investors

Good communication is key in determining how pleased clients are with their brokers, and there has been a dip in satisfaction. But its not because advisers are communicating less with their clients than they did before the recession. Actually, it's quite the opposite.

An Iranian-American businessman who hosted a popular Persian language radio show called Economy Today has been indicted on charges that he robbed investors of $20 million in a Ponzi scheme than ran for six years.

With all the ups and downs in the stock market in the last week, it's not surprising that some investors have panicked. But we've also found examples of investors who have kept calm. Here are some of their secrets.

Americans' overall trust in the nation's financial system has dropped from 26% to 20%, a level that matches the lows recorded during the heart of the financial crisis in late 2008, according to the latest results from the Chicago Booth/Kellogg School Financial Trust Index.

Hedge funds, which experienced sharp drops in assets during the credit crisis, now hold an all-time high of more than $2 trillion in capital, according to a new survey by Hedge Fund Research Inc. The figure is 50% higher than crisis-driven lows reached in the first quarter of 2009.

The Federal Reserve is finally admitting that not all the big banks are healthy: Bank of America won't get to pay increased dividends. But none of those financial giants should be allowed to, and a logical look at the reasons they say they want to dole out the cash makes it totally clear why.

It's easy to be pessimistic these days. Libya's civil war, surging oil prices and the disaster in Japan have combined forces to send financial markets tumbling. But the cold, hard facts about the economy paint a more optimistic picture.

The moods that dictate underlying prices can quickly swing from one extreme to the other. Such swings often create opportunities for investors. For instance, the rush back to domestic markets is leaving opportunity on the table overseas again.

Skyrocketing prices don't have to bring only pain. Investors can also find some relief with investments that can benefit from oil's recent -- and likely future -- increases. Here are some ETFs and mutual funds worth considering, based on performance, risk and cost.

Goldman Sachs drew some undeserved ire when it recently pointed to proposed cuts in federal spending as a key near-term risk. While the proposed cuts are modest, they could still undermine the rebound at a critical time.