11/30/07 Market Report

Slow Growth amid bank carnage.

The second life equity markets seem to be stronger, even after the banking disasters. This could be because the bank that did actually fail was not directly related to the equity section of the SL Financial Community. The bank that was saved, Lindsay and Luke Bank, could have easily tanked the entire market if Linden Lab had not stepped in. I think that's the big story for this month also, Linden Lab actually moved to protect a failing institution. It makes all bank stocks a measure of a degree safer so long as you're sure their CEO is on the ball because it shows they can get help with enough persistence, diligence, and probably if they can show Linden Lab their paperwork.

That said, before depositing or investing with any bank, make sure you test their atms thoroughly to make sure they're not exposing your money. Something as simple as the withdrawing of a negative sum could tell you worlds about your levels of risk at the institution in question.

This month most exchanges have been moving relatively sluggishly. The 30 day chart on the WSE looks like the pulse of a dead man with only a slightly positive jog of 5%* which may only be temporary in realization and just by chance.. up while I'm writing this report. CAPEX has been showing some strength, it appears to be on an upward jog and has inclined by 10%* for this past 30 day period. The International Stock Exchange is in pain, losing over 18%* for the past 30 days. It makes me wonder what's going on over there that has investors in such a lackluster mood. My assumption is there was that the prices appeared briefly inflated on the ISE which is usually symptomatic of a large manipulating investor behind the scenes. That said, prices may have normalized and it may be time to evaluate for potential purchases. ACE is starting to pick up steam, offering 3 new ipos in addition to its current listing. The same concerns apply to this as with VSTEX's rapid expansion. VSTEX's index has been rising also, so most markets are flat or higher. I'd say that constitutes a pretty reasonable month. I hope they're dotting their I's and crossing their T's in security. The Dreamland Stock Exchange has also been its usual sluggish self with low volumes and mild price changes.

* % in market value changes are courtesy of http://www.slquotes.com

Launderers gone riot.

Something interesting about Dreamland Exchange, its currency converter from Entropian PED to SL Linden has been temporarily and perhaps permanently shut down due to an exploitation by money launderers. Any investment that is in PED sums is currently at risk of not being extractable within Second Life. I've been assured they're working on a resolution of this issue with the Lab and Entropian authorities. That said, it could also explain some of the lackluster behavior of the exchange in recent days. Until the shut down, I was pondering actually looking at the banks within Entropia as investment venues to help drive more revenues.

Reserved optimism.

So am I bear or bull on this coming month? Well, there's a lot of new strengths showing in the markets including a market element which has behaved in an unexpected and positive manner. I guess you could say I'm leaning towards the bull side of the fence a little but my constant conservatism inhibits me from taking aggressive action until I can see real strength. I am looking at the new IPOs on all the exchanges carefully and adding a small sum of each to my portfolio so that they can be traded and profited from.

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