RF's Financial News

RF's Financial News

Sunday, October 25, 2015

This Week in Barrons - 10-25-2015

This Week in Barrons – 10-25-2015:

Thoughts:

















Layoffs … you’re talking about … Layoffs!


Dear Ms. Yellen:

It’s been almost 14 years since Jim Mora (at an Indianapolis Colts press conference) uttered those words.  They had just lost a terrible game, some reporter asked about their ‘playoff’ chances.  I thought it appropriate that after such an ‘unexplainable’ week in the markets – that I ask about all of the employee ‘layoffs’.  Obviously, after a certain point the math no longer works on the: ‘borrow money to buy-back stock’ shenanigans.  Just this week it appears that corporations figured that out as well, as they started cutting people (in earnest) to improve their bottom lines.  A few of the layoffs that were announced are: 3M for 1,5000, Advanced Micro Devices for 500, BioGen for 1,000, Caterpillar for 5,000, Chesapeake Energy for 1,000, Chevron for 7,000, ConAgra Foods for 1,500, Credit Suisse for 3,400, Disney for 300, FMC for 1,000, Hewlett Packard for 30,000, Lockheed Martin for 250, Monsanto for 2,500, Microsoft for 1,000, Perrigo for 1,000, SunEdison for 1,200, Twitter for 325, Wal-Mart for 450, Weatherford for 3,000 and Whole Foods for 1,500.

These same corporations are using the ‘proposed’ savings from these layoffs to continue to buy-back their own stock.  I think this practice is dangerous.  For starters, if a company’s sales are not increasing – then chances are the buy-backs won’t work either.  Secondly, it’s possible that the buy-backs won’t reduce the overall share count due to the new shares being created and used as compensation to the executives.  Finally, with increased layoffs come declines in retail sales.  And something that SF pointed out, the average FICO credit score for loans originating in September is at its lowest level in at least 4 years.  That means we’re combining bad credit, with lower lending standards, with retail sales and transportation declines – yielding a recipe for a fairly sick economy.

Ms. Yellen, what do you get when you put the following together:
-       32 nation’s Central banks are cutting their own interest rates.
-       China’s GDP is expanding by 6.9% yet they are devaluing their currency, reducing their imports by 20.4%, and jailing people for talking negatively about stocks.
-       The oil industry rig count is down 1,001 rigs over last year.  The ripple effect comes from all of the banks and loans associated with these (now) non-performing rigs.
-       Caterpillar has seen its global sales fall for 3 straight years, and in their latest report not a single area of the globe was positive.
-       Denmark’s negative interest rates have pushed real estate to a point that rents are now up 60%.
-       Obamacare costs (and premiums) are increasing by double-digits.
-       European Central Bank (ECB) President, Mario Draghi signaled that more stimulus is on the way, and suggested negative interest rates.
-       The Bank of Japan is ramping up its largest asset-purchase program (including buying into their own stock market).
-       England’s interest rates are at record lows.
-       And not to be outdone, China’s central bank announced another rate cut.

Ms. Yellen, it’s YOU against the rest of the world right now.  As soon as you announced the end of QE3 and began setting rate hike expectations – the U.S. dollar started to rally.  But what comes with a higher U.S. dollar is increased difficulty selling U.S. goods and services overseas.  In this case, a competitive environment means that you need to DEVALUE your currency to make the products you are trying to export more attractive.  It’s a ‘Race to the Bottom’.   Devaluing creates inflation, and that is exactly what you want.

Therefore, with China’s interest rate cuts, Draghi’s radical announcement of negative interest rates, combined with Japan’s central bank actually buying stock market securities – what is becoming a higher probability is that you need to choose your poison: QE4 or negative rates.  FYI – in 2001 the Colts did NOT make the playoffs.  Let’s try and not make the same mistake with our economy.


The Market:

This week has certainly been one for the history books.  I haven't seen this level of lunacy in the markets since the late 90's, and since the housing run-up in 2006.  I remember in late 1999 when stocks were gaining 200 points in a day.  It was a ‘new paradigm’.  Nothing mattered until the NASDAQ lost 60% of its value virtually overnight.  More than 100 companies that had stock prices at $100+ per share went belly-up.  This melt-up is even worse because every COUNTRY is racing each other to the bottom.  Recorded history has never seen zero or negative interest rates, and words like ‘new paradigm’ are being used again.

Just last week some very smart people were calling for a market crash by the end of 2015:
-       Gerald Celente of Trends Journal and Bo Polny said on Oct14th: “Heading into November cycles suggest a massive crash taking us down as much as 70% is possible.”
-       Graeme Irvine suggested:  “For better or worse, there is a massive sea change underway in global politics.  An unprepared voting public is desperate, disillusioned, and mostly unaware of the cause of the decline in their lifestyle.  Stay long physical gold and silver. Globally we seem, to have run out of road and talent.”
-       Nomura's Bob Janjuah remarked:  “I did not expect such a strong upside move in response to such bad data!  I would not be surprised to see attempts to recapture the highs of the year if the 2020 level holds.  And a weekly close in the S&P below 1970 would put 1820 and the low-1700’s back on the radar.”

Every tick of this market is now being managed by the Central banksters.  I know it sounds James Bond’ish, but on a daily basis I’m seeing "Unidentified" accounts buying tens of millions of index futures JUST when a market is starting to sag.  

Right now we have a ton of fund managers ‘chasing returns’ because they need their year-end bonuses, and have terrible performance year-to-date.  We have Central banksters who know that their economies are on the ropes.  This is a bad earnings season, with most big banks missing both their top and bottom lines.  One common theme (however) is a lower forecast.  Some forecasts have been lowered based on the dollar and world trade, others have been on contracting sales growth.  It’s the sales (top-line) story that’s important to me because it is where the ‘rubber meets the road’.  With today’s accounting practices, bottom lines can become distorted.  For me, I would always rather see top-line growth in revenue, even if bottom line profits shrink.  Share buy-backs, lowered forecasts, a weak job market, and a strong dollar (disinflationary) environment – are all reasons that our FED will NOT be raising rates any time soon.

I’m watching the Russell (RUT) Small-Cap Index.  Currently it has been unable to rise above the 1180 area, and this tells me that the general market order flow is not really buying into this rally – yet.  The Russell has been in a bear market since July, and we have not had any higher highs.  Getting above 1180 on good volume is key to proving that money is flowing back into the market as a whole.  If the Russell has problems moving higher and revisits the 1140 area, then I think we could see selling pressure across all of the other indices.

I am still leaning toward this rally ‘petering out’ and sliding downhill.  I know that means doing battle with the strongest time of the year, fund managers that are desperate for returns, and Central banksters that want things to go up.  I get all that.  But I think they lack the fuel to keep it going.  Time (obviously) will tell.

So on one side of the ledger we have: (a) funds are down for the year and desperate, (b) we're entering the strongest period of the year, (c) we've had a 10% correction, (d) the technicals have improved, and (e) rate hikes are now a myth – unless the FED decides to crash the market.  On the other side of the ledger we have: (a) the real economy is in the toilet, (b) the world economy is in recession, (c) zero rates have perverted everything, (d) debt has increased dramatically, (e) earnings are lousy, (f) world currency wars are raging, (g) over a hundred million are NOT in the labor force, (h) record numbers are on welfare, and (i) top-line revenue misses have become the norm.

Of course this rally is based on easy money, not strong earnings or a strong economy.  Remember correlation is NOT causation.  The market is not a measure of the economy, nor is the market a measure of the business fundamentals.  We are in a midst of declining revenue and sales forecasts, yet we are in the middle of a stock market rally.  This is a FED-induced rally.  Don’t fight the Fed.  But don’t get fooled into believing it is anything other than what it is.  People get hurt when bubbles burst, but get destroyed when they don’t know WHY or HOW the bubbles were created.


TIPS:

RUT 1165:     If we can break above 1180 and close above it, it might signal the end of the bear market that has been with us since June.  We could have a FED-fueled rally into year-end.  Not a Santa Claus rally, but rather a FED rally.  If the Fed starts talking or hinting at easy money policies – we could move higher.  If they actually launch another easy money program – we could rocket higher.

Now, if the FED actually launches an easy money program – look at the precious metals and the miners.  The bulk of them are so beaten down, that even if they went out of business – the most you could lose is $2 or $3.  AUY is $2.52, GFI is $2.89, EGO is $4.09, and IAG is $2.11.  But the most attractive part of the mining space is that they have options.  With their stocks being so inexpensive, you can buy a 1 year + 3 month option on many of these stocks for pennies.  Take IAG for example: the January 2017 $1.50 call options are going for around $0.85.  That means you have the right to buy IAG for $1.50/share all the way out to the 3rd Friday of January 2017.  If our FED introduces a program to devalue the dollar – then silver is back up to $25/ounce and IAG is back to $5.

I’m still light – but buying more and more of the miners and FFMGF:
-       AG – BOUGHT Stock @ $3.58 / and Jan, 2018 $2 Calls @ $2.30
-       AUY – BOUGHT Stock @ $2.50 / and Jan, 2017 $2 Calls @ $0.90
-       EGO – BOUGHT Stock @ $4.00 / and Jan, 2017 $3.50 Calls @ $1.10
-       GFI – BOUGHT Stock @ $2.80 / and Jan, 2017 $2.50 Calls @ $0.90
-       IAG – BOUGHT Stock @ $2 / and Jan, 2017 $1.50 Calls @ $0.85
-       FFMGF – BOUGHT Stock @ $0.33
-       SPX:
o   SOLD – Iron Condor – Oct4 @ 1800 / 1805 to 2050 / 2055,
o   SOLD – Iron Condor – Oct4 @ 1825 / 1830 to 2070 / 2075,
o   SOLD – Iron Condor – Oct4 @ 1880 / 1885 to 2120 / 2125,
o   SOLD – Iron Condor – Oct5 @ 1860 / 1865 to 2090 / 2095,
o   SOLD – Iron Condor – Oct5 @ 1780 / 1785 to 2070 / 2075,   
o   SOLD – Iron Condor – Nov1 @ 1850 / 1855 to 2085 / 2090.

To follow me on Twitter.com and on StockTwits.com to get my daily thoughts and trades – my handle is: taylorpamm. 

Please be safe out there!

Disclaimer:
Expressed thoughts proffered within the BARRONS REPORT, a Private and free weekly economic newsletter, are those of noted entrepreneur, professor and author, R.F. Culbertson, contributing sources and those he interviews.  You can learn more and get your free subscription by visiting: <http://rfcfinancialnews.blogspot.com> .

Please write to Mr. Culbertson at: <rfc@culbertsons.com> to inform him of any reproductions, including when and where copy will be reproduced. You may use in complete form or, if quoting in brief, reference <rfcfinancialnews.blogspot.com>.

If you'd like to view RF's actual stock trades - and see more of his thoughts - please feel free to sign up as a Twitter follower -  "taylorpamm" is the handle.

If you'd like to see RF in action - teaching people about investing - please feel free to view the TED talk that he gave on Fearless Investing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2Z9I_6ciH0


To unsubscribe please refer to the bottom of the email.

Views expressed are provided for information purposes only and should not be construed in any way as an offer, an endorsement, or inducement to invest and is not in any way a testimony of, or associated with Mr. Culbertson's other firms or associations.  Mr. Culbertson and related parties are not registered and licensed brokers.  This message may contain information that is confidential or privileged and is intended only for the individual or entity named above and does not constitute an offer for or advice about any alternative investment product. Such advice can only be made when accompanied by a prospectus or similar offering document.  Past performance is not indicative of future performance. Please make sure to review important disclosures at the end of each article.

Note: Joining BARRONS REPORT is not an offering for any investment. It represents only the opinions of RF Culbertson and Associates.

PAST RESULTS ARE NOT INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS. THERE IS RISK OF LOSS AS WELL AS THE OPPORTUNITY FOR GAIN WHEN INVESTING IN MANAGED FUNDS. WHEN CONSIDERING ALTERNATIVE INVESTMENTS (INCLUDING HEDGE FUNDS) AN INVESTOR SHOULD CONSIDER VARIOUS RISKS INCLUDING THE FACT THAT SOME PRODUCTS AND OTHER SPECULATIVE INVESTMENT PRACTICES MAY INCREASE RISK OF INVESTMENT LOSS; MAY NOT BE SUBJECT TO THE SAME REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS AS MUTUAL FUNDS, OFTEN CHARGE HIGH FEES, AND IN MANY CASES THE UNDERLYING INVESTMENTS ARE NOT TRANSPARENT AND ARE KNOWN ONLY TO THE INVESTMENT MANAGER.

Alternative investment performance can be volatile. An investor could lose all or a substantial amount of his or her investment. Often, alternative investment fund and account managers have total trading authority over their funds or accounts; the use of a single advisor applying generally similar trading programs could mean lack of diversification and, consequently, higher risk. There is often no secondary market for an investor's interest in alternative investments, and none is expected to develop.

All material presented herein is believed to be reliable but we cannot attest to its accuracy. Opinions expressed in these reports may change without prior notice. Culbertson and/or the staff may or may not have investments in any funds cited above.

Remember the Blog: <http://rfcfinancialnews.blogspot.com/> 
Until next week – be safe.

R.F. Culbertson

<http://rfcfinancialnews.blogspot.com>

Sunday, October 18, 2015

This Week in Barrons - 10-18-2015

This Week in Barrons – 10-18-2015:

Thoughts:






Dear Ms. Yellen:

This week:
-       The CEO of Schlumberger (major oil and gas supplier) said:  “This will go down as the most severe downturn we’ve had in decades.”
-       The CEO of FactSet said: "We touch over 250,000 customers per month, and this industrial environment is definitely in a recession.”
-       Housing foreclosures spiked 66% year over year – producing the largest annual rise in bank repossessions ever recorded.
-       The 2015 pace of job creation has declined 24% over 2014.
-       The labor pool has been reduced to 1970’s lows.  If we use the old rules to track unemployment – the true unemployment rate would be 15%.
-       The 12-month, average inflation rate is ZERO.  Deflation is close.
-       For 3 months in a row, the Empire and Philadelphia business reports have shown a contracting economy – with new orders hitting 2009 lows.
-       Japanese Industrial Output dropped 1.2% from the previous month.
-       The Germans sold their latest 10-year ‘bunds’ at record low interest rates – NEGATIVE 0.3%.

Ms. Yellen, if you’re asking me to invest in companies that are NOT growing, but are capable of borrowing ‘free money’ just to buy back their own stock – sorry,  I didn't learn that one in Economics 101.

But hey, it’s all just one big ponzi scheme.  Remember the 80's and Crazy Eddie?  A string of electronics stores called "Crazy Eddie's" – specialized in selling low priced consumer electronics.  One of the ploys ‘Crazy Eddie’ (Eddy Antar) used to keep his store expansion moving was to request a loan from a bank to open more stores.  He would then set up a walk through with the bankers at one of his stores.  The day before the walk through, he would shut down the other stores in the area, and move most of their entire stock of merchandise into the store that the bankers would be viewing. 

On the day of the walk through, the bankers would be amazed at the sheer volume of merchandise – piled to the ceilings.  The bankers were then invited back in a couple of days to see the amount that was sold.  And sure enough, most of the goods were gone.  Eddy would then say: “See, we sold all of that in just 3 days!"  In reality, Eddy had the employees truck all the stuff back to the other stores where it came from.  Eddy was managing the appearance of ‘strength’, when in fact he was using loans to stay afloat.  Ms. Yellen, doesn’t this sound familiar to what our corporations are doing today?

But Ms. Yellen, unlike all of your bankster friends, Crazy Eddie went to jail.  I ask you: if retail sales aren’t growing and inventory is increasing, if the 3rd Quarter GDP estimate is being reduced again, and if Wal-Mart can’t make money – you’d have to agree that this isn’t just China slowing down.  The whole world is slowing, and in many ways – “Our Prices are Insane.”


The Market:

The definition of money is:
1.    It must be durable (which is why we don't use wheat, corn or rice).
2.    It must be divisible (which is why we don't use artwork).
3.    It must be convenient (which is why we don't use lead or copper).
4.    It must be consistent (which is why we don't use real estate).
5.    It must possess value in itself (which is why we don't use paper).
6.    It must be limited in quantity (which is why we don't use aluminum or iron).
7.    And, it should have a long history of acceptance (which is why we don't use molybdenum or rhodium).

Only gold and silver fit all seven characteristics.  Bitcoin / Bitgold are wonderful (and I personally love the idea of ‘crypto currency’), but unfortunately our government can disable it in a heartbeat by pulling the plug on the Internet.

If I were to switch gears from giving investment advice, to giving survival advice – I would advise everyone to have some physical gold (2 coins), silver (20 coins) and $2,000 in cash on hand for emergencies.  I think silver at $17/oz. has a date with $70/oz., and gold at $1,200/oz. has a date with $3,000/oz.

The best denominations to own are the U.S. Gold & Silver Eagles, and the Canadian Maple Leaf.  These are universally accepted as a great store of value.  Remember the movie ‘Trading Places’, where Dan Akroyd goes from being a highly paid commodity trader to a street-wise derelict.  In one scene, Dan goes into a pawnshop trying to get money for his Rochefoucauld watch.  The pawnshop owner offers him $50.  Dan responds: “This is the thinnest, lightest, waterproof watch in the world.  It retails for $7,000, and tells time in Monte Carlo, Rome, London, Paris, New York, and Beverly Hills.”  To which the pawnie says: “In Philadelphia, it's worth 50 bucks".   Dan takes the money.  Remember, the key to currency is owning what everyone ELSE views as valuable.
-       In terms of allocation, 70% of the amount of money you allocate for metals should be in gold, with the remainder in silver.
-       The most traded silver product on earth is the Silver Eagle, and is guaranteed to contain one troy ounce of 99.9% pure silver.  If something totally wicked happens and you need to use your silver for food – the Silver Eagle will be the ‘go to’ coin.
-       I recommend buying them from: http://www.cornerstonebullion.com
-       In terms of storage, it is a mixed problem.  You want to store your metal where you can get it – in case of an emergency.  Metal that you can’t retrieve – is metal that you can’t use.  One of the very best remote repositories is: http://www.dakotadepository.com.  It is insured, offers segregated accounts, and is extremely secure.
-       If you like the idea of storing your metal in your home, then a good ($2k) safe should be on your shopping list.
-       I’m not against buying the GLD (which is the ETF for gold), but know that you are NOT buying gold – you’re just buying a digital proxy for gold.
-       Instead of GLD, consider the CEF.  The CEF is a closed end fund that is 60% gold and 40% silver.  The difference is that they actually have the audited gold and silver in their Canadian vaults.
-       Also consider PSLV – the Sprott Silver Trust.  This Trust was created to invest and hold substantially all of its assets in physical silver bullion.  Its purpose is to provide a secure, convenient and exchange-traded investment alternative for those who wish to hold physical silver without the inconvenience.

Until last week, an incredible $70 Billion had fled away from the stock market.  But with this run-up, last week saw a $3 Billion in-flow back into equities.  But we are in that odd situation where:
-       There is record ‘Put’ buying as protection against a crash,
-       Gold is being bought,
-       And silver is in such demand that there is virtually no supply. 

The economic numbers are showing us rather horrifying data, earnings are disappointing, and yet the market continues to rise.  The FED is in: ‘keep the market up at any cost or the world blows up’ mode.   They have already pushed this market higher and longer than I thought possible, and even in the most bullish scenarios the market’s latest upside move is overdone.  If nothing else, a pause should be in the cards.  After letting the market catch its breath, I would not be surprised to see one more leg higher – preaching Christmas sales. 


TIPS:

Recommendations:
Allow me to redo a concept that I shared with you 2 weeks ago concerning the silver / gold miner – First Majestic – ticker symbol AG.
-       It has moved from $3.58 (2 weeks ago) to currently $4.06/share.  I’ll go on record as saying that you can always purchase the stock.  Another way to play it is by using the January 2018 call options.
-       Given the stock has moved in price, I would recommend the $3 – January 2018 call options currently selling for $2.30.  By buying 45 contracts you are spending about $10,000 on this trade.  Use your own personal preference to adjust your purchase size – for example: buying 10 contracts costs $2,500.
-       As silver/AG rises, and AG hits $5+/share, our $10K in options will be worth $18k.  We will then sell our $3 call options, and use the proceeds to buy option contracts at the $5 strike price.  By continually maintaining a closer ‘to the money’ strike price – our gains will multiply much faster.
-       As silver/AG continues to rise, and AG hits $10+/share, our $5 contracts will be worth $53k.  We will then sell our $5 contracts, and use the proceeds to buy contracts at the January 2018 $10 strike.
-       As silver/AG continues to rise, and AG hits $15+/share, those $10 contracts are now worth $132,000.  Sell those $10 options, and use the proceeds to buy contracts at the January 2018 $15 strike.
-       And finally as silver continues to rise, and AG hits $20+/share, you will have made $250k on a $10k investment.  You could even roll it out again, and have $500k when AG makes it to $25+/share.

So the only real question is: ‘Can AG go from $4.06 to $20 in less than 2.4 years?’  The miners did similar things in the past, and there's even more reason for them to blast off this time if silver manipulation ends.  But honestly, if AG just goes from $4.06 to $6 you will still make a great return on your money. 

I’m still light – but buying more and more AG and FFMGF:
-       AG – BOUGHT Stock @ $3.58 – currently $4.06
o   BOUGHT – Jan, 2018 $2 Calls @ $2.30 – currently $2.78
-       FFMGF – BOUGHT Stock @ $0.33 – currently $0.37
-       SPX:
o   SOLD – Iron Condor – Oct4 @ 1800 / 1805 to 2050 / 2055,
o   SOLD – Iron Condor – Oct4 @ 1825 / 1830 to 2070 / 2075,
o   SOLD – Iron Condor – Oct4 @ 1880 / 1885 to 2120 / 2125,
o   SOLD – Iron Condor – Oct5 @ 1860 / 1865 to 2090 / 2095,
o   SOLD – Iron Condor – Oct5 @ 1780 / 1785 to 2070 / 2075,   
o   SOLD – Iron Condor – Nov1 @ 1850 / 1855 to 2085 / 2090.


To follow me on Twitter.com and on StockTwits.com to get my daily thoughts and trades – my handle is: taylorpamm. 

Please be safe out there!

Disclaimer:
Expressed thoughts proffered within the BARRONS REPORT, a Private and free weekly economic newsletter, are those of noted entrepreneur, professor and author, R.F. Culbertson, contributing sources and those he interviews.  You can learn more and get your free subscription by visiting: <http://rfcfinancialnews.blogspot.com> .

Please write to Mr. Culbertson at: <rfc@culbertsons.com> to inform him of any reproductions, including when and where copy will be reproduced. You may use in complete form or, if quoting in brief, reference <rfcfinancialnews.blogspot.com>.

If you'd like to view RF's actual stock trades - and see more of his thoughts - please feel free to sign up as a Twitter follower -  "taylorpamm" is the handle.

If you'd like to see RF in action - teaching people about investing - please feel free to view the TED talk that he gave on Fearless Investing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2Z9I_6ciH0


To unsubscribe please refer to the bottom of the email.

Views expressed are provided for information purposes only and should not be construed in any way as an offer, an endorsement, or inducement to invest and is not in any way a testimony of, or associated with Mr. Culbertson's other firms or associations.  Mr. Culbertson and related parties are not registered and licensed brokers.  This message may contain information that is confidential or privileged and is intended only for the individual or entity named above and does not constitute an offer for or advice about any alternative investment product. Such advice can only be made when accompanied by a prospectus or similar offering document.  Past performance is not indicative of future performance. Please make sure to review important disclosures at the end of each article.

Note: Joining BARRONS REPORT is not an offering for any investment. It represents only the opinions of RF Culbertson and Associates.

PAST RESULTS ARE NOT INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS. THERE IS RISK OF LOSS AS WELL AS THE OPPORTUNITY FOR GAIN WHEN INVESTING IN MANAGED FUNDS. WHEN CONSIDERING ALTERNATIVE INVESTMENTS (INCLUDING HEDGE FUNDS) AN INVESTOR SHOULD CONSIDER VARIOUS RISKS INCLUDING THE FACT THAT SOME PRODUCTS AND OTHER SPECULATIVE INVESTMENT PRACTICES MAY INCREASE RISK OF INVESTMENT LOSS; MAY NOT BE SUBJECT TO THE SAME REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS AS MUTUAL FUNDS, OFTEN CHARGE HIGH FEES, AND IN MANY CASES THE UNDERLYING INVESTMENTS ARE NOT TRANSPARENT AND ARE KNOWN ONLY TO THE INVESTMENT MANAGER.

Alternative investment performance can be volatile. An investor could lose all or a substantial amount of his or her investment. Often, alternative investment fund and account managers have total trading authority over their funds or accounts; the use of a single advisor applying generally similar trading programs could mean lack of diversification and, consequently, higher risk. There is often no secondary market for an investor's interest in alternative investments, and none is expected to develop.

All material presented herein is believed to be reliable but we cannot attest to its accuracy. Opinions expressed in these reports may change without prior notice. Culbertson and/or the staff may or may not have investments in any funds cited above.


<http://rfcfinancialnews.blogspot.com>