How a librarian taught herself to invest and retired early

Diane Bronson can smile now, but the librarian was really worry when she pulled her money out of stocks in 2008.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

At least, she thought it was a bad move. She yanked all her money from the stock market and put it in cash.

"I decided to sell in a panic," she says. "That was in January 2008 before everything went to hell."

It went against every investment instinct the former librarian had developed over the years. She was a "buy and hold" kind of investor who prided herself on patience and a long-term focus. For decades, she put her money into growth-oriented mutual funds.

But her hunch paid off.

She avoided the worst of the downturn when Lehman Brothers fell in September 2008. She later got back into the market and has since enjoyed one heck of a bull run the past five years. Her portfolio now provides a quarter of her retirement income and allowed her to retire early in 2012.

"All my life, I've been a 100% stock-invested, buy-and-hold kinda gal, but after watching my life savings drop by nearly half from 2000 to 2002 and take another three years to get back to their 1999 level, I just wasn't able to see that close to a 500-point drop without my stomach dropping as well," she wrote in an e-mail, referring to the wobbles in the market in January 2008.

Related: What's a mutual fund?

Before she had always stayed put, remaining in the market even after the dot-com crash in 2000. In fact, her portfolio only recovered from that downturn in 2005, so it was scary for her to abandon everything in a gamble to save her funds.

She ended up parking her savings in money market funds, which were experiencing their own turbulence, though not quite as bad as the stock market.

"I didn't have another five years to waste getting nothing out of my money," she said

Bronson never considered herself much of an investor. In the early days of her career, she had little to play around with.

Then she began to take her retirement and savings funds more seriously. A librarian for more than two decades, it figures that her introduction to the world of investing started with a reference book on mutual funds.

She goes through four or five books per week, and many of them have been investing books over the years. She's forgotten the name of that first one, but one favorite, is the value investing classic "A Random Walk Down Wall Street."

"Tell everyone to go to their 332s," she said, referencing the section of the Dewey Decimal System covering financial economics.

She still uses her local library's resources to better understand the markets, including taking advantage of a MorningStar subscription available there. She also checks the market daily, reads a lot and looks over research notes from Vanguard, which operates the funds she uses.

Related: Tell CNNMoney about your investing experience

Mutual funds are still her preferred form of investing, because she doesn't like trying to time the market. She dabbled a bit early on by trying to pick individual stocks, but her returns were underwhelming.

"Bulls make money and bears make money, but pigs get slaughtered," she said. "I was a pig, and I got slaughtered."

Since the financial crisis, it's been a bit of an adjustment for her to diversify. Sometimes she compares investing notes with her father, and she gets envious that he's kept all his money in cash and stocks.

"I would never buy bonds before, and I never understood why people make any money in bonds," she said. But now she has a quarter of her money in bonds. She's also moved into larger-cap stocks in a quest for stability.

She counts herself fortunate that her gambit allowed her to retire two years early. Her investments have provided a nice supplement to her pension. Had she not had that safety net, she would have been a lot more fearful during the downturn.

She's not as worried about timing the top of the market this time. All she wants is peace, calm and steady returns to carry her through her golden years.

"I don't know what I'll do the next time the market seriously dives," she said. "I can't expect to be this lucky twice in a lifetime."

First Published: July 5, 2014: 7:31 AM ET

12.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

4 risks for emerging markets

Voters may turn against President Dilma Rousseff during October elections if Brazil fails to win the World Cup.

LONDON (CNNMoney)

The benchmark MSCI emerging market index has rallied by 6% since January 1 to reach levels not seen in over a year. Stocks in some countries have done much better: Turkey and Indonesia are up 14%, while India has posted a whopping 22% gain.

Here are four key risks investors need to watch carefully for the rest of 2014:

1. Federal Reserve tightening: Emerging markets caught a cold late last year on fears that money would move back to U.S. assets as the Federal Reserve began reducing the flow of easy money.

Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen's slow and steady approach has reassured investors so far this year, said Angus Campbell, a senior currency analyst at FxPro in London

"But managing the outflow [of investments] is key to avoiding any potential for a full blown emerging market crisis," he said.

Cheap central bank cash has kept government bond yields low for years and encouraged investors to seek riskier returns in stocks and emerging markets.

But the Fed's bond-buying program is expected to end later this year, and investors will be watching for clues on the timing of a rise in U.S. interest rates. Treasuries were sold Thursday, sending yields higher, after a strong jobs report provided evidence that the economy is gaining pace after a dismal first quarter.

Related: Shh! 6 secrets from top stock pickers

2. Political risks abound: Some of the major developing economies -- including Indonesia, Turkey and Brazil -- have crucial elections coming up.

Indonesian presidential elections are set for July 9. Opinion polls show pro-business candidate Joko Widodo -- known as Jokowi -- is facing a close race. Defeat for Jokowi could prompt big investors to sell.

In Turkey, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is expected to win the presidential election on August 10. Erdogan's confrontations with anti-government protesters have spooked markets before, and he's known for trying to influence central bank decisions.

"Investors should brace themselves for a more erratic and intrusive style of policy making and governance," warned Wolfango Piccoli, managing director at advisory firm Teneo Intelligence.

Brazil's presidential elections in October are also putting investors on edge. Dilma Rousseff is expected to win a second term, but economists have warned that her fate may hinge on Brazil winning the World Cup. If Brazil loses, it could spark renewed anger over the huge cost of hosting the tournament.

Related: Argentina continues tango with creditors

3. Uncertain economics: Deep-seated economic challenges such as slowing growth, high inflation and a dependence on foreign capital could return to haunt some emerging markets in the coming months.

Brazil, India, Indonesia, Turkey, and South Africa were dubbed the 'Fragile Five' last year by Morgan Stanley because they have these risks in common. Little appears to have changed since.

"None of these five countries have managed to discard their membership in the so-called Fragile Five," said Piccoli from Teneo Intelligence.

Still, India's economic prospects have been looking up since Prime Minister Narendra Modi was voted into office on a promise of reform. Investors will be watching for evidence of action when his first budget is published on July 10.

A growing dependence on credit in countries such as China, Brazil and Thailand poses another risk. As does China's cooling property market, which could hurt commodity exporters in Latin America and parts of Africa.

4. Rising oil prices: Investors seem to be relaxed about the continuing crisis in Iraq. Oil prices spiked briefly in June as extremist Islamic militants advanced across northern Iraq, but have since fallen back, partly because of reports that Libya could resume exports.

Any significant disruption to oil exports from Iraq, OPEC's second biggest producer, would send world prices back up and could dent global growth.

Emerging markets that depend heavily on oil imports, such as Turkey and India, would suffer the most, said Craig Botham, an emerging markets economist at Schroders.

First Published: July 4, 2014: 7:00 AM ET

12.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Google at center of Europe censorship storm

Google has received more than 70,000 requests from individuals who want articles removed from its European search results.

LONDON (CNNMoney)

Google (GOOG) has told the BBC, The Guardian and The Independent that it is removing some articles from its European search results in response to requests from individuals looking to make use of a 'right to be forgotten' ruling by the European Court of Justice.

Search engine users can now ask for results that include their name to be removed where they are "inadequate, irrelevant or no longer relevant."

Google, which called the ruling "disappointing," has received over 70,000 such requests. It now has to weigh them against the public interest in information relating to crime, misconduct or malpractice.

"This is a new and evolving process for us," said a Google spokesperson. "We'll continue to listen to feedback and will also work with data protection authorities and others as we comply with the ruling."

The company is clearly wrestling with the challenge of acting as judge and jury in cases that could have big implications for personal privacy and censorship.

Related: Google spells out how to be 'forgotten' in search

A critical BBC blog about Stan O'Neal, the former head of Merrill Lynch, was removed despite vocal protests from the journalist who wrote the piece.

Search results for 'Stan O'Neal' in Europe now include a note from Google saying, "Some results may have been removed under data protection law in Europe."

Free speech campaigners say the ruling has created confusion and placed far too much power in the hands of the search engines.

"There's no appeal mechanism, no transparency about how Google and others arrive at decisions about what to remove or not, and very little clarity on what classifies as 'relevant'," wrote Jodie Ginsberg, CEO of Index on Censorship.

Google says it will assess each request and attempt to balance the privacy of the individual with "the public's right to know and distribute information."

It has created a form for people to submit requests. A committee including chairman Eric Schmidt and the company's chief legal officer may review the most sensitive requests.

Related: Google bans porn ads

The first few cases have generated such a storm of publicity that the individuals may now be regretting asking for the articles to be taken down, not least because they're still easily found on domains outside Europe, such as google.com.

Campaigners say the big search engines could take a stand against the ruling by insisting that national data protection authorities decide on the requests.

"The flood of requests that would be driven to these ... organizations might help to focus minds on how to prevent a ruling intended to protect personal privacy from becoming a blanket invitation to censorship," said Ginsberg.

First Published: July 4, 2014: 10:07 AM ET

12.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

4 risks for emerging markets

Voters may turn against President Dilma Rousseff during October elections if Brazil fails to win the World Cup.

LONDON (CNNMoney)

The benchmark MSCI emerging market index has rallied by 6% since January 1 to reach levels not seen in over a year. Stocks in some countries have done much better: Turkey and Indonesia are up 14%, while India has posted a whopping 22% gain.

Here are four key risks investors need to watch carefully for the rest of 2014:

1. Federal Reserve tightening: Emerging markets caught a cold late last year on fears that money would move back to U.S. assets as the Federal Reserve began reducing the flow of easy money.

Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen's slow and steady approach has reassured investors so far this year, said Angus Campbell, a senior currency analyst at FxPro in London

"But managing the outflow [of investments] is key to avoiding any potential for a full blown emerging market crisis," he said.

Cheap central bank cash has kept government bond yields low for years and encouraged investors to seek riskier returns in stocks and emerging markets.

But the Fed's bond-buying program is expected to end later this year, and investors will be watching for clues on the timing of a rise in U.S. interest rates. Treasuries were sold Thursday, sending yields higher, after a strong jobs report provided evidence that the economy is gaining pace after a dismal first quarter.

Related: Shh! 6 secrets from top stock pickers

2. Political risks abound: Some of the major developing economies -- including Indonesia, Turkey and Brazil -- have crucial elections coming up.

Indonesian presidential elections are set for July 9. Opinion polls show pro-business candidate Joko Widodo -- known as Jokowi -- is facing a close race. Defeat for Jokowi could prompt big investors to sell.

In Turkey, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is expected to win the presidential election on August 10. Erdogan's confrontations with anti-government protesters have spooked markets before, and he's known for trying to influence central bank decisions.

"Investors should brace themselves for a more erratic and intrusive style of policy making and governance," warned Wolfango Piccoli, managing director at advisory firm Teneo Intelligence.

Brazil's presidential elections in October are also putting investors on edge. Dilma Rousseff is expected to win a second term, but economists have warned that her fate may hinge on Brazil winning the World Cup. If Brazil loses, it could spark renewed anger over the huge cost of hosting the tournament.

Related: Argentina continues tango with creditors

3. Uncertain economics: Deep-seated economic challenges such as slowing growth, high inflation and a dependence on foreign capital could return to haunt some emerging markets in the coming months.

Brazil, India, Indonesia, Turkey, and South Africa were dubbed the 'Fragile Five' last year by Morgan Stanley because they have these risks in common. Little appears to have changed since.

"None of these five countries have managed to discard their membership in the so-called Fragile Five," said Piccoli from Teneo Intelligence.

Still, India's economic prospects have been looking up since Prime Minister Narendra Modi was voted into office on a promise of reform. Investors will be watching for evidence of action when his first budget is published on July 10.

A growing dependence on credit in countries such as China, Brazil and Thailand poses another risk. As does China's cooling property market, which could hurt commodity exporters in Latin America and parts of Africa.

4. Rising oil prices: Investors seem to be relaxed about the continuing crisis in Iraq. Oil prices spiked briefly in June as extremist Islamic militants advanced across northern Iraq, but have since fallen back, partly because of reports that Libya could resume exports.

Any significant disruption to oil exports from Iraq, OPEC's second biggest producer, would send world prices back up and could dent global growth.

Emerging markets that depend heavily on oil imports, such as Turkey and India, would suffer the most, said Craig Botham, an emerging markets economist at Schroders.

First Published: July 4, 2014: 7:00 AM ET

12.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

Obama wants more financial reform

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

He said big banks need additional restraints from making bets that leave taxpayers "holding the bag."

"That's going to require some further reforms. That's going to require us looking at additional steps that we can take," Obama said in an interview with the public radio program "Marketplace."

He suggested some would come from Washington and other changes require "restructuring the banks themselves -- how they work internally."

"We have to continue to see how can we re-balance the economy sensibly, so that we have a banking system that is doing what it is supposed to be doing to grow the real economy, but not a situation in which we continue to see a lot of these banks take big risks because the profit incentive and the bonus incentive is there for them," he said.

Related: It pays well to work in the White House

Meanwhile on Wall Street, many big banks are making their own internal changes, shutting down the profitable but particularly risky speculative trading units.

And regulators have been slow to flesh out how the industry reforms Congress passed in 2010 will work. Just over half of the nearly 400 federal rules required under Dodd-Frank have been finalized, and nearly a quarter haven't even been proposed, a key early step in the rulemaking process, according to Davis Polk, a financial industry law firm.

But federal prosecutors have stepped up their tactics against misbehaving banks, settling charges with guilty pleas for the first time in decades. In May, Credit Suisse (CS) pleaded guilty to tax evasion-related charges, and this week, the French bank BNP Paribas (BNPQF) entered guilty pleas related to sanction violations and agreed to pay nearly $9 billion in penalties.

It seems unlikely additional financial industry reforms would move smoothly through divided Washington, and the majority of Obama's efforts on the economy have focused on wages and college costs. He has pledged what he calls a pen-and-phone approach to accomplish his priorities through executive orders and the bully pulpit.

First Published: July 3, 2014: 1:54 PM ET

12.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

Google at center of Europe censorship storm

Google has received more than 70,000 requests from individuals who want articles removed from its European search results.

LONDON (CNNMoney)

Google (GOOG) has told the BBC, The Guardian and The Independent that it is removing some articles from its European search results in response to requests from individuals looking to make use of a 'right to be forgotten' ruling by the European Court of Justice.

Search engine users can now ask for results that include their name to be removed where they are "inadequate, irrelevant or no longer relevant."

Google, which called the ruling "disappointing," has received over 70,000 such requests. It now has to weigh them against the public interest in information relating to crime, misconduct or malpractice.

"This is a new and evolving process for us," said a Google spokesperson. "We'll continue to listen to feedback and will also work with data protection authorities and others as we comply with the ruling."

The company is clearly wrestling with the challenge of acting as judge and jury in cases that could have big implications for personal privacy and censorship.

Related: Google spells out how to be 'forgotten' in search

A critical BBC blog about Stan O'Neal, the former head of Merrill Lynch, was removed despite vocal protests from the journalist who wrote the piece.

Search results for 'Stan O'Neal' in Europe now include a note from Google saying, "Some results may have been removed under data protection law in Europe."

Free speech campaigners say the ruling has created confusion and placed far too much power in the hands of the search engines.

"There's no appeal mechanism, no transparency about how Google and others arrive at decisions about what to remove or not, and very little clarity on what classifies as 'relevant'," wrote Jodie Ginsberg, CEO of Index on Censorship.

Google says it will assess each request and attempt to balance the privacy of the individual with "the public's right to know and distribute information."

It has created a form for people to submit requests. A committee including chairman Eric Schmidt and the company's chief legal officer may review the most sensitive requests.

Related: Google bans porn ads

The first few cases have generated such a storm of publicity that the individuals may now be regretting asking for the articles to be taken down, not least because they're still easily found on domains outside Europe, such as google.com.

Campaigners say the big search engines could take a stand against the ruling by insisting that national data protection authorities decide on the requests.

"The flood of requests that would be driven to these ... organizations might help to focus minds on how to prevent a ruling intended to protect personal privacy from becoming a blanket invitation to censorship," said Ginsberg.

First Published: July 4, 2014: 10:07 AM ET

12.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

Plasma TVs are just about dead

It's the end of the line for Samsung's plasma TV's.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Samsung confirmed Thursday that it was shutting down its plasma TV business "due to changes in market demands," choosing instead to focus on curved and ultra-high-definition models that use LED technology. The news was first reported by Reuters.

Samsung's announcement follows news last year that Panasonic had decided to stop making plasma panels. Seoul-based LG, the last major international plasma TV manufacturer, is also planning on shutting down plasma production, according to South Korea's Yonhap News Agency.

Manufacturers are increasingly looking to LED and LCD screens as they develop the next generation of TV sets. Veronica Thayer, a consumer electronics analyst with IHS, said the last shipments of plasma TVs for American retail shelves will come by the end of this year.

There are still a few Chinese companies producing plasma TVs, Thayer added, but those too will likely be gone by 2016.

5 gadgets that changed Amazon

Plasma TVs are composed of pixels filled with gas that light up in different colors when they're hit with an electrical current. LED and LCD televisions uses screens made of liquid crystals that are lit up from behind to create images.

Plasma TVs offered what many considered to be the best picture quality on the market in the past few years, albeit at higher prices than LCDs. They gained favor thanks to their brighter images, warmer tones and wider viewing angles.

But plasma screens are now being supplanted at the high end of the market by LED technology, which offers comparable picture quality on thinner screens that use less power.

IHS reported last month that plasma TV shipments dropped 16% globally in the first quarter versus a year prior, and that they "are on their way out of the industry permanently."

First Published: July 3, 2014: 12:00 PM ET

12.09 | 0 komentar | Read More