Investing Blog

Since the beginning of June I’ve believed that oil prices would soon correct to the $110 area. The prior two weeks have told me that no high is high enough and that the price of oil will rage on through the fundamentals in Iran to the falling dollar. But as it was reported last month, the amount of short sellers is finally outnumbering the buyers. This should stand to say that oil companies may be actually shorting the price of oil to hedge themselves against falling prices. Through futures options and other strategies, oil companies are able to hedge their production amounts against current prices via options and still earn the same amount per barrel whether oil is $150 or $50. Continue Reading »

Even with generous government subsidies and a growing market for ethanol and alcohol fuels, the profit margins for ethanol producers are their smallest ever. The possibility of profit has been wiped away by corn and natural gas prices. Natural gas is very important in the process and is where the majority of the energy input comes from. Continue Reading »

If there is one great thing about today’s volatility it is the quicker developing trendlines that come with it. Highly volatile stocks are pushing trends quicker, rather than having a week to a month in between top and bottom support and resistance lines, its taking just a few days. Large movements up and down fill out trends quicker and with more accuracy, slower trending is more likely to push out of an existing trend while quick movements mean a contained trend. Continue Reading »

The containers and storage products offered by Rubbermaid are sold by the billions. Without them, last weeks dinner would go straight to the trash and our pencils and pens would be without a container. It should come to no surprise that Rubbermaid is a great play against recession, its earnings are solid through sales of plastic containers and other products such as vacuum cleaners.

If anything is certain, its Rubbermaid’s bottomline which is something that can’t be said for most companies in today’s economic environment. At 11.5 times next years earnings, there happens to be a great bargain in the plastic products company. High energy prices may be cutting into its profits, but for the long term, this is a great brand to hold on to. Even better is that I’m looking for a 50% run in the next couple years. Continue Reading »

News abound of a 300,000 increase in the daily production of crude oil by Saudi Arabia and the decision by Congress to cut supply of 70,000 barrels per day into the US strategic oil reserve certainly made a few people happy but the end result is literally and figuratively a drop in the bucket.

An increase in supply by 370,000 barrels a day will have little to no impact on the current price of oil for a variety of reasons. First and foremost is that many countries enjoy the ability to print money. Even better is that the United States can print US dollars to use immediately for oil, other countries have to exchange their home currency first for dollars then buy crude oil unless going through the few nations that accept other currencies. Second is that China’s growth has created a consumerist China, no doubt that the rising middle class can afford new luxuries including personal cars and other energy intensive products. Continue Reading »

The mainstream media has drawn a rather interesting correlation between the price of spot bullion and the price of oil. Not a day goes by that the price of oil is directly correlated between gold and silver prices. In fact, this scenario could not be further from the truth.

While bullion and oil are very speculative investments and do correspond in price with the levels of inflation, they are not directly linked. Oil has a much smaller supply than that of bullion. The daily supplies of oil and other commodities are based on the amount produced on a day to day basis, as no real reserve of ready to use oil is traded. Remember, oil is traded with futures, bullion can be traded by means of a futures platform or a spot market. Continue Reading »

Poor timing, too low price points? No, it appears that Yahoo might be avoiding a Microsoft buyout solely for sentimental reasons. Now that Jerry Yang is the CEO, it appears he’s wanting to hold onto the company he worked so hard to start back in his own college years at Stanford.

Yang owns about 4% of the company that is currently worth $1.5 Billion, his stakes are huge and he’s still drawing the infamous $1 salary that is common with many tech giants. His wealth has been derived in its entirety from the growth and capital gains he’s received as a huge shareholder in Yahoo. As CEO and a founder, it seems that his own unwillingness to sell might lay in a dislike for Microsoft and sentimental views of Microsoft rather than what shareholders want. Continue Reading »

While gold prices continue to make record highs on fears of inflation and high oil prices, the buying may be a bit exaggerated. As we saw in 2006 when oil prices were fueled by speculation when the price went from the $70s to $50 by May 2007, the gold market may be lead by speculation more than anything. Continue Reading »

Oil is the most in-demand commodity today. Each and every day, 82 million barrels of oil is pumped and virtually all of it finds a buyer on the same day. About 80million barrels is normal crude oil, traded on the markets at the current prices. The other 2 million is a mix of heavy Saudi Crudes that have very few uses in industry. Continue Reading »

Yesterday, stocks fell 38.54 points (.3%) to 12,647.48 while oil prices continued on their upwards swing., climbing to their highest level yet this year. This is a new high (ranging in price from $60.50 to $61.80), which was driven by tensions with Iran and continued pressure upon U.S. petroleum product suppliers. Continue Reading »

Auto companies became hit and misses of the sales reports this quarter. DaimlerChrysler was hit with a 35 percent drop in domestic sales. For the sixth month Ford 35.2 percent and General Motors 22.2 percent have had a decline in sales. Honda rose 6 percent and Toyota’s sales 11.7 percent. Continue Reading »

Have you ever wanted to get in on the commodities market but your have no idea where to invest or how? You can now with a few new ETF’s that are commodity driven. From this you can get in the oil, gold, corn, beans, and other commodities that you read and hear about. Continue Reading »

Oil is one of the most vital commodities known to man. Powering essential items such as cars, planes and trains. It produces items such as plastic and petroleum jelly. It represents an intrinsic part of modern life. Continue Reading »

Gold has hit 700 per ounce for the first time in 26 years. Many believe that it will continue going up as there is just to much current events that leave investors feeling uncertain about the future of their investments. Gold will hold more value then paper money in times like this. Continue Reading »

As expected the oil price would fall a bit due to the people starting to wonder and the lawsuits brought against Bush. It will fall some then hit new highs from Iran’s propaganda that will put fear only in OPEC and the futures. Continue Reading »

The prices of the metals are moving up just as fast as the prices of oil. Here is a metal round-up of the current prices and where they are expected to go. Continue Reading »

US auto makers are driving away investors because of negative numbers and at the same time oil companies are getting the attention of many because of all time profit. Whats driving these companies in two different directions? The price of oil plays in, but there are other things contributing to this mayhem. Continue Reading »

People are seeing signs that the fed is easing up on interest rates and this has sent oil past $71 a barrel and analyst are looking for oil to soar past $80. The energy markets will be seeing all time profits again this year if the oil continues to sky rocket. Where can we put our little money to get in on this upward trend? Continue Reading »

You were not there for the California Gold Rush in 1848, but you are here for the gold rush of today. Five years ago the price of gold was about $270 and today the price has jumped to $616 and still moving in the up direction. Gold hasn’t been at these prices since like this since 1980’s. Continue Reading »