Investments

Hedge fund managers found it a little easier to hang out their own shingles in the third quarter.

Get ready for a strong recovery in 2011, as corporate profits will boost the markets, predicts kasina CEO Steven Miyao. By mid-year, positive flows into equities will exceed flows into bonds, he said.

Americans’ financial outlook is improving, according to the December Country Financial Security Index. Thirty-eight percent rate their financial security positively, and another 15% sense their financial security is improving.

Some transaction participants appear to be rushing to market questionable Build America Bond, bank-qualified or other municipal bond deals before tax incentives expire at the end of the year and risking Internal Revenue Service enforcement action for violations of tax requirements, according to market sources.

Investors continued to ferry cash out of their municipal bond mutual funds at historic rates last week as a tumultuous sell-off sowed fear among buyers.

Morningstar said investors pulled $7.6 billion from muni bond funds, the category’s worst month for outflows except for the $8 billion redeemed in October 2008 during the credit crisis peak.

ETF assets reach $887.2 billion.

Fixed-income investors are exercising patience these days, with slow-moving rates that are expected to edge up slightly in 2011.

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index for the U.S. increased 1.1% in November to 112.4, following a 0.4% increase in October and a 0.6% increase in September.

While the occasional active investor/mutual fund will beat the market over time, the odds are weighted powerfully against that happening.

Rollovers into traditional IRAs occur evenly across all age groups and play a significant role in the growth of IRA assets, according to research by the Investment Company Institute and the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, released Thursday.

Tax-exempt money market funds lost a sizable $2.09 billion, dropping total net assets to $326.88 billion for the week ending Dec. 13 and erasing nearly all gains from the previous week, according to the Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet.com.

More Americans plan to consider financial resolutions when the clock strikes midnight on Dec. 31, a new Fidelity Investments survey says. The annual study found that 42% of Americans plan to make financial New Year’s resolutions, up from 35% last year. Results of this year’s telephone survey included 1,006 adults ages 18 and older.

Assets in money market mutual fund assets decreased by $33.2 billion, in the week ended Dec. 15, the Investment Company Institute said Thursday.

Ever since September 2008, clients are asking for more than you can possibly deliver: to keep track of the macro-economic big picture and help them get out of the market as soon as we start moving into another meltdown period. So the question is: How can we possibly respond to these lofty expectations?

Who exactly is feeling so confident about the markets? Are they the same people who aren’t saving anything and failed a (very easy) financial literacy test?

Hedge fund managers found it a little easier to hang out their own shingles in the third quarter.

Deutsche Bank launched two ETFs for values based investors this week. Both will directly invest in a portfolio of securities, rather than rely on swaps, or “synthetic” index replication.

Equity funds lost $1.4 billion, while bonds had outflows of $1.66 billion.

Start-ups are benefitting from stronger industry inflows and increasing investor tolerance for risk.