Marc Faber

Marc Faber
Born	February 28, 1946 (1946-02-28) (age 65)[1]
Nationality	Swiss
Alma mater	University of Zurich
Occupation	Investment analyst

Marc Faber, born February 28, 1946,^[1] is an investment analyst and entrepreneur.

Background

Faber was born in Zürich and schooled in Geneva, Switzerland,^[1] where he raced for the Swiss National Ski Team. He studied Economics at the University of Zurich and, at the age of 24, obtained a Ph.D. degree in Economics magna cum laude.^[2] Faber is best known for the Gloom Boom & Doom Report newsletter and its related web site featuring "Dance of Death" paintings created by Kaspar Meglinger.^[3]

During the 1970s Faber worked for White Weld & Company Limited in New York City, Zürich, and Hong Kong. He moved to Hong Kong in 1973. He was a managing director at Drexel Burnham Lambert Ltd Hong Kong^[4] from the beginning of 1978 until the firm's collapse in 1990. In 1990, he set up his own business, Marc Faber Limited. Faber now resides in Chiangmai, Thailand, though he keeps a small office in Hong Kong.^[5]

Faber has a reputation for being a contrarian investor and has been called "Doctor Doom" for a number of years. He was the subject of a book written by Nury Vittachi in 1998 entitled Doctor Doom - Riding the Millennial Storm - Marc Faber's Path to Profit in the Financial Crisis.^[6][7] Faber has become a frequent speaker in various forums and makes numerous appearances on television around the world including various CNBC and Bloomberg outlets, as well as on internet venues like Jim Puplava's internet radio show.^[8] Dr. Faber's also engaged the Barron's Roundtable^[9] and the Manhattan Mises Circle, lecturing on "Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, When is the Next AIG to Fall?"^[10]

Marc Faber Ltd.

Faber's company, Marc Faber Limited, acts as an investment advisor concentrating on value investments with tremendous upside often based on contrarian investment philosophies. Faber also invests and acts as a fund manager to private wealthy clients. Faber is a regular speaker on the investment circuit, often quoted in the financial press for his non-conformist viewpoint and alternative investment philosophies. His current tag-line is: 'buy a $100 US bond and frame it to teach your children about inflation by watching the US bond value diminish to almost nothing over the next 20 years'^{[citation needed]}

Faber is famous for advising his clients to get out of the stock market one week before the October 1987 crash.^[11][12] However Faber said that this prediction was "accidental".

He lost money shorting US stocks in 1999 although his call was later vindicated. He admits that market timing is very difficult. Nevertheless, his market advice since 2000 is quite accurate. Faber predicted the rise of oil, precious metals, other commodities, emerging markets, and especially China in his book Tomorrow's Gold: Asia's Age of Discovery. He also correctly predicted the slide of the U.S. dollar since 2002^[13] and the 5/06 and 2/07 mini-corrections.^{[citation needed]} He stated that there are few value investments available, except for farmland and real estate in some emerging markets like Russia, Paraguay, and Uruguay.^[9] He believed in early 2007 that a major market correction was "imminent." (Fox News, 2-2007); however, by 5/2007 he was saying that U.S. equities were moderately overvalued — less so than those of emerging markets.

In a June 2008 interview with Bloomberg, he goes over his bearish views on a wide spectrum of investments: stocks, real estate and commodities. He is extremely critical of the Fed's inflationary actions. However, his views for the short-run were almost entirely deflationary except for holding precious metals; Faber still views hyperinflation as a certainty within the next 10 years. He also correctly expressed temporary bullishness for the U.S. dollar in the middle of 2008 before it dramatically recovered and positive expectations for holding the Japanese yen.^[14] In December 2008, Faber said, "I think a recovery will not come in the next couple of years, maybe in five, ten years' time" ^[15] On March 9, 2009, Faber correctly predicted a U.S. stock market bottom but incorrectly stated that the rally would last only six months.^[16]

Writings

Faber writes the monthly investment newsletter The Gloom Boom & Doom Report which is subject to charge. He has also authored several books.

Dr. Faber has been a regular contributor to several leading publications around the world in the past, among them Forbes^[17][18] and International Wealth which is a sister publication of the Financial Times.^[19] He has contributed regularly to several websites such as Financial Intelligence, Asian Bond Portal, Die Welt, Finanzen, Boerse, AME Info, Swiss Radio, Apple Hong Kong and Taiwan, Quamnet, Winners, Wealth and Oriental Daily. He has also written occasionally for the International Herald Tribune, Wall Street Journal, and Borsa e Finanza.^[19]

Faber has been long term bearish about the American economy for a number of years and continues to be so. He concluded his June 2008 newsletter with the following mock quote:

"The federal government is sending each of us a $600 rebate. If we spend that money at Wal-Mart, the money goes to China. If we spend it on gasoline it goes to the Arabs. If we buy a computer it will go to India. If we purchase fruit and vegetables it will go to Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala. If we purchase a good car it will go to Germany. If we purchase useless crap it will go to Taiwan and none of it will help the American economy. The only way to keep that money here at home is to spend it on prostitutes and beer, since these are the only products still produced in US. I've been doing my part."^[20]

Funds

Marc Faber serves as director or advisor of a number of investment funds that focus on emerging and frontier markets, including Leopard Capital’s Leopard Cambodia Fund and Leopard Sri Lanka Fund.^[21]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Faber, Marc" in Who's Who of the Asian Pacific Rim, Volume 6, pg. 105. Published by Barons Who's Who, 1998.
2. ^ "About Marc Faber: Biography". Marc Faber Ltd. http://www.gloomboomdoom.com/public/pSTD.cfm?pageSPS_ID=6000. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
3. ^ Pressler, Jessica and Bess Levin. (2008-10-31). "The Fearmongers of Finance". http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2008/10/fearmongers_of_finance.html. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
4. ^ Sterngold, James. (1990-10-08). "Hong Kong Empire's 'Junk' Tactic". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1990/10/08/business/hong-kong-empire-s-junk-tactic.html?pagewanted=all. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
5. ^ "Lifestyle: New Office Building". Marc Faber Ltd. 2003. http://www.gloomboomdoom.com/public/pSTD.cfm?pageSPS_ID=5200. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
6. ^ "Riding the Millennial Storm - Marc Faber's Path to Profit in the Financial Crisis". In Global Investor Bookshop. Retrieved 2009-12-15.
7. ^ Vittachi, Nury. (1998). Doctor Doom - Riding the Millennial Storm - Marc Faber's Path to Profit in the Financial Crisis. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0471832057. 
8. ^ "Financial Sense Newshour Expert ~ Marc Faber ~ 02/14/2009". www.financialsense.com. http://www.financialsense.com/Experts/2009/Faber.html. Retrieved 2009-03-04. 
9. ^ ^{a b} McTague, Jim. (2007-12-31). "Barron's Cover: Don't Bet the Farm – Part II". Barron's (Dow Jones). http://online.barrons.com/article/SB119882119398355393.html. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
10. ^ [1]
11. ^ "About Marc Faber: Dr. Doom". Marc Faber Ltd. http://www.gloomboomdoom.com/public/pSTD.cfm?pageSPS_ID=6200. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
12. ^ Sayson, Ian C. and Pimm Fox. (2007-01-08). "Global Markets Face `Severe Correction,' Faber Says". Bloomberg. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aIHHMwv3ehCo&refer=home. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
13. ^ Cooper, Peter J. (2008-08-10). "A tribute to Marc Faber, part one: US dollar, Nasdaq, gold and oil". In AME Info. http://www.ameinfo.com/150044.html. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
14. ^ Faber, Marc. Phone interview with Kathleen Hays. Bloomberg News. August 2008. Retrieved on 2009-12-15. Transcript can be found at Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis.
15. ^ "Marc Faber predicts economic disaster in 2009 part 1 of 2". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_UprqluSj0. 
16. ^ "Inside Look - Gloom, Boom & Doom (Part 1)". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfuiNjvH9_c. 
17. ^ Faber, Marc. (2002-06-10). "Economy And Empire". Forbes. http://www.forbes.com/global/2002/0610/064.html. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
18. ^ "Marc Faber [Forbes website search results"]. Forbes. 2009-12-15. http://search.forbes.com/search/find?tab=searchtabgeneraldark&MT=marc+faber. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
19. ^ ^{a b} "Profile of Marc Faber: Biography". In Financial Gurus. Retrieved 2009-12-15.
20. ^ Gosnell, Peter. (2008-10-17). "Prostitutes and beer in US". The Daily Telegraph (Sydney). Retrieved 2009-12-15.
21. ^ "Leopard Seeks $130 Million for Sri Lanka Funds; Faber to Advise" Bloomberg, January 20, 2010.

External links

• Marc Faber interview on Bloomberg September 2007 before rate cut decision
• Faber's website
• Comprehensive Interview w/ Marc Faber (Bloomberg TV)
• Bloomberg interview
• Financial Sense News Hour Jim Puplava Ask the Experts
• Video of a wide ranging discussion of the US Dollar, credit crunch and emerging markets on CNBC Oct. 22, 2007
• interview with RTL Z 16-03-2010
• Video of a June 2008 Bloomberg News interview critical of Fed chairman and entitled: Marc Faber Says Oil, Stocks, Real Estate Are Overvalued
• Dr. Doom: Short Treasuries, Buy Hard Assets — 29 December 2008 interview
• The Marc Faber Blog

Marc Faber Newsletters of Note

• Investment Hocus Pocus
• A Modern History of Investment Booms
• Marc Faber blog

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Name	Faber, Marc
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Date of birth	1946-02-28
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