Andrew Snyder
What’s better than gold? Anything!
Baltimore — (TFN): One good thing about kids is they are predictable. Give them five bucks and say they’ve got just one hour to spend it or it goes into their savings account and can bet another five bucks the cash will be spent by minute 59.
It’s the same way for politicians. Give them some cash and they’ll have it spent in no time flat, even if they can’t find anything worth buying.
Take, for example, the infamous Troubled Asset Relief Program, TARP in informal nomenclature. Passing the $700 billion program was a matter of financial and economic life and death according to Washington.
They gave us the same panicky “must-have” arguments as a six-year-old in the toy aisle.
But once they got…
Will Bernanke Kill Santa Claus?
Baltimore (TFN): The Fed is meeting today. And I ask who cares? At this point, Bernanke and his troupe of politicians masquerading as economists are in so far over their heads, no matter what they do or say, you can bet the move is designed to protect their butts, not yours.
With the global economy taking off without us and foreign interest rates already on the rise, the Fed is desperate to look bullish while acting bearish.
Anybody that has ever tried to prove the existence of Santa Clause or the Tooth Fairy to a six year old knows what Bernanke is trying to do. At this point, he’ll do anything to change the subject and focus the attention on something…
Retail Industry is Getting Attractive
The downtrodden retail industry is on the move today. Thanks to good news from companies like Liz Claiborne (NYSE:LIZ) and Wet Seal (NASDAQ:WTSLA), investors are putting some profits in their shopping bags.
Prepare for the worst. Hope for the best. That’s the motto of the nation’s retail industry these days.
With consumers stitching their wallets shut and retailers slashing their margins in an attempt to attract the few Americans left that are willing to spend, expectations are not high for stores setting up shop in the nation’s malls.
But with low expectations come big surprises.
With the first batter of the latest earnings season, Alcoa (NYSE:AA), hitting a triple last night, optimism is on the rise. Thanks to some better-than-expected same-store sales figures…
Natural Gas Industry Braces for Impact
If the news today is an indication of things to come, the next few months are not going to be pretty. If the big boys are preparing for the worst, imagine the fear from the debt-ridden little guys.
And so it begins. Just yesterday, we here at the TFN offices got into a late-day discussion about the fate of the nation’s natural gas markets.
With prices remaining low and entirely removed from the recent commodities bonanza, the nation’s expanding natural gas drilling industry is headed for trouble.
Today we got the news that proves our theory.
ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP), the third largest of the nation’s Big Oil players, announced it is cutting its capital spending budget by nearly 10% and is selling some $10 billion…
Three Big Movers to Start the Week
They may not be the big mergers investors were hoping would fire off another winning week, but today’s movers help prove there is upside potential left in the market.
Even though the “Merger Monday” trend is not continuing this week, we have a Monday morning filled with positive news and upgrades. The action is putting new wealth into the pockets of plenty of investors.
One of the morning’s biggest movers comes close to the form of a merger. With the news the Swiss technology company Kudelski has raised its tender offer price for OpenTV (NASDAQ:OPTV) to $1.55, shares of the American digital-television software manufacturer have surged ahead by nearly 20%.
Earlier this year, Kudelski offered to purchase the 87% of the company it does not…
Ready to Retire? Think Again
Retirement is part of the American dream. Unfortunately, the nation’s financial meltdown is making the act tougher than ever. Social Security alone won’t pay the bills.
Yesterday evening, I had the courage to do something I have not done in a long time. I opened my 401(k) statement. It was a brave, bold move that made me ponder doubling up on my blood-pressure medicine before ripping the seal off the envelope.
In the end, my ticker was fluttering with beats of joy: up 33% so far this year.
My decision to overweight the small-cap sector in March paid off.
Even with those strong gains, the long-term trend line shows my heart is going to have to keep pumping for a couple extra years before…
Sonic Solutions: Easy Options Opportunity
Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ:SNIC) has soared over the past six months. Is now the time to buy? Savvy investors are checking out this easy options strategy.
Battles for dominate, market-accepted technology are rarely good for the companies mired in the fight. Sony’s (NYSE:SNE) torturous foray in the VHS versus Beta battle is a perfect example.
But a divided market is not always bad.
Just ask Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ:SNIC) shareholders. As the entertainment industry slowly figures out if DVDs or Blu-ray technology will dominate the video world, Sonic’s shareholders had the chance to rake in a fortune.
Shares of the $175 million company have soared by 1,050% over the past six months as the global economy rebounds and Blu-ray production increases.
As the go-to firm in Blu-ray production…
Put These Four Stocks on Your Watch List
Pennsylvania is in a desperate financial situation. While politicians figure out how to dig themselves out of this hole, a handful of companies will prosper. Here’s your chance to get in on the action.
There is only one state in the country that has yet to finalize its annual budget. The political situation in Pennsylvania is getting desperate. Without a spending plan in place, dozens of organizations are not getting the funding they need to survive. Across the state, angry citizens are sharpening their proverbial pitchforks.
While the desperation in Harrisburg will slow the state’s economy, the fiasco is creating a profit opportunity for a handful of companies, most notably natural gas drillers and gambling operators.
The power of a strong lobby
Buried…
Oil Investors: Keep Your Eye on That Dollar
The risk factors surrounding the nation’s oil industry are through the roof. The action is costing unprepared investors a lot of money. For proof, ask Delta Petroleum (NYSE:DPTR) shareholders.
Even a first grader can look at this market and know anything but fundamentals are driving the action. Fortunately for guys like me, few grade-school can figure out why.
These days, it is all about the macro-economy. More specifically, the only thing anybody cares about is the value of the dollar. When the greenback is up, the market is down (like today). When the dollar is weak, the market rallies – like last week.
There are several reasons for the trend: flight to safety, inflation, political risk… you name it.
What matters for us…
Commodities Market: Dig Your Way to Riches
The commodities markets have been kicked into high gear. As America’s lenders change their mind, the world’s mining companies are on a surefire path to riches.
If you can’t farm it, you have to mine it. It is a great message, no matter if you are an investor or an out-of-work cowboy.
Riding through the streets of Alaska’s ever-wet capital, you see all sorts of bumper stickers. There are three main categories – fishing, mining and Sarah Palin.
It is the miners getting all of the attention this week.
There are several reasons the world’s mining industry is opening a big ‘ole bottle of bubbly, but none more poignant than the fact that America is shelling out debt faster than a hot-rod blackjack…
Russia’s Maneuvering Boosts the Commodities Market
The commodity markets are surging today. Are the bulls charging because of investor fear or is something else going on? Here’s the answer.
There is a buzz in the commodities markets this week. Just about anything that can be pulled from the ground is surging in value. Everything, that is, but natural gas.
Most notably, gold is just about ready to reach over the critical $1,000 level, proving that investors are looking for safety. Even without a hint of inflation, the precious metal has surged by over 5% so far this week.
The quick run means the world’s gold miners are surging in value. The more leverage packed into their balance sheets, the higher their prices are going to go.
So far, Yumana…
What’s Next for Gold Prices?
As the equities market gyrates, gold bugs are getting their vindication. Better late then never, I suppose.
It is pretty clear where the folks selling their share of the equities market yesterday put their cash. As investors look for a safe haven, the gold market is booming today.
Gold prices settled today at $978.50 per ounce, an increase of $22.20 from yesterday’s final figure. The action is a surefire sign that investors are getting nervous.
It was almost a year ago when the precious metal entered one of its most volatile periods. Over the span of several months, gold prices ran from $800 to $900, back down to $700 and then the whole back to the $1,000 mark and beyond.
As more and…
Good News Leads to Big Gains
There is good news filtering through the Street today. It was enough to pull the market into positive territory, but will it keep us there? YRC Worldwide (NYSE:YRCW) and Patrick Industries (NASDAQ:PATK) help illustrate where we are heading.
Could it be? Are the markets actually increasing this morning on solid economic data and not just speculation or political maneuvering? If it’s true, it is certainly a sign of good things to come for the nation’s bulls.
Just after the opening bell, the Institute for Supply Management released its latest measurement of America’s manufacturing sector. With a rating of 52.9 in August, well above the 50.5 analysts were expecting, the vital industry proves to be growing once again.
The growth is already trickling…