While this is great news, it has also resulted in the recent decision by the US Mint to suspend not only their twenty dollar gold pieces, as you may already know, but several gold and silver coins and even a number of platinum and palladium investment pieces.

Luckily, for those who chose to buy gold and silver coins before the shortage led to the Mint’s suspensions, this high demand has played a huge role in gold and silver prices going up and up in recent months. The US Mint is allotting all available precious metal blanks to the investment coin programs in an effort to meet this unprecedented demand, but at least until they are ready to start selling the coins again, this news has proven once again that if you buy gold and silver, it could be the most stable and reliable form of investing available in the face of this recession.

For anyone who does buy gold and silver for the long term, we can’t predict where the metals will be in ten, twenty or thirty years, but historically, the trend has always been for gold and silver prices to continue steadily rising over time. The last year and a half or so have come as a surprise to many who are new to gold and silver investments, but to those of us who chose to buy gold and silver back when the dollar was going strong, it is only reasonable that the price is seeing a surge during this recession.

Unlike many investment options, precious metals are not usually subject to overnight jumps and crashes. Gold and silver investing may not be completely invulnerable to decline, but the tendency is for significant declines to be rare and over a period of time, essentially ineffectual, occurring less often than a total eclipse of the sun.

Our advice is for those of you currently holding coin investments to, first, count your lucky stars that you were smart enough to get in early, and then keep an eye on spot prices. The value of your favorite metals may continue growing, so if you’re hoping to buy a few more coins, do it now before the price climbs much higher in order to make certain that you reap the full benefits of the ever-climbing demand we’ve been seeing since 2008.

Learn how to buy gold and silver with http://www.GoldSilver.org and receive your free “2009 Insider’s Guide To Precious-Metal Investing.”

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That’s what scam artists are counting on!

Here are five basic steps that should keep even the beginner from getting caught in a scammer’s trap.

1. Before you begin your search, determine what type of system would be the best fit for you.

This way, you can focus your searches on exactly the type of system you want. This will help you ward of those who might take advantage of someone who doesn’t know what is available.

2. Once you know the type of system you want, head over to your favorite search engine.

Type in automated forex system, or even better, type in scam along with it so you can weed out the bad guys up front.

Then take notes and make comparisons of the ones that do sound legitimate.

3. After you’ve got your list, head to the forums and see what other traders are saying about the products you are considering.

You may have found some of these forums when you ran your currency trading scam check in step two.

Forums are great places to get non-biased feedback from users about the systems they use. Participants are rarely shy about giving you their point of view.

In many cases, they’ll share their earnings info. And they’ll even let you know which companies stand behind their product guarantees.

4. Look for systems that offer demos and that will stand by their products with sound money back guarantees.

Remember, swindlers don’t stand by anything but their wallets, so why would they bother giving you a solid product with a guarantee? And why would they try to gain your confidence by letting you demo their product? They won’t!

Several systems (especially automated systems) offer demo accounts which allow you to make faux trades. You get to test drive the system without risking any real money.

This type of feature is almost a standard with automated systems, so there’s no reason reputable companies wouldn’t offer it.

The same goes for guarantees. They are a standard in the industry with the average being about 60 days.

This gives you a safety net just in case you realize that your choice wasn’t the best one after all.

5. Seek advice from a professional.

A pro may be able to provide a vantage point that you hadn’t thought of. They may also be willing to share info about systems that have or have not worked for them or others in the past.

So that’s it!

* Know what you want before you start to search.
* Gather some options from the internet and pick out the tricksters up front.
* Check out the forums to see what others are saying about the product.
* Look for systems with demos and solid guarantees.
* And finally, seek advice from a professional if needed.

These five simple steps will help narrow the wide spectrum of currency trading systems quickly as well as weed out all the trash.

Now that you have the 5 key steps , how would you like to shorten your research time by half or maybe more so you can start trading faster? Well you can do just that.

All the hard work has been done for you! If you want to buy automated forex system trading software today, visit http://www.forextraderfeedback.com/ RIGHT NOW!

Everything you need is right there for you. Product features and benefits, actual customer reviews, and even information on price and guarantees!

Check it out. You could be trading TODAY!

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Now is the time to get serious with your gold stock investing. We are in the early stages of a bull market in gold and the down side is currently limited. If you feel that the green shoots that the media is hyping these days are taking root, then maybe gold stock investing is not for you. If, on the other hand, you are feeling uneasy about the economy and the dollar’s future, then gold stock investing is for you.

It seems pretty clear that the government’s policy of quantitative easing is not going to end any time soon and that, in and of itself, will send the dollar down and gold up. Quantitative easing is just a fancy way of saying that the Fed is going to print money and throw it at the problem. The effect of this insane policy is to flood the world with dollars that cannot be removed from the system, leaving the dollar’s value with nowhere to go but down. China has already hinted that they want to diversify out of the dollar, as has Russia. This movement should pick up steam as we get into the 4th quarter 2009.

As if quantitative easing were not enough, the Obama administration wants to nationalize health care. The governments estimate for this boondoggle is 1 & ½ trillion dollars that will have to be created out of thin air, since we don’t have it. The United States of America is going into debt faster than the government can print money.

When have you ever heard of the government doing anything on budget? It hasn’t happened in the past and it won’t happen this time. The deficit is going to grow massively until the adults, if there are any left, restore sanity and order to the government.

Gold stock investing is your means of positioning yourself for the coming dollar devaluation. The only thing that can stop this from occurring would be, well, a miracle, and you know the odds of that happening.

It is time to take your future in your own hands and start profiting from investing in gold stocks while the prices are relatively cheap. Gold stocks are going to become household names soon, so don’t be left on the outside looking in. Start gold stock investing today.

Don’t make the same mistakes I did Investing in Gold, check out our free guide to gold investing and avoid the pitfalls and increase profits when gold investing.

If you have found this article helpful, check out his blog of market insight to the gold industry at — http://www.buygoldco.com

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So, what’s the future for this volatile commodity? And how can you profit from these fluctuations in the price of oil?

Well, there are some good arguments for taking a long view on the price of crude.

While the world economy has been mired in the worst downturn in decades, production of commodities has been reduced in line with lower demand. This is particularly true of crude oil; as a price-stabilising measure, OPEC, the influential oil cartel, had cut production by 4.2 million barrels per day by the end of last year.

As and when the economy recovers and gains momentum in the short-term, demand may once again begin to outstrip supply and cause prices to rise. In the longer term, growth in China and India will also increase demand for commodities, driving up prices.

On the other hand, the global downturn was more than a blip and many economists predict that the shockwaves will be felt for a while to come. Rather than buying oil, those who subscribe to this more pessimistic view may see the recent gains in the price of crude as a good platform from which to short the commodity. Spread betting on oil can provide the ideal opportunity for those hoping to capitalise from a falling market, as financial spread betting offers down as well as up bets.

For those considering shorting a spread bet on oil, it is certainly worth remembering that the growing Asian economies have also been hit by the downturn and analysts are starting to question whether Chinese growth is more debt-fueled than previously thought, casting doubts on its ability to maintain current levels of progress. And if is it not met by sufficient demand, any increased production by OPEC will simply drive oil prices down again.

Spread betting is the easy, tax-efficient* way to profit from commodity markets and has the added benefit that you need never own (or take delivery of!) the commodity itself. When you spread bet, you can use Stop orders to limit the risk of large losses while keeping your potential profit uncapped.

The other major advantage of financial spread betting on oil is that you can go long or short – you can back your view on the market just as easily by ‘buying’ or ’selling’.

There is a lot more useful information on the Range of Markets page at IG Index. They are the UK’s leading financial spread betting provider, and have a section on taking a position on oil prices.

*Tax law can be changed or may differ depending on your personal circumstances.

However, spread betting is not suitable for everyone, so before starting make sure you fully understand the risks. IG Index can help you improve your knowledge of financial spread betting and the financial markets with a full education programme. TradeSense is a completely free six-week course and includes a 100-page guide to spread betting.

IG Index plc is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority, FSA Register number 114059. For Binary Bets IG Index plc is licensed and regulated by the Gambling Commission. License number 066-002628-R-103649-002.

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The reason is simple: forecasts and unique conditions. Let us begin with the first reason of the future of the company. With a high gold price that seems to have no ceiling, the company’s revenues are expected to be quite strong in the near future. Also, the company reported production of 289,574 gold equivalent ounces at cash costs of $387 per gold equivalent ounce. The company also mined 35.6 million pounds of copper at a cost of roughly $0.91 per pound. The quarter’s production totals were lower than analyst expectations by about 30,000 gold ounces. In the next quarter Yamana will most likely make up for this downward bias in its production.

Unusual items can also plague companies, but indirectly tell a very different story about earnings. Some unusual items were present on the earnings report, such as foreign exchange losses, an unrealized loss on derivatives, stock compensation, certain revenue adjustments, tax expenses on foreign currency, and tax benefits from valuation allowances. There has been speculation in the gold industry that Yamana may soon be looking for a buyer. Their high presence of unusual items in this earnings report signals that this rumor may have some truth. If this is the case, Yamana shareholders will stand to gain with a booming gold price.

At the end of the day, we as investors must realize that no one can accurately predict the market. I have just given a hypothetical case study that shows how a negative earnings report can have a positive reaction from gold price and gold stock investors.

Gold Price, Spot Gold Price, Gold Stock, Gold Price Chart

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Step 1: Have a Plan

I’ve never seen someone build a house without detailed drawings, and I bet you haven’t either. To build a house, you need a plan. The same holds true for speculating in the futures market. Your opponent, the market, has a plan – to take all your money – so you need one, too.

There are 3 major pieces to a good plan. First, you must be specific with your investment goals. Second, you must determine what you are willing to invest to get it, by identifying the amount of time and money you will invest. Finally, know what you’ll risk to reach your goals. Are you willing to spend a year learning, or lose thousands of dollars before you start winning? Better to find that out now, upfront, before you invest the time and effort.

Step 2: Find a Strategy

Finding a viable strategy is the most difficult part of developing a trading system. You might not think that’s true, based on ads and infomercials you see, which show you how easy picking a strategy is. Alas, if it were only as easy as going to a free seminar in a hotel or visiting a website! In reality, finding a good strategy involves 3 main areas: skill assessment, research and detailed development.

The first part of determining how to reach your plan is to do an accurate, honest skill assessment. Done correctly, this will point you in the right direction. If you don’t do this assessment, you’ll be doomed to wander the “land of the losers.”

The second component of your strategy is research. Before you settle in on a strategy, you need to see what is out there, what is working today, etc. Keep your mind open, and you’ll soon find something that you like, and that has potential.

Finally, it’s time to get your hands dirty by doing detailed development. Whether you create a system yourself, or sign up with a service or an advisor, the key is to perform “due diligence.” Make sure you learn all you can, before you put real money on the line.

Step 3: Check and Double Check

Remember when you were in school and the teacher always said “check your work?” If you were like me, you thought checking it was something you didn’t need. Well, if you avoid checking your work before trading a strategy, you can easily fall into trouble.

Depending on the route you choose, there are many ways to double check your work. It might be as simple as checking your strategy code for math errors, or asking an advisor to back up claims with brokerage statements, or simply asking for references. Remember, it is your money, so take the time to thoroughly check everything out.

Step 4: Execute Your Strategy

At this point, you are ready to pull the trigger, and trade your strategy with real money. The key here is to plan your trade, and trade your plan. Simply put, once you develop a method or select an advisor, stick with it, without deviation, for at least three to six months. Anything less, and random chance could make a good strategy look bad. Give a strategy time to show its long term potential.

Step 5: Monitor and Adjust as Necessary

Once you start trading, it is essential that you monitor your results. One way is by keeping a trading log. Recording the details of trades, along with your thoughts and feelings, can be very helpful when you review your system performance. This log is especially powerful when you violate your system, as you likely will at some point. Reviewing why you violated your system may help you refine your signals to more closely match your psychology. The key here is to keep close tabs on your trading – otherwise, it can quickly get out of control.

Conclusion

So there you have it – the five steps to trading that I have used in my own trading. Don’t be surprised if it takes a year or more to move through the steps. My advice is to not rush through them. I obviously can’t guarantee that you’ll have favorable results, but I can tell you the steps work, and work well.

Kevin Davey is an award winning private futures, forex and commodities trader. He has been trading for over 18 years. In each of the years 2005-2007, Kevin achieved over 100% annual returns in a real time, real money, year long trading contest, finishing in first or second place each of those years.

Kevin maintains a website, http://www.kjtradingsystems.com, where you can find useful free information on trading. Also, visit his site and learn how you can follow Kevin’s trades as they happen.

Copyright 2009, Kevin Davey and http://www.kjtradingsystems.com. All Rights Reserved

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Making an investment in gold bars is customarily a good investment for your future. Do you always want to buy gold bars instead of gold coins? The short answer is generally no. If the gold market ever falls, which hardly happens but it can, coins will have more worth thanks to the factors debated above. Adding both to your collection is a respectable way to expand your portfolio and be sure of a safe financial future.

Anything gold will generally hold its price, and most times increase seriously over several years’ time. Gold is the best market you can invest in, especially in these unknown money-making times. Nevertheless, if you want to decide you must add gold bars to your portfolio (which hopefully you will), you should try Suisse Gold Bars which are a brilliant and high quality choice.

The love and enticement of gold is energized by its crucial position as a depository of wealth. Its price is a portion of the accurate capital and the soundness of state currencies around the globe.

The cherished metal can’t be made, destroyed or even modified; only recycled. Today, paper dollars are backed only by a central authority guarantee, nothing else. Stockholders who measure the value gold, recognize the safety, privacy and instant liquidity of the United States gold coins.

As official legal tender, each coin has a guaranteed weight and gold content. This also includes numismatic coins, especially the pre-1933 American ones. On the opposite side of it, gold is the root of today’s world monetary system. Gold coins put you in great company over the years with other U.S. investors.

Before 1933, all US Paper currency was backed buck for dollar by gold reserves. It is the single most tangible liquid investment one can make and will probably remain so for years to come.

Gold is acquired, traded, exported, and stockpiled in many parts of the world with total seclusion. Seeing as how paper money is only temporary and can be devalued 25% to 30% easily the day after, gold seems like a very solid investment considering that no one country can manipulate its price.

Gold coins are highly asked for by shrewd collectors and backers for at least their pure gold content. Dissimilar from other gold coins, the American gold coins that were issued prior to the 1930’s have a decreasingly limited supply.

Conscientiously selected coins really offer the best of bullion and numismatics in one investment. They contain the built-in security of bullion and can also offer amazing profit potential regardless of what valued metal spot costs do on the market. Still, valuable metal content is only a relatively little factor in understanding the value of many rare US coins whose worth is just about only based essentially on condition, demand and rarity. Basically, a coin’s grade is a measure of its condition or state of preservation.

So should you invest in gold coins or bars? Well only you can decide that but really it’s not important what kind of gold you decide to invest in – so long as you do eventually invest in it. Trust me when I say that you’ll be thankful that you did.

Jason runs a website where he show people how to sell gold and invest in gold. If you want to learn more about selling gold, please come to his site.

Incoming search terms:

• gold investment comparison

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Playing Offense: The global economic rebound is coming, and commodities will benefit.
Most of the economies in the world are currently in severe recessions or have significantly lower economic growth than 2 years ago. There are now many signs that the US economy and many other economies have bottomed out and are starting to show signs of life again. US economic growth has improved from a -6% rate over the winter to a -1% rate in the second quarter of 2009 and it will likely show positive economic growth in the second half of 2009. As the economies around the world go from serious recessions to positive economic growth over the next 2 years the demand for commodities will increase and their prices will go up. This global economic growth is likely to be led by China and many other emerging countries which tend to be commodity-based or commodity-heavy economies. China recently announced that their GDP growth in the first half of 2009 was 7.1%, putting them on pace to pass Japan as the world’s second largest economy by yearend. Investing in commodities is somewhat of a back-door play on emerging market growth.

Playing Defense #1: Commodities are a hedge against future inflation.
Historically commodities have been one of the best hedges against inflation. I am somewhat concerned about future inflation due to the massive monetary stimulus the US government has pushed over the past year. The monetary fire hose has been on full blast. Huge monetary stimulus has historically led to higher inflation 1-2 years later.

Playing Defense #2: Commodities are a hedge against a falling US dollar (for US investors).
Commodities are a good hedge against a falling dollar, which is another significant concern for many investors (including myself). Most major commodities (such as oil, gold, etc.) are priced in dollars around the world. When the US dollar gets weaker it has typically caused the price of commodities (in dollars) to go up. The US dollar has been weak for some time, and may continue to weaken going forward. A weaker dollar makes US citizens poorer relative to other countries. The US government’s massive “borrow and spend” fiscal stimulus plan has caused our budget deficit to balloon. This causes international investors to be increasingly concerned and to pull their money out of the US, pressuring the dollar downward.

Commodities are a good portfolio diversifier which can help reduce your overall portfolio risk.
One of the primary reasons investors add commodities to their portfolios is because they have historically had a low correlation with the returns of other investments such as stocks and bonds. This reduces the risk of your overall portfolio as the losses in some investments are offset by gains in others. At Longview Wealth Management we are always looking for investments that have an attractive risk/reward ratio on their own AND that have a low correlation of returns with other investments in our portfolios. Over the past 10 years (1998-2007) the correlation of returns between commodities and large US stocks has been only .14 and the correlation of returns with US bonds has been -.24. These are very low correlation ratios which indicate that commodities can provide powerful diversification benefits to your portfolio. Commodities can be volatile investments on their own but as a group can actually lower the risk of your overall portfolio over time if they are used properly.

What are the negatives of commodity investing?
1. Individual commodities are volatile and risky. For this reason commodities should represent only a small portion (15% or less) of most investor portfolios. We recommend a diversified basket approach to investing in commodities.
2. Investing in certain individual commodities can be difficult and complicated for many investors.
3. Commodity investments don’t pay interest or dividends to investors.

How to Play It? The Powershares DB Commodity Tracking Index ETF (DBC)
Based on my research one good way to get investment exposure to commodities in general is the Powershares Commodity Tracking Index (symbol DBC). This exchange traded fund (ETF) is one of the largest and most widely traded diversified commodity funds. It provides diversified exposure to the most widely traded commodities including crude oil (39% of the fund), heating oil (18%), gold (15%), wheat (15%), corn (13%), and aluminum (10% of the fund). The expense ratio on this fund is .75% which is below average for commodity funds.

This commodity ETF peaked in July of 2008 at around $45/share and then declined about 60% to its bottom of below $20/share in March of 2009. The commodity index seems to have been in a bottoming process over the past 6 months and has recently started showing signs of life bouncing back up to the current price of $22.50/share. This commodity index just broke through its 200 day moving average over the past couple of weeks on the upside. I think there is good upside from here over the long-term.

Keith Tufte
President
Longview Wealth Management, LLC.
http://www.longviewwealth.com

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The most popular silver dollar coin in the world is the American Silver Eagle. The Silver Eagle is the official silver bullion coin of the United States. It was first released by the United States Mint on November 24, 1986. It is struck only in the 1 troy oz denomination which has a nominal face value of one dollar and is guaranteed to contain one troy ounce of 99.9% pure silver. It is authorized by the United States Congress and its weight and content is certified by the United States Mint. I prefer to buy these certified and graded but you can also purchase them as bullion coins.

Buying them certified and graded gives them a premium value and there is a big trend in coin collectors buying modern day issue coins certified and graded. If you look at the home shopping network coin guru, Mike Mezack, they sell hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of collectible, graded and certified modern day issue coins every single week. I had the pleasure of meeting Mike recently and he is a wealth of information. He also believes in the current trend of buying siler dollar coins right now for investment and collecting asset purposes.

I hope as you watch the economy do what is is doing, you are somehow hedging your bets by buying precious metals. I think gold and silver dollar coins are a great investment right now, perhaps better than any time in our history and I hope this article has been helpful.

Check out the first of its kind membership program for buying silver dollar coins and receiving new monthly assets at http://www.NumisNetwork.com/promo1

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Another indicator within the rare U.S. coins market is the activity of dealers. Dealers travel less and report weaker retail and wholesale activity. There is a shortage of fresh offers for sale particularly those more desirable ‘A’ and ‘B’ type coins certified CAC (Certified Acceptance Corporation). Rather we see an abundance of ‘C’ and ‘D’ graded coins, which are less viable as collector pieces for both dealers and collectors. Dealers now employ the internet to clear their holdings of ‘C’ and ‘D’ class rare U.S. coins, often at a discount. However, it is key remember that investing in those classes of coins is not advisable. Quality is key and the ‘eye appeal’ is the principle to follow.

Other signs of slow market activity for rare U.S. coins is the buying and selling trends of collectors. Collectors are curbing their buying habits and in many cases are divesting some of their stock from their collection. However, past trends tells us that in any market phase, some will make ‘bank’ while others will not. To illustrate, the current market profile where supply ranks over demand, means that those with liquid cash can find bargains in the market and add to their holdings.

For those collectors/dealers with buying power for adding to their rare U.S. coins holdings, it is imperative to follow the principle of only buying ‘quality’. Quality and value are linked. For example, value is governed by three factors:

* Quality
* Supply
* Demand

In a retreating market, inferior items, namely the ‘C / D’ grade coins, are in less demand, whilst ‘A / B’ grade coins are still in demand. Quality and value will prevail, however sellers need to be accommodating on price setting in order to entice conservative buyers in the current economic mood.

Therefore, as noted above, the current economic downturn is both a curse and a blessing. A curse for those collectors/investors/dealers with limited cash reserves, whilst a possible blessing and opportunity for those with strong cash reserves. In short, the current times present excellent buying opportunities especially for ‘A / B’ grade coins. For those collectors who do not have the spare cash do your best to hold your coin assets. Despite speculations, the turning of the current cycle is unknown. But what is known, the economy does move in cycles and if history is our teacher the market demand for rare U.S. coins will return in the future.

According to reports, what segments of the rare coin market are faring better than others? Early copper items are holding their value. While, Morgan dollars, specifically those common dated, and the early commemoratives are declining in market terms. Similar slow performance is evident for Indian Head Cents and Lincoln Cents. Most early ‘A / B’ type pieces continue to hold their trading value largely due to the scarcity factor. These latter examples provide interesting buying opportunities.

In light of the above, what might be a fare action plan for rare coin collectors and investors? It is a simple recommendation: buy ‘A / B’ grade coins with an element of scarcity. Coins with this profile will always hold their value in a weak market and regain value when market sentiment improves. And point your research efforts toward finding pieces with the ‘CAC’ certification.

The collectible and rare U.S. coin market segment has proven to be stronger than most other investment vehicles. However, as history shows, ‘all boats rise / fall with the tide’. Thus, although the collectible and rare coin market has outperformed other investments recently, it is not resistant to pressures from the wider market swings.

In summary:

* Do your best to hold your rare coin assets
* If cash is required, then liquidate only those ‘C/D’ class items, albeit at a likely discount
* If in buying mode, look for early ‘A / B’ rare type pieces
* Concentrate on rare coins that carry the ‘CAC’ certification

Silver Leonard owns several niche websites. One of his sites, Rare U.S. Coins provides detailed information and buying options for visitors.

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