Precious Metals

The Most Compelling, Overlooked Bargains in a Melting Stock Market

twocents@thestreet.com (Marc Courtenay) — Wed, 16 May 2012 14:46 GMT

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- The current stock market sell-off is beginning to make some investors feel a bit queasy.

Investor sentiment hasn't reached the gut-wrenching or the panic levels yet. But traders and investors I've spoken to are almost numb, cautious and cynical.

Just when they hope they've found a good entry point, the next wave of lousy news headlines causes almost all kind of investments, from commodities to equities, to fall more....

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It's Time to Buy Gold for a Trade

twocents@thestreet.com (Richard Suttmeier) — Wed, 16 May 2012 14:40 GMT

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Back on April 26, I wrote about the "Death Cross" for gold in "Gold Under a Death Cross, How to Trade Mining Stocks."

Today we will take a longer term view of gold looking at the monthly chart going back to 1980, then look at the daily chart for the ETF with the symbol GLD to show that a short-term oversold rebound appears likely soon....

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Platinum Shiniest of Precious Metals

twocents@thestreet.com (Gregg Greenberg) — Wed, 16 May 2012 13:35 GMT

Tim Harvey, Sr. VP at ETF Securities, explains why platinum is holding up better than gold, silver and palladium.

Gold Miners, Silver Looking Attractive

twocents@thestreet.com (Gregg Greenberg) — Mon, 14 May 2012 14:05 GMT

Phil Streible, Sr. commodities broker at RJO Futures, says silver and lagging gold mining stocks are growing too cheap to ignore.

Silver Miners Super Cheap

twocents@thestreet.com (Gregg Greenberg) — Fri, 11 May 2012 15:43 GMT

David Morgan, founder of Silver-Investor.com, says silver mining stocks are seriously undervalued after the metal's recent selloff.

Gold Needs Catalyst to Escape Euro Woes

twocents@thestreet.com (Gregg Greenberg) — Thu, 10 May 2012 13:40 GMT

Adrian Ash, head of research at BullionVault, says gold needs a catalyst to break the current downdraft caused by Euro worries.

Global Superbugs Herald Age of Silver

twocents@thestreet.com (Jeff Nielson) — Wed, 09 May 2012 18:58 GMT

The following commentary comes from an independent investor or market observer as part of TheStreet's guest contributor program, which is separate from the company's news coverage.

NEW YORK (Bullion Bulls Canada) -- For several years I have been touting silver's unique anti-microbial properties. Out of the nearly infinite list of technological/industrial applications for silver, it always seemed inevitable to me that this one use would ultimately become our single greatest need for the Metal of the Moon.

That suspicion could, in turn, be traced back to a single threat that has loomed ever larger, ever more menacing: superbugs. This is the colloquial name given to the bacterial monsters we have created through the reckless, excessive and simply idiotic manner in which our species has overused its single most important medicine: antibiotics. ...

Euro Crack Up Not Helping Gold - Yet!

twocents@thestreet.com (Gregg Greenberg) — Tue, 08 May 2012 14:05 GMT

Jeb Handwerger, editor of GoldStockTrades.com, says Eurozone problems may be depressing gold now, but that will soon change.

TheStreet Ratings Top 10 Rating Changes

twocents@thestreet.com (Kevin Baker) — Mon, 07 May 2012 17:02 GMT

NEW YORK (TheStreet Ratings) -- Every trading day TheStreet Ratings' stock model reviews the investment ratings on around 4,700 U.S. traded stocks for potential upgrades or downgrades based on the latest available financial results and trading activity.

TheStreet Ratings released rating changes on 123 U.S. common stocks for week ending May 4, 2012. 52 stocks were upgraded and 71 stocks were downgraded by our stock model.

Rating Change #10 ...

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Top 5 Small-Cap Stocks to Consider Buying

twocents@thestreet.com (StreetAuthority) — Mon, 07 May 2012 15:31 GMT

The following commentary comes from an independent investor or market observer as part of TheStreet's guest contributor program, which is separate from the company's news coverage.

By David Sterman

NEW YORK (StreetAuthority) -- It's crucial to avoid the trap of focusing on the same types of investments for your portfolio. ...

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Fixed Income ETFs Top April Inflows

twocents@thestreet.com (Kevin Baker) — Fri, 04 May 2012 14:47 GMT

NEW YORK (TheStreet Ratings) -- Each month, the ETF Industry Association) analyzes the assets under management and the net cash flow data for a growing list of U.S. exchange-traded funds. A net cash inflow of $3.0 billion in April brought net cash inflows year-to-data up to $58.9 billion.

Overall assets under management in exchange-traded products, covering 1,458 exchange-traded funds and exchange-traded notes, eroded by $4.9 billion in April to end at $1.2 trillion. All of the asset and flow data included in this article was released on Thursday, May 3rd by the ETF Industry Association.

A torrent of $5 billion flowed into fixed income ETFs in April in the 16th consecutive month of net inflows. Fixed income ETFs have swelled by $21.3 billion so far this year. $622 million flowed into iShares iBoxx Inv Grade Corp Bond and $505 million entered iShares iBoxx High Yield Corp Bond . ...

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The Silver Reverse Bubble of 2012

twocents@thestreet.com (Minyanville) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 17:37 GMT

By Paul Mladjenovic NEW YORK (Minyanville) -- In late 2008, when silver was massacred in the futures pit and saw its price fall from over $20 to under $10, I told my readers at that time that silver entered into a "reverse bubble." I know it sounds odd, but let me re-visit the concept.

As you know by now, a "bubble" is when an asset reaches an unsustainably high level due to artificially stimulated demand. In 2004, I wrote that housing was entering a historic bubble because government policies such as excessively (artificially) cheap credit inflated the price of real estate to nosebleed levels. The real estate mania was everywhere in 2004-2006 as buyers were going berserk.

At the time, I had done a seminar with my favorite real estate expert (David Corsi) entitled "Housing Bubble Profits" and detailed my bearish rationale for why I thought that housing was entering a dangerous phase and that real estate investors and speculators would get hammered. The bottom line is that when an asset (real estate, stocks, whatever) gets bid up to high levels artificially (a level way above its true market price), the next step will be a painful plunge. ...

5 ETFs to Watch This Week

twocents@thestreet.com (Don Dion) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:00 GMT

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Here are five ETFs to watch this week.

Market Vectors Vietnam ETF

The ongoing drama facing China and the European Union continues to dominate international market discussions. Meanwhile, other corners of the globe have managed to fly under the radar. Vietnam's marketplace, for example, has surged, pushing VNM to some of the most substantial gains in our long-term momentum rankings. ...

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Dion's Friday ETF Winners and Losers

twocents@thestreet.com (Don Dion) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 18:51 GMT

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Welcome to Don Dion's "ETF Winners and Losers." Be sure to stop by throughout the week to find out which ETFs are gaining or losing. Winners

Global X Gold Explorers ETF 2.9%

A three-day rally has helped GLDX recover a respectable portion of the losses suffered during the opening half of April. This young product has had a tough start; since peaking in early 2011, it has struggled to break out of a prolonged downward path. ...

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Trend Still Friendly to US Stocks, Not Gold

twocents@thestreet.com (Gregg Greenberg) — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 11:00 GMT

Michael Hurley, portfolio manager for the Pyxis Trend Following Fund, says the up-trend remains in place for US stocks, while support is eroding for gold and precious metals ETFs.

PALL: Good in Small Doses

twocents@thestreet.com (Don Dion) — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 10:00 GMT

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Gold's laggard performance has been one of the more interesting stories to watch in 2012. After last year's breakout performance, easing macroeconomic concerns and coyness on the part of the Federal Reserve regarding new rounds of quantitative easing have helped to knock the highly sought-after yellow metal from its upward path.

For evidence of this disappointing showing, investors need only compare the performance of a bullion-backed gold fund like the iShares Gold Trust to that of a product linked to a fellow member of the precious metals arena, like silver or platinum. Since the start of the year, IAU has risen approximately 5%. The iShares Silver Trust and the ETFS Physical Platinum Shares , meanwhile, have enjoyed gains of more than double this magnitude.

...

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Best Curency Bets: Singapore, Canadian Dollars

twocents@thestreet.com (Gregg Greenberg) — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 11:30 GMT

Axel Merk, portfolio manager for the Merk Hard Currency Fund, says investors should buy Singapore and Canadian dollars while the U.S., Europe and Japan print money.

Gold Range-Bound, Try Palladium

twocents@thestreet.com (Gregg Greenberg) — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 13:43 GMT

Will Rhind, head of US Operations for ETF Securities, says palladium and platinum may be the better bets while gold remains range-bound.

Gold Bugs Not Buying Spanish Bond Auction

twocents@thestreet.com (Gregg Greenberg) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 13:49 GMT

Jeb Handwerger, editor of GoldStockTrades.com, says the impact on gold from the better than expected Spanish bond auction will be fleeting.

TheStreet Ratings Top 10 Rating Changes

twocents@thestreet.com (Kevin Baker) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 15:08 GMT

TheStreet Ratings released rating changes on 56 U.S. common stocks for week ending April 13, 2012. 25 stocks were upgraded and 31 stocks were downgraded by our stock model.

Rating Change #10 ...

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Gold Slows With China

twocents@thestreet.com (Gregg Greenberg) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 13:49 GMT

Phil Streible, senior commodities broker at RJO Futures, discusses the impact of China's slowing economy on gold.

Morgan Stanley: Precious Metals D�j� Vu

twocents@thestreet.com (Jeff Nielson) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 17:53 GMT

The following commentary comes from an independent investor or market observer as part of TheStreet's guest contributor program, which is separate from the company's news coverage.

NEW YORK (Bullion Bulls Canada) -- In 2005, Morgan Stanley was selling "bullion accounts" and charging its clients "storage fees." However, according to a 2007 class-action lawsuit by its clients, there wasn't actually any gold or silver being held in those accounts.

...

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Alcoa's Effect On Silver

twocents@thestreet.com (Gregg Greenberg) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 15:05 GMT

David Morgan, founder of Silver-Investor.com, discusses the impact of Alcoa's better than expected earnings on silver.

Managing Investors' Gold Expectations

twocents@thestreet.com (U.S. Global Investors) — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 14:28 GMT

NEW YORK (U.S. Global Investors) -- It was a challenging week for gold investors.

Although the yellow metal has been on a spectacular 11-year bull run, recent strength in the economy has some thinking gold's heyday is over.

As I often say, investing, like life, is about managing expectations: Even throughout gold's decade-long rise, price action over the short term has gone both ways. ...

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Record ETF Inflows in First Quarter

twocents@thestreet.com (Kevin Baker) — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 10:50 GMT

NEW YORK (TheStreet Ratings) -- Each month, the ETF Industry Association) analyzes the assets under management and the net cash flow data for a growing list of U.S. exchange-traded funds. The net cash inflow of $55.9 billion in the first quarter of 2012 set a new record high above all other first quarter results.

The popularity of exchange-traded products continues to grow with both long-term investors and speculative traders. At $1.21 trillion as of March 31st, the assets under management in exchange-traded products, including both exchange-traded funds and exchange-traded notes, has grown by 12% over Mar. 2011. All of the asset and flow data included in this article was released on Wednesday, Apr. 4th by the ETF Industry Association.

In Mar. 2012 alone exchange-traded net inflows topped $13.2 billion. Of that total, $7.5 billion flowed into long U.S. equity funds with $251 million flowing out of short U.S. equity funds. Global and international equity ETFs were also strong in March with $1.6 billion in inflows. This was topped by the $4.1 billion flowing into long fixed income ETFs. Real estate fund flows remained positive at $443 million. Recent strength in the U.S. dollar sent $216 million out of long commodity ETFs and $484 million out of long currency ETFs. ...

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Silver, Gold, Gold Miners on Rise?

twocents@thestreet.com (Chris Vermeulen) — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 14:44 GMT

The following commentary comes from an independent investor or market observer as part of TheStreet's guest contributor program, which is separate from the company's news coverage.

NEW YORK (TheGoldAndOilGuy.com) -- The past couple months investors have been focusing on the equities market. And rightly so with stocks running higher and higher. Unfortunately most money managers and hedge funds are under-performing or negative for the first quarter simply because of the way prices have advanced.

New money has not been able to get involved unless some serious trading rules have been bent or broken (buying into an overbought market and chasing prices higher). Aggressive and novice traders make a killing in this type of market because it appears they cannot do anything wrong. However nine times out of 10 that money is given back once the market starts trading sideways or reverses. ...

A Platinum-Gold ETF Showdown

twocents@thestreet.com (Don Dion) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 10:00 GMT

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Once an investment darling, gold has run into troubling headwinds during the opening quarter of 2012 as improving economic conditions have driven investors out of safe-haven asset classes. The Federal Reserve and its chairman, Ben Bernanke, have done little to instill confidence either; hints have been dropped, but with no solid word on additional rounds of quantitative easing, the yellow metal has struggled to regain any solid footing.

As gold has foundered, other members of the precious metal spectrum have managed to gather steam. Platinum, in particular, has become a high riser. The ETFS Physical Platinum Shares has gained nearly 20% since the start of the year. Comparatively, the iShares Gold Trust has seen only 7.5% returns.

Platinum has a history of being more expensive than gold. However, as investors have poured into funds like IAU and prices have surged to staggering highs in recent years, the gap between the two precious metal players has closed and even reversed. Amid the turmoil that plagued the global marketplace during the final quarter of 2011, the platinum/gold ratio broke below parity. The recent run-up has helped stifle this decline and, since bottoming around 0.87 in January, the ratio has managed to creep back toward 1. ...

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Dion's ETF Winners and Losers: VXX, FBT

twocents@thestreet.com (Don Dion) — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 19:17 GMT

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Welcome to Don Dion's "ETF Winners and Losers." Be sure to stop by throughout the week to find out which ETFs are gaining or losing. Winners iPath S&P 500 VIX Short Term Futures ETN 9.2%

As major U.S. stock market indices waver, the fear index is finding some strength. Over the past two days, the VIX has managed to recoup losses and power back to March highs. It will be interesting to see if VXX can head higher in the days ahead. The fund continues to trade around all-time lows.

First Trust NYSE Arca Biotech Index Fund 1.4%...

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ETF Winners and Losers: VXX, ITB, DXJ

twocents@thestreet.com (Don Dion) — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 19:16 GMT

After scoring one of the top spots on Monday's losers list, the fear-tracking VXX ETN has managed to stage a comeback, recovering some of its lost ground. This bounce comes after the volatile instrument locked in all-time lows.

With its premium nearly wiped out, the VelocityShares Daily 2X VIX Short Term ETN is also staging a comeback, capping a four-day string of losses....

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Hey Apple Fans! Gold Miners Pay Dividends Too!

twocents@thestreet.com (Gregg Greenberg) — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 14:30 GMT

Jeb Handwerger, editor of GoldStockTrades.com, says gold miners have plenty of cash to return to shareholders.