Where is the beef? Or maybe it should be where is the bull? Market, that is? The chief investment strategists and analysts of the major brokerage houses have been promising us a new bull market.

So far the bull hasn't come in from the distant pasture.

Some of the cows have been wandering back. I see stocks and mutual funds with names like Small Cap Value, Real Estate, Leisure Group and Gold, but all the rest of the herd are not coming to the barn. If you look at the herd, as scattered as they are, they don't seem to want to participate in any kind of a bull move.

If you are a very smart farmer (investor) you know which ones are the best ones to milk right now. The others should not be fed any more of your green. And you know what that is.

When I look at the 10 largest mutual funds in the U.S. I see there is only one that is going up and that is a bond fund. All the rest are now headed south again looking for those September low prices.

Why are you holding on to losers that can only get worse?

When I lived on the farm and we noticed livestock might be runts we immediate took them to market and sold them. It was better to get a few dollars now than to keep feeding an animal that would not make a profit. My Dad would take that money and buy another animal. When you are in the stock market you must have the same philosophy. You cannot fall in love with a loser. It will only break your heart and your pocketbook.

Al Thomas

Albert W. Thomas has spent most of his life in the field of finance. In 1965 he founded an insurance holding company, Security Dynamics Investment Corporation, after having been an agent and General Agent for several life insurance companies. In 1970 he became cofounder and president of Real Life Estate, Inc., that marketed a unique real estate and life insurance package.

After he became interested in commodities he bought a seat for his personal trading on the Chicago Open Board of Trade, which is now known as the MidAmerica Commodity Exchange. Later he became a full time trader and also acted as a commodity broker for a few select clients. By fellow floor traders Al is considered to be an excellent technical analyst much of which is outlined in his book IF IT DOESN'T GO UP, DON'T BUY IT! It became a best seller on Amazon.

In 1981 he sold his membership on the Exchange and with his wife, Carolyn, lived full time aboard their 41' ketch, the Aumakua (which means guardian angel in Hawaiian). They sailed in Florida and the Bahamas for two years.

He founded World Trading Group in 1984 that grew to the seventh largest introducing commodity brokerage firm in the U.S. with 35 offices from coast to coast, Alaska and Canada. It was sold in 1992.

Al is a graduate of Northwestern University with a B.S. degree in Commerce and is a member of MENSA. He is now president of Williamsburg Investment Company that syndicates his weekly financial column since 1999 to more than 300 newspapers and writes a financial market letter called Over My Shoulder that is quoted in Barron?s and many other publications. A 3-month trial subscription is available on his web site. He is a regular guest on several financial radio talk shows.

His favorite pastime is fishing.

Mr. Thomas is available for speaking engagements. Please call 321-453-5300 for more information.