The WSJ Guide to the 50 Economic Indicators That Really Matter: From Big Macs to Zombie banks, the Indicators Smart Investors Watch to Beat the Market - Softcover

Simon Constable; Robert E. Wright

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0062001388 ISBN 13: 9780062001382

Publisher: Harper Business, 2011

Synopsis

A wonderfully irreverent and endlessly entertaining guide—with more than 80,000 copies sold worldwide in multiple languages—about the indicators most investors aren't following, but should be!

In order to make the best possible investment decisions, savvy investors know that they must pay close attention to economic indicators. But while most are looking at conventional barometers like unemployment rates and housing statistics, the smartest investors are following the curious and often ignored indicators that offer a true sense of where the economy is and where it's heading. These factors have been proven to provide the vital information needed to beat the market.

Dow Jones columnist Simon Constable and respected financial historian Robert E. Wright offer valuable tips and insight to help investors forecast and exploit sea changes in the global macroeconomic climate. Unlike other investment handbooks, Constable and Wright’s guide explores the little-known economic indicators that the smartest investors watch closely in order to beat the stock market—from “Big Macs” to “zombie banks.” This valuable and informative read entertains and enlightens while offering essential advice on navigating the global economic climate.

This isn’t just theory—it’s a practical toolkit for seeing what’s next:

• Leading Indicators: Learn how to spot turns in the economy before they happen, giving you time to adjust your portfolio before the rest of the market catches on.
• Unconventional Metrics: Go beyond typical data and discover why smart investors watch everything from the Big Mac Index to the number of "zombie banks."
• Actionable Investment Strategy: Move from analysis to action with clear advice on using these indicators to make safer investments during a slump and riskier ones during a boom.
• Global Economic Climate: Get a three-dimensional view of the world’s interconnected financial landscape and learn to exploit sea changes that others miss.

About this title

About the Authors

Simon Constable is host of the News Hub, a live web show that airs weekdays on Wall Street Journal Online. He makes standalone videos for WSJ.com, MarketWatch, and Barrons.com. He lives in New York City.

Robert E. Wright, PhD, is the Nef Family Chair of Political Economy at Augustana College in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He has authored or coauthored eleven books and has written for Barron's, the Chronicle of Higher Education, the Los Angeles Times, and other prominent publications.

From the Back Cover

An entertaining, must-have guide to the indicators most investors aren't following—but should be!

To make the best possible investment decisions, savvy investors know that they should pay close attention to economic indicators. But while most are looking at conventional barometers like unemployment rates and housing starts, the smartest investors are following the often ignored, sometimes curious, but always interesting indicators that offer a true sense of where the economy is and where it's going. They provide the vital information needed to beat the market.

In The Wall Street Journal Guide to the 50 Economic Indicators That Really Matter, Simon Constable and Robert E. Wright offer investors powerful new tools to guide them through the markets. Whether it's the VIX index (which tracks the level of anxiety among investors) or the Vixen index (which tracks the number of attractive waitresses in your hometown), this essential guide includes in-depth analyses of 50 valuable economic indicators, as well as what to watch for, what to do when movement happens, and the risk level involved in taking action. This must-have guide entertains and enlightens while offering essential advice on navigating the global economic climate.

Edition details

• Publisher: Harper Business
• Publication date: 2011
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0062001388
• ISBN 13: 9780062001382
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 281