The Premise: Sure, the economy picked up steam this past fall. But much of that growth is tied to the trillions of dollars the U.S. government threw at the financial crisis.
Magician David Copperfield made the Statue of Liberty disappear, but even he might be envious of the neat trick some mutual fund companies have recently accomplished: making poor-performing mutual funds – and their records – vanish.
Heading into 2010, most financial analysts and investment professionals seem to agree on two things: We’re no longer on the brink of another Great Depression, and there won’t be another 60 percent surge in the stock market anytime soon. Beyond that, things get a little hazy.
For unemployed Americans, searching the Web for jobs is about as key to starting the day as a cup of coffee. Indeed, some 11 million new positions appeared online in the first half of 2009 – plenty more than the 7 million-plus lost since the recession began.
Millions of Americans may look back on 2009 as the year they froze like deer in headlights – and made money by standing still. Since the market bottomed out in March, some who sat on their hands have done surprisingly well. As of today, an investor with all her stocks in an S&P 500 index fund would be up a healthy 20 percent for the year – and more than 60 percent since March.
The Internal Revenue Service for the first time will require the nation's approximately 1 million tax preparers to register with the federal government, with a large percentage of them having to pass competency tests and stay up-to-date on tax laws by taking 15 hours of classes a year.
