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The majors aren't making anything at the pump. XOM is selling all 3000+ of their company owned stores in the U.S. because they can't compete with the discounters like Wal-Mart. They will let independent dealers try their luck at the business. Refiners will be helped by reduced oil prices...

The difference in value for different contract months is due to the time value of money. That is, you're able to effectively buy and hold the underlying securities for a longer period of time and hence need to pay a premium to induce someone to sell to you. Over time, as the contract...

If you can't run the TWS stand alone version at work, try the browser based version. Likely it won't work either but worth a try. WebTrader is adequate for some swing trading but it's fairly basic and runs behind several seconds. You'll also get logged off if there's no activity for a...

Whether or not GM disappears (I don't think it will) won't have a big impact on repairs. I own an airplane and there are dozens of models no longer manufactured that people continue to fly. Parts are readily available because there's money to be made and always someone to fill the need. I...

IB isn't any good on the USD/CAD. Best option might be to use futures.

I can't confirm that for Treasuries but many times I have put in an order for a bond purchase and have received the same message. So getting quotes is no guarantee that IB handles the security.

I've never had a margin call either as I ensure I'm adequately capitalized. I suppose if you've got the available funds invested elsewhere, a margin call is just a nuisance. But I'm using IB for trading and they don't do margin calls. Instead you just hear "ding" for an execution and see that...

You're right. I just went to the last earnings report I found on a website, which was also the last news item, and didn't notice how out of date it was.

Sounds like you'll be fine just signing up for the free data feeds (subject to the monthly $30 commission minimum). If you try adding a symbol to TWS and don't have the required subscription, you'll get an immediate message. You can then add the required subscription and it will go into effect...

IBKR reported quarterly net income of 66 cents/share versus 31 last year and 50 expected. So the $4/share drop after the close makes perfect sense. :)

Yes. I was hasty. Meant to double the amount daily.

The "customer need not sign this arbitration agreement to open an account . . ." sounds like some wording their lawyer told them to put in. I would be surprised if they would accept your application without the arbitration agreement, although I'm not familiar with this broker. In practice...

For a hedge against a fall in the USD, why not just buy 1 EUR futures contract (valued at 125k Euros). Renew it quarterly. It actually sells at a slight discount owing to the higher ECB discount rate.

It reminds me of the kid who was asked if he wanted $10 to mow the lawn, or alternatively, 1 cent on the first of the month, 2 cents on the second of the month, 3 cents on the third of the month, and so on through the 30th of the month. The later gives you in excess of $10 million.

Exactly my point. IB's system checks in real time whether they have shares available for borrowing. If they do, your order is entered. If not, you receive the message "Security not available to borrow". This ensures no naked short selling. So IB customers should not see any change resulting...

Check on this at www.fdic.gov. I think the answer is 1) yes and 2) no. They add together all of the accounts registered in the same name for purposes of the $100k limit.

I think Singapore always runs a surplus. A large one on a per capita basis given their small population.

If you're broker can ensure that the shares can be borrowed, you'll be able to short sell. I'm with IB and haven't seen any communication from them about this yet. But they have a real time system to ensure they have the shares available so I'm not anticipating any change.

There's really no excuse for having a CD in an amount that exceeds FDIC insurance limits. But in practice, you're not likely to have a problem. I lived in Houston in the '80s and was always chasing high interest rates on my CDs (routinely 12+%). The banks paying the highest interest rates...

A dividend is received if you own the stock on the record date. GM's last dividend was paid to stock owners in May (I can't recall the exact date). As for future dividends, it doesn't matter if you already own the stock or buy it in the future. They aren't going to declare a dividend so no...