What the Pros Say: Investing Tips after Lehman Fall

The financial sector took another hit after Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy protection on Sunday and Wall Street scrambled to shore up the system.

Investment experts from around the world weighed in with thier outlook for the stock, currency and commodities markets and the financial sector and tips for what investors can do during the turmoil and what Wall Street may well look like down the road.

The Impact on Wall Street & the Financials

Even Oppenheimer's Meredith Whitney is taken aback by the magnitude of recent events. "What this does is to exacerbate the credit crunch because it pulls so much liquidity out of an already strapped market.”

Capital Preservation is Key

"Preserve capital and don't take any long-term positions you can't get out of quickly," Rick Sthottenfeld of Schottenfeld Group LLC advises investors. "Preserving capital is really important to take advantage of the opportunities that are going to come on the other side of this," he adds. (See accompanying video.)

AIG Must Not Be Allowed to Fail

Jim Cramer warns viewers, in no uncertain terms, that it would be a tragedy if AIG is allowed to fail and points out insurers that have solid balance sheets.

Why the Fed Will Hold

Talk of a Fed rate cut is too premature at this stage, said Peter Redward, head of research for emerging markets, Asia at Barclays Capital, after talks to sell Lehman Brothers failed.

Less Is More On a Tough Day

"I tried some Goldman Sachs for about a half an hour. It costs me five bucks and I’ve never been more happy to sell something, particularly now that I know they’re going to be asked to help bail out AIG,” says Fast Money's Jeff Macke. “It’s a tough tape, man, and less is more.” (See accompanying video.)

Best  Banks to Buy

"The winners are the stronger financial institutions, that are consolidating, that are going to be gaining market share. The winners are those who saw this thing coming," Mohamed El-Erian, Pimco co-CEO, told CNBC. El-Erian said that Bank of America could be one of the winners.

Singapore banks are perhaps the best financial plays in the Asian region, believes Trevor Kalcic, senior analyst of equity research at ABN Amro Securities (RBS).

More 'Bad' Banks?

The only remaining 'bad' financial stocks out there are AIG and Citigroup, Johannes Minho Roth, partner & founder of FiveT Capital said. But if those two manage to shore up their balance sheets there could be buying opportunities in defensive stocks as the number of writedowns dwindle, he added. (See accompanying video.)




Where Financials Are Headed

The financial sector could see a bottom or something close to a bottom on Monday, Arthur Hogan, managing director at Jeffries, told CNBC.

Buy the Dollar on the Dips

The dollar's weakness will be short-lived, according to Hans Goetti, Asia Pacific CIO at LGT Bank in Liechtenstein. (See accompanying video.)

Safety in Metals

There will be a return to precious metals, thinks Peter McGuire, MD at Commodity Warrants Australia.

At Risk in Asia

South Korea, India, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines are the most at risk in the current volatile market conditions. Peter Redward, head of research for emerging Markets, Asia at Barclays Capital tells CNBC why.

Oil Heading Toward $80

"You've seen a lot of the speculative money go out of oil. Oil was the perfect hedge against the falling dollar," Cornelia Meyer, independent energy expert said on why the price of oil continues to fall, despite Hurricane Ike's devastation.

Hedging the Financial Selloff

One of the major firms recommended to their clients that they buy as many financial puts as they can on Friday, Joe Kinahan, chief derivative strategist at ThinkorSwim, told CNBC. "Those people are going to make a lot of money," Kinahan said.

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