Best Business Magazine Subscription
WSJ? Financial Times? The Economist? Barron's?
Which do you prefer?
What Financial Newspaper Should I Subscribe Too?
When making the choice of what paper or magazine to subscribe to, there are numerous choices that can be overwhelming. Below our users share advice on some of the common subscription options. If you are a student, you should be on the look-out for student discounts.
The Wall Street Journal Subscription
The Wall Street Journal is the most widely circulated of the papers listed in this post and covers a wide range of topics with a great online system with constant updates. However, our users shared that sometimes it can be a bit fluffy, especially compared to papers such as the FT or the Economist.
User @LeggoMyGekko" well summarized the opinions of commentators:
- Americas focused (both cover markets quite evenly)
- Sometimes misstated facts (later corrected)
- Too long (filler words)
- Watered down (allows average Joe who took micro/macro-econ to understand)
I'm going to vouch for a WSJ subscription. You get 16 weeks I think for a really cheap rate as a student. The daily delivery is awesome and you get that 6AM newsfeed of all the important things that are going on. It's actually really useful when coming up with investment ideas and provides you with updated economic data every day.
The Economist Subscription
The Economist is a brilliant magazine which I love to read, but its drawback is that in my opinion the business and finance section is too short for a magazine called 'the economist'. I don't really care about all the political stuff and there's a LOT of that in the Economist. That said, the articles are still the highest quality you'll find.
The general feedback on the Economist is that it is arguably the most in depth business/current events publication at the moment.
Financial Times - FT Subscription
The FT is a paper that is writen in a style similar to the WSJ with real time updates and coverage of economics, business, politics, and among other things but has a somewhat more European focus. Due to its similarity to the WSJ it is probably not wise to subscribe to both as users pointed out that the FT is on the expensive side.
User @LeggoMyGekko" well summarized the opinions of commentators:
- Euro focused (both cover markets quite evenly)
- Rarely misstated facts
- Very concise
- Intellectual read - (i.e. connect textbook theories with markets - sometimes at very high levels)
- They assume you're very well educated in finance, accounting, economics, politics, legal, markets - so when you don't understand something, you're influenced to go look it up via google
FT is superior. Concise, intellectual, global, accurate, and relevant. Also, I like the size a lot better, I don't like how thin the WSJ has become. And in addition, the color really stands out in my mind, and when I see that pink I crave some Martin Wolf, what a genius.
Depends on where you live. You're better off reading the WSJ in NYC/America and the FT in London/Europe. While the FT is consistently good, the WSJ can either be great (Buffett writes an op-ed) or awful (columnists who are blinded by their own conservatism, don't understand a thing about the markets).
Should I Subscribe to Businessweek?
Businessweek is a considered to be a more general, summary level review of things happening in the financial news. The subscription is relatively affordable.
Businessweek is a great read for the overall business landscape. Nothing too in-depth, just good info.
BusinessWeek is too light for me. It's like a business magazine that "anyone" can read; for that you may as well just read the online stuff.
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Read:
the WSJ NYT Business Section and Dealbook (for the news, not the analysis) FT . . . The Economist
The Economist is the best publication on that list, but it's not pure business.
I'm a big fan of: 1. BusinessWeek 2. WSJ
Never understood the big deal about The Economist. In my opinion, it is overrated. Give me bottom line information on important topics, keep me informed... BusinessWeek & WSJ get the job done...
If you want some more int'l flavor, the Financial Times is solid.
The Economist is also admittedly very libertarian, so depending on your concern with bias (all magzines and papers have them, this magazine is just obvious about it), you may consider something else.
I know not many people read it, but I love Bloomberg's monthly magazine. We have terminals at my school, so we get a fresh stack of the magazine every month. The stories are outstanding: everything you'd want to know about finance-- international, geopolitics, noteworthy buzz from the past month on Wall St. and the Valley, articles on the latest financial mathematics, models, etc. It really has something for everyone.
If you don't want to drop the dough, I believe they post most of the articles from the previous month's magazine online.
Read WSJ to keep up with everything, read Economist for a broader array of articles and to keep you sounding intellectual...checking Bloomberg.com a few times a day helps (I prefer Bloomberg for market coverage), and with just these three you should have everything you need.
The Economist: Probably the best major news magazine available in my opinion. Packed full of content. Doesn't dumb down economics and economic theory the way most major American publications do. Doesn't waste my time with useless full-page pictures like Time/BusinessWeek/Newsweek do or equally useless feel-good, appeal-to-emotion type stories (essentially non-news). Even the classified ads are interesting to read, as some of the positions advertised there are awesome (and I didn't even know jobs like them existed).
International Herald Tribune (IHT): Not strictly a business newspaper, but it's truly global and covers many countries that would never even be mentioned in most major papers other than the Economist. Regular exclusive commentary from leading economists like Jeffrey Sachs, Joe Stiglitz, and others, talking about global markets, not just a couple of countries. They also cover stories that other papers seem to miss entirely. Perhaps this paper wouldn't be that interesting for someone born, raised and working in one country for basically their whole life. But for medium- to long-term expats it's great.
Harvard Business Review: Not really a news magazine, but it is relevant for business and is of the highest quality. Stories are based on new original research, and analysis goes far beyond quarterly results or announced deals (microeconomics, game theory, evolutionary economics, innovation systems, management thought, and ideas -- loads of ideas.)
WSJ: I used to read this because it was free at my university. The news coverage is pretty good, but the editorials and comments are horrible (seem like they are written by the PR departments of certain governments). Weekend edition can be pretty good though. I don't read it anymore because I think FT provides more depth.
If you're in M&A, LevFin, Sponsors, deal-related group, then hands-down the best magazine is The Deal.
Best all around publication is still the Journal.
Favorite for reading on Saturday/Sunday mornings at Starbucks is the Economist.
Does anyone think that the WSJ's content has been adversely affected by Rupert Murdoch, or is it exactly the same as it was before?
It used to be the decisive voice of American conservatism. I don't think you can make that claim anymore; I'm pretty moderate (lean coservative on fiscal issues) and it seems like every other day there is an opinion or editorial piece that is completely unworkable, off base, or just plain stupid.
Speaking of Fox News...
Fox News seems to be a running joke in pretty much every country except the US (where viewership is worryingly high). Do any US bankers/traders or other educated people watch or read Fox News or is it strictly for the ignorant masses?
honestly question the intelligence of a coworker who professed to watch Fox News.
I am libertarian, but garbage is garbage and Fox News is full of it.
Monday = magazine arrival day at my place. Today I received The Economist, Forbes, and Businessweek.
The only magazine that I pay for is The Economist. To agree with many of the previous posters, The Economist, in my opinion, is the best all around business/economics weekly publication. I appreciate the raw microeconomic analysis and international perspective. Forbes and Businessweek are good publications but they don't have near the intelligence or macro understanding of The Economist. For example, this week's special report is 18 pages on the future of banking. Most of the top global macro HF managers from "Inside the House of Money" by Drobny say that The Economist is the weekly publication they trust most.
Of course I glance at The Wall Street Journal daily but I like NYTimes DealBook for deal news. Here's a link if you want to check it out: http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/
...I seriously hope not. Although Fox News is decisively conservative, I would say that they are by far the most "fair and balanced" news organization I have ever seen. The fact that it isn't well regarded outside of the US just confirms how good of a new source it is. If I wanted to be spoon-fed entirely one sided views I would watch CNN or BBC. I would venture to say the reason that the viewership is so "worryingly" high is because Americans are slowly beginning to educated themselves and want a change of pace from the far-left, liberal views continually preached by CNN.
I really don't want to get into a political debate, but I think you're highly misinformed if you believe that.
Read The Economist if you want something fair and balanced (admittedly, with a libertarian slant).
Please note that I didn't comment on the actual political analysis presented on the Fox News, just the stories and headlines. I would agree that garbage is garbage, but I will give the conservatives the head nod when it comes to their presentation of the news. Maybe I am a bit more biased because I have grown tired of CNN and their liberal approach to everything "news". If their ideas weren't so hate filled and nasty, the viewership of FOX News would be far fewer then what it currently is.
With all that said, I don't think that any of the aforementioned news organizations are worth my time to watch. Obviously the Economist, Bloomberg, WSJ, and NYT are very much worthwhile, but my original post was strictly focused on FOX vs. CNN/BBC.
Additionally, Dpietru makes a good point. I would say that the large majority of Americans are not intelligent by any stretch of the imagination and would therefor account for the "worryingly high" viewership of mass media in general.
And nauru, no I am not in the industry (well, not sell side) and yes I am a student, but I don't imagine that would somehow disqualify me from commenting on this post...would it?
Good day.
Well I guess I've got my answer. Are you actually in the industry though or are you still a student? Just so you know, I am a conservative (in the American sense), and I generally find myself supporting the Republican Party on most issues (I have a keen interest in American domestic policy, as well as foreign relations). Yet I find it hard to believe that educated people actually watch Fox News for information, let alone analysis. I have to agree with a previous poster who said "garbage is garbage." Besides, I don't think there is any shortage of conservative leaning news available in the US. The Economist would be a good place to start.
My opinion, anyway.
Is that a joke? It must be a joke.
I just watch CNBC. It's the best news channel with all day coverage and bloomberg is pretty good as well. As for magazines I prefer The Economist, Forbes and Businessweek.
agree, can't go wrong with a steady diet of WSJ and NYT / Deal Book / Bloomberg
for the lengthier stuff, Economist / Fortune / Portfolio. i've come upon the last two fairly recently, and enjoy the interviews and deep dive articles.
Fox News is the work of Satan.
No intelligent person at any point along the political spectrum would pay attention to anything Fox News reports.
Rupert Murdoch has never hidden his distaste for intellectuals and high culture or his belief in selling populist media to the masses. He has systematically bought newspapers and other media around the world, and turned them into sensationalist tabloids to expand their circulation . . . Fox News is absolutely no different, and I fear that the WSJ is headed in same direction.
My choices for best business/finance/econ reading. . .
1) Economist 2) WSJ 3) NYT/Dealbook 4) FT 5) Bloomberg
Fox News wasn't as bad a few years ago if I recall, but as the Bush ship started sinking most of the talking heads held fast and essentially spit in the face of traditional conservatism. The fact that they all disparaged Ron Paul when he started getting media attention is simple proof of this fact.
Mass media in general is pretty suspect these days. Political campaign coverage has gone the way of reality television, you don't hear much about actual views, only the opinions of "analysts." I'm not sure why an intelligent person would be willing to waste any time watching any major news station...
Of course being a student doesn't disqualify you from commenting. My original question though was regarding people in the investment banking industry:
"Do any US bankers/traders or other educated people watch or read Fox News or is it strictly for the ignorant masses?"
So I was asking just to find out whether you were a banker/trader or not. I suppose I could have been more explicit and said 'educated professionals' instead of 'educated people'.
"Although Fox News is decisively conservative, I would say that they are by far the most 'fair and balanced' news organization I have ever seen."
Really?
Well, among the new channels I watch, no. I generally read my news from the NYT and WSJ, but as far as watching news on the television, I generally only watch CNBC or Bloomberg, if any at all. My comment was not as specific as I should have made it either. It was more pointed between Fox and CNN as I believe those are the two "most watched" news channels in the US. Again, its refreshing to have a change of pace from CNN, which is why I think the viewership of Fox is incredibly high.
I suppose it isn't "worryingly" high to me because I tend to realistic about America's massive population of ignorant people and I am definitely more conservative, so if the masses were going to follow anyone, I suppose I would prefer Fox News. To me, its the lesser of two evils.
Additionally, you don't have to be ignorant to watch CNN or Fox, you just have to be ignorant to ingest it all without a large block of salt.
Good day.
Not a single mention of barons? I love barrons content and the way they break it up.
"Oh - the ladies ever tell you that you look like a fucking optical illusion?"
Daily newspapers: Which one would you recommend? (Originally Posted: 01/13/2013)
Hi, I'm curious about which newspaper you enjoy reading and which one you would recommend. As for the US, I have heard a lot of good things about the New York Times and the Washington Post, but some also said they are too left-wing. The Wall Street Journal, however, lost a great deal of independence when it was acquired by Rupert Murdoch, many claim. And it is considered quite conservative. What do you think? Any opinion on this topic appreciated.
WSJ
wsj is the best for finance
nyt is a personal favorite.
nothing else comes close
FT... even though I know there's not as much content as WSJ or NYT
nypost.com
I live in LA.
LA Times isn't worth the paper it's printed on.
I subscribe to the following:
Wall Street Journal Financial Times NY Times
All at student rates of course.
I have subscription the FT through work (which I don't read a lot) and I have a personal subscription to WSJ which I read often and get delivered. I don't really like the Financial Time due to the lack of U.S. corporate content. I only like the WSJ because of the business section...don't really read anything else. For when I want political news, I use up 1 of my 10 a month free NY Times articles.
I hate the NYTimes now. Everything seems to be flavor-of-the-month opinion dreck on "Why Asians aren't getting into Ivy League schools" or "Is Dating Dead?!?!" I get that they're losing a shitload of money and need readers, but I'm tired of link-bait. The former can't be covered with the depth it deserves in a 500 page column. Either do it right, or don't publish it. The latter belongs in the NYPost.
Also, David Brooks, Paul Krugman, and Thomas Friedman are like the trifecta of shitty op-ed writers. They recycle the same bullshit once a month. Fire them and replace 'em with Felix Salmon, Matt Levine, and Nate Silver.
Best newspaper for S&T? (Originally Posted: 03/17/2015)
Hi everyone,
I want to know what newspaper or media do you follow regularly for S&T trends. Would you prefer WSJ or FT? How about in Asia and EMEA?
Many thanks!
FT. You can almost completely ignore the WSJ outside of the US.
Concur. WSJ doesn't really have any traction in Europe. FT is unanimously the one here, and I'd guess Asia too.
If you only had time for one financial publication, which one would you read and why? (Originally Posted: 05/31/2014)
Let's say you have the option of reading Financial Times, WSJ, Barrons, or The Economist.
1) if I were in school, probably barron's because you can just steal someone else's ideas.
2) none - starting out you don't need to see big picture to do your job well.
None of these articles are gonna give you some secret sauce, and a lot of it becomes junk since it's either bs, fluff, or incomplete. Getting real analysis from these sources is pretty rare and you'd probably need professional research access to get the stuff I think you're asking for. Thus, make sure you read as much research before you leave your internships because that stuff is a goldmine for anyone in college.
Depends on whether I was US, EU or UK based. The economist is the best written and in my opinion generally the most worthwhile. FT has great day to day news coverage for UK/Eurozone/Asia-PAC, but its US coverage is inferior to WSJ, I never was a Barron's fan.
Economist. Then WSJ.
Howard Marks' quarterly letters.
International Business Publications? (Originally Posted: 10/23/2007)
Other than the WSJ, what do you guys read to stay up to date on international business news?
Financial Times?
Thanks
the economist has some good stuff about both business and finance/economics.
FT is good for up to date. I think Economist is the best weekly read.
Best Publications (Originally Posted: 10/16/2006)
Hi all, I'll be taking a job with a MM i-bank this summer. That said, in addition to the standard WSJ and NYT business, what publications are the best to keep up with?
Thanks in advance.
NT
For Serious:
news NYTimes Dealbook thedeal.com FT
[Features/Column/Slanted News] The Economist
For Street Humor: dealbreaker.com
For Serious: WSJ Bloomberg top stories ("TOP" at any terminal)
For Street Humor: wallstreetfolly.com underthecounter.net going private (http://equityprivate.typepad.com/)
Which publications to read? (Originally Posted: 07/11/2009)
What are some good publications that aspiring consultants should be keeping up to date with?
watch on a daily basis...
But in an effort to charter a closer and more friendly relationship between the consulting and IB world, I would suggest you look at the following:
http://managementconsulted.com/consulting-jobs/must-read-books-and-peri…
Forbes.com/Forbes Magazine - good insights on business practices, very focused on everything business and also investing. Forbes likes to offer a contrarian analysis when appropriate.
Fortune and Businessweek also offer the same, though they currently have slightly smaller market share. Some of Fortune and Businessweek's lists, approach, style, etc are different. Fortune sometimes likes to focus on high finance. Each offers something unique.
Take your pick from the above three. As far as technical resources, I don't know much besides from my management courses - Harvard Business School case studies, etc.
Disclaimer: I currently have an internship at Forbes, so that's why I went more in-depth with that spiel.
Which publication and blogs? for investing (Originally Posted: 05/28/2013)
I've read honestly 20 threads on which to use, but wanted to ask in a current thread: FT, WSJ or Economist? I can only get 1 since I want a hard copy.
I'm leaning towards Economist, and FT as a close 2nd. Economist because of the global view and then blogs for learning...Is that a good setup?
Found this list: http://www.thereformedbroker.com/2012/12/24/enter-the-financial-blogosp…
There's so many that I have no idea where to start. which blogs do you consider the best?
I also don't have a twitter account. Is it worth it getting one just to follow people? Lastly, if you recommend any specific sections of WSJ and FT and if you can read them online? Or is worth my time just to stick to certain blogs.
I would really appreciate the helpful responses.
Not worth it to read print news. Yes, get a twitter to follow people / news.
Two sites that I really like are SoberLook.com and AbnormalReturns.com
I agree with The Economist first, FT second...
The Economist makes you more well rounded. In my opinion, the knowledge you'll get in the long run by reading it thoroughly it's probably more advanced than any Twitter or Reuters wanna-be service.
In fact, they're not even in the same category. A news service give you the news quickly. The Economist does pretty good analysis on the news, and it's mostly a global publication. WSJ is more news-like.
As far as investing goes, the press may be useful for you to understand the world better, but they usually work better as contrarian indicators than anything else. All else equal, If the press is loving Google and hating on Gazprom, Gazprom is probably a better buy... For instance, Apple was mostly beloved when trading around 700...
I like good books better than blogs. My favorite blog is Damodaran's, which is already syndicated to WSO.Just checked SoberLook above and it seems nice...
Using this too, and going with The Economist. bump, any other recommendations for good books/blogs? I've got all the Market Wizards, ben graham, warren buffet ones and a couple others
As authors, I like Damodaran, Greenblatt and Peter Lynch on how to buy stocks. Porter for Strategy is a valuable addition. The McKinsey book on valuation is on my to-be-read list - people seem to like it.
In my opinion, most of the CFA curriculum is pretty good - it's all over the place, but you'll get some familiarity with most stuff in the investing world.
If you're interested in some Technical Analysis, look for Kirkpatrick's book. It's less biased than most and it's actually based on research.
The standard for bonds is Fabozzi - for options is Hull.
Most of these are very structured books. Greenblatt's and Lynch's are probably the easier/more enjoyable to read.
For less content heavy books that are related to investments you may look for anything Michael Lewis or Taleb.
You can also Google reading lists from good investors and funds around the web - and they'´ll probably be more interesting than mine.
As for blogs, The Economist blogs have more stuff than the magazine.
Hope this helps a little bit! This is all my opinion, of course. I know I suggested too many, and just authors instead of books, but you'll get more diverse opinions by brownsing through Amazon.
Books: absolutely agree on Greenblatt, especially in terms of readability. If you're interested in fundamental value, can't go wrong with Intelligent Investor and Security Analysis. Also a big fan of Margin of Safety and Moyer's distressed debt text, which is very educational even if you're not interested in the distressed space. Another great, lighter read is Fooling Some of the People.
Blogs:
Bronte Capital (Tremendous blog by John Hempton, who really goes into detail with a lot of his ideas and analysis)
Market Folly (Tracks hedge fund news. What I find especially useful is that they upload hedge fund presentations / notes from a lot of the major conferences. Also maintains lists of recommended books from a lot of top investors)
Abnormal Returns (Mentioned above, very good daily aggregator of investing-related web content)
Brooklyn Investor (Another good blog that generally looks at specific stock picks, with a skew towards banks and financials)
Dealbreaker (Apart from being totally awesome, I actually find quite a few of Matt's posts very intellectually stimulating, e.g. his piece on the London Whale, which was excellent)
FT Alphaville (Good selection of current topics, and often quite a lot of value in the comments section too)
I flag and take time to read anything Matt Levine puts out. He is fantastic. Might not be topical for your work, but if you actually enjoy finance, his stuff is, as you say, incredibly intellectually stimulating
Matt Levine is brilliant... I can't praise his stuff enough.
Twitter is by far the best source of current financial news. FT and Economist are too time consuming.
Economist only gives a print copy once a week, so shouldn't be too bad. mainly getting newspaper for hardcopy which is for downtime. Don't have a good phone or ipad yet. Mutt, could you give me like 10 names you follow on twitter?
Thanks! Anyone else want to chime in?
Anybody use FinViz for news?
FinViz is great for general data but do not rely on it for precise numbers. More often than not the numbers are off. Always best to calculate your own ratios.
To add to the convo - Dont always get to everything but my daily docket consists of the following in no particular order
Distressed Debt Investor Bloomberg BBC DealBook Credit Bubble Stocks Economist Wired Bronte Capital Dealbreaker Distressed Debt Investors Club Kenny Polcari's morning letter Zero Hedge Calculated Risk Global Macro Monitor - This use to be my favorite place but in the few months the posts have disappeared no idea what happend, am really disappointed.
@zerohedge @CNBC @BloombergNews @ReutersBiz @WSJ @alphatrends @ReformedBroker @CMCMFIN @businessinsider @PIMCO
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