CRB Spot Index Hits All-Time High
Is it deflation that we should be worried about? According to the Fed, inflation is too low. That may be a temporary problem. The CRB commodity spot index just hit a new all-time high. The index is up 15% YTD. Read More →
A Must-Have MLP Fund
You don’t want to miss the boat on master limited partnerships (MLPs) especially now that the asset class is receiving more press. A recent Wall Street Journal piece by Tom Lauricella and Carolyn Cui, “Frenzy in Energy Partnerships,” shed more light on the relatively unknown natural resource pipeline... Read the full story
Wheat Prices Skyrocket
Wheat prices are up more than 50% in a month. Droughts in Russia, a major world wheat producer, are threatening the country’s crop. Traders bid up wheat prices in anticipation of tighter supplies. Read More →
A Raging Bull Market in MLPs
The raging bull market in MLPs shows no signs of slowing. Since the S&P 500 peaked in October of 2007, MLPs have gained more than 33%, while the S&P 500 dropped 25%. YTD, MLPs are up 17%, compared to a loss on the S&P 500. Read More →
5 Energy Market Insights
The 2010 edition of the BP Statistical review of World energy came out this month. BP’s Statistical review has been published for 59 years. It provides data on energy consumption, production, and reserves for all of the world’s major fuels broken down by country. Any investor seriously considering... Read the full story
A Troubling Trio of Economic Indicators
In over four decades in the investment business, I have found that the most reliable economic indicators are not those released by government statistical agencies, but those that are available real-time in the stock, bond, and commodities markets. Three charts I have been monitoring regularly to gauge... Read the full story
Natural Gas Breaks Out to 3-Month High
Big upside breakout is bullish for natural gas. Excess inventories are coming down and investors are likely realizing that as a result of BP oil spill, now more than ever higher U.S. natural gas use is necessary. Read More →
A 500% Return in High-Yielders
Do you invest in master limited partnerships (MLPs)? MLPs are publicly traded limited partnerships. They combine the tax benefits of a limited partnership with the liquidity of a publicly traded security. MLPs pay no entity-level tax. They are pass-through entities. MLP unit holders are allocated a proportionate... Read the full story
The Future of Oil Demand
According to the International Energy Agency, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries’–i.e., rich countries’–oil demand peaked in 2005 near 50 million barrels per day. OECD oil demand is down 10% from the 2005 high, yet total oil demand is up over the same... Read the full story
Young Research’s Favorite Energy Play
A conservative way to play a potential rise in the prices of natural gas, coal, and even oil is to invest in renewable power. In an environment of rising fossil-fuel prices, renewable power generation assets benefit the most. Why is that? The majority of the power generated globally comes from fossil-fuel-based... Read the full story
