Stock Market: When Do I Buy a “Buy”?
The stock market is a big place, you can’t buy everything, how do you determine whether you should even consider a particular investment recommendation?
Stock Market: When Do I Buy a “Buy”? Read More »
Job Security
In a changing economy, it is important to be confident that your job is secure before you make long-term investments. The future is not certain and if you lose your job you will require liquidity or you could end up in financial ruin. The key is to have at least 6 months of living expenses socked away in liquid assets before you invest in less liquid things like real estate, timber or privately held businesses. Although stocks are more liquid in a sudden downturn like we experienced in 2008 liquidity can be severely impaired (if there are no buyers) or you may be forced to liquidate at a significant loss. Warren Buffet is famous for maintaining massive amounts of cash waiting for just such an opportunity when he can name his price and everyone else is so strapped for cash that they have to accept his offer.
Buy a Business Franchise or Start Your Own?
Many people dream of owning their own business, setting their own hours, and being “the boss”. Some budding entrepreneurs find that it can be a smart move to invest in or buy an established business rather than starting their own. Depending on a number of factors, there can be considerably less risk in acquiring or investing in an existing business rather than starting one from scratch. Another way to limit your risk is to go with a successful business franchise.
Buy a Business Franchise or Start Your Own? Read More »
Physical Gold vs. Paper Gold
Looking at the factors forcing the price of gold down last week caused me to scratch my head a bit. Even though the price of gold was falling on the futures market anecdotal evidence showed that physical gold dealers were doing a booming business as sales volume was actually up by 50% last week as buyers of the physical metal were jumping on the opportunity to buy gold at a discount. So I wondered how could demand for physical gold be up while prices continued to fall? The answer it appears is that there is a major disconnect between physical gold vs. “paper gold”. In today’s article, Bud Conrad looks at the factors in this disconnect.
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Gadgets for Hedging Financial Risks
In the age of the Internet, nearly every day there are new ways to ensure that you can stay on top of your financial information. From mobile phones to text messages to software that tracks the value of money, your portfolio can be digitized and monitored with nothing more than a click of the mouse
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Natural Disasters That Have Created Investment Opportunities
Every cloud has a silver lining, and in the case of some natural disasters, there have been great opportunities to take advantage of financial markets after the worst damage has been done. Often when the old has been swept away and new modern construction takes its place an area can be revitalized and get a whole new lease on life.
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How International Law Can Affect Your Investments
International law affects a multitude of countries, in a variety of ways. When deciding on where to invest and what to invest in, it is important to see which international laws and treaties are upheld by the country where the investments will be made. Here are a few specific things that should be kept in mind.
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Insurance Tips for Small Businesses
Boats carry life vests and life preservers and have lifeboats. Construction workers wear hard hats, skateboarders wear knee and elbow pads, professional football players and motocross racers wear helmets, and welders wear goggles. Why? Because they understand the value of protection. In the same way, businesses need to understand the value of protection and that is why insurance is crucial, especially in business.
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Is the Dollar Really King?
In addition to saving yourself time and worries by mostly ignoring public information, learning to discern the difference between good and bad information can lead to better decision making, in your everyday life, and in your investments. As a case in point, during the conference here, someone in the audience asked a question about quantitative easing. Doug Casey took hold of the microphone and replied along the lines of, “People need to stop using constructs such as ‘quantitative easing.’ Those are just terms that politicians have come up with to obfuscate the truth. The proper term for quantitative easing is currency debasement, plain and simple.”
Is the Dollar Really King? Read More »
Can You Trust Internet “Intelligence”?
Can you trust the information? One of the major problems with the internet… you never know the real source of the information or how reliable it is.
Can You Trust Internet “Intelligence”? Read More »