Topley’s Top Ten – October 29, 2018

1.Shanghai Composite Down $3 Trillion in Market Cap…Back to 2008 Levels.

China’s economy has grown in size 34.5 times, or an average of 9.5% a year, in the 40 years since the nation started producing modern economic statistics. It has never experienced a year of economic decline.
https://www.barrons.com/articles/the-tariff-battle-wont-dent-chinas-economy-or-americas-1540588257

Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Back to 2008 Levels.

www.stockcharts.com

2.Chinese Tech ETF -30%…Still Not Below 2017 Levels

 Chinese Tech ETF

3.MSCI World Ex-U.S. Trading at 13.5x P/E

MSCI World Ex-U.S. Tracker

4.10X Year Over Year Increase in Defense Spending.

The government has carved out $717 billion in defense spending for fiscal 2019, up $78 billion from 2018.
https://www.barrons.com/articles/stock-market-midterm-elections-1540585849

www.stockcharts.com

5.Hedge Funds Record Setting Short in Gold.

Hedge funds continue their record-setting short position in gold.  It’s hard to say why the pessimism from these professional traders…could be the lack of inflation, could be gold’s disappointing performance on the heels of QE I/II/III…but any way you cut it, these traders are going to have massive short positions to unwind at the slightest sign of a squeeze.

www.dorseywright.com

6.When Do Markets Get Volatile?

Posted by lplresearch

After the S&P 500 Index’s least volatile third quarter since 1963, October has ushered in a wave of volatility: Daily moves in excess of 1% now feel like the norm.

Here’s what you need to know about volatility: It tends to happen when the S&P 500 is in a downtrend and beneath the 200-day moving average. For example, the S&P 500 gained more than 7.0% in the third quarter and did not gain more than 1% in a single day. In contrast, the S&P 500 has gained more than 1% three times already this month, but it is still down 7.2% so far in October.

The 200-day moving average is simply the average close of the previous 200-day trading days. This is a long-term trendline that many investors use to determine if stocks are in an uptrend or downtrend, but history has shown that the most volatility tends to happen beneath this trendline.

“Big moves tend to happen beneath the 200-day moving average,” said LPL Senior Market Strategist Ryan Detrick. “In fact, 23 of the 25 largest one-day rallies for the S&P 500 took place beneath the 200-day moving average.”

As our LPL Chart of the Day shows, the majority of the largest gains and losses took place beneath the 200-day moving average. With the S&P 500 currently beneath this important trendline, more volatility could be in store for investors.

https://i2.wp.com/lplresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/The-LArgest-Daily-Changes-Tend-to-Happen-Beneath-the-200-Day-Moving-Average.jpg?ssl=1

7.All 50 States Facing Teacher Shortage.

All 50 states and Washington, D.C., report teacher shortages, mainly in hard-to-fill areas like science, math and special education. School districts, citing tight budgets, aren’t boosting salaries in a profession with the average starting pay at $39,000.

“It’s still my preference to have a live body in the classroom if we can, but we’ve experienced teacher shortages in some of the most critical areas,” said Marc Smith, superintendent of Duncanville Independent School District in a Dallas suburb, where 60 classes are led by 10 remote teachers. It is the district’s second year using the method. “I think it’s going really well,” he said.

In More High School Classes, the Teacher Is on a Screen

Facing a teacher shortage, school districts try virtual teachers; ‘My preference is still a live body in the classroom,’ says one Texas superintendent

https://www.wsj.com/articles/in-more-high-school-classes-the-teacher-is-on-a-screen-1540459802

8.These are 7 of the qualities bosses want the most in their employees

Rachel Premack

Being dependable and resilient are key traits in any employee.Strelka Institute for Media, Architecture and Design/flickr

  • The best way to succeed at workor get a job is to show you have the traits that bosses want.
  • Career experts named seven characteristics that are crucial for employeesin any industry.
  • Resilience, focus, and likeability are all important in the workplace.

Every employer looks for different experiences and skillsets in their workers.

But while your professional background is important, your character “will have the greatest impact on whether you get the job you want,” said Brian Tracy, author of “Earn What You’re Really Worth: Maximize Your Income at Any Time in Any Market”.

Tracy and other careers experts named seven traits that managers in any industry want.

Vivian Giang contributed to the original version of this post.

Resilience

Marc Cenedella, CEO of Ladders, said resilience separates those who flourish from those who falter in the workplace.

“Bosses are looking for employees who can stick to their goals through difficult challenges, bounce back when things go wrong, and see projects through to success,” Cenedella told Business Insider.

Judge Graham, entrepreneur and career coach, agreed that having the resilience to be able to handle stress is crucial.

“You can’t allow stress to affect their performance or attitude regardless of how intense the situation may get,” Graham told Business Insider.

Time-management skills

It’s not all about spending 12 hours at the office. Managers are more impressed by those who can do a lot in a smaller amount of time.

Tracy said much of your productivity is determined by time-management skills — your ability to plan, organize, set priorities, solve problems and to get the job done.

“Everyone is on the clock, so this means an employee needs to value the time it takes to take on different projects and use that time effectively,” Graham said. “Maintaining a steady, assured pace allows you to really hone in on decision-making capabilities.”

Read more: 26 time-management tricks I wish I’d known at 20

Courage

Anna Kholina/Strelka Institute/Flickr

Another trait that sets entrepreneurs apart is not fearing failure, even when there is a “high degree of uncertainty and the possibility of failure,” Tracy said.

Amazon CEO and founder Jeff Bezos is one of many successful folks who advocates for the idea of accepting failure.

“To invent you have to experiment, and if you know in advance that it’s going to work, it’s not an experiment,” Bezos said. “Most large organizations embrace the idea of invention, but are not willing to suffer the string of failed experiments necessary to get there.”

Focus

Even if you know how to structure your day with good time-management skills, the ability to focus or experience “flow,” that state of being in the zone, can be more elusive. This means you can concentrate “single-mindedly until the job is complete,” Tracy said.

Some say focus is the characteristic that sets entrepreneurs apart from other smart people.

Focus on the customer is also an important characteristic.

“You have to maintain a relentless focus to always do what is best for the customer,” Graham said. “They’re the be-all and end-all, and the reason for business in the first place.”

This is another point that Bezos, the richest person alive, can agree on. He said at a recent talk that he attributes his success to an “obsessive-compulsive focus on the customer as opposed to obsession over the competitor.”

Integrity

This is “probably the most important single quality for long-term success in life and at work,” Tracy said.

Being honest with others and yourself will also demonstrate to your employer that you’re loyal.

Dependability

“Employees need to be held accountable to complete the tasks they say they can deliver on, not only on time for team members, but the customer as well,” Graham said.

No one wants to hire someone who doesn’t accomplish what they promise. That’s why many leaders recommend that people under-promise and over-deliver on their daily tasks.

“I get frustrated when people don’t follow through,” Alexandra Wilkis Wilson, CEO of on-demand beauty business Glamsquad, told The New York Times in 2015. “If I assume that someone’s going to be doing something and then I find out that they haven’t done it, that’s very frustrating to me.”

Likability

Like it or not, teamwork is the key to business success and if you can’t show that you can work well with others, this will be a problem.

“Employers are looking for people who can join the team and be part of the work family,” Tracy said.

While you don’t want to seem fake or pushy, there are a few hacks to get people to like you more. Try smiling more and asking your coworkers more about themselves. As Business Insider’s Shana Lebowitz reported, “talking about yourself may be inherently rewarding, the same way that food, money, and sex are

https://www.businessinsider.com/7-qualities-most-in-demand-at-the-workplace-2012-3