Fisher Investments, an independent global money management firm, today announced that Investment Advisor (IA) Magazine has named CEO Ken Fisher as one of the top 25 most influential people in the investment advisory universe. In the latest IA 25, Ken Fisher states Fisher Investments is a likely acquirer of RIA assets in 2008 and beyond. The firm recently completed the acquisition of substantially all of the assets of EconoStrat Advisory Corp., which was a registered investment adviser firm located in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Fisher plans to explore additional strategic acquisitions that fit with the firm's "overall scheme." In the latest rankings, IA also cites Fisher's unique marketing tactics and growth strategy as factors in the decision to include him in the 2008 IA 25.

"One reason for our success is that we are not afraid to test new ideas in our pursuit of excellence. For example, I believe Fisher Investments was the first money management firm to utilize direct marketing through Internet, radio, print and TV to contact prospective clients, a tactic that has contributed dramatically to the growth of our client base and has enabled us to focus on the business of money management," said Fisher. "We continuously develop new technologies and consider innovative investment theories that allow us to offer our clients unparalleled expertise and access amid increasing demand for our services."

Headquartered in Woodside, California, Fisher Investments houses the bulk of its operations in additional offices located in San Mateo, California and Vancouver, Washington. With over 1,100 employees, Fisher Investments is one of the fastest growing RIA firms in the world, known for its distinct business model and effective use of human capital.

Fisher Investments, an independent money management firm headquartered in Woodside, California, recently announced the official launch of its Investment Education Workshops for clients. These client educational seminars are conducted by senior Fisher Investments professionals and will be held in large cities throughout the country. Investment Education Workshops are offered exclusively to Fisher Investments clients, but are also open to their spouses, adult children or other family members interested in reviewing or learning more about essential financial concepts. (For more information about Fisher Investments, please visit www.fi.com.)

In addition to Investment Education Workshops, the firm also offers Fisher Forecast Seminars. The workshops and seminars are open to Fisher Investments clients, their spouses and their immediate family members to provide current forecasting insights. The seminars have been similarly well-attended and feedback has been positive.

“The feedback we've received in response to these programs has been overwhelmingly positive,” said Ken Fisher, founder and CEO of Fisher Investments. “Our clients are generally savvy investors who appreciate the opportunity to learn more about capital markets and portfolio management. However, these workshops are valuable for investors of any experience level looking to learn more about financial markets in a relaxed setting. Our clients expect us to be informative, but are often surprised to find how entertaining these sessions can actually be, given the passion and experience of our staff.”

Fisher Investments, a leading independent investment management company recently officially announced the opening of a new office in Vancouver, Washington. The new location increases the firm's number of offices to three, joining operations in San Mateo, CA and company headquarters in Woodside, CA. For more information regarding the firm, please visit www.fi.com.

“The pace of our expansion in recent years has been nothing short of phenomenal. Bolstered by our long-term track record and our reputation for client service, we have grown to over 1,000 employees and more than $43 billion in assets under management,” said Fisher Investments (http://www.fi.com/) co-president Steve Triplett. “Our Vancouver location already has more than 100 employees and we hope to increase that number substantially in the near future.” Those interested in possible career opportunities may visit www.fishercareers.com for more information.

Employees from a variety of departments have moved into the new office, including Client Services, Research and Sales Operations.

Privately-held, Fisher Investments currently services over 22,000 private and institutional clients. To meet increased service demands, the firm has stepped up its hiring efforts (http://www.fishercareers.com) for all office locations and streamlined and enhanced training programs.

“Superior service is an important component of the client experience at Fisher Investments. We are committed to maintaining the individual attention and hands-on service that our customers have come to expect. As our assets grow, we continue to keep pace through strategic operational expansion and the hiring of top-level talent,” said Triplett. “Our larger size also enables us to execute and explore a wider array of investment strategies on behalf of our clients.”

Fisher Investments recently announced the official launch of MarketMinder, a website offering financial news aggregation, end-of-day market wrap-ups, commentary on market events, and ongoing education on global capital markets and economies. The site is updated daily, offering clients and non-clients with Fisher Investments' interpretations on the day's global headlines, identifying market misperceptions and providing unique perspectives on global capital markets.

MarketMinder is a brainchild of Fisher Investments, a global money management firm with a staff of over 50 researchers who scour over 100 sources on a daily basis to identify the most relevant financial news. The site also offers daily commentary and articles regarding the current state of the markets along with providing links to third-party content.

First developed in 2007, MarketMinder was originally intended to be an in-house communication tool to share proprietary research and market views internally. Eventually, it developed into a tool to communicate market commentary and education to the general public. In addition to the research team, MarketMinder has regular columnists who contribute to the site's articles regarding market behavior, investor behavior and other financially relevant news.

“Our goal is to help investors understand whether current financial news is bearish or bullish, and why,” explained Andrew Teufel, Director of Research for the firm and the site's Editor-in-Chief. “Unlike many other financial news sources, the website features articles written by money managers for investors.

“Fisher Investments has a long history of challenging conventional wisdom and media hype, and the purpose of this website is no different,” Teufel continued. “We aim to provide investors with a different view regarding the market and to make the information easily accessible. We did not create the site to promote financial products.”

“For these reasons,” he said, “we do not charge any fees nor require users to register or log-in to access the material.”

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and Fisher Investments, recently announced the launch of Fisher Investments Press. The new publishing imprint will draw on the expertise of Fisher Investments and best-selling author Ken Fisher to offer investing advice and education for a wide audience. Cutting edge initiatives such as this have propelled Wiley to the forefront of business publishing. Wiley, known for successful brand publishing that includes the For Dummies® and Frommer's® series, will work with the Fisher Investments team to create a distinctive brand identity.

In 2007, Wiley published Ken Fisher's most recent best-selling investment book, The Only Three Questions That Count: Investing by Knowing What Others Don't. “The money management expertise of Fisher Investments paired with Ken Fisher's track record in financial journalism makes for a powerful combination to launch a business imprint,” said Joan O'Neil, Vice President and Executive Publisher.

The first Fisher Investments Press title, 10 Roads to Riches by Ken Fisher, is slated for publication in 2008 and focuses on various methods of wealth accumulation, from old-fashioned saving to inheritance and business enterprise. The book is filled with career and lifestyle advice interspersed with compelling and real-world examples of successes and failures.

“Our goal in partnering with Wiley to create Fisher Investments Press is to reach a wide and diverse investment audience. Wiley's broad and proven distribution networks, as well as our past positive experiences with the firm made the company an ideal partner for this initiative,” said Ken Fisher. “Working together, we've developed an investment series that can offer insight to the full spectrum of investors, from novices to professionals.”

Subsequent titles scheduled for release in 2008 include Globalize Your Portfolio for the 21st Century and Bear Hunting: How to Spot and Slay the Next Bear Market all written by the Fisher Investments experts.

A common perception among property bears is that falling US housing prices will lead to a decline in consumer confidence and ultimately to a slowing of the US economy. But, the underlying data tells a different story according to Fisher Investments.

Putting the cart before the horse
Property bears argue that declining home prices in the US will ultimately harm consumer confidence, contribute to weakness in other sectors through reduced consumer spending, and slow the US economy. But they are putting the cart before the horse according to Fisher Investments. The production side of the global economy is still robust, personal income growth is relatively strong, and borrowing costs remain low by historic standards. (Global growth data from Bloomberg Industrial Production: August y/y % changes are US 4.7%, Japan 6.0%, Germany 7.3%; Current borrowing cost data from Lehman US Aggregate Credit BAA Bond Index: currently 5.9%, average since 1976 is 9.3%; Personal income growth in the second quarter 2006 y/y, US data from Commerce Department: real disposable income up 2.8%; Japan data from OECD: real disposable income up 1.7%; UK data from Office of National Statistics: real household disposable income up 1.5%.) Therefore, Fisher Investments has little reason to believe that consumption and asset prices will decline precipitously.

What the figures tell us:

• While housing starts have fallen over 25% since the recent peak this past January, the annual rate of 2.3 million units was 30% higher than the previous high in 1999. Current levels are only slightly below the previous peak and are still strong. (Housing start data from US Department of Housing and Urban Development: August level is annual rate of 1.665 million.)
• Additionally, declines in the residential housing market have been offset by increasing gains in the commercial housing market. The net effects of the decline in residential construction knocked 0.7% from second quarter GDP, while commercial property investment increased GDP a nearly equal 0.6%. (GDP contribution data from US Commerce Department.)
• Existing home price declines are in the headlines too—down year-on-year for the first time since 1995. (Existing home price data from National Association of Realtors.) It is worth noting that '95, '96, '97, '98, '99 are not generally noted for stock market weakness in the US, with the S&P up 37.5%, 22.9%, 33.3%, 28.6%, and 21.0% (all in USD) in those years, respectively. (S&P 500 annual total returns data from Thomson Datastream.) That's not to say that property declines caused strong stock performance, more that it is certainly not unprecedented to have strong equity performance concurrent with a slowing housing market.
• Despite falling home prices, household net worth rose 7.9% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2006, and financial net worth was up 6.2% in the US. (Flow of funds data from Federal Reserve.)
• Mortgage rates are falling, having fallen in 9 of the last 10 months. (Mortgage rate data from Thomson Datastream.) As a result, mortgage applications were recently up 2% to the highest level since April 2006. (Mortgage application data from Mortgage Banker's Association.)
• Correlations that have recently been made in the media between S&P 500 performance and housing indices are exaggerated, in the view of Fisher Investments, and often use a selected period of time for the story rather than a more meaningful time from an historical perspective. (Housing index referenced is the National Association of Home Builders Housing Market Index.)

Andrew Teufel, Director of Research at Fisher Investments, said, “The bottom line of this discussion is that, like fears of inflation, avian bird flu, inverted US yield curve, deflation, hedge fund collapses, and the US budget deficit, this is simply another topic that investors have focused on to an unnecessary degree, creating a wall of worry. With hindsight I'm confident we'll see that this issue is vastly less significant than many currently believe and we continue to expect strong returns for global equities in the months ahead.”

With the US Midterm elections set for 7th November, 2006, Fisher Investments shares its view on the probable outcome and the potential impact on capital markets.

Winners and losers
The Republicans may likely lose seats in November but we think it is doubtful the Democrats will win a majority in Congress, despite speculation to the contrary. The reasoning? Over the past century, the House has never changed hands unless the Senate has too. Democrats must keep all of their own seats and win almost every close-race seat in the Senate to win the House. In addition, there are more Democratic Senate seats up for re-election than Republican and more open Democratic seats than Republican.

Market reaction

• Suggestions that the Democrats will win a Congressional majority seem to have spooked the markets—uncertainty depresses markets, making stocks a good value at present and setting the stage for an upside surprise.
• In the coming weeks, we believe markets will realize a transition of power to the Democrats is unlikely and will move upwards in response.
• A reduced Republican majority should result in political gridlock, limiting potential for far-reaching legislative reform over the next two years. This will be bullish for markets.

Are markets elephants or donkeys?

• Despite a popular belief that markets prefer one party over another, history shows little difference in their performance under either party.
• Capital markets would vote for political stability and against any legislative change that might lead to redistribution of wealth through taxation and welfare reform, perceived as assaults on capitalism.

Andrew Teufel, Director of Research at Fisher Investments said, “We at Fisher are unpartisan in our political allegiances, as are markets which tend to react more favorably to a continuation of the status quo rather than the election success of any particular party. In the upcoming Midterm elections, the Republicans enjoy structural advantages which should prevent the Democrats winning an overall majority. This is bullish for equities. Furthermore, a reduced Republican majority will restrict legislative and social reform which should boost US markets and have a positive effect in markets globally.

“We believe that equities have been undervalued all year. With the uncertainty surrounding the Midterms seemingly priced into shares, we feel this is an even better opportunity to own equities than at the beginning of 2006.”

*Forecast as of October 2006. Investments in securities involve the risk of loss. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.