MacroFinder.com

The threshold question to ponder before you decide to invest in the stock market is whether or not you are the investor type. For some people the stock market may not be suited to their personality. This article addresses some of the qualities an investor should have in order to make a reasonable return in the stock market.

Sure, there are folk tales you may hear about the guy who bought XYZ Company stock for $5 and sold it 60 days later for $50 a share. This scenario probably has happened , but it is not the reality of being an investor. The following points should be considered when you are considering becoming an investor.

Are you self-disciplined in your thinking?

The first step anyone must take into account is their own personality. Are you objectively a person who is organized in your thinking? Do you know how much money you have to invest? Do you know how to set objectives in your finances? Have you set goals for savings and followed through on those objectives? An investor has to have a clear set of objectives in their choice of investments. Is the amount of money you intend to invest a one time wind fall? Are you able to set aside a certain amount of money each month to investing that is disposable income?

In effect what you will be doing is moving some of your pass book savings to an investment. Patterns development in peoples lives. Are you able to transfer your savings pattern to include a regular investment in the stock market? If you are currently earning a small percentage on your pass book savings account what rate of return would you be satisfied in receiving? The key to investing is to know your expenses and income and decide how much money is disposable income. It is this excess that will be your investment dollars.

Are you able to set goals and listen to good advise?

Once you have determined that investing may be a possible avenue for you to consider the next step is setting goals. A goal is the objective of your investment. It could be for retirement, a vacation home, a rainy day fund or a new boat. Whatever your is determines the type of investing you will be looking for in your research.

If it is a long term goal like retirement you may seek a tax exempt municipal bond fund or a mutual fund with certain characteristics. If you want liquidity like a pass book savings account where you can draw money as you need it there are some investments that may fit. The important aspect of this step is to know your objectives and then draw up a budget or a plan.

All of the major fund companies have managers and consultants. Are you able to set forth your objectives and ask for advice in picking out a fund that will fit your needs? This does not mean you need to sign up for the first consultant who takes your call. It means can you listen to advice and make a decision on various alternatives offered to you.

After you have gathered all the information you believe is necessary for your decision can you apply your personal goals with the information presented and make a final decision?

This may seem like an odd inquiry, can you make a final decision? Unfortunately, some people will feel quite comfortable going to a car show room and purchase a $30,000 automobile. The color, impression, and internal motivators. But when it comes to investing, the buy is not as dazzling. It takes consideration to commit $30,000 to an investment in paper form even though you may be purchasing stock in the flashy car company.

Can You Let Go?

The final and perhaps most important aspect of deciding if you are a stock investor is, YOU. After you have gone through all of the self analysis, goals, research and advice of others and made your final decision the next step is critical. Do you have the personality to allow your investment to take its course? Can you sleep at night? Unless you are a day trader who plays the upside and downside of the stock market and I would not recommend this to anyone starting out.

You have to be able to roll with the punches. Trust your instincts and review your investment on a monthly or quarterly basis. If you buy individual stocks, place a limit order on the account. A limit order allows your broker or on-line account to sell if the price goes down.

The mutual fund investment works differently that buying individual stocks. If you are satisfied that your choice of a fund met all of your criteria for investing let it alone and review it only periodically. If your mutual fund for any reason meets with unexpected long term problems you can change funds. I would review the fund on a quarterly basis and discuss this with the fund account manager or representative.

This is the investor personality that you need to have in order to have a lifetime of success in the stock market. If you have it, it works. If you don’t, try another type of investment.

Terry Detty recommends you look at some Wall Street Penny Stock Plays and Short Selling Micro Cap Stocks . We all want Successful Penny Stock Day Trading .

Online stockbroker plays one of the most crucial roles in trading. Therefore, having a good broker is quite important for an investor. If you are paying high commission rates to your broker and not getting substantial profits then that is of no use. Therefore, it is very important to search the best online broker for you. Spend more time on research — then compare trading services and pick the best professional as part of your requirement.

Some crucial points have been discussed below regarding the selection of the right stockbroker. Therefore, read them carefully and pick the best broker for successful trading. .

Commission rate: This is the most crucial point; therefore choose the broker who offers the least commission rate. However, it is also important to see what kind of services your broker is offering to you – whether the services that are being offered to you are suitable for you or not. Consider these points minutely and then choose the one that suits your requirement.

Market reputation: Since there are several brokers available, it sometimes becomes difficult to choose the right one. In that situation, investors are required to do a comprehensive market research. In addition to the services, it is also important to see the market reputation of the broker, past experience and other such factors. These things are very important. In many cases, you may come across a situation where the broker promises to offer several services but fail to do so when you need it. And to avoid such a situation, investors need to look at other factors that directly or indirectly affect their trading processes.

However, it is inevitable to know what kind of help you can access from your broker. Well, he is the person who does all kinds of transactions. He is the person who knows more about the volatile market. Therefore, you can ask your online broker about the nature of the market, what company shares you should buy for maximum benefits, when and how you need to buy and sell stocks. Your broker always keeps you abreast of the latest market updates. Once you login your online account, you can get attached with the stockbroker.

In addition to your broker, the other most important factor is the trading company website. Since Internet based trading requires an online account for trading, every investor who is interested in trading opens an account on the company website. And once the account is activated, investors can start trading online from anywhere in the world – the only prerequisite is the accessibility of the Internet. The company website is important in the sense that all your account information are uploaded there. When you do any kind of trading, you login through the website. In addition, there are other services you access on the site such as stock news, charts, stock quotes, analysis tools, educational resources and more. Therefore, it is important to select the company that offers best security tools and other services. Again, you need to do some research online – short list some major company websites and then pick the best one.

Stock trading today is quite easy and it has nothing to do with the traditional brokerage system. With technological advancement, everything has changed now. It is just a matter of one mouse click and you are done. However, trading fundamentals are the same as before, but the process has become much easier and risk free. Therefore, like many other investors, if you are also willing to invest and want to make profits in a short time period then it’s a good platform to start with. Invest now and reap the benefits that you deserve.

SogoTrade stock broker:Stock investing
How Sogotrade offers low commissions: online stocks

Stock trading is the most profitable option for those who want maximum returns from their investment. However, many people feel that trading is fun and does not require any knowledge. This is the first mistake one makes in the investment process. Trading is an easy process, but it does not mean you don’t need any market knowledge. Everyone knows that the market is volatile and therefore, understanding the market mood is inevitable. If you don’t – you can lose your hard earned money.

Ask any professionals about their key success in the stock market – the answer lies in their knowledge, experience and the positive attitude they possess towards the market. Initially they also did some hard work and with time, they are now experienced professionals who are continuously making profits from their investment. So, what are the mistakes investors need to avoid in making the trading process successful? Well, it is really important to avoid mistakes and some of the most common mistakes are mentioned below:

Improper investment plan: If you are investing money in stocks, there is one single reason and that is to earn profits. Therefore, proper planning is must before you actually jump into the trading world. You should know about the process and how you can expand your benefits in a required time period. However, many investors directly jump into the market and then realize that their decision was wrong. Online process is quite easy and all kinds of resources are also available on the Internet. You can also discuss with online financial experts as well.

Selection of an online trading company: Since trading process is done online, investors need to open an account on the Internet. The company provides various services to the consumer such as account security, market analysis tools, broker and other educational resources. All trading is done through your online account and for all these services; the company charges a very minimal commission rate. But if you search the Internet, there are several such companies and their services also vary. And many a times what happens is that investors don’t do much research and choose the wrong company. Therefore, you first need to do a comprehensive market research and then pick the right company based on the services, reputation and the commission rate they charge.

No market analysis: Those who fail to gain profits in the stock market are those who either don’t possess any market knowledge or don’t do any market analysis. In that situation, they fail to buy and sell stocks online. Market analysis is a must in order to understand the market mood. One needs to understand the market mood first and then can expect profits from trading. There are various advanced marketing tools available – all you have to do is to feed some important data and then analyze the market in a better and efficient ways.

Improper selection of company shares: The major process involved in trading is the buying and selling of stocks. Your profits are solely dependent on how you trade in the market. First of all, you need to select all major company shares. Before buying a company share, it is inevitable to know about the company, its growth structure and the market reputation. Most investors don’t look at these aspects and buy small company shares. Whether its small or large company, you must enquire about the company profile before buying stocks.

Lack of positive attitude: This is one of the most important aspects of trading online. There are so many people who still consider stock trading as gamble. And there are chances that such people might convince you for the same. Therefore, your positive attitude towards the market is a must.

If you want to make substantial profits in the stock market then don’t repeat these mistakes. Invest intelligently and build a strong financial backup for future financial security.

SogoTrade stock broker:Stock investing
How Sogotrade offers low commissions: online stocks

Most of us often wonder why despite the surfeit of information and assistance available round the clock such as Internet, newspapers, magazines and television, success at stock trading remains elusive. It is quite bizarre to see people losing money in stock market.

Thousands of people across the world spend millions of dollars on stock trading courses and stock analysis software and yet they fail to make money in stock trading.

What generally happens is that gullible people are first duped into believing that that they will master the art of making profits in stock trading just by joining tutorial classes. When they have shelled out, say, $1,000 as course fee, they are made to buy videos showing intricate charts and graphics that are beyond their comprehension. Those who try to invest according to the instructions will end up losing thousands of dollars. Small gains here and there only add up to frustration. The more they try to learn, the less they appear to know. The result will be they keep spending more and more and losing more and more.

If success in stock trading could be achieved just by buying the software, there would be no shortage of people minting millions of dollars and the streets of our cities would be jammed with chauffer driven limousines.

The truth, however, is that most stock traders do not understand even the ABC of stock trading and that is why they are not successful.

You must know that by the time you start trading in stocks, you have already built up a sufficient reservoir of general trading sense without actually being aware of it. For example, who does not know that you can make profit when you buy an item at lower price and sell it at a higher price? You do not have to enroll yourself in a pricey stock trading tutorial, buy costly books or videos to learn this elementary fact of business.

Strange as it may appear, most people do not have the confidence in their ability to put this elementary principle into practice. They do not understand that they do not need to know any thing more about making profits in stock trading than this basic principle of buying low and selling high.

The third requisite of being successful in stock trading is the attitude. Were you not told even when you were a toddler playing with your peers not to cry when you lost in your games? Do you need to be told in special coaching classes this very childhood lesson? The truth is that you already know a lot about successful trading but you are not just aware of it.

You have to take your profits and losses with a certain level of equanimity and objectivity. Losses do not occur only in stock trading, but in every business. Success and defeat occur in every area of life. You have to remain calm, detached and unemotional whether you earn and you lose. Excitement at gain may turn your head and you may not take the right decision next time. Loss may depress you, blur your vision and lead you to further losses.

Most of the traders learn how to analyze charts and understand the financial reports of the companies. They are happy when they place orders but they start losing their wits. Soon after the prices start will go against their predictions. They feel scared thinking that their analysis was wrong and they would lose money that they honestly think they cannot afford to lose.

This kind of attitude leads to the loss of focus. You start making losses. Your confidence in your ability to take right decisions starts faltering. Instead of looking inwards for the causes of your failure, you start questioning the system you are using even though it was working pretty well. How could the same charts and graphs that helped you to predict the future prices correctly have gone wrong now? You had taken lots of pains to test this system over several markets. It was so solid, but now

What needs to be fixed is not the system but your own attitude towards it. You have to eliminate fear of failure and greed for profits from your attitude. Accordingly, you need to make small changes here and there in your trading plan. For example, you need to reexamine at your stop loss limits that you had earlier fixed. The one simple trick can change the matrix of your trading success or failure.

stock
SogoTrade stock broker: Stock investing
How Sogotrade offers low commissions: online stocks

For starting a business or to meet your everyday needs and demands – financial freedom is must. You can achieve financial freedom only when you have a strong financial backup. You can’t achieve that goal instantly. So, how will you achieve the goal for financial freedom? Its a million dollar question but the answer is very simple – invest in stocks and meet your goal in the best possible way. Though there are other investment options available but stock investment is quite easy and unlike other investment options, it has no such limitations like lock-in period or fixed interest rates, etc.

It is really important to understand the advantages of stock trading and why it is beneficial as compared to other investment options.

Easy and accessible: With the advent of the Internet, trading has become easier than ever before. You can start trading right from your home or office. Anyone can access this service from any corner of the world. However, the traditional brokerage house was quite risky and all the processes were manually completed. But today, online trading system provides much flexibility.

No financial constrain: If you compare other investment options with stocks – there is no limit as far as investment is concerned. You can start investing in stocks from small amount as per your financial capability. And once you gain profits from trading, you can add more afterward. So, even if you don’t have much financial backup, you can still start your trading from a very less amount.

No middleman: Unlike traditional brokerage house, the new Internet based trading system is devoid of any middleman. Now you don’t have to pay hefty commission rates to your broker. However, in the present trading system, trading companies offer all the services and charge a very minimal commission rates for the same.

Educate yourself on the Internet: Since trading involves a lot of things that investors must know in order to gain profits – you can access a wealth of information online. Browse stock related websites and access information such as articles, newsletters, reviews and educational resources in just few mouse clicks. Educate yourself and learn all the tips and strategies that are involved in the trading process.

Online financial experts: First time investors often come across situations when they need immediate guidance. In such a situation, if they don’t know someone who is in the same business, they would not be able to clarify their doubts. However, they can access online financial experts anytime on the Internet. They can discuss any financial issues and the experts will tell them the right way to approach.

Online trading websites and services: The first thing you require for trading is your account. You will have to open an online account on the trading company website. Once your account gets activated, you can start trading online. In addition to your account security, the company website offers other valuable services. You can access advanced analysis tools, daily stock quotes and charts and other educational resources.

However, there are many people who think that stock market is quite a risky platform. And they often discourage other people from investing in stocks. If they are correct then why other traders are making continuous profits from the same market? This is again a million dollar question. However, the answer to this question is very easy. Those who are making profits are very much familiar about the flexible nature of the market. These professionals often do the groundwork i.e., planning and market analysis before actual trading. So, if you also want to make profits from your investment then educate yourself. Learn all the strategies that are needed for successful trading.

stock market
SogoTrade stock broker:Stock Market Trade
Sogotrade free research tools: Stock Market Investing

Morgan Stanley reported $1.55 billion in profit for its first quarter on Wednesday, dragged down by $2.3 billion in write-downs but still well above expectations.

The profit, which comes out to $1.45 a share on revenues of $8.3 billion, is 33 percent lower than what it earned for its first quarter of 2007. But it beat the average estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call, $1.03 a share, by 45 percent.

Morgan Stanley’s announcement falls in line with those from Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers on Tuesday, as investment banks seek to prove their stability amid continuing market fallout over the demise of Bear Stearns.

“While many of our businesses are facing challenging market conditions that we expect to continue in the months ahead, we are satisfied with how Morgan Stanley navigated the ongoing market turbulence,” John J. Mack, Morgan Stanley’s chairman and chief executive, said in a statement.

Wednesday’s report was a welcome shift for Morgan Stanley, which reported its first-ever quarterly loss, of $3.59 billion, three months ago amid a wider market plunge. Then, a swath of other investment banks were forced to turn to foreign investors to shore up their balance sheets as they reported billions of dollars in write-downs tied to their mortgage holdings, with Morgan Stanley selling a 9.9 percent stake in itself to China’s sovereign wealth fund.

Morgan Stanley said Wednesday that it had taken a $1.2 billion trading charge for its mortgages for the quarter. It also wrote down $1.1 billion tied in part to leveraged loans, or those meant to finance private equity deals.

A chief concern among investment banks in recent weeks has been to prove that they have plenty of cash on hand, hoping to prevent the sort of run on the bank that effectively killed Bear Stearns. Morgan Stanley said it had $198.2 billion in capital as of Feb. 29. The firm said that its book value per common share was $29.11.

The firm painted a mixed, if broadly positive, picture of its businesses for the first quarter. Its biggest unit, institutional securities, reported $6.2 billion in revenue, down 13 percent year-over-year. Morgan Stanley’s deal advisory business reported a 19 percent gain in revenue to $444 million, while its equity trading operations earned $3.3 billion, a 51 percent gain because of strong trading results.

But its debt trading unit — formerly its biggest revenue generator — fell 15 percent to $2.9 billion amid the firm’s write-downs. (To help improve its risk profile, Morgan Stanley also said Wednesday that its board appointed Kenneth M. deRegt, a new executive charged with overseeing risk, to the formal post of chief risk officer.)

The firm’s global wealth management unit reported $254 million in revenue, a 12 percent gain as client assets rose to $722 billion. But its asset management unit, which includes the firm’s real-estate business, posted a $161 million loss, compared to a $379 million gain at the same time last year.

Return on common shareholders’ equity, a measure of how efficiently a firm uses its capital, fell to 19.7 percent from 30.9 percent a year ago.

Separately, Morgan Stanley and Goldman said that they have used a new credit facility created by the Federal Reserve for investment banks. In an interview with Bloomberg News, Morgan Stanley’s chief financial officer, Colm Kelleher, said his firm had “tested” the window to remove the stigma of using the credit line.

“It’s meant to be there for normal business,” he said. “It’s not meant to be there as a last-recourse thing.”

The Primary Dealer Credit Facility, which is made available to those investment banks that trade directly with the Fed, will loan money to those firms in exchange for a broad range of collateral, including hard-to-sell mortgage assets.

Newyork Times

NEW YORK - Wall Street fell in temperamental trading Monday as investors grappled with news of JPMorgan Chase & Co. buying the stricken Bear Stearns & Co. in a deal backed by the government. The Dow Jones industrials, down nearly 200 points in the early going, fluctuated into positive territory and then sank again by more than 100 points.
A buyout of Bear Stearns was certainly more appealing than the alternative: letting the investment bank collapse and causing huge losses for anyone linked to it. And some unprecedented moves by the Federal Reserve gave the market a bit of solace on what many predicted would be a day of precipitous losses in the stock market.

Besides supporting the buyout, the Fed lowered the rate it charges to loan directly to banks by a quarter-point on Sunday night — two days before its scheduled meeting Tuesday. The central bank also set up a lending option for firms, including many non-bank financial services firms, to secure short-term loans for a broad range of collateral.

“This removes the risk of further slides for these companies, the risk that a Bear Stearns incident would happen again,” said Robert Pavlik, portfolio manager at Oaktree Asset Management.

The Fed appears to be pledging to do everything in its power to keep the credit crisis from destroying the financial industry and the economy. Policy makers at the central bank are expected to reduce the target fed funds rate — the rate banks charge each other for overnight loans — by at least a half-point on Tuesday, and perhaps even a full point.

Still, the market remained extremely volatile. The sale of Bear Stearns — and the fact that JPMorgan valued the fifth-largest Wall Street investment bank at a minuscule $2 a share, or $236 million — stirred fear among investors worldwide about other banks’ exposure to the troubled credit markets.

“You’re going to have some very weak players pushed out of business,” said Joseph V. Battipaglia, chief investment officer at Ryan Beck & Co. He said JPMorgan’s buy of Bear Stearns and Bank of America Corp.’s acquisition of mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp. are probably not the only rescues the industry will witness during this credit crisis.

The Dow fell 128.63, or 1.08 percent, to 11,822.46, after venturing into positive territory.

Broader indexes also dropped in choppy trading. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 24.45, or 1.90 percent, to 1,263.69, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 43.59, or 1.97 percent, to 2,168.90.

JPMorgan was by far the biggest gainer among the Dow components, rising $3.06, or 8.4 percent, to $40.60. The Fed essentially guaranteed JPMorgan that it would backstop any risk involved in taking over the 85-year-old Bear Stearns, which has 14,000 workers worldwide.

Bear Stearns shares fell 88 percent to $3.60 — still above the buyout price, implying that some shareholders believe the deal terms might change. About one-third of Bear Stearns stock is held by its employees.

The pain for stockholders in Bear Stearns, which succumbed to losing bets on souring mortgages for borrowers with poor credit, will be sizable. JPMorgan is buying Bear, including its midtown Manhattan headquarters, for about 1 percent of the investment bank’s worth little more than two weeks ago. Bear Stearns’ buyout arrives after a short-term bailout Friday that JPMorgan led and that the Fed backed.

Bond prices rose as stocks fell. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 3.34 percent from 3.44 percent late Friday.

The dollar sank to a record low against the euro and hit a 12 1/2 year low against the yen, while gold prices surged to another record high.

Light, sweet crude dropped $3.18 to $107.03 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after rising to nearly $112 a barrel in premarket trading.

The market’s concern wasn’t limited to the Bear sale. DBS Group Holdings Ltd., a large bank based in Singapore, instructed traders via e-mail Monday to disregard an earlier e-mail barring new transactions with Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., according to Dow Jones Newswires. Earlier Monday, DBS emailed traders and said not to engage in new transactions with Lehman or Bear, according to two people familiar with the situation, Dow Jones reported.

Lehman fell $11.15, or 28.4 percent, to $28.11.

This week, Lehman and other major investment banks are slated to report quarterly results. Investors will likely be focusing on comments from the companies for insights about their financial well-being.

While investors were focused on the financial sector, fresh economic news offered little solace. The Fed said output at the country’s factories, mines and utilities fell by 0.5 percent in February, the biggest decline last October. Many analysts had been expecting a slight increase of one-tenth of one percent.

The Commerce Department also said Monday the broadest measure of foreign trade fell slightly in 2007 as stronger growth in U.S. exports helped make up for a spiking foreign oil bill. The deficit in the current account, which covers not only goods and services but also investment flows between the United States and other countries, dropped by 9 percent last year to $738.6 billion.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by 6 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 788.3 million shares.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 14.35, or 2.16 percent, to 648.55.

Overseas, Japan’s Nikkei stock average fell 3.71 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 5.18 percent. In afternoon trading, Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 2.25 percent, Germany’s DAX index dropped 3.09 percent, and France’s CAC-40 lost 2.32 percent.

___

On the Net:

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com

New charges vex retail investors

They say trading in low-priced shares will be affected

By YEOW POOI LING

PETALING JAYA: Some retail investors are unhappy over the higher costs in investing in stocks after the minimum brokerage charges are increased by about 233% to RM40 per transaction from the current RM12 effective Jan 1.

In an e-mail to StarBiz, retail investor C. S. Ng said the increase would have a significant impact on small traders who would be discouraged from trading as frequently as before.

In addition, they would also be deterred from dabbling in low-priced shares or trade in small quantities.

Another retail player in his e-mail concurred, saying that based on a brokerage rate of 0.7% per transaction, investors would have to buy shares worth more than RM5,715 each time to avoid being hit with higher broking charges compared with RM1,715 currently.

Furthermore, he said, the charges would make trading in penny stocks unattractive, especially if investors wanted to buy in small quantities.

To illustrate, for an investor buying 1,000 shares of 50 sen each totalling RM500, the RM40 brokerage fee would translate into a transaction cost of 8%. As such, the price of the stock would have to gain at least 10% for the investor to make a meaningful return on investment.

An industry observer said investors might lose interest in low-priced shares given their high break-even level.

For example, the break-even price for 1,000 shares of RM1 each based on the new brokerage fee would be above RM1.04 per share compared with RM1.012 at the current minimum charge of RM12. This is excluding the stamp duty and clearing fee.

Bursa Malaysia, in an e-mail reply to StarBiz, said the higher minimum brokerage rate was intended as an incentive for remisiers and brokers to increase trading activity in the stock market.

“The current minimum brokerage is too low to cover the business cost and resources involved in smaller trades,” the exchange said, adding that retailers would be encouraged by the reduction in clearing fees to 0.03% from 0.04% previously.

Furthermore, the transition to fully negotiable commission rates for Internet trading would provide an alternative for smaller retail investors, which would save costs and boost Internet trading usage in the market, Bursa added.

Remisiers Association president Sam Ng said the increase in broking fees would also help curb speculative trading, hence, providing price stability.

“We want to encourage investors to hold for a longer period to see an appreciation instead of trading for the short term, which creates volatility. Volatility does not help instil investor confidence,” he said.

A dealer at a bank-backed brokerage said the reduction in clearing fees would make the impact of the higher broking charges “neutral”.

Moreover, he said, day traders usually bought a large number of shares and, hence, the fee increase was unlikely to significantly impact on them.

The Securities Commission had yet to respond to queries from StarBiz at press time.

Thestar

Oil and gold difficult to profit or safest position

Mark Skousen explains, “The dollar continues to slide. Oil is approaching $100 a barrel, and gold, a sign of global instability, now is above $800. And the mortgage credit market continues to soften.

“All of these conditions make it difficult to profit, even in our high dividend-paying stocks. Fortunately, history is on our side. Studies show that a well-diversified portfolio of dividend-paying stocks tend to be more stable during difficult times.

“Our safest position is in oil stocks, so we are going to add another oil & gas stock to our portfolio: Penn West Energy. The trust bought out Canetic recently to create the largest oil and gas trust in North America.

$65 in 2006

$95 in 2007

~46% change in oil market

——————-

My name is Dr. Mark Skousen.

For 26 years, I’ve been the editor of the award-winning investment newsletter Forecasts & Strategies. I’ve also worked as an economist with the Central Intelligence Agency, appeared frequently at national investment conferences and on television, and have been described as “Washington’s #1 Financial Insider.”

In the process, I’ve made my subscribers millions of dollars… in individual stocks, junk bonds, closed-end funds, precious metals, and dozens of special situations.

 ———————–