New York magazine Monday
posted a feature on the rise of the blog Zero Hedge, which also serves as a sort of profile of the site's founder, barred securities analyst Daniel Ivandjiisk (who earlier this month
denied to industry pub Hedge Fund Alert that he founded the site, claiming instead that he was merely contributor).
Zero Hedge, as many of you know, is a blog launched at the beginning of the year, and whose mission, it seems, is to vociferate the blogosphere's most skeptical and conspiratorial views on financial markets. Over time, the blog has garnered a loyal follow of respected investors -- and fellow bears -- including hedge fund manager Jim Chanos, who calls it a "must-read" for his firm.
The story goes hand-in-hand with a C1
Wall Street Journal report that highlights the most staunchly pessimistic hedge fund managers who are sitting on their hands while indexes rally to the detriment of returns.
"The recovery is not real," Clarium Capital founder Peter Thiel told the WSJ. "Deep structural problems haven't been solved and it's unclear how we will create jobs and get the economy growing again." Joining him in his bearishness are John Horseman of Horseman Capital, Jim Simons of Renaissance Technologies and Benjamin Bornstein of Prospero Capital.
We, too, have been hearing more murmurings from market pessimists, who have in the past few months taken a back seat, at least in the mainstream media, to bulls riding a 60% rise in stock prices. They are expecting a market correction some time next year having to with the end of the stimulus. Will Monday's coverage of skeptics encourage more bears to come forth with megaphones? -
Sara Behunek
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