturday. ''The attitude now is 'Who wants to be a millionaire?' But unfortunately in the stock market, you don't get any lifelines,'' Levitt said, referring to the popular TV game show. In remarks made at an investor conference here, the SEC chairman said warned that investors had become complacent about risk because of years of solid and predictable returns. ''No government agency can protect you from your own foolishness,'' Levitt told the conference. He singled out advertisements, such as those that debuted during last month's Superbowl, by online trading companies touting the ease of quick riches as ''disgraceful.'' Levitt, who has been SEC chief since 1993, expressed less concern about day traders, who he described as gamblers but who he said account for only about 5 percent of market volume. He also acknowledged worry over anyone who trades on margin accounts. ''People in America think they are richer than they really are. A lot of it is paper profits,'' the SEC chairman said. Although the Federal Reserve has ultimate authority over margin requirements, Levitt said we can expect the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq to soon issue notices to brokerage firms encouraging them ''to be mindful of margins.'' ''Prosperity is not a reason to let your guard down,'' Levitt said. ''History shows that heightened speculation has always accompanied innovation and technological advancement.'' He warned investors to be particularly wary of ways companies and their investment banks may act to alter the perception of a stock's value, such as stock splits and or even initial public offerings. ''When a $100 stock splits into two $50 shares, it may look cheaper to some investors, but the company's underlying value is the same,'' Levitt said. The value of an IPO can also be hard to determine, since the number of shares actually sold to the public generally account for a fraction of the company's total stock, the SEC chairman also said. ''The underwriters, venture capitalists and other insiders are sure to make big profits on their stake,'' the SEC chairman said. ''Many of these companies are being groomed to go public as soon as possible. Some of them need quick injections of capital just to survive.'' But Levitt said he remained in favor of more public access, particularly media access, to company information, such as IPO road shows and conference calls with Wall Street analysts, that is now often limited to insiders. ''I am all for the broadest dissemination possible, as long as it can be done without disruption,'' Levitt said. Late last year, the SEC issued for comment guidelines on selective disclosure that would require a public company to immediately publicize any material made available to a select group or to open up meeting and analysts' calls to the public.