As I mentioned before, the past 5 months have been very frustrating for most traders as we are stuck in this sideways price action. I also noted that August to December is generally the stronger months for gold. Although gold has been under selling pressure during the last 4 weeks I think there is light at the end of the tunnel. Its usually the darkest before dawn, but there are some hurtles for gold to over come before we are in the clear which I explain below.

1 The Gold Mining Stocks Index
An 10 year chart with a cup and handle pattern complete with a breakout. Gold mining stocks have continued to collapse below their support level. This does not mean gold is going to follow but it is a red flag which needs to be noted for future long entry points. Gold mining stocks in general are seen as volatile and high risk types of investments so I understand why investors are unloading their positions to lock in profits. Gold mining stocks are pushed below long term support level.

2 Gold Stocks Index
An 8yr chart of the price action of gold stocks and you can see that they are currently testing long term support levels. If this monthly bar closes below this trend line then long term investors should be sitting in cash until we have a new opportunity to enter long or short. The HUI generally makes the move before the price of gold so I follow the HUI in all time frames. The HUI is testing long term support.

3 Performance Chart (Gold Stocks vs Price of Gold)
The past 2 years, from 2006 to present gold stocks have slowly been underperforming the price of gold. This is generally not a good thing to see if we want higher prices for gold. But the good news is that gold stocks appear to be reaching levels at which new rallies have started. Gold stocks under performing the price of gold but near support.

4 Daily HUI Chart
I follow the HUI like a hawk as it fine tunes my entry and exit point for trading GLD, DGP and DZZ funds. Last month the HUI made a lower high and a lower low which is a red flag. While I dont predict prices I am thinking these lower prices for gold stocks are just panic sellers over extending a sell off. I would really like to see an August rally kick into place. The HUI makes a lower high and lower low on the daily chart.

5 GLD Gold ETF Chart
While gold stocks have been selling down, gold has so far been able to hold some ground. As you can see in the chart below the last three months gold has made higher highs, and higher lows. Currently gold is testing Major Support at the 200 EMA. Gold ETF GLD at long term support still holding its ground.

Conclusion:
My analysis of gold above explains that gold stocks and indexes are oversold and are at major support levels. Thus an August rally is not out of the picture and we could have some favorable setups in the near future. I would prefer higher prices, but in the end movement is movement and we can profit in either direction evenly.

GLD gold etf trading for me is the most accurate trading vehicle I have come across. I have been using my proven trading model which avoids the price gaps and keeps risk under 3% for each trade. GLD makes it simple to profit from the markets using a proven trading model for trading long and short term gold setups in all market conditions (bull, bear, and sideways).

My focus for short term trading is simple. Wait for a breakout which satisfies my trading model, enter the trade and then exit 50% of position on the first sign of weakness. Exit second half on a trend line break. My goal for GLD ETF is 2-5% and we are in trades for 2-10 days unless prices continue to run. I generally have 10-20 trades per year with gold.

Chris Vermeulen is a trader and newsletter writer specializing in the price of gold stocks, gold ETF, oil stocks, oil etf, silver stocks, Junior Mining and Energy Stocks listed in the US, Canada and Australia. Please visit my website for more information. www.TheGoldAndOilGuy.com

Now, that we’re all excited lets get right to it. Segregated funds are professionally managed portfolios provided by insurance companies that have a guaranteed return on maturity or upon the death of the investor. The odd name is based on the fact that these funds are not part of the insurance company’s assets but rather from a separate pool of money dedicated to paying out the holders of the policy.

These funds are similar to mutual funds because they are professionally managed, offer diversification, have a variety of different types of focus to choose from, the profits are taxed unless these funds are held in a retirement account. The big difference is that segregated funds are variable annity contracts provided by life insurance companies that usually guarantee a return of at least 75% if held over a period of at least 10 years.

Besides the guaranteed return there are a few other benefits of segregated funds:

1) Reset options – Most segregated funds have the option of ‘resetting’ the investment amount to include the gains made in the portfolio. Their usually a maximum number of increases permitted depending on the contract and also the increase in the amount could extend the date of maturity of the investment.

2) Protection from creditors – As long as the annuity contract has existed for at least two years, and estate taxes are not owed, the investment held in segregated funds is not accessible by creditors. Even if the account holder files for bankruptcy or faces other financial difficulty the beneficiaries of the life insurance have first rights to the annuity.

3) Liquidity – Investors can usually withdraw upto 10% of the investment amount each year without a penalty. If these funds are held in retirement accounts then this figure increases to 20%.

4) Estate Planning – The process of wealth transfer is faster and cheaper because the investment in segragated funds is not subject to probate. The funds go directly to the account holder or the beneficiary.

As expected there a few disadvantages associated with segregated funds:

1) The cost of investing is higher than that of mutual funds.

2) Early redemptions above the limits usually have penalties upto 6% in the first year but they decrease by 1% in subsequent years to 0%.

3) If you decide to change the area of investment there can be additional fees and there is a limit on the number of times you can initiate such transfers.

Overall, segregated funds provide a great investment opportunity for all with room for growth and protection from losses.

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With the current economic downturn, however, the daily reports from the New York Stock Exchange are not glowing. There was a huge stock sell-off. The “Big Board” indicates that losers beat winners 7 to 1 on a volume of 920 million shares. Not the kind of news that investors like to hear. The Dow was also a loser with a new 6 year low.

Educational Offerings
The New York Stock Exchange is considered the most investor-friendly exchange in the world. What this means is that the NYSE is zealous about protecting the interests of both their large and small investors. Each year the NYSE offers a Teachers’ Workshop Program for teaching the basics of stock market procedures for students and teachers benefits. The workshop is held on the trading floor of the NYSE. The workshop for 2009 has not been scheduled yet.

There is an educational seminar offered for College and graduate students, which includes a lecture or discussion session for interested individuals. The New York Stock Exchange website has volumes of information relative to making informed trades.

Learn which investments are right for your situation
Investor education materials are available on the New York Stock Exchange website. Closed end ETF’s and Index ETF’s are among the funds offered as investment choices A closed end ETF is similar to a mutual fund in that it combines the assets of its investors, using a professional money manager. Unlike a mutual fund, however, a closed-end ETF issues a certain number of shares in a public offering and lists them on a stock exchange such as the New York Stock Exchange or the American Stock Exchange. Rather than buy or sell shares directly from the fund, they buy or sell shares through the stock exchange just as they would any other stock purchase or sale. ETF’s may be bought or sold as part of a brokerage account, a retirement account, a trust account, or a custodial account. (A custodial account, for example, is one that might be set up for the education of a child, or a grandchild.) Dividends from ETF’s may be taken in cash, or used to purchase additional shares. Much more can be learned about ETF’s and other investments on the NYSE website or through your professional stockbroker. There is no indication, however, that ETF’s will replace mutual funds. There is still a cost advantage in mutual funds due to dollar-cost averaging.

Before you open an account on the New York Stock Exchange, or before making any investment decision, be sure to check with a financial professional to discuss your long and short-term goals.

Caterina Christakos is a private investor and published author. To get more information go to: http://highyieldinvestmentreview.com

A contrarian trader would not go with the crowd’s belief. Limiting beliefs would create limiting results, as any marketer would be able to tell you. This can also lead to insecurities about the market as well as misinterpreted pricing or overpricing. Such issues are common with perennial market following investments. But people who dare to think out of the regular market and create their own target clients will always stay way ahead of the game. The contrarian principle also works on the principle that you are not there to please everybody. You will be able to serve only those that you target.

So creating one’s own client standards and client panel becomes one of the most primary aspects of extraordinary marketing techniques. Widespread pessimism and shock will not lead to any great success for the business maker. If one is flexible and willing to change then the market develops for the good. Even when stock prices go low, the market can be turned around with effective contrarian investment. With contrarian investment returning to profitable business is an easy work.

One can purchase, identify or sell distressed stock according to the way it suits business. Recovery gains are made unusually faster and this is no game of blind optimism but a larger strategy building technique that gets you to understand the prospects that lie even underneath risks. Going it this way helps you to understand where you can put higher valuation and where you can utilize your business when just the opposite reaction happens. Contrarian investment thus helps you prepare to mobilize your market to produce multiple strings of income that also influence the whole industry you are a part of and the entire asset class that belongs to you through your business.

There are certain market policies in contrarian investment system. These include the growth of the market on an upward scale. This does not mean that the market gets over valued all of the time but it also means that investment pricing gets regulated in a way that meets the necessity of the condition. While more and more clients come to your program in an uprising market, the opposite occurs when it is a downward sloping economy. But if your business principles change for something that caters to the need of the people in that economy, you are really making a cut. There are opportunities that any market can use and in a flexible economy such changes can be made smartly.

Contrarian investing involves looking for misrepresented price quotes in investment and buying off those that do not give value in an undervalued market. Value investors like John Neff have stated that contrarian investment includes seeing the market in a value based way. While it is possible to keep stock of financial theory, it can also be identified as a theory of finance metrics. So the P/E ratio or the value input of these metrics must be kept in close observation.

Robert Desmond the CEO of the website www.thecontrariantrader.com helps people to generate profits through making investments in a manner that totally differs from the belief of the people and the experts in the field. They often take profits after holding a position for just 1 week. Learn more about contrarian investing today.

The concept of value investing was established by David Dodd and Benjamin Graham – they were both professors at Columbia Business School, and taught many well-known investors. Today, value investing is a smart strategy when it comes to investment. Buying low PE ratio stocks, low price-to-cash flow ratio stocks, or low price-to-cook ratio stocks all come under value investing. Famous people in the field of value investing include William J. Ruana, Irving Kahn, Charles Brandes, and Warren Buffet – who is probably the most famous among them.

When it comes to value investing, there are four certain basic tips that one can follow. The first is to look at the price or value of the entire company, and not just the current share price. Market capitalization is the cost of buying the whole company, and the market capitalization test will tell you if you are paying extra for a stock. One can also estimate the cost of a stock through the price to earnings ratio – as this gives a decent standard for comparison for other value investing opportunities.

The second tip is to consider whether the company is buying back shares. Aim for a management that tries to reduce the number of outstanding shares, if the other uses of capital are not value for money – this will make each investor’s stake in the company bigger. Third, in value investing, think of your reasons for investing in the company. Ask yourself what interests you about that company. Think about the company’s current price, profits, management, staff, etc. It’s important to keep your emotions at bay – treat this purely as a business transaction. If the stock seems undervalued, you’ll need to keep away from it.

Fourthly, and lastly, take a moment to think about whether you’d like to own the stock for the next decade or so. Are you willing to buy the shares and keep them for that long a time? If not, then this value investing is not your cup of tea. Here’s a valuable tip – select a good company, when it comes to the initial stake, pay as little as permitted, ensure a reinvestment of dividends – remember that effort and time are required.

Remember that the basic principle of value investing is based on the theory that the market is always disturbed by some fluctuation or the other. Therefore, since the values of equities are constantly changing in different directions, their fundamental values will differ – and thus, some are likely to offer better returns than others. So if you want to be great at value investing, go for shares whose values have fallen (for no apparent reason), and wait for the situation to correct itself.

The owner of the website www.thecontrariantrader.com uses several key indicators to pinpoint huge shifts in the crowds before they happen. This allows people to buy a stock just before it takes off in one direction or another. The concepts they use are similar to that of Contrarian Investing.

A successful way to invest is going by the contrarian way. You must learn to be contrary and adaptable and this happens when you think outside the box and not go by the general poll or what people are thinking.

When you play in the contrarian trading system you will have to know where the majority of the income of traders is coming. You will have to have an understanding of the market and know its 90% or 80% profit sources and not just 50% or 60%. Then you can sit back and analyze the situation to suit your own marketing special target clients.

You can use the same strategy and use it big time to release an avalanche of equity trading. However you cannot always be true in your assessment. But then masses will change minds fast and with your flexibility you can sell or buy just the opposite to the crowd.

Even when you make losses this way, the loss would be really very small. This is one of the contrarian ways of making it big into trading. You will be delighted to find how this works for you. You will quickly rise in your business and come back to get things even if you have a tiny loss at something. There is no big loser’s philosophy in the contrarian market and you can play it any way you would like.

In the contrarian trading system things will always be turned to play for your own good. The whole scheme can be played for your own good and once you become good at being a left handed optimist you can use all of the great strategies for your greater well being. In the contrarian trading system there will always be a sharp exit strategy no matter what kind of trader you are. The biggest bonus of your game is that you already have an existing plan that makes you go just the way you would like to go. When you want to make a sharp way out of it you have a ready exit strategy that plays you for good.

You know exactly how to turn around the market for delivering you a generous profit amount and how to accumulate its strength as well. This ready made plan of the contrarian trading is the biggest marketing tool ever. You would not find anything better. When changes occur and they go in the opposite direction, you still have actions planned that will work for your own good.

The website http://www.thecontrariantrader.com gives information on contrarian trading and helps people to earn massive income by helping them to trade cheap overlooked stocks that are on the verge of exploding. They provide E-mail alerts almost every day detailing the trades they have made. Know more about contrarian trading by visiting the website www.thecontrariantrader.com

The effects of the fundamental rules of contrarian trading, like all other rules, take time to work. You need to invest time and effort. Also, many people get scared off by the fact that there are no guarantees, and no quick, short-cut methods to make your contrarian trading business more successful than the rest. However, giving your business a head-start is essential.

Firstly, judge the facts about contrarian trading from the mass media like newspapers, television programs, and the Internet. You will be able to form your hypothesis on the basis of the details. For example, if you observed an increase in the sales of motorcycles, then, as a contrarian trading person, you will have to sell them. Remember to watch shares carefully, and to monitor their popularity. Keep an eye out for shares that are neglected. Also, in contrarian trading, it’s important to observe the crowd’s approach to the market. The basic thing to remember is that the word ‘contrarian’ in the term “contrarian trading” comes from the word “contrary” a negative correlation is always assumed. This means that if prices go up, they will automatically come down soon, and vice versa.

If you are thinking about purchasing stocks, go ahead when individuals are panicking about them, and shouting at their brokers. Try to keep your cash with you today, it’s the most valuable thing in the business. Why is this so? Because before, average brokers chose to leave the market and not battle the challenges that they encountered. Your contrarian trading is different, nevertheless you will surely to be able to pick up a tip or two.

When you are in contrarian trading, the vital point to remember is that whatever you give, is whatever you get. So if you follow the herd, and do what others are doing, you will surely get equal results. The keyword is to be different, so make up your mind and try to go against the tide, make more effort you will definitely be reaping the rewards in some time!

In contrarian trading, every trader will have his or her own little indicator, that tells him whether the time is right to purchase or sell products. This kind of signal comes in useful, because continuously analyzing each stock in the market gets tedious and laborious. For example, if you have decided to yourself that when 75 percent of the mutual fund (which has properties exceeding one billion dollars) starts buying stock is the indicator for you, then go ahead and follow that. That means it is time for you to sell.

The CEO of the website www.thecontrariantrader.com helps people to generate profits through making investments in a manner that totally differs from the belief of the people and the experts in the field. They often take profits after holding a position for just 1 week. Learn more about contrarian investing today.

Alarmingly, 75% of the largest percent gainers were ETFs, and many of those operate using the same strategies as classic hedge funds— most owned no common stock at all! At the same time, 93% of the largest dollar gainers were ETFs with a large proportion plainly operating like a hedge fund.

Earlier in March, while we were all sunning ourselves in the far-too-infrequent-lately UVs of a brief rally, I was doing a similar search for undervalued IGVSI stocks. Yes, Virginia, there is an equally impressive array of hedge funds betting that the markets (and the South) actually will rise again.

What is a hedge fund, and just what does it try to accomplish? I think the key legal element is that they don’t say how they intend to get the job done.

Initially, hedging was used as a risk mollifier in the securities markets in the same way as insurance is used for protection against disasters impacting life, health, and personal property. Taking a short position on an owned security, for example, protects an investor’s profit if the company’s market price plunges.

Naked shorting, shorting baskets of securities, and shorting indices, however, have morphed into a risk creator, not a risk reducer. Similarly, hedge funds that hold index funds as betting devices on market sector performance are not what the investment gods envisioned when they blessed the sector experiment.

The new definition of hedge fund speaks of an aggressively managed entity that uses leverage, long, short, options, futures, and derivative positions with the goal of generating high returns. Risk reduction is no longer the objective.

Hedge funds have never been regulated like their open-end mutual fund cousins— the rationale being that they cater to a wealthy and sophisticated clientele. In fact, the law requires that participants in hedge funds jump over income, net worth, and investment high-hurdles before being eligible to participate.

Investopedia refers to them as mutual funds for the super rich, but the only similarities to the plain vanilla equity mutual fund are the pooling of participants’ money and professional management. During the past decade, a series of ill advised and shortsighted rules changes gave hedge fund managers destructive powers that exacerbated the financial crisis that will mourn its second anniversary this summer.

But regulating the hedge fund is clearly a too late closing of a barn door encrusted with diamonds (no pun intended). A few years ago, the masters of the universe rediscovered, redefined, and complicated the world of closed end mutual funds by creating many different forms of passively managed index/hedge funds.

As innocent as these funds may appear, they too have altered the investment landscape. Speculators (not investors) place their bets on the rise or fall of the index. These bets artificially impact the market price of securities because many (if not all) of the funds actually own the securities they are tracking.

Additionally, many individual stocks fall into several indices, and most of the major ETF marketing companies sell similar index funds. Didn’t we just go through this with mortgage-backed securities? Aren’t these funds artificially taking common stock pricing further and further away from the fundamentals of the companies themselves?

Today, it appears that every passive fund has two or three accompanying short/bear ETFs plus an equal number of bull/long funds to choose from.
Apparently, the SEC has not taken the trouble to look inside the thousands of boutique ETFs that by now must outnumber the securities they are tracking.

Wall Street wants all CEFs (index, hedge, bond, equity, real estate, whatever) to be regulated and reported upon as though they were simply common stocks. As a whole, they aren’t even close. In fact, there are more of these derivatives traded on the NYSE than common stocks and preferred stocks combined.

And the real crime is this: investors as naive as the wet-diapered E-Trade spokesbaby can push a button and buy operational hedge funds more bizarre and sophisticated than any ever imagined buy the rich and famous.

If an ETF harbors a hedge fund, but doesn’t call it a hedge fund, is it really not a hedge fund? If Merrill Lynch creates a mutual fund with pro rata individual account statements, is it any less of a mutual fund? Is it really individual account management? Have the commissions really disappeared? The SEC thought so.

Shouldn’t the regulators be smart enough (and brave enough) to put an end to these legal-in-name-only frauds? Should your mother’s IRA be speculating in puts on Netherlands Tulip Bulb futures? How about 200% of the inverse of the Financial Select Sector Index?

A search at ETF-Connect for US Equity ETFs finds roughly 500 potential speculations that absolutely anyone can buy into. All are self-directed IRA eligible— 401(k) eligible, possibly. A look inside reveals hedge-fund-like operations. But technically, they are not hedge funds because they describe the strategies employed.

So long as we tolerate Wall Street attorneys circumventing the intent of our securities laws, and so long as we reward regulators for their blind worship of the letter of these laws, we will have this kind of manipulation.

Index ETFs (and the no doubt about it hedge fund casinos they front) need a league of their own, located in Vegas, AC, or Uncasville. (A free “Brainwashing” book to the first three people who explain Uncasville!) They demand a new rulebook that recognizes content and strategy— not trading form.

The ETF derivative market requires a fresh new breed of big picture aware, loophole fillers — the Obama team is accepting applications.

Whatever happened to stocks and bonds?

Steve Selengut
Sanco Services
Kiawah Golf Investment Seminars
Author: “The Brainwashing of the American Investor: The Book that Wall Street Does Not Want YOU to Read” and “A Millionaire’s Secret Investment Strategy”.

Purpose of Them
Have you ever wanted to trade shares of an index like the Dow Jones Industrial Average or the S&P 500? Well, you can’t do that directly but you can do it indirectly through ETFs. The managers who run them usually invest in the same stocks or futures that make up an index or commodity in an effort to make the fund’s value per share track a certain index or commodity up and down. This allows anyone with access to stock trading the ability to easily trade indexes or commodities indirectly.

Example: SPY – SPDR Trust Series I:
One of the most popular ETFs, its goal is to track the price and performance of the S&P 500 index. It will not be the same price as the index but its chart should have the same shape as the index, within one or two percent most of the time.

Example: QQQQ – PowerShares QQQ Trust, Series 1:
The goal of this fund is to track the Nasdaq-100 index by issuing and redeeming shares of all the stocks that make up the index.

Example: EEM – iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index Fund:
This fund seeks to track the price and performance of the MSCI Emerging Markets index, which tracks performance of international stocks. This fund is actually non-diversified, which means it is not as safe as other funds because it is focused on a specific sector.

Example: USO – United States Oil Fund LP:
This commodity ETF attempts to track the price and performance of oil prices, West Texas Intermediate light, sweet crude oil, to be exact. This is accomplished by continually trading futures contracts for oil, natural gas, and several other things. It is also non-diversified but a very convenient way to make trades based on oil prices.

Benefits of Them
The main benefits of ETFs include diversity, the same tradability as stocks, low costs, tax efficiency, and transparency of assets.

What are They
Exchange-Traded Funds are somewhat complicated to explain, but they are funds that can be structured in a few different ways. They are usually passively managed, which means the managers do not have to constantly decide which investments need to be bought and sold in order to increase the value of the fund. Instead, the managers simply have to make sure the fund tracks a certain index or commodity as closely as possible, which can be as simple as owning the stocks that make up an index and adjust the shares accordingly so that the price follows the index’s chart.

Where to Find Them
Many financial websites, including brokerages, offer a free stock screener, along with an ETF screener. Yahoo! Finance has a good one that lets you view a list of the best performers in several different categories.

Nicholas Swezey helps teach people about day trading at HowTheMarketWorks.com.

At a time when interest rates are touching them bottom corporate bonds are paying a handsome rate of 7% or above before tax. The rate of interest is determined by the profitability of a company. The more the company is profitable the less will be the interest rate. However buying a corporate bond fund that invests in a range of different funds can bring you good returns with safety.

Thus corporate bond funds are presenting some of the best chances for investors. Gains from some parts of the fixed-interest market are similar to the returns from premium shares with lesser risk. These offers include major players such as Invesco Perpetual Corporate Bond paying 7.02% and Fidelity Money builder Income paying 5.85%. There are others such as M&G Strategic Bond paying 5.64% or New Star High Yield paying 9.3% Invesco Perpetual Corporate Bond and Henderson Strategic Bond paying 7.9%. If you plan to buy through a broker the minimum investment for all these funds is GBP100 per month or a one time payment of GBP1000.

GILTS issued by the government are currently another top option before interest rates fall further. A top option is Treasury 4.75% 2020 available for just over GBP100. It has a gross redemption yield of 4.65% being the maximum annual return until it matures in 2020. This income is taxable. However the income received through gilts held in an ISA is tax-free. The UK Debt Management Offices website sells these deals directly. However it is easier to buy through a stockbroker or bank.

The Gilts can be bought with prices quoted in terms of GBP100 a bunch. Barclays Stockbrokers charge a commission of GBP17.50 commission for a gilt order of up to GBP500 over the phone. It is also available through the Debt Management Office with a minimum limit of GBP1000. A better option for first time investors is to choose gilt funds. These funds invest in a range of gilts with different maturity dates and income levels. A top option is M& G Gilt and Fixed Interest which is paying just under 4%. The minimum limit in the beginning is GBP500.

Investing in equity income funds are another smart option. These funds are invested in top shares of UK companies ensuring healthy dividends for assured income and capital growth. However there is a risk of losing money as the investment is subject to stock market ups and downs. The income may go down in the shorter term when the economy slows down but over the long term it will grow. The trick is to choose the right option from a large number of high-yielding funds.

Anjitha is a financial adviser and well known for his finance related articles . You can find more financial articles written by the author by visiting the following link .
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