Contributor: Merry Sheils

Merry Sheils won the New York Press Club’s Journalism Award for best business writing in 2011 and 2012. As a portfolio manager for private clients, she writes a financial column for WomenAroundTown.com as well as features and profiles. She frequently writes economic and capital markets commentary, including white papers, thought leadership pieces and investment reports, for companies and investment managers. Prior to becoming a writer, Merry worked as a senior portfolio manager and investment analyst at BNYMellon and Wilmington Trust Company (now M&T Bank). A SUNY graduate with a degree in finance, she is the author of “Debt-Based Securities” and has been published in The Financial Times, Forbes and Chief Executive Magazine, and has appeared as a guest on CNBC. She founded First New York Equity, Incorporated, an investment advisory firm, and sold it to Price Waterhouse (now PricewaterhouseCoopers). She divides her time between New York City and her 18th century house in Columbia County, NY, where she is active in the North Chatham Free Library, the Old Chatham Hunt Club and the Columbia County Historical Society.

In today’s highly charged environment, when every swear word is dissected under the politically correct microscope, the title of this play is a thin veil of friendship and rivalry.  Spoiler alert: the audience hears the…

Heading out for the summer’s final hurrah? Be sure to pack The Doll House, a new novel by first-time author Fiona Davis, in your tote for a great read on the Hampton Jitney and at…

Summer time—and the living is easy. At least that’s what Gershwin told us in Porgy and Bess. But some of us yearn for a different kind of living, replete with activity, natural beauty, and fun—and…

As the stock market has recovered from its February 11 low (and posted a modest gain), many of us wonder what lies ahead. Given the Federal Reserve’s recent decision not to hike interest rates now,…

The recent decision by the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) to leave interest rates unchanged flummoxed many analysts and investors alike. Even more puzzling was the decision to change the expectation from four rate hikes…

Robin Weaver (top photo on left with Campbell Brown) dashes into the Women’s National Republican Club in a whirlwind – she’s allotted an hour for our breakfast interview prior to dashing to Brooklyn for her…

We New Yorkers often yearn for a winter getaway in hopes of escaping the freezing temperatures and slushy sidewalks of midtown. Although this winter has been mild compared to recent years, the idea of getting…