As promised... China steps up overseas investments in commodities

Aug 14, 2009 -- State-owned Yanzhou Coal Mining Co. buys Australia’s Felix Resources Ltd. for about A$3.5 billion ($2.9 billion), reports Bloomberg

Aug 13, 2009 -- Sinochem Corp., China’s biggest chemicals trader, makes an offer to buy to buy Emerald Energy Plc for 532 million pounds ($881 million). Giving Sinochem Corp., access to oil fields in Syria and Colombia, reports Bloomberg

“The Chinese don’t have enough nickel, don’t have enough oil, and they don’t have enough copper. There’s a crisis coming. They are going around the world buying up what they can. They’re preparing for a rainy day." Jim Rogers, chairman of Rogers Holdings and the author of books including “Investment Biker” and “Adventure Capitalist”, said in a telephone interview yesterday.

Hong Kong, Taiwan Approve Exchange-Traded Fund Cross-Listings

[Breaking News] -- Bloomberg

Financial regulators in Hong Kong and Taiwan agreed to allow cross-listing of exchange-traded funds in the two markets, Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission said on its Web site yesterday.

Newswire: Commodities

Mid-week review of the commodity markets from Bloomberg's Commodity Section.

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Crude oil - $49.38 / barrel

Oil Rises as Government Shows Smaller U.S. Supply Gain Than API - Bloomberg Article

April 8 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose for the first time in four days after a U.S. government report showed a smaller inventory gain than an industry report.

Supplies increased 1.65 million barrels to 361.1 million last week, the highest since July 1993, the Energy Department said today. Stockpiles were forecast to climb by 1.5 million barrels, according to a Bloomberg News survey. The industry- funded American Petroleum Institute yesterday said stockpiles jumped 6.94 million barrels to the highest since 1990.

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Gold - $885.90 / ounce
Silver - $12.34 / ounce

Gold Rises on Investor Demand for Store of Value; Silver Climbs - Bloomberg Article

April 8 (Bloomberg) -- Gold rose for a second straight day in New York as some investors purchased the metal to hedge against financial turmoil. Silver also gained.

The U.S. Treasury Department extended last year’s taxpayer- funded bank bailout to life insurers. Earlier, the bailout was broadened to include automakers and credit-card companies. Researcher GFMS Ltd. said yesterday that gold may reach a record this year as government spending raises inflation concerns.

“The reasons why investors bought gold -- fears of longer- term inflation and currency debasement -- remain intact,” John Reade, the head UBS AG metals strategist in London, said today in a report. Once gold prices have stabilized, “we expect bottom-fishers to begin the next cycle of investment,” he said.

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Copper - $4,400 / ton
Zinc - $1,365 / ton
Aluminum - $1,490 / ton
Lead - $1,335 / ton
Nickel - $10,925 / ton
Tin - $10,880 / ton

Copper Gains, Erasing Earlier Drop, in London as Shares Advance - Bloomberg Article

April 8 (Bloomberg) -- Copper advanced on the London Metal Exchange, erasing earlier declines, as shares rose on prospects government support will help automakers and banks.

The Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index of European shares rebounded after dropping as much as 1.7 percent today, while the U.S. Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed. The Dollar Index, a measure of the currency against six counterparts, fell 0.2 percent. A weaker greenback cuts the cost of commodities priced in the dollar for holders of other currencies.

“A little bit of buying has crept through on the back of the Dow,” said James Roberts, a broker at Sucden Financial Ltd. in London. “The turnaround in prices is equity-driven.”



Mid-week review of the commodity markets from Bloomberg's Commodity Section.

Marc Faber Says U.S. Stock Rally May Have 'More Legs' - Bloomberg Interview March 24, 2009

Marc Faber says he grows "good stuff," which makes you very happy ... HAHA

One of my favorite investment guru's, made a appearance on Asia Confidential, hosted by one of my favorite live commentator's from Bloomberg's Asia Crew, Bernie Lo.

Basically echoing a long term trend, described by other investors around the world. Faber explains in a casual manner how power is slowly shifts towards those who produce actual consumables like food, versus derivatives traders.

Marc Faber asked about investing in farmland said that they have a farmland in New Zealand and there they don't grow hashish but in northern Thailand "they" (people?) grow good stuff.

News line: Commodities in focus

Source of articles in this post: Bloomberg

Oil Falls on Signs Demand May Drop Faster Than OPEC Cuts Supply

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell 4 percent on speculation demand will decline faster than the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is curbing supply...


Gold Falls After Reaching 11-Month High in N.Y.; Silver Drops

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Gold fell in New York as some investors sold the metal after a rally last week to the highest price since March. Silver also declined...


Copper Rises for 3rd Time in Four Days as Metal Inventory Drops

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Copper prices rose for the third time in four sessions after inventories of the metal dropped, raising speculation that demand may rebound...


Corn, Soybeans Rise as Cheap U.S. Crops May Boost Export Demand

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Corn rose from a 10-week low and soybeans gained for the first time in nine sessions on speculation that cheaper U.S. supplies will spur import purchases.


Cotton Falls as Plunging Equities Signal Deteriorating Economy

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Cotton futures fell as sliding global equities triggered mounting concerns that the deteriorating economy will erode use of the fiber and other commodities.


Coffee Prices Rebound as Concerns Ease That Demand May Decline

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Coffee prices rose the most in more than two weeks as concerns eased that the U.S. financial industry may collapse and destroy demand for raw materials.

Jim Rogers -- Bloomberg Videos

Rogers Says Geithner Caused Crisis, Must Let Banks Fail
Feb. 11-- Jim Rogers, chairman of Rogers Holdings, talks with Lori Rothman about U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's handling of the financial crisis.



Geithner yesterday pledged government financing for as much as $2 trillion of efforts to spur new lending and address banks' toxic assets. Rogers, speaking from Singapore, also discusses the U.S. banking industry and investment strategy



In-Depth Look - Rogers on the Financial Rescue Plan - Bloomberg
Feb. 10-- Analysis and Discussion by Jim Rogers of Rogers Holding (First Word)

Hong Kong in focus -- Signs of recovery

As the work came to a close the major news agencies (websites) of Asia was busy reporting about U.S unemployment reaching the highest levels since 1974. Check out the following articles from major news sites of Singapore, Australia and China to read more.

US axed 598,000 jobs -- The Strait Times (Singapore)
US job losses biggest since 1974 -- The Australian
US unemployment rates rises to highest level 16 years -- Xinhua (China)

However there was good news to go around at the end of the week for Hong Kong. For starters home sales in the luxury property market in Hong Kong are rising.

Big deal you might say? Well, in major cities of the world that have the ability to attract global talent like Hong Kong does (NY, London, Paris, Tokyo, etc), prices in the luxury property market are a pretty good gauge of both a over-heating economy and also for an economy “getting back on its feet.” If people are starting to buy again, it means the perception is prices have bottomed to a level where demand and confidence is returning.

“Sales of Hong Kong luxury homes rose to their highest in six months in January, indicating that prices may have stabilized as buyers seek bargains, according to data by Centaline Property Agency Ltd.” Yes a good sign indeed. Click here to read a more comprehensive story on this development from Bloomberg.

Hong Kong stocks also finished the week off higher, rising the most in over a week on speculation the U.S will announce a stimulus plan and help to alleviate the financial crisis.

“The Hang Seng Index added 476.14, or 3.6 percent, to close at 13,655.04, its biggest jump since Jan. 29, and bringing its advance this week to 2.8 percent. The gauge has dropped 5.1 percent this year, extending 2008’s slump of 48 percent, the biggest annual drop since 1974. It’s valued at 11 times estimated earnings, down from 18.7 times at the beginning of last year.” Reported by Bloomberg in this article.

Here's a view of how the Hang Seng (Hong Kong's major stock index) has preformed this past week. Not too bad right?


If anything has been learned from this financial crisis it is that news can turn ugly as quickly as it turns good. More updates to come after we see how the markets play out next week.

Metals Outlook: Will Gold Return to $1000? -- Bloomberg

Investors Flock to Gold - Analysis and Discussion with GFMS CEO Paul Walker

Chavez bonds not doing so well before yet another upcoming vote on extending term limits

Venezuela has a huge debt about $46 billion according to Standard & Poor's. Venezuela also has about $29 billion in foreign reserves that it can use for paying the debt. So what's the problem and why has Bloomberg compiled this huge article quoting people from both sides?

It is clear Chavez wants to stay in power, and he's pushing yet another vote to see if the population will approve. Well, because the reality of the matter lies somewhere in between the pessimists who think Chavez is the Anti-Christ and will never pay back the country's debt and is slowly turning the nation into a communist, rouge state and the Chavistas who praise him and listen to every word he says like it's fact.


Foreign investors need to realize there is always an inherent risk when you buy up bonds that where yielding more than US treasuries from a Latin American country. Like... honestly, if there's anything the Madoff scandal should teach us is to not be blinded by greed.

"The average yield on the government’s dollar bonds rose to 17.40 percentage points more than Treasuries, from 14.74 points when he took office a decade ago, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co."

Furthermore, as you saw with Ecuador which recently said it will have to re-examine some of its own foreign denominated bonds, it is conveniently not doing so with bonds held by the Venezuelan government. All those foreign bond holders out there should check to see if there are any buddy's of Chavez who own the ones you do. If they do, I think you'll be safe, hehe.

Click here to read a more factual and comprehensive story about this from Bloomberg

Emerging Markets' Presence Grows at Davos Economic Forum -- Bloomberg

Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Emerging markets are gaining attention at the
World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, as developed nations flounder and seek a solution to the global financial crisis.

The financial meltdown has undermined western-style capitalism as an economic model, leading some to question whether emerging markets are willing to listen follow western advice for their economic development as they did in the 1990s. (Source: Bloomberg)

For more Bloombergcoverage from Davos see http://www.bloomberg.com

Hilarious headline flashed earlier on Bloomberg Live TV "breaking news"...

"Texas real estate slump lets Mexicans take it back."

Thought I would share that, lol. Goodstuff Mexico!