Personal Finance Daily: 5 stock-market trends you don't want to miss

Personal Finance Daily SEPTEMBER 22, 2011 5 stock-market trends you don't want to miss By MarketWatch Don't miss these top stories: 5 stock-market trends you don't want to miss Long-term-care insurance: Most still don't buy in Top 10 cities with the longest commute 30-year mortgage rate close to 4% With signs all pointing downward for stocks, credit ratings and the economic outlook, this is not the time to overlook or ignore trends that will help you make money or keep from losing more of it, Robert Powell writes. As the Dow industrials retreat by a whopping 400 points, Bob's column has a checklist you'll want to review, including the illusion of safety in P/Es, sentiment as an indicator and the euro-zone debt crisis. We also have a slide show on the top 10 U.S. cities with the longest commute times. Most people won't be surprised to find that New York and northern New Jersey top the list. But some of the other regions may seem puzzling. That's because the info comes from U.S. Census Bureau data that averages the length of people's commutes in certain metropolitan statistical areas. You may have never heard of No. 10: Yuba City, Calif. But the people who drive hours to the state's capital Sacramento know it's a long, long way to get to work. — Anne Stanley , managing editor, Personal Finance 5 stock-market trends you don't want to miss Information flows so freely and fast these days, it's easy to get sucked into the notion that we have at our fingertips all the facts we need to make smart investment decisions. But the problem for investors is that we sometimes overlook or choose to ignore facts that could help us make more money, or avoid losing it. Read more: 5 stock-market trends you don't want to miss. Long-term-care insurance: Most still don't buy in A growing number of people are aware they may face steep nursing-home and other long-term-care costs as they age, but few are willing to purchase long-term-care insurance. Read more: Long-term-care insurance: Most still don't buy in. Top 10 cities with the longest commute Think you've got the worst commute out there? If you're one of the millions of New York-area workers trudging daily through crowds to reach their cubicle, you may be right, according to new government data. Here are the top 10 U.S. metro areas with the longest commute times. Read more: Top 10 cities with the longest commute. 30-year mortgage rate close to 4% Mortgage rates held steady this week, a result of a sluggish economy and investor worries over European debt markets, Freddie Mac's chief economist said on Thursday. Read more: 30-year mortgage rate close to 4%. INVESTING ETF investors are eager but not expert Exchange-traded funds have become hugely popular in a short time, but new research shows that while more people plan to invest with ETFs, most have only a passable knowledge of what to buy and how these products fit a portfolio. Read more: ETF investors are eager but not expert. 3 stocks that will still be leaders in 10 years If you're looking for long-term investments in this market, which picks are keeping up with the times? What stocks can you rely on to evolve and lead the market a decade from now, rather than get left behind? Read more: 3 stocks that will be leaders in 10 years. ECONOMY & POLITICS Fed and J.P. Morgan spar on capital rules A top U.S. banker and a key Federal Reserve regulator spar over the impact of new global capital regulations on large U.S. financial institutions. Read more: Fed and J.P. Morgan spar on capital rules. Jobless claims drop to 423,000 from 432,000 Fewer first-time filings are made for state unemployment benefits. Read more: Jobless claims drop to 423,000 from 432,000. Economic indicators signal weak growth The Conference Board's August gauge of leading indicators shows a U.S. economy balanced on a knife's edge. Read more: Economic indicators signal weak growth. Top EU official dismisses stimulus suggestions Europe needs to continue its fiscal consolidation and the United States should too, a top European policy maker says. Read more: Top EU official dismisses stimulus suggestions. Get the latest news on our mobile site: http://www.marketwatch.com/m MarketWatch has sent you this newsletter because you signed up to receive it. To ensure you receive this newsletter in the future, please add marketwatchmail.com to your list of approved senders. Sent to: kumaresan.selva.blogger@gmail.com Unsubscribe | Subscribe Copyright 2011 MarketWatch, Inc. All rights reserved. MarketWatch, the MarketWatch logo, and BigCharts are registered trademarks of MarketWatch, Inc. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy (updated 6/26/07). MarketWatch - Attn: Customer Service, 201 California St., San Francisco, CA 94111