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It's that time to once again recap all of last week's best reads on the web, which we present daily at the conclusion of our premarket blog post.

ETFs

On whether it's better to invest directly in Canadian REITs or just buy an ETF that tracks the sector.

Attention day traders: the most liquid ETF for every commodity.

Bill Gross's Total Return exchange traded fund has quickly reached $3-billion (U.S.) in assets and has outperformed the world's largest mutual fund, which follows a similar strategy.

...So, where is Bill Gross' Pimco total Total Return fund invested right now? Here a detailed breakdown.

Why retail investors should care about Vanguard's index changes last week.

STRATEGIES

Dividend reinvestment plans at discount brokers are aimed at saving money on trading commissions. While DRiPs are usually a good thing, investors need to pay attention to the hidden costs they are incurring when certain brokers double dip on currency conversions.

How a mix of investments generated the best returns over the past several years, not a bet on either stocks or bonds.

One hedge fund's big bet on Realogy before its IPO paid off handsomely.

In spite of improved hedge fund performance during the third quarter, hedge funds with a macro strategy focus continued to struggle. The reason: they stink at market timing.

David Einhorn has been right so far on his call to short Chipotle Mexican Grill and buy into Taco Bell owner Yum Brands.

....so, here's how to successfully pick stocks to short using a David Einhorn strategy.

How to find bargain stocks using the value strategies of Warren Buffett.

MARKET SIGNALS

Bullish sentiment among U.S. individual investors has now declined for three weeks in a row.

An interesting chart that shows how the weekly U.S. initial jobless claims reading has done a pretty good job mirroring the movement in the U.S. stock market since the bull market began in 2009. With the inverse of the claims reading making a new bull market high this week, it raises the question of whether the S&P 500 will now follow.

Stocks that could fare better with a Republican in the White House have bounced in the past week, just as Mitt Romney has done in the polls.

Despite the common conventional wisdom that a Romney victory would be better for the market, there's zero evidence of this actually taking place in practice.

U.S. corporate insiders are overwhelmingly choosing sell orders over buys.

The VIX volatility index is sending mixed messages.

A chart that longtime bear David Rosenberg suggests is flashing a warning sign of an imminent recession.

There's up to a 90 per cent chance that stocks will post greater returns than bonds over the next 10 years, according to Vanguard Group co-founder John "Jack" Bogle.

... And that may not come as a huge surprise given this chart comparing historical yields on U.S. bonds and dividend stocks.

Chinese stocks are at their cheapest since 1997. But that's still not enough to signal a rally.

COMPANY NEWS & VIEWS

History has repeatedly taught us that the best time to buy Apple is when the bearish sentiment in the stock has reached the pinnacle of extreme pessimism. We may have now reached that point.

From both a technical and fundamental standpoint, there are reasons to turn wary on tech-sector heavyweight Apple's shares.

The Apple stock chart has traced the dreaded head-and-shoulders pattern, a well-known and well-followed reversal pattern in traditional technical analysis. But that doesn't instantly make the stock a sell.

As Apple prepares to release a long-rumored smaller version of the iPad, there are growing signs that current iPad owners wish to trade in their tablets for the new, mini version.

Why the iPod (yes, the iPod) still matters.

This earnings season threatens to be one of the roughest since U.S. companies started to pull themselves out of the Great Recession — even if, as usual, results don't live up to the worst of the gloom-and-doom forecasts.

Why some companies manage expectations better than others.

A new academic report suggests 20 per cent of U.S. firms cook the books during earnings.

COMMODITIES

The latest 10 forecasts for gold by large global research houses suggest $1,900 an ounce will be reached in about a year.

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