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Where do you stand on the Keystone Pipeline? Or fracking? There isn't much middle ground on either topic; either you're in favor or very much opposed. One thing everybody seems to agree on, however, is the development of alternative or "green" energy sources. The only debate is whether...
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In This Issue. * Dollar benefits from safe haven flows... * Kiwi to benefit from interest rate increases... * Precious metals tick higher as ETF flows return... * Treasury yields continue to rise... And, Now, Today's Pfennig For Your Thoughts! Worries about Russia and a slowdown in China send investors...
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In 2013, a Gallup survey found that stock ownership, even in retirement accounts, had reached a record low of only 52% of Americans, down from 62% five years prior and 65% in 2007. The latest number is the lowest since Gallup began its bi-annual survey in 1998. The sharpest decline is among middle-income...
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By Hard Assets Alliance Team By Justin Spittler, Hard Assets Alliance Analyst With fear and volatility gripping the financial world, many investors find it puzzling that gold—history's most trusted safe-haven asset—has yet to rebound. Following the Fed's taper pump-fake and Obama's appointment...
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Shanghai is an amazing city. It doesn't have the significance of Beijing's Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, or the ancient beauty of the Great Wall. Yet, Shanghai holds the key to the Chinese economic growth engine. Shanghai: Before Shanghai's 24 million residents make it the largest...
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How much shopping did you do over the Thanksgiving weekend? According to experts who know a lot more about shopping than me, Americans spent a lot of money these past few days. An Accenture (ACN) survey showed that more than half of Americans were expected to do some shopping this weekend. Wells Fargo...
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Investors are pouring a mountain of money into the stock market this year. After our dysfunctional politicians in Washington, D.C., forged a Fiscal Cliff agreement that both sides seem to hate, the stock market shot up and has been on a roll ever since. If you’ve bought a bunch of new stocks, funds...
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Given the news coming from the Fed and our continued low interest rate environment that's punishing savers and those on fixed incomes I've asked our resident Fed expert and ETF trader Rick Pendergraft to chime in on what investors can do where rates will be low for at least the next two years...
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The yield on U.S. bonds is abysmal. While I realize that I don't need to tell retirees something they already know, such a low interest rate is a crisis that faces many American citizens. With bond yields this low how are the elderly supposed to supplement social security, pay rising healthcare costs...
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Exchange-Traded Funds have become one of the most popular investment vehicles in America, and many Asian countries are jumping on the bandwagon. But the best way to profit from this trend — and get exposure to the countries and companies driving the trillion-dollar ETF industry — might not...
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How did your portfolio do in 2011? The answer greatly depends on where you invested your money and how able you were to withstand some wild volatility. Today I'm going to share with you 10 Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) ideas to help your 2012 performance turn out better than the previous year's...
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IN THIS ISSUE: 1. Exchange-Traded Notes (ETNs) 2. The Downside of ETFs and ETNs 3. Know Thy ETF 4. How I Recommend You Invest in ETFs and ETNs 5. Metropolitan’s ETF Methodology 6. Metropolitan’s Performance Introduction As I noted last week, I am going to be vacationing in Italy just ahead...
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The finance chiefs of the world's 20 most-developed economies recently gathered in Paris to discuss the challenges facing the global economy. One of those challenges is inflation — especially food inflation. "International commodity prices are rising. Food situation is a major issue which...
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Many U.S. companies are struggling against low-cost Chinese competition and blowhard politicians eager to play the blame game for our economic woes, and they are ratcheting up the rhetoric about the China's currency (the yuan) being undervalued. You probably saw news coverage of Chinese Premier Hu...
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Normal 0 MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 This morning The Financial Times reported that the world’s largest money management firm, BlackRock (NYSE:BLK), doubled its earnings in the fourth quarter of 2010. Investors may remember BlackRock’s takeover of another giant firm -- Barclays in late 2009...