Reasons Why Gold Is Bullion So Important During A Recession

By James Baker

Whether or not the current bailout plan will work, how much it will cost, and when it it will be clear is currently a mystery. It could be an astounding success with General Motors and the banks. The bailout could be a dismal failure just pushing the country more into debt. The truth is we just don't know yet.

We can't foretell the future, but we can review the past. Gold has always been, and will always be a safe haven investment. It doesn't matter how the worlds financial system ends up, gold is here to stay.

Now, the above statement may sound a little extreme so many. However, the truth is gold bullion offers a level of protection from economic collapse that no other commodity offers. Some of the soundest advice you can receive is to diversify your investment portfolio. There are four main investments that make up a well diversified portfolio- Stocks, bonds, real estate, and physical gold bullion (coins and bars).

All over the wold, those who are in the know are literally tripping over themselves to secure as much gold as possible. Let us share two reasons this is the case:

1) It's no secret that times of economic recession result in wars between nations and many firmly believe that every fallout bunker should be stocked with plenty of Gold, Guns, and Glacier bottled water.

2) It is obvious that the current forms of capitalism aren't working, something new and different will be needed, and gold has always been the starting point for a new economy.

Bear economies cause the rich to run for gold as fast as possible. It's plain to see that these billions and trillions of dollars don't just print themselves out of nothing. Well actually they do, and that's going to have repercussions. To avoid the coming backlash, a good portfolio should have it's largest assets in a secure investment. If it's good enough for the world banks to use, then it's good enough for us.

It can't be emphasized enough that what is being referred to here is real physical gold bullion. Don't be fooled by people selling you snake oil gold ETF's and such. Admittedly these kinds of investments to have their purpose when thinking in the short term, but they actually devalue the longer you have them. Think long term when making your gold investment and you will be much safer.

It is undeniable that the top financial advisors have been actively promoting buying gold now before the price rises much higher. And it will rise in price for sure. By the end of this year it is said to reach over one thousand dollars an OZ, and that this isn't even half of what it could peak at very soon. - 23196

About the Author:

It's good to educate yourself on How to Buy Gold. A good place to start is looking at Gold Krugerrand Coins as an investment.

Understand what a Forex Trend is

By Hass67

It is very important for you as a currency trader to identify and understand a trend in forex because they tend to be vicious and one way. FX trends routinely wipe out speculators like us who commit the trading sin of trend fading.

Forex trends start slowly and are usually the result of another action in the global capital markets. A booming stock market may lead to a massive forex trend in its wake as an example.

Similarly, a global recession may force investors to take refuge in save haven currencies like dollar in their flight towards safety. Likewise, decrease in interest rates will force carry traders to become risk averse.

So you will have to keep one eye on the macro situation to look where smart money is flowing. As trends in currency markets are fundamentally driven by the flow of smart money.

The longer the trend is going to be, the longer the correction and the consolidation will be. In other words, fundamentally driven trends do not take sudden U-turns.

But when the public realizes that a trend has developed, it is always too late. The professional traders and hedge fund have long been in the trade and are ready to unload their positions on the retail crowd.

Dont forget the saying: a Newsweek cover is a kiss of death for a trend. Trends are important for a retail trader to understand.

Always remember, trend is your friend. Trend trading is one of the popular trading strategies used by professional traders including hedge funds.

The best and most effective strategy involves taking a position in the direction of the trend. You can identify a trend in forex using multiple time frame analysis involving moving averages.

Once you have the trend identified, use Fibonacci retracement levels to enter and exit the trade. If you successfully execute this strategy, you can make a few hundred pips in a week. - 23196

About the Author:

Mr. Ahmad Hassam has done Masters from Harvard University. He is interested in day trading and swing trading stocks and currencies. Learn Forex Nitty Gritty. Read about Trend Forex System. Try Netpicks Forex Signal Service.

Penny Stocks, Pink Sheets, Or Micro Caps What's the Difference?

By James Brumley

The terms penny stock and pink sheet are like night and day as are bulletin board and micro cap. Unknowing investors often lump them all into one category and get into trouble or miss out on opportunities.

Though its likely you know the true definition of at least a couple of these terms, its worth spending a couple of minutes planting a simple " and unique " explanation in the back of your mind for each one. Doing so may mean the difference between making a profitable investment or not at some point in the future.

Whether you consider a penny stock as one that trades under $1 or one that trades under $5 really doesnt matter. Although the universe of stocks to choose from will definitely expand as the stock price rises.

If you want to short or buy a penny stock on margin, make sure you know whom youre doing business with. Some brokerages will not allow shorting of any stock under $5; others dont place a limit. So, choose wisely.

Its also generally true that penny stocks tend to be a pink sheet or a bulletin board stock (see below), though its imperative to understand that many exchange-listed stocks are also penny stocks. These low-priced exchange-listed stocks have at some point met the same requirements as some of the worlds highest-priced stocks. The low share price may be a temporary situation, not to mention an incredible investment opportunity. The size of the company (market cap) or its exchange has nothing to do with determining whether its a penny stock or not.

You may have been told to steer clear of pink sheet stocks because they often hold the most risk. Maintained by Pink OTC Markets Inc., some of them dont deserve their bad reputation.

Some foreign stocks choose to list their equities in the U.S. market, but for technical or logistic reasons cant list their stock with one of the exchanges or the bulletin board system. That doesnt make the investment any less credible though. The size of the company (or market cap) is irrelevant.

One of the biggest downsides to pink sheet stocks is a lack of transparency. These companies arent required to report audited accounting statements, although many do anyway. If the stock youre considering discloses its business, it might be worth a second look.

On the other hand, if a stock trades on the OTC market, or as an OTCBB stock, you can be assured that these companies have met SEC requirements.

This may come as a surprise, but the bulletin board system is not the only over-the-counter game in town. Both pink sheet and NASDAQ markets are OTC markets.

When it comes to determining if an equity should be listed as a bulletin board stock or an exchange-listed stock, share price doesnt come into play. Specific market caps may be required, however.

Some bulletin board stock can be stronger and more productive than many exchange-listed stocks, so dont inherently steer clear of bulletin board names, or necessarily have blind faith in the stability of any exchange-listed stock.

The reason there is plenty of micro cap stocks with share prices over $5 are because price isnt considered when making that determination. Micro caps are simply stocks with market caps of $250 million or less.

Micro Caps can also trade on any exchange, so its status isnt based on whether its listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Its minimum requirement is only $25 million.

A Quadruple Summary

As you can see, penny stocks, pink sheets, bulletin boards and micro caps all serve different purposes and play the trading game uniquely. In this instance, semantics do matter. Becoming knowledgeable about specific definitions will go a long way in making profitable investments.

Whether youre looking for top stock picks and trading ideas among the penny stock world, bulletin board equities, or micro caps, youll find them at www.smallcapnetwork.com. We explore the information that really matters to find you the best of the best stocks, and to offer highly meaningful market commentary. Sign up for the free e-newsletter today. - 23196

About the Author:

James Brumley is an expert in the small stock arena covering penny stocks and small cap stocks for over 10 years now. Investing in penny stocks can be very risky and it is recommended you gain access to the limited amount of information available to investors. The Small Cap Network's free newsletter is one source sure to provide valuable insight and ideas.

Things You Didn't Know About the Stock Market

By C.L. Sommer

The stock market is a place where businesses and individuals trade in shares and benefit from the returns. As an investor, an individual enjoys some amount of power over the company. This investor offers valuable financial support to the company and in return benefits from valuable returns. The number of shareholders owning a company could range from a few hundreds to thousands- depending on the size and requirement of the corporation. As a business grows, it requires adequate funds to realize its financial goals. When a company is in a state of substantial growth, it offers shares to the public to gain a stronghold in the market. Selling shares to the public has been a practice with many businesses since early times.

Companies selling shares of their business to the public is not something new. The financial market has always been a vehicle for buyers and sellers, where both parties share a mutually profitable relationship. The stock exchange is like the financial spine of a country- a place where shares of numerous companies are bought and sold. In the US there are three stock exchange markets that play an important role in shaping the economy- the Nasdaq, the New York Stock Exchange and the American Stock Exchange.

Wall Street is an important financial center in the United States. During the 17th century, even before New York City was what it is today, there was a high wall built as a defense against British attackers. Eventually the wall came down but the name of the street remained as Wall Street.

Even though we think of Wall Street as the financial hub of the United States, history has a different story to tell. You may not know that Boston was once the countrys financial hub. Boston dealers played an active part in buying and selling various kinds of commodities as well as dealing in bonds for contracts such as bridges and canals. It is indeed difficult to imagine the financial hub of America as something other than Wall Street. However history clearly states the importance of the Boston dealers in creating an active financial market, very much similar to the one found in Wall Street today.

Other countries similarly transacted out their financial activities through their own financial centers. For example, the City of Paris economic activities were carried out on Rue de Quincampoix.

London's stock market is an interesting tale in the history of finance. The stock exchange in London was originally an open market based on Exchange Alley. Jonathans Coffee House was the popular place where many London dealers conducted their financial activities. The Coffee House was later renamed The Stock Exchange.

Wall Street gradually evolved over the years with varied types of traders offering countless shares to the public. With time many new banks entered the scene and began to operate in the market offering attractive deals such as treasury bonds. - 23196

About the Author:

C.L. Sommer is a frequent contributor to WallStreetSWAT.com, the premier source for financial news, real time stock market quotes, economic data and more - providing the Special Weapons and Tactics investors need to navigate the complicated financial markets.

Is Your Investment Backed By The Right Strategy?

By Suzanne

For a trader it is important that they are aware of the right business strategies. Otherwise it is going to be extremely difficult for them to survive in the trading business. A well-defined strategy is very essential for day and online trading. It is important to be aware of every intricacy of day and online trading. This will help us in making the right decisions and gaining plum returns on your investments.

Day trading means the act of buying and selling stock within the same day. Day traders seek to make profits by leveraging large amounts of capital to take advantage of small price movements in highly liquid stocks or indexes. Certain stocks are considered ideal for day trading. A typical day trader looks for two things in a stock. That is liquidity and volatility.

Liquidity allows a person to enter and exit from stock at a good price whereas Volatility is a measure of the expected daily price range - the range in which a day trader operates. What encourages most people to get trading experience is the ability to make triple digit benefits each year with little effort. But day trading is not as easy as it seems. Over 50% fail in their attempt of dealing with stock successfully.

That is because most traders assume that they know everything about trades, stocks and so on. But in reality most new entrepreneurs are not fully equipped to even start the operations that they have begun. In fact many are not even prepared to operate the business. Blame it on lack of enough practical experience or lack of understanding of the risks and inner workings of the business many new entrepreneurs fail in their first attempt.

And it comes as no surprise to learn that they take a very long time to recoup from this failure. Most of them start a business completely out of impulse and face hiccups during their business. One company that is setting a benchmark in online trading is NetPicks. Established in the year 1966, NetPicks has been considered the gold standard while dealing with forex, futures, stock trading systems and live signal services. In fact it would be right to say that since the time online trading and day trading emerged NetPicks has been there to help people with their money.

The professionals of NetPicks bring a wealth of trading experience. Because everyone at NetPicks firmly believes that there are limitless opportunities to be exploited with forex, futures and stock trading if people are intelligent enough to sort through the data.

The first priority of professionals at NetPicks is to do a meaningful analysis to subscribers. Meaning to deliver fast, accurate and dynamic information that can be transformed into short term successes and long term wealth management. Therefore this article reinforces that a right strategy is most vital when dealing with stocks and when no professional help is taken. Therefore it's important to ensure that the strategy should be as objective as possible. - 23196

About the Author:

If you wish to know more about day trading stock tips and free day trading resources then you are invited to visit http://www.UMTTrading.com. UMTTrading.com is a universal place to get information on different kinds of trading strategies. This site provides detailed information on swing trading, day trading systems, forex systems and much more. . .