If it makes anyone feel any better, the United States isn’t the only country with financial problems. There is so much unrest in the Middle East that many countries are highly unstable. If you look at the unemployment rates in those countries, you can understand why their is unrest. European countries are suffering economic collapse that requires neighboring countries to loan to the economic failures next door. After NAFTA passed, it seemed like international trading would be a great way to profit through the stock market. Today, international trading is not always a good idea for investors.
Anyone who is on a limited investment budget may want avoid foreign stocks. In order to safely pick the right international funds, one will have to be very in tune with social and political situations around the world. For instance, with the unrest in Egypt, that country’s economy came to a stand still. Foreign investors are likely losing money on any stocks based on businesses in that country. When the economy falters, so do company profits. It can be tricky to try to outpace a country’s political problems. Revolution is an expensive business.
In that case, some investors may find profit in war. Many Americans say that is why the US invaded Iraq. Companies that made profits off of sending supplies to the area were trying to keep their stocks high. Not exactly international trading, but it is definitely business based on international happenings. The difficult part of that formula is trying to feel good about making a profit on blood money.
It’s all very confusing, so some folks just follow the “granny” finance concept. They invest and then ignore the ups and downs. That usually means a considerable retirement revenue at the end of the day.