There was a time when a triple digit move in the Dow Jones Industrial Average was considered a rarity. Now, it’s an everyday occurrence; in 38 out of the past 45 trading sessions, the Dow has gained or lost more than 100 points.

Crude oil and natural gas have declined sharply since early July. Oil has now slipped below the psychologically important $60-per-barrel level, while natural gas continues to hover around $7 per million British thermal units (MMBtu). The obvious questions: How low can oil go, and when can we expect a turn?

China announced a USD586 billion stimulus package Nov. 9, an amount equal to nearly a fifth of the country’s GDP. Global markets reacted with initial glee before turning negative in the face of discomforting economic news.

For at least a month now, many of the markets in which we trade have been in choppy, range-bound, sideways patterns. Soybeans are one example of this, with January soybeans trading in a range from 840 to 860 on the support side and 950 to 970 on the resistance side.

Resource-intensive Canadian indexes posted their worst month in 10 years in October, the Standard & Poor’s/TSX Composite Index shedding 17 percent, the biggest monthly decline since August 1998.

As I perused the market quotes for Friday, I saw the markets were almost completely red. There was just one lone green island in a red sea. The world’s stock markets were sharply lower. Oil was sharply lower. The agricultural markets from corn to wheat to cocoa to sugar to coffee were all sharply lower. Cattle, cotton, hogs and oats were also sharply lower. Silver, copper and aluminum followed the pack sharply lower as well.

I recently spoke with Louis Rukeyser's Mutual Funds (LRMF) newsletter editor Benjamin Shepherd regarding the present state of investing in Asia and the future prospects of the region as an investment destination going forward. The full interview follows:

The talking heads say this is the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression (1929-1932), and I wouldn’t disagree. Will it lead into another Great Depression, or is the market so oversold and fearful now that it’s at--or near--the bottom? Is this a phenomenal opportunity to pick up cheap assets? Or is it more prudent to sell out now to preserve what cash you have left?

The global stock market selloff continues unabated with most major market indexes touching five-year lows. The S&P 500 is close to retracing the entire 2002-07 bull market. The speed and strength of this selloff certainly qualifies it as among the most vicious in stock market history.

Good businesses are what I prefer to buy. That means stocks, bonds, preferred shares and other securities backed by healthy, growing companies, which are becoming more valuable over time.