Crafting an engrossing journey from the gushing Pennsylvania oil fields of the 1860s to today's fraught and fractious Middle East, Crude Volatility explains how past periods of stability and volatility in oil prices help us understand the new boom-bust era. Oil's notorious volatility has always been considered a scourge afflicting not only the oil industry but also the broader economy and geopolitical landscape; Robert McNally makes sense of how oil became so central to our world and why it is subject to such extreme price fluctuations.Tracing a history marked by conflict, intrigue, and extreme uncertainty, McNally shows how--even from the oil industry's first years--wild and harmful price volatility prompted industry leaders and officials to undertake extraordinary efforts to stabilize oil prices by controlling production. Herculean market interventions--first, by Rockefeller's Standard Oil, then, by U.S. state regulators in partnership with major international oil companies, and, finally, by OPEC--succeeded to varying degrees in taming the beast. McNally, a veteran oil market and policy expert, explains the consequences of the ebbing of OPEC's power, debunking myths and offering recommendations--including mistakes to avoid--as we confront the unwelcome return of boom and bust oil prices.

    This is the road on which successful money managers will have to travel in the future." Timothy Vick, Author of How to Pick Stocks like Warren Buffett and Wall Street on Sale

    They should capitalize on it—and give a middle finger to those brokers wasting their time (and money) buying and selling, viewing investing as just buying stocks and not taking ownership of a company.In this book, Joe Ponzio gives an "f-you" to Wall Street and teaches you how to become a sharp value investor who uses economic downturns to your advantage. By buying into companies you believe in—but that may be selling for less than their intrinsic value, like high-end retailers in a weak market and discount retailers in a strong one—you will profit from their long-term performance. It's the perfect guide for anyone fed up with Wall Street's bull.

    Katsenelson gives a lucid explanation of today's markets with sound advice about how to make money while avoiding the traps that the market sets for exuberant bulls and frightened bears alike." -- Thomas G. Donlan, Barron's "A thoroughly enjoyable read. Provides a clear framework for equity investing in today's 'sideways' and volatile markets useful to everyone. Clear thinking and clear writing are not often paired - well done!" -- Dick Weil, CEO, Janus Capital Group"The bible for how to invest in the most tumultuous financial market environment since the Great Depression. A true guidebook for how to build wealth prudently." -- David Rosenberg, Chief Economist & Strategist, Gluskin Sheff + Associates Inc."A wonderful, grounded read for new and seasoned investors alike, Katsenelson explains in plain English why volatility and sideways markets are a stock picker's best friend." -- The Motley Fool, www.Fool.comPraise for Active Value Investing"This book reads like a conversation with Vitaliy: deep, insightful, inquisitive, and civilized." -- Nassim Nicholas Taleb, author of The Black Swan"Thoroughly enjoyable . . for the thoughtful and often entertaining way in which it is delivered. . . Katsenelson takes his reader step by step into the mind of the value investor by relating, in a fictional addendum to Fiddler on the Roof, the story of Tevye's purchase of Golde, the cow. He also describes his own big-time gambling evening (he was willing to lose a maximum of $40) and that of a half-drunken, rowdy fellow blackjack player to stress the importance of process. He then moves on to the fundamental principles of active value investing. What differentiates this book from so many others on value investing is that it describes, sometimes through the use of case studies, the thinking of a value investor. Not just his models or his metrics but his assessments. Katsenelson is an empiricist who weighs facts, looks for contraindications, and makes decisions. He makes value investing come alive. This may be a little book, but it's packed with insights for both novices and experienced investors. And it is a delight to read." --Seeking Alpha

    It does not matter how much you earn, what matters is how much you can save and invest wisely. The secret to financial freedom is learning the basic concepts of planning well and adopting the right attitude. But how does one achieve this?Everyone around us is trapped in a mindless rat race. If you’ve resolved to take control of your finances and construct a personal finance plan, From the Rat Race to Financial Freedom is a good starting point. About The AuthorManoj Arora, an engineer by profession, is a gold medalist from Aligarh Muslim University. Having worked for Fortune 500 organizations across the globe, including IBM, he has also worked for leading Indian companies such as L&T and TCS.

    The New York Times calls Betrayal, “a novelistic, you-are-there sort of narrative,” and the shocking story of the King of the Swindlers—and his hundreds of celebrity and corporation victims, and the everyday people who tragically invested their life savings with him—does indeed read like a page-turning thriller. But it’s all amazingly, disturbingly true.

    But, actually, this isn't the case at all. In fact, these super-rich individuals realize that their money needs to work for them and so they learn how to take what are known as "calculated" risks. The super-rich are definitely not psychics, nor do they have a "magic" secret that they hold close to their own kind. In fact, their real secret lies in the fact that they know what simple investing mistakes should be avoided. And, in truth, these mistakes are common knowledge, even among those investors who are not particularly wealthy at all. Investing properly is a guided, purposeful tool for building and adding to wealth, but it is not only for the rich. Actually, anyone can get started quite easily, and there are multiple avenues that make it easy to begin, with small amounts to start up a portfolio. Additionally, what differentiates using investment (as opposed to gambling) is that it takes a period of time for the "magic" to happen. Therefore, it is not a get-rich-quick scheme, at all. I want us to be clear on that point from the get-go. By the end of this book, you'll have a great understanding of what investing is, and you will know how the magic of compounding works too. We'll take a look at other options that you might find useful, so then you'll have the knowledge you need before you get started with your own investing. Again, thank you for joining me here; it's my pleasure to guide you through this important information. I believe that knowledge is power, and I hope that you'll feel more comfortable once you get the real gist of how it all works, and how it can work really well for you.

    But personal finance is actually more "personal" than it is "finance." Tim Maurer has made a career out of distilling complex financial concepts into understandable, doable actions. In this eminently practical book, he shows readers how to - better understand their values and goals in order to simplify their money decisions- budget major expenses intelligently- reduce and eliminate debt- make vital decisions on home, auto, and life insurance- establish a world-class investment portfolio- craft a workable retirement plan- and more Readers will be relieved to see that managing their money is actually not as complicated as they thought--and that they can take control of their financial future starting today.

    Rational and successful investing is all about restraining and channelizing these emotions and understanding behavioral finance, not market sentiments, crowd behavior or company performances. At a time when market upheavals are eroding investors' confidence, dooming life's earnings and corporate fortunes, and whipping up mass hysteria-Value Investing and Behavioral Finance comes as an antidote to investor anxiety and a guide to sane and safe investment decisions. Using investing trends in Indian capital markets over the last three decades, it shows how collective behavioral biases affect investment decisions, returns and market vagaries. As a corrective, it spells out long-term value and contrarian investing strategies based on the principles of behavioral finance. Further, it advises on how to spot investment opportunities and pitfalls in commodity stocks, growth stocks, PSUs, IPOs, sectors and index stocks. It also alerts the reader to a 'bubble' or crisis situation, and ways to identify and insure against it.

    Used correctly, it is better described as a personal bank on steroids, and a financial bunker for tough times. To be clear, this book is not about the typical garbage peddled by most insurance agents. Rather, an alternative to the risky investment strategies taught by Wall Street.It details a highly efficient form of cash value life insurance designed to supercharge your savings and stockpile wealth. A product so powerful it’s responsible for the success of Walt Disney, JC Penney, Ray Kroc, and thousands of others. Here's what you'll discover:•How the wealthy use this vehicle to create more wealth, take less risk, and create predictable income down the road•Why banks and corporations place billions of dollars in this powerful vehicle•How I earned over 300 percent returns leveraging my life insurance policies•How you can create a safe, predictable foundation to enhance every financial decision you make•How to win with taxes and keep more of the money you makeWhile the information compiled into this book is valuable, you'll also find three case studies that show you exactly how it works. You'll be able to visually see how it grows, how it's accessed, as well as the future income that can be taken.______________Influencers of this book are Nelson Nash, his book "Becoming Your Own Banker: Unlock the Infinite Banking Concept"; Pamela Yellen, her book "Bank on Yourself"; Dwayne Burnell, his book "Financial Independence in the 21st Century - Life Insurance * Utilize the Infinite Banking Concept * Compliment Your 401K - Retirement Planning With Permanent Whole Life versus Term or Universal - Create Financial Peace"; and my Father Dan Thompson, and his book "The Banking Effect: Acquiring wealth through your own Private Banking System."I was introduced to these financial strategies at a young age, and this is book represents the effort and energy on both the part of everyone of my mentors, these authors here, as well as my own diligence in learning about and implementing these very same strategies into my personal finances.This book is designed to simplify some of the concepts surrounding cash value life insurance, such as Infinite Banking and Bank on Yourself, and make them easier to understand, stripping them down to the core benefits of cash value life insurance.

    Ugly Americans is the true story of John Malcolm, a hungry young Princeton grad who traveled halfway around the world in search of the American dream and ultimately pulled off a trade that could, quite simply, be described as the biggest deal in the history of the financial markets. After receiving a mysterious phone call promising him a shot at great fortune in an exotic land, Malcolm packed up his few belongings and took the chance of a lifetime. Without speaking a word of Japanese, with barely a penny in his pocket, Malcolm was thrown into the bizarre, adrenaline-fueled life of an expat trader. Surrounded by characters ripped right out of a Hollywood thriller, he quickly learned how to survive in a cutthroat world -- at the feet of the biggest players the markets have ever known.Malcolm was first an assistant trading huge positions for Nick Leeson, the twenty-six-year-old rogue trader who lost nearly two billion dollars and brought down Barings Bank -- the oldest in England. Then he was the right-hand man to an enigmatic and brilliant hedge-fund cowboy named Dean Carney, and grew into one of the biggest derivatives traders in all of Asia. Along the way, Malcolm fell in love with the daughter of a Yakuza gangster, built a vast fortune out of thin air, and came head-to-head with the violent Japanese mobsters who helped turn the Asian markets into the turbulent casino it is today.Malcolm and his twentysomething, Ivy League schooled colleagues, with their warped sense of morality and proportion, created their own economic theory: Arbitrage with a Battle Axe. They rode the crashing waves of the Asian markets during the mid- to late 1990s, culminating in a single deal the likes of which had never been seen before -- or since.A real-life mixture of Liar's Poker and Wall Street, brimming with intense action, romance, underground sex, vivid locales, and exotic characters, Ugly Americans is the untold, true story that will rock the financial community and redefine an era.

    In this brief but insightful series of essays, Frank Gallinelli, the author of the best-selling "What Every Real Estate Investor Needs to Know About Cash Flow…" guides you through some investment principles you can live by. From cautionary tales about the process of due diligence and the hazards of self-styled "experts," to discussion of identifying your investment objectives, Gallinelli helps you focus on best practices.

    Swensen offers incontrovertible evidence that the for-profit mutual fund industry consistently fails the average investor. From excessive management fees to the frequent "churning" of portfolios, the relentless pursuit of profits by mutual fund management companies harms individual clients. Perhaps most destructive of all are the hidden schemes that limit investor choice and reduce returns, including "pay-to-play" product-placement fees, stale-price trading scams, soft-dollar kickbacks, and 12b-1 distribution charges. Even if investors manage to emerge unscathed from an encounter with the profit-seeking mutual fund industry, individuals face the likelihood of self-inflicted pain. The common practice of selling losers and buying winners (and doing both too often) damages portfolio returns and increases tax liabilities, delivering a one-two punch to investor aspirations. In short: Nearly insurmountable hurdles confront ordinary investors. Swensen's solution? A contrarian investment alternative that promotes well-diversified, equity-oriented, "market-mimicking" portfolios that reward investors who exhibit the courage to stay the course. Swensen suggests implementing his nonconformist proposal with investor-friendly, not-for-profit investment companies such as Vanguard and TIAA-CREF. By avoiding actively managed funds and employing client-oriented mutual fund managers, investors create the preconditions for investment success. Bottom line? Unconventional Success provides the guidance and financial know-how for improving the personal investor's financial future.

    . . . What Schwed has done is capture fully-in deceptively clean language-the lunacy at the heart of the investment business. -- From the Foreword by Michael Lewis, Bestselling author of Liar's Poker . . . one of the funniest books ever written about Wall Street. -- Jane Bryant Quinn, The Washington PostHow great to have a reissue of a hilarious classic that proves the more things change the more they stay the same. Only the names have been changed to protect the innocent. -- Michael BloombergIt's amazing how well Schwed's book is holding up after fifty-five years. About the only thing that's changed on Wall Street is that computers have replaced pencils and graph paper. Otherwise, the basics are the same. The investor's need to believe somebody is matched by the financial advisor's need to make a nice living. If one of them has to be disappointed, it's bound to be the former. -- John Rothchild, Author, A Fool and His Money, Financial Columnist, Time magazineHumorous and entertaining, this book exposes the folly and hypocrisy of Wall Street. The title refers to a story about a visitor to New York who admired the yachts of the bankers and brokers. Naively, he asked where all the customers' yachts were? Of course, none of the customers could afford yachts, even though they dutifully followed the advice of their bankers and brokers. Full of wise contrarian advice and offering a true look at the world of investing, in which brokers get rich while their customers go broke, this book continues to open the eyes of investors to the reality of Wall Street.