Slump Strains Church Finances

Fund Track

Bond ETFs Draw a Surge of Funds

Investors burned by the stock-market meltdown are piling into bond exchange-traded funds in an effort to tone down risk and generate stable income.

Careers

Firms Pare Severance Packages

As companies continue layoffs, the newly unemployed may find a smaller severance package than they expect.

Barron's Insight

There's Lots of Action in eBay

Investors eyeing eBay's stock, currently near $23, should make like quick-fingered online shoppers and click the "Buy it now" button.

The Intelligent Investor

Data Mining Isn't Good Bet for Investors

Every year, billions of dollars pour into data-mined investing strategies, but no one knows if these techniques will work in the real world.

Politics and Policy

Restoration Work on Gifts of Art

Sen. Charles Schumer announced a bill that could revive an art donation practice of so-called fractional gifts by making the process easier and more tax-advantageous.

R.O.I

Will Public Option Hurt Insurance Shares?

Insurance company profits are so slim that it would be hard for health care reform to whittle them further, writes Brett Arends.

Ahead of the Tape

Jobs Bounce: When, How Much?

The job market might start producing better numbers soon, but economists don't expect them to show up in the July employment report Friday.

• Real Time Econ: Get Ready for a Surprise?
• MarketBeat: Will Wall Street Believe in a Big Beat?

Markets

Hedge Funds Continue to Recover

The number of hedge funds drowning under their high-water marks continued to decrease in July, as a rebound in performance in most hedge fund strategies extended into the second half.

Fund Track

ProShare Draws Suit Over a Leveraged ETF

A lawsuit seeking class-action status claims that ProShare Advisors and others violated a securities act by failing to disclose risks inherent in its ProShares UltraShort Real Estate fund.

Real Estate

The Prisoners of Drywall

Thousands of homeowners who blame imported Chinese drywall for health problems and property destruction are awaiting government reports that could determine their fate.

Money

Madoff Victims Receiving IRS Refunds

The Internal Revenue Service has begun sending refund checks to investors who paid taxes on money they thought they had made before the multibillion-dollar fraud was revealed.

Fund Track

Top Funds' Traits: Strategy and Size

While their names mightn't be familiar to many investors, there were some stock funds that delivered stellar returns over the past year.

Healthy Consumer

Surprise Bills at the Doctor’s

Insured patients expect to make a co-payment after seeing a doctor, and later get billed for what they owe. But physicians are increasingly asking people to settle their whole bill in the office.

• Readers React: ‘Hurts the poor’

Personal Finance

Banks Get Picky In Issuing Cards

After years of mailing cards out to just about anybody, banks are suddenly freezing out all but those most creditworthy customers.

Real Estate

July Inventory of Houses Falls

The number of homes listed for sale declined again in many U.S. cities last month as bargain hunters continued to search for foreclosed properties.

• Graphic: Bargain Hunters Dent Home Supply

The New Bond Equation

As the financial crisis heads into its third year, investors in bond funds are facing some difficult choices. Investors usually turn to these funds for safety. But bond funds are facing a host of pressures that are driving down returns, raising long-term risk—and making it tougher to settle on the right investment strategy.

• Podcast: The Risks Bond Investors Face
• Video: Hedge-Like Mutual Funds
• Video: Moving Into Mutual Funds

Fund Track

Fidelity the Latest to Caution on ETFs

Fidelity Investments became the latest to warn its customers about leveraged exchange-traded funds.

• Discuss: Leveraged exchange-traded funds

Investing

Five Stocks for Your Recovering Portfolio

The Wall Street Journal Sunday has selected five stocks that represent the top pick from portfolio managers of five of this year's best-performing mutual funds.

Barron's Insight

Citigroup Looks Like It Could Shine

Citigroup has been garnering investor interest amid optimism on Wall Street that the worst is over for the beleaguered banking company.

Starting Out

Funds to Get You Going

Younger investors looking to take a more hands-on approach with their 401(k) plans should consider index funds, balanced funds and lifestyle funds.

Personal Finance

Trading Tactic Is the Rage

High-frequency trading has leapt into the spotlight this year. Wildly successful in 2008, high-frequency traders are attracting big bucks and unwanted attention. A look at some of the core issues.

Eyes on the Road

What to Do if You Want a Trade-in

The "Cash for Clunkers" program offers opportunities to save money, but it helps to be aware of the risks. Eyes on the Road columnist Joseph B. White explains.

Wealth Adviser

How To Profit From Bubble 3.0

Invest in the bubble but avoid disasters such as the housing and dot-com busts.

Book Review

The Evolution of Wealth

In “Rich,” the author contends that the 20th century has seen the creation of a distinctly American “wealth culture” that is more diverse than anything the world has seen before, and consequently more resilient.

• Excerpt: ‘Rich’