RJ and Makay

Broker-dealers involved in Regulation D private placements and other opaque or illiquid investments beware. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has its eye on you, reports Bruce Kelly of Investment News.

Monitoring these types of investments is a top priority of FINRA's enforcement department, warns James Shorris, FINRA's executive vice president and executive director of enforcement. That's because some firms have failed to perform the appropriate due diligence on these sorts of offerings, Shorris explains.

In response to measures taken by the Federal Reserve that will likely encourage U.S. inflation, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney’s Global Investment Committee increased inflation-linked securities and commodities exposure in recommended portfolio allocations. Simultaneously, the firm reduced suggested emerging markets debt exposure, and exposure to REITs. It is staying consistent on its stock market recommendations, which underweight most developed markets and overweight emerging markets and Canadian and Australian equities.  It is staying at neutral regarding U.S. small- and midcap stocks, and is expecting major currencies in developed markets to lose value in relation to the Chinese Yuan and other emerging market currencies.

Morgan Stanley Tells Investors To Prepare For Higher Inflation (Wall Street Journal, November 22, 2010)