For a much higher level of premium information and specific guidance about how to achieve financial freedom with our PROPRIETARY investment system, consider our subscription services. Learn more about our premier investment research and education services, the SmartKnowledgeU™ Investment Education System here, and our premier stock research newsletter,the Global Stock Picker, a newsletter where the return of our Model Portfolio is 21.68% just 12-1/2 months after our launch, a figure that is outperforming U.S. and U.K. markets by nearly 40%, the Chinese Shanghai SSE index by more than 63.03%, and the India BSESN index by more than 24.41%!

Most Read Posts (64 articles) – Discover which articles Underground Investor™ readers are most interested in. See the full database, including the most recent articles that may not be listed below,  by clicking the link above.

Sept. 27, 2007 – 101 Reasons Why Managing Your Money is the Quickest Way to Build Wealth
Sept. 25, 2007 – 10 Surefire Ways to Make an Investment Fortune
Sept. 15, 2007 – Why the U.S. Feds 0.50% Rate Cut Won’t Save the Markets
Sept. 15, 2007 – U.S. Interest Rate Cut to Have Little Long-Term Positive Effect
Aug. 20, 2007 – How Much Does the Gov’t Really Manipulate Markets
Aug. 9, 2007 – More Gov’t Foolishness (or Lies) Again: Markets are Sound…NOT!
Aug. 9, 2007 – Chinese Tariffs and the Nuclear Option
Jul. 24, 2007 – How to Invest Like the World’s Greatest Investors
Jun. 17, 2007 – Get Out of Dollar-Denominated Bonds While You Still Can!
May 1, 2007 – Uranium Stocks are Finally Getting the Attention They Deserve
Apr. 23, 2007 – The Emperor’s New Clothes Abound in the Investment Industry. Don’t Get Cheated by Your Advisor
Apr. 20, 2007 – Use Intelligent Strategies to Push Risk Back onto Investment Firms
Apr. 19, 2007 – In Risky Markets, Follow the Behavior of the Ultra-Rich, Not the Rich
Apr. 12, 2007 – The Secret to Investing

Gold Investments (37 articles) - Use traditional rules to invest in gold stocks and you’ll lose money hand over fist with this asset class. Learn more about one of the most important components of every portfolio for future years to come. See the full database, including the most recent articles that may not be listed below, by clicking the above link.

April 23, 2008 – Will U.S. Markets Crash Now or Later?
Feb. 4, 2008 – Could Chinese New Year’s Fuel the Next Rally Higher for Gold Stocks?
Jan. 29, 2008 – Even After This Strong Run, Gold Stocks are Still a Bargain Today. Here’s Why.
Jan. 5, 2008 – A Sneak Peak at Our Premium Level Information
Nov. 4, 2007 – Is Hyperinflation Coming to the U.S.? It’s Time to Stock Up on Gold.
Nov. 4. 2007 – Gold is the Best Investment Today, History Tells Us So.
Nov. 2, 3007 – Gold Expensive at $791/oz.? Not by a Longshot
Jun. 5, 2007 – Learn How NOT to Invest in Gold
Mar. 30, 2007 – Navigate the Minefields of the Investment Information Highway
Mar. 7, 2007 – This Bounce in Gold Markets Merits a Cautious Approach
Mar. 6, 2007 – Gold Stocks Correction – What it Means?
Feb. 28, 2007 – How to Profit from a Weakening Market, Gold Stocks, & More, Part II
Feb. 28, 2007 – Buying Opportunity in Gold Stocks
Feb. 28, 2007 – How to Profit from a Weakening Market, Gold Stocks, & More, Part I
Feb. 23, 2007 – Uncover the Ignored Asset Classes
Feb. 12, 2007 – How Do I Know that Institutional Money is Still Not on Board with Gold?
Jan. 25, 2007 – If You Don’t Own Gold Stocks, You Need To
Jan. 23, 2007 – Building Wealth Requires More than Just Contrarian Investing
Jan. 14, 2007 – Use the Long Tail of Investing to Accurately Predict the Price of Gold
Jan. 11, 2007 – The REAL DEAL about Gold and Energy
Dec. 13, 2007 – Commodities and Asians: Apparently We All Look Alike
Nov. 6, 2006 – Sometimes Silence is Golden
Oct. 10, 2006 – Shock and Awe Awaits Global Markets
Oct. 4, 2006 – Is Gold’s Correction Over Yet?
Oct. 2, 2006 – Fiat Currency Concerns Give Rise to a Gold & Silver Backed Currency System
Oct. 1, 2006 – The Gold Timeline – A History of Gold Prices
Sept. 16, 2006 – Has the Commodities Bubble Burst? No, No, No!
Sept. 13, 2006 – Sell the Rumor, Buy the News
Sept. 11, 2006 – Gold’s Speculative Stigma is Unwarranted
Sept. 3, 2006 – Gold’s Glitter is Genuine
Aug. 14, 2006- Knowing Your History is More Important to Creating Wealth than Fundamental Analysis

Financial Crisis, Dollar Crisis & Recession Proof Investing (30 articles) – Foolish investors’ eyes lit up as New Century Financial dropped from $30 to $20 a share during the recent subprime mortgage fiasco. Their hearts thumped with excitement as shares dropped from $20 to $10 and they doubled down. When shares dropped to $5 they thought it had to be the bottom and put their last remaining money into New Century. A month later, they lost everything. There is similar optimism surrounding the dollar today from self-declared currency experts. Discover why the dollar is much more likely to go the way of New Century than experience a comeback like Muhammad Ali’s Rumble in the Jungle. For the most recent articles, perhaps not listed below, click the above category link.

June 26, 2008 – The One Question That Will Have the Greatest Impact on Your Financial Future
May 14, 2008 – What’s Driving the Price of Oil Higher? It’s the Dollar, Stupid!
April 30, 2008 - How Low Will the Feds Go?
April 17, 2008 – Monetary Inflation. How Increased Paper Wealth Can Translate into a Lower Standard of Living
March 3, 2008 – Why Investors Will Never Make Money in this Bear Market
Feb. 20, 2008 – The Secret to Building Wealth in Volatile Markets
Feb. 6, 2008 – Is Recession in the U.S. Coming? We’re Already in One.
Jan. 28, 2008 – The Outcome of the Fed’s Interest Rate Cuts? History is the Best Oracle.
Jan. 24, 2008 – The Fed’s 0.75% Interest Rate Cut – A Recipe for Future Disaster
Dec. 7, 2007 – The Dollar Panic. Is it Real?
Sept. 19, 2007 – Signs of a Peak Investment Crisis Keep Coming
June 18, 2007 – Alan Greenspan’s Call of Checkmate on China is Premature
June 17, 2007 – PIMCO’s Bill Gross and the Economist Agree with SmartKnowledgeU 6 Months After the Fact!
May 28, 2007 – The Politics of Higher Oil Prices
May 26, 2007 – Asian Countries Pooling Reserves to Protect Themselves from the Incredible Shrinking Dollar, Part II
May 25, 2007 – Asian Countries Pooling Reserves, Part I
May 3, 2007 – The Death of the 3-Year Treasury Note
Apr. 1, 2007 – The Next Cold War Will be an Economic One
Jan. 25, 2007 – Dollar-Denominated Bonds Faltering
Jan. 9, 2007 – Use the Longtail of Investing to Accurately Predict Dollar Behavior
Jan 7, 2007 – 10 Reasons Why Dollar-Denominate Bonds Aren’t Safe
Dec. 21, 2006 – Iran Presents More Trouble for the U.S. Dollar
Dec. 7, 2006 – The U.S. has Perfected the Incredible Shrinking Dollar

Free Stock Picks (24 articles) – While our top-shelf stock picks and ideas that have since returned 100% to 200% returns are reserved for our members only, here read articles about some mid-shelf stock picks and ideas that have already returned 30% returns in less than a year. Access the full database, including the most recent articles that may not be listed below,  by clicking the topic link above.

Jun. 4, 2007 – To Prove the Effectiveness of Our SmartKnowledgeU™ Investment System, Even Our Weakest Picks that We’ve Given Away for FREE Have Soared
Apr. 29, 2007 – After BAIDU, Possibly Focus Media
Apr. 2, 2007 – Profit, Don’t Lose From Market Corrections
Apr. 2, 2007 – Global Warming Presents Easy 30% Gains for Underground Investor Readers
Mar. 13, 2007 – Beware the Perpetual Bulls, Part II
Feb. 18, 2007 – Banking Sector FY 2008 – Positive for Japan & India, Negative for China
Jan. 4, 2007 – Chinese Technology Companies to Watch in 2007
Dec. 19, 2007 – MSFT and Internet Protocol Version 6
Dec. 12, 2006 – It’s Time to Keep a Close Eye on Indian Stocks ICICI & HDFC
Dec. 7, 2006 – The Ocean Becomes a New Growth Point in the World Economy
Oct. 30, 2006 – What’s the Safest Place to Invest in the Oil Industry Now?
Oct. 30, 2006 – You’ll Find Ignored Investment Opportunities in the DRC & Libya
Oct. 23, 2006 – Indian Banks Anyone? Four Letters: HDFC
Oct. 9, 2006 – Don’t Believe the Hype – Avoid Chinese Bank Stocks

The Peak Investment Crisis & Stock Market Crash (57 articles) – Bubbling underneath the surface, there lies a peak investment crisis. When it hits, savvy investors will build a fortune. Unfortunately, most investors will be blindsided and lose great fortunes instead. Access the entire database, including the most recent articles that may not be listed below,  by clicking on the above category link.

Nov. 4, 2007 – Is Hyperinflation Coming to the U.S.? It’s Time to Stock Up on Gold.
Nov. 4. 2007 – Gold is the Best Investment Today, Part II
Oct. 15, 2007 – Our New Forum on Facebook: Crisis Investing
Oct. 9, 2007 – Beware the Turbulence that Lies Beneath the Surface, Part I
Sept. 20, 2007 -The Signs of a Peak Investment Crisis Keep Coming
Sept. 19, 2007 -Why the U.S. Fed’s 0.50% Rate Cut Won’t Save the Markets
Aug. 9, 2007 – More Gov’t Foolishness Again
Jun. 29, 2007 – Don’t Let the Strength of the U.S. Markets in the First Half of 2007 Fool You
Mar. 11, 2007 – It’s the Difference Between Chasing & Building Wealth
Mar. 6, 2007 – What this Correction Means for Gold Stocks
Feb. 28, 2007 – How to Profit From a Weakening Market & Gold Stocks
Sept. 9, 2006 – The Peak Investment Crisis
Aug. 11, 2006 – How to Protect Your Portfolio During Turbulent Markets

A New Investment Paradigm for the 21st Century (11 articles) – Fundamental and Value investing may take years of patience to pay off (i.e. Apple Computers was a huge value stock at $13 a share and took more than four years of waiting to pay off huge), Growth investing often leads to chasing hot sectors that correct rapidly. Discover why changing conditions in today’s global market has created a new investment paradigm that is hands down the best way to invest today. Click the link above to see all articles, including the most recent articles that may not be listed below,  in this category.

Jul. 24, 2007 – How to Invest Like the World’s Greatest Investors
Feb. 25, 2007 – Frontrunning Can Make You a Fortune
Jan. 30, 2007 – The New Paradigm of Successful Investment Strategies
Jan. 21, 2007 – 10 Reasons the Longtail of Investing is the Only Way to Build Wealth
Jan. 16, 2007 – Use the Longtail of Investing to Predict Major Market Events with High Accuracy
Jan. 9, 2007 – Accurately Predict U.S. Dollar Behavior
Sept. 1, 2006 – What Mark Cuban Failed to Realize About Investing

The Biggest Investment Myths (62 articles) – All investment professionals, from investment firms to financial consultants to the financial journal purposely spread tales of lies and deception. Jim Cramer, an investment professional that amassed a fortune as a hedge fund manager, recently stated that the last thing he ever wanted to do is to tell the truth. Find out why deception is part of the game in the investment industry.  Click the category link above to access the full database, including the most recent articles that may not be listed below.

Oct. 25, 2007 – New Home Sales Went Up. So What?
Oct. 15, 2007 – Beware the Turbulence that Lies Beneath the Surface, II
May 6, 2007 – Economic Reports Drive Short-Term Behavior, but Hardly Represent the Truth
Mar. 21, 2007 – The Short-Term May be Rosy, but Beware the Financial Crisis that is Building Steam
Mar. 4, 2007 – Foreign Markets aren’t as Risky as the Pundits Say
Feb. 23, 3007 – Evolve Your Investment Strategies with Evolving Technology
Feb. 6, 2007 – My Problem with Investment Newsletters (except ours, of course!)
Feb. 4, 2007 – 10 Questions to Help You Find a Superior Financial Consultant
Jan. 30, 2007 – A New Paradigm of Successful Investment Strategies
Jan. 25, 2007 – Despite Evidence to the Contrary, Millions of Investors Will Believe Whatever they Want to Believe
Jan. 7, 2007 – 10 Reasons Why Dollar Denominated Bonds Aren’t as Safe as You Think
Jan. 5, 2007 – How Understanding MMA Champions will Make You a Better Investor
Dec. 18, 2006 – The True Determinants of Wealth Have Nothing to do with Asset Allocation
Nov. 12, 2006 – The Greatest Investment Myth Exposed: Why Modern Portfolio Theory WILL NEVER Make You Rich.

Wealth Literacy (88 articles) – Wealth Literacy is the new Financial Literacy. Financial Literacy may teach you to be fiscally responsible but you can still be financially literate and remain poor. Wealth Literacy fills in all the holes of Financial Literacy and teaches you how to build wealth today. Click the category link above to see new articles that may not be listed below.

Oct. 15, 2007 – Our New Facebook Investment Group – Crisis Investing
Oct. 9, 2007 – Beware the Turbulence that Lies Beneath the Surface, I
Apr. 23, 2007 – Beware the Emperor’s New Clothes -Don’t Get Cheated by Your Adviser
Apr. 20, 2007 – Intelligent Investment Strategies Push Risk Off of You & Back onto Investment Firms
Apr. 19, 2007 – In Risky Markets, Follow the Behavior of the Ultra-Rich, Not the Rich
Apr. 17, 2007 – Why Wealth Literacy is More Important than Financial Literacy, Part II
Apr. 15, 2007 – Why Wealth Literacy is More Important than Financial Literacy, Part I
Apr. 13, 2007 – Pop Investing is All the Rage, but it’s a Loser’s Game
Apr. 12, 2007 – The Secret to Investing in 3 Easy Rules
Apr. 10, 2007 – Build Wealth by Answering These 5 Questions
Mar. 30, 2007 - How to Navigate the Minefields of the Investment Information Highway
Mar. 12, 2007 – The Short-Term May be Rosy, But Beware the Financial Crisis that is Building Steam
Mar. 11, 2007 – The Difference Between Chasing Wealth and Building Wealth
Feb 23, 2007 – Uncover the Ignored Asset Classes
Feb. 21, 2007 – Why Traditional Education Stifles Your Ability to Build Wealth
Feb. 15, 2007 – 7 Habits of Highly Effective Investors
Feb. 8, 2007 – 10 Reasons Why a Professional Athlete’s Best Friend Needs to be his Financial Adviser

Politics and Stocks (30 articles) – Think you don’t need to understand politics to be a good investor? Think again. If you don’t understand politics, you’ll never fully understand the most likely future direction of global stock markets, oil, gold, and currency markets. Click the above category link to see the full database of articles, including the most recent articles that may not be listed below.

Apr. 11, 2007 – Building Great Wealth in Stocks Requires Understanding Politics
Apr. 1, 2007 – The Next Cold War will be an Economic One
Apr. 1, 2007 – Possible U.S. Military Intervention in Iran
Mar. 13, 2007 – To Err on the Subject of Chinese Tariffs May Expedite a Shakespearean Tragedy
Dec. 17, 2007 – Do Free Markets and Free Trade Exist?

Oil Crisis (15 articles) – Think oil prices are controlled by supply and demand, futures traders, or Peak Oil Theory? Think again. Discover the true determinants of oil price behavior, primarily dollar devaluation. Click the above category link to see the full database of articles, including the most recent articles that may not be listed below.

May 14, 2009 – What’s Driving the Price of Oil Higher? It’s the Dollar, Stupid!
May 28, 2007 – The Politics of Higher Oil Prices
Nov. 26, 2006 – Does the end of Mid-Term Elections Mean Higher Gas Prices Again?
Nov. 8, 2006 – The Peak Oil Theory was Created by – You Guessed it – Big Oil!
Oct. 30, 2006 – The Safest Place to Invest in the Oil Industry Now? – Oil Refiners, Pipeline Manufacturers, Deep Sea Platform & Drilling Manufacturers, and 4D Imaging Companies
Oct. 30, 2006 – You’ll Find Ignored Investment Opportunities in the DRC and Libya
Oct. 12, 2006 – How Has Prince Bandar bin Sultan Affected Oil Prices in Years Past?

Uranium Investments (3 articles)– The bulk of this information is contained within our members only area, but you’ll find an article or two here. Click the above category link to see the full database of articles, including the most recent articles that may not be listed below.

May 1, 2007 – Uranium Stocks are Finally Getting Some Attention. Better Late than Never.
May 1, 2007 – What Does Uranium Futures Mean for the Future of Uranium Stocks?

Africa Investments (5 articles) – For the more daring investor willing to place small bets for HUGE returns, Africa awaits.

Canada Investments (4 articles) – Articles about Canada and the Canadian stock market and hands down some of the best opportunities in ANY global stock market.

China Investments (21 articles) – Articles about Chinese stocks and the Chinese stock market.

India Investments (4 articles) – Articles about Indian stocks and the Indian stock market.

Japan Investments (4 articles) – Articles about the Japanese economy and stock market.

Russia Investments (1 articles) – Articles about the Russian economy and stock market

U.S. Stocks (25 articles) – Articles about U.S. stocks and the American stock market.

Vietnam Investments (3 article) – Articles about Vietnam and the explosive yet unregulated Vietnamese market.

Investment Psychology (22 articles) – One of the most important but yet most overlooked and ignored aspects of investing is psychology. Discover how an improper mindset can be the difference between huge losses and huge gains in your portfolio. Click the above category link to see the full database of articles, including the most recent articles that may not be listed below.

Feb. 7, 2007 – Investors Should Apply the Rule of Shopping 101 to Buying Stocks
Jan. 3, 2007 – Will the 2006 Year End Rally Continue into 2007?
Dec. 21, 2006 - Perception Can Overrule Reality in Driving Behavior but Reality Will Overrule Perceptions in Driving Outcome
Nov. 30, 2006 – The Recency Effect Hurts Investment Decisions
Nov. 2, 2006- Canadian PM Stephen Harper & Hungarian PM Ferenc Gyurcsany – the More Things Change the More They Stay the Same
Nov. 2, 2006 – Irrational, Not Rational, Behavior Often Drives Markets
Oct. 24, 2006 – The Financial Media are Like Bad Weatherman
Oct. 8, 2006 – The SmartKnowledgeU Reader’s List
Oct. 4, 2006 – Hungarian PM Ferenc Gyurcsany: We LIED Morning, Noon, & Night!
Sept. 26, 2007 – Move Over Harry Potter! The Deceptive Wizardry of Fund Managers
Sept. 17, 2006 – When it Comes to Investing, You Get What You Pay For
Sept. 16, 2006 – Why Do People Believe One of the Dumbest, Most Flawed & Deceptive Measures of Economic Conditions?
Sept. 13, 2006 – Why Book Smarts Won’t Help You Build Wealth
Sept. 10, 2006 – Investment Psychology 101
Aug. 24, 2006 – To Become Wealthy, Abandon Widespread Beliefs About Investing
Aug. 18, 2006 – Following Mainstream Media Will Lead You Down a Disastrous Investment Road
Aug. 3, 2006 – Following Short-Term Fluctuations Will Create Poor Investment Decisions

Options Investing (10 articles) – We don’t discuss options much here but occasionally, if there is a compelling play, we’ll write an article or two.

Water Investing (1 article) – Read articles about investing in water as a commodity as the world’s fresh water supply becomes more scarce.

The Zen of Investing (42 posts) – Read articles from our resident martial arts expert regarding how understanding principles of martial arts can make you a much better investor. A combination of “The Art of War” and “The Art of Investing” if you will. Click the above category link to see the full database of articles, including the most recent articles that may not be listed below.

Technorati Tags: investment blog, investment strategies, dollar crisis, financial crisis, oil crisis, stock market crash, howto invest gold, recession proof, best ways to invest, Wall Street bailout

My answer is Canada, not China. Furthermore, anyone with any skill may use ETFs to supplement their portfolio but certainly not as their main strategy. Why? If an ETF is increasing 30% to 40% a year, then the top individual stocks that comprise that ETF are soaring by 80% to 150% or more. Therefore, it makes more sense to identify the top components of that ETF and buy into them instead of just purchasing the broader index. Secondly, you have to identify what industries/assets that comprise the ETF have much better risk-reward paradigms and overweight these areas as well. If you can, you’ll have lots of success investing in the Canadian markets and in Canadian stocks that trade on your domestic exchanges. Furthermore, just because I posted a chart of the Canadian i-shares ETF, the ECW, it doesn’t mean that I necessarily recommend buying the ECW now. But I do recommend purchasing individual Canadian stocks now. Stay tuned because there will be more to come regarding this matter. This is just some food for thought for you to digest now.

[tags]Canada, best stock market in the world[/tag]

No, you aren’t having déjà vu. It’s the topic that just keeps producing good investment opportunities. From natural gas and oil reserves, to diamonds and gold and uranium mineral resources, now this – the first new shipping corridor from Asia to Europe in over 100 years that will also drastically reduce shipping times.

But first, let’s start with a little historical perspective. In 1903, the United States engineered a revolution in Columbia in order to set up an independent Republic of Panama. After they accomplished this, the U.S. named themselves owner of the strategic Panama Canal “in perpetuity” and established military bases in Panama to ensure their control of these strategic waters. This situation lasted for almost ¾ of a century until the canal lost its strategic military importance and the U.S. returned its control to Panama.

Why is this important to know? Because with the melting of the Arctic ice, a very important strategic shipping lane is opening up to sea vessels – a path that would shorten the current shipping distance between Asia and Europe that passes through, you guessed it – the Panama canal – by 5,000 kilometers. The U.S. has already stated their official lane regarding these new shipping lanes. Despite Canadian sovereignty of the Arctic north, the U.S. has stated that they intend to use this new shipping lane regardless of Canadian consent. However, some of these shipping lanes, with sufficient melting, will fall outside of the legal jurisdiction of Canadian territorial waters so this contention may very well be moot.

However, an equally large, if not larger point of contention, will be the claim to the mineral and oil reserves that lie underneath these waters. Canada claims that their exclusive economic zone which gives them sole rights to exploration extends 200 nautical miles from their coastline. This claim is being disputed by the United States, and perhaps other countries as well. So just as the U.S. seized a strategic military passageway in 1903, you can be sure that claims to this strategic Arctic passageway will be hotly contested today.

These two developments are well worth keeping an eye on. If one international shipping/freight company dominates this new passageway, it will be certain to profit hugely. Furthermore, whatever companies win the lion’s share of exploration rights in this area, based upon speculation alone, are sure to see phenomenal price appreciation.

These are exactly the below the radar types of opportunities that we at SmartKnowledgeU™ seek to profit from many months, and sometimes even years, before the general public hears about them. And the specifics of such opportunities are exactly what we will discuss in our soon to be launched comprehensive website. So stay tuned for more details.

In 2006, we stand at a vital crossroads in investing. After more than a two decade long bear market in a particular asset, we believe that we are poised to see one of the greatest bull runs of this asset of our lifetimes – a once in a lifetime opportunity to build considerable wealth leveraging this particular asset. Our belief is not only based on historical bull and bear markets in this asset, but it is also fortified with perfect geo-political and economic conditions and hundreds of hours of research that was performed to understand what drives the historical price of this asset.

The opportunity we at SmartKnowledgeU™ speak of is gold. First of all, gold has eight qualities that make it an asset that everyone buys when they fear currency devaluation. Gold is:

(1) Durable & doesn’t corrode

(2) Easily divisible

(3) Convenient

(4) Consistent

(5) A commodity with intrinsic value

(6) A commodity that is accumulated and rarely ever consumed

(7) A commodity that will benefit from recent deregulation in major markets

(8) The commodity with the strongest opposite correlation to a falling dollar.

Currency is nothing but paper and has no intrinsic value. When people start losing faith in paper currency, they start buying gold and other things such as art that have intrinsic value. And here is why you will be one of the few people ahead of this curve when it happens. To make real money, you can’t buy when everyone else buys. It’s too late. You have to have the foresight to know to buy before everyone else does. That’s when the real gains are made. And if you listen to major media or read major media, you’re likely to be confused beyond belief.

In the past month, I’ve seen stories on MSNBC’s website about the demise of gold. I’ve read stories in major media about the demise of emerging markets. And this was literally just weeks after the major media was touting gold as the asset to buy and saying that if you weren’t in emerging markets you were missing out on great opportunity. Every day, the major media has bandwagon syndrome. Just look at some of the major financial websites online. Their headlines literally change in the course of a single hour, especially during the volatile global markets in mid-2006. I’ve seen headlines change from “Bulls lead recovery in stock markets” to “Bulls lose stomach, bears turn market sentiment downward” in literally an hour. No wonder the average investor is confused. Buy emerging markets. Sell emerging markets. Buy gold. Sell gold. Who’s one to believe?

Well that’s why we’ve dug well below the surface to get to the bottom of things. Gold is volatile, sure, but don’t confuse volatility with risk. Gold has bumped up to $620 an ounce since we invested at $570 an ounce, so are we patting ourselves on the back? Hardly. We know that gold is likely to see a steep correction before it goes higher, so if it pulls back all the way to $570 an ounce again, will we panic? No, because we’ve done our homework and understand exactly what drives the price of gold and why even short term, steep corrections won’t change our opinion of it.

Unfortunately the increasing ease in investing in this asset has also increased volatility. Speculative hedge funds can now buy and dump massive amounts of gold fairly easily by buying one of several Gold Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) that are traded on the global stock markets. As well, millions of individual speculators can now easily enter and exit the market. Still the increased volatility that this adds to a historically volatile asset should not worry you if you’ve dug as deep as we have to understand this asset.

There are good and bad ways to buy gold.

Now, more than ever there are more ways to buy gold. Gold ETFs, gold exploration companies, gold development companies, gold futures, gold indexes, options on the gold indexes and physical gold itself. And buying gold the right way can literally be the difference from $10,000 turning into $22,210 or $80,321 (these are actual performance figures from different types of gold investments between 2001 and 2006). Invest in gold in the “wrong” ways and during this bull run, you may actually lose money. Not all gold companies are created equal. Even among the major gold producers in the world there are drastic differences in how these companies are managed that will manifest in drastically different returns in future years.

What??? That’s it? Talk about leaving someone hanging. You make me feel like a Ronin, a samurai that just lost his master. Yes, I understand the duality you speak of. That when an investment looks exactly the same on the surface in the same investment class, in reality, they can be drastically different below the surface. Many martial artists, when confronted with a physical threat, react instinctively without realizing that there are many other options to solve the situation. One should be still first and think before reacting immediately. This often leads to the better solution. In investing, one also has many options. But you just left us hanging. That’s just weak.