RF's Financial News

RF's Financial News

Sunday, July 21, 2013

This Week in Barrons - 7-21-2013

This Week in Barrons – 7-21-2013

Why Aren't We Saved?

As you may know, I’m no fan of the Federal Reserve.  I think they’re unconstitutional and we would be much better off without them.  That being said: after all of this Fed stimulus, why isn’t this recession over and growth back to normal levels?  After all, we just spent the past two days hearing The Ben Bernanke deceiving us about the economy.  But there was one item of truth that came out of the hearings: The Government isn't helping the situation.   

The Ben Bernanke spent 2 days this week, talking to Congress in what used to be termed: the "Humphrey Hawkins" meetings.  Here's a remark from The Ben Bernanke that should have red flagged all the NSA computers: "Wall Street hasn’t benefited from the Fed’s actions any more than Main Street.”  Sir, how incredibly smug and arrogant of you?  While most of "Main Street" is scared to death of losing their part time jobs – and figuring out IF and HOW they’re going to have healthcare benefits in the New Year – bonuses and salaries at Wall Street Banks have been soaring.  Citizens that have had the good fortune to be able to hold stocks have seen their fortunes increase; meanwhile, those living on Main Street only see their expenses go up!  Didn’t The Ben Bernanke buy up all the ‘toxic sludge’ mortgages that Wally Street bankers had on their books?  Doesn't The Ben Bernanke buy all of the bonds from the Wall Street Primary Dealers giving them massive profits?  Doesn't The Ben Bernanke still allow "Mark to Model" fantasy accounting for banks, turning those banking losses into fictitious profits?  In return – ‘Main Street’ receives Debt Payments.

Consider for a moment the Fed’s statement: “We would like to maintain 2% inflation.”   For years they’ve been successful in selling ‘Main Street’ on how wonderful it is that our currency devalues at a couple percent each year.  Inflation literally means that our currency is "worth less" each year, and we’re being convinced that we should want ‘more of it’?  Economists will tell you that currency devaluation is good for growth.  I disagree.  It’s good for bankers.  It’s good for debtors.  It stinks for ‘Main Street’. 

In years past, the Fed appeared to be the savior to our economy.  If things were too slow, they'd change the interest rate picture, inject some liquidity, and in due time the economy would perk up and begin to grow again.  If things then got a little too hot, they would pull back on the reigns, tighten rates and slow down the train.  Many thought they had it all figured out, and nothing bad could ever happen again.  So why can't our economy seem to gain any traction this time?  Why are we going on 5 full years of incredible stimulus, trillions printed, and the economy is just barely alive.  It is my notion that in the past, we HAD an economy – rather than the façade of one that we’re currently experiencing. 

Think for a minute about the last ‘business friendly’ regulation that has been passed in the last 25 years.  Hummm – let me think:
-       The EPA and DEP are attempting to put coal mining – completely out of business.
-       To open a new WalMart, on average it takes 6 years and millions of dollars worth of studies – just to get to the point of breaking ground.
-       I have friends that spent tens of thousands of dollars on permits just to get a small manufacturing business created.  Just prior to the first shovel of dirt being turned, the EPA changed the rules – delaying their project another 18 months.  They eventually abandoned the project – and the jobs that would have gone with it.

Between an increase in taxes, mandatory health care, much tougher EPA and OSHA regulations, more required types of Insurance along with an increase insurance rates, mandatory disability insurance, an increase in legal and filing fees – is it any wonder that owner-operated small business is at it’s lowest level since records began?  One reason we aren't seeing a booming economy is because our Government (and it’s over- abundance of regulations) is killing the engine for growth.

Next up we have demographics, and they aren't pretty.  If you go back to the 60's and 70's when America was the creditor to the world and anyone that wanted a job could find one in a matter of 5 days – the demographics were much different than today.  After the WWII the GI's came home, went to college via the GI Bill, bought houses, and opened all manner of businesses.  Many created wealth and had children.  But we (as a society) tend to go overboard, spend too much, and take on too much debt.  Today, thousands of baby boomers are trying to retire and can't.
-       Each day almost 4,000 boomers reach the retirement age of 65 (and that number will grow for the next 8 years).  But due to the Fed’s 2% inflation policy (which is really closer to 8%) everything costs too much.  Baby Boomers are finding that they didn't save enough, and can’t retire.
-       45% of all working households have NO retirement assets.  Another 20% don't have enough to last a year.  Now add on to that the age factor, the loss of productivity, the accompanying increase in medical expenses – and it’s not a pretty picture.
-       Lastly, in the 60's, 70's, (and especially through the bulk of the 80's and 90's) people considered their home as their savings account.  Today, we still have over 7 Million homes ‘upside down’ on their mortgages.  We have millions of foreclosures still lurking in the shadows.  So at a time when millions of baby boomers are facing old age, they have no money and their homes can't save them.  

The biggest demographic "group" in our country is rushing headlong into a working retirement, which squeezes an already lousy job market.  21 year olds shouldn't have to fight with a 70 year old over a cashier job at Kmart. 

So, why isn't the Fed pulling levers and pushing buttons in order to fix this recession? They can’t.  This is not solely a monetary problem.  This is a much bigger problem.  No longer will printing money and cutting rates spur big jumps of economic activity.  The economy has been changed at its core, and QE can't fix that. 
-       We’ve never had 50 Million people on food stamps.
-       We’ve never had so many on disability.
-       We’ve never been this far in debt (as a nation).
-       We’ve never lost so much manufacturing.
-       We’ve never had this much regulation.
-       We’ve never had an entire generation (as big as the Baby Boomers) all facing retirement with no means to retire.
-       We've never had a housing market drop so far, and recover so slowly.
-       We've never had prices so high with wages so stagnant.
-       We’ve never had a stock market that cares not about earnings or valuations but simply ‘stimulus’. 
-       We’ve never had bankrupt cities.
-       We’ve never had soaring medical and energy costs.
-       We’ve never had a debt load that ‘mathematically’ is impossible to repay.
-       We’ve never had our top prescription drugs (as a nation) be tranquilizers, antacids, and erectile dysfunction pills!

I still think that the only way past this is thru gold and silver.  For 12 years now I’ve been preaching that buying gold was the single best thing anyone could do.  In 2007 I added silver to that list.  If the dollar is going away, if the entire global financial situation needs a reset – then replacing fiat dollars with a precious metal still sounds responsible to me.

This recession is not over.  The stock market only reflects Bernanke Bucks being jammed into a system that allows Wall Street and the bankers to get bigger bonuses. Detroit has just declared bankruptcy (the biggest city so far to do so), and joins 35 other municipalities that are also bankrupt.  Chicago (for example) has seen it’s ratings slahed 3 notches.  Chicago’s outlook is “Negative", and they recently announced the lay-off of an additional 1000 teachers.  

The Ben Bernanke can keep us alive on a respirator, but he can't fix the underlying disease, and that makes for dangerous times.

The Market:
 
I’m seeing major things happening in gold and silver.  The major banks are dramatically changing their futures contracts from being ‘net short’ to ‘net long’.  Recently J.P. Morgan (JPM) has demanded physical delivery for its silver contracts, something quite rare in the futures business.  (FYI - most commodities are bought and sold for the dollar gains, not really to take possession of the underlying asset. By demanding delivery, the supply system will indeed be in for a shock if this persists.)  JPM has one of the biggest gold warehouses on earth.  Yet for months the amount of eligible gold on hand has fallen.  Late Friday evening, it fell once again, leaving less than a single ton of the metal available.  Two years ago JPM had 3 Million ounces of gold available for delivery – today they have 46K ounces.  Along that same line, I’m seeing multiple countries now requesting their gold to be delivered back to them from the various Central bank vaults.  There is currently a shortage of the physical metal.  All the while, China and several other countries are adding to their gold stockpile.  Something is in the wind.  There is a tremendous "get what you can grab” going on by both Central banks and Sovereigns, and the rigged "paper gold price" take down of the metal was clearly a way to get speculators to sell their gold.  We are approaching a critical mass, where the physical metal may not be available for delivery.  What happens then?  My guess is that they the price will start to rise as those that didn't sell, look at this as an opportunity to "make some fast dollars".  

Look at the miners.  This group was ‘given up for dead’ – but recently Morningstar came out with a 5-Star rating on the group due to their extremely limited downside.  AUY for example, was trading at $8.60 on 6/27, and it closed Friday at $10.50. That's 23% in two weeks of trading.

This week the market was held hostage by The Ben Bernanke testimony.  Next week, I think that the traders will come back thinking that nothing has changed, and Benji’s going to keep the presses oiled and running hot.  If I’m right, there's no reason (other than the wildly overbought technicals) to keep everyone from buying more.  The big discussion is surrounding ‘tapering’ and honestly – it just doesn’t matter!  Even if The Ben Bernanke does announce and then commence to taper back from $85B to $65B – the market will most certainly drop an easy 1,000 points.  But then he will reinstitute  and (potentially) increase QE from the current $85B to $100B. 

Remember there are only two choices.  The FED either “prints forever” or pulls the plug and lets the global markets crash.  Unless those at the very top of the food chain have all agreed that the current global system can't be saved and are willing to start over, history says we will print and print until the weight of inflation takes us down by itself.  And what we heard from The Ben Bernanke during his testimony (twice) was that ‘if the data supported it, they may have to do even MORE accommodation.’  So, if the plan was to ‘crash the system’ – I don’t think he’d be talking about increasing QE.  So I’m on the side of continuing to print – and print no matter what. 

What about stocks?  Stocks are over-extended.  Today’s S&P is trading over 30% above it’s 200-week moving average.  We’ve never been 30% above that moving average before.  Secondly, the angle of ascent is showing that it’s climb is picking up the pace.  From April into May the S&P increased 128 points in just 23 trading sessions – before the market got shaken-up over "tapering".  Then from a low of 1560 on June 24, we gained an incredible 132 points in just 17 trading days.  The ascent is almost vertical.  Being this far over the 200-week average, and seeing a run this blistering, I could easily make the argument the market is going to need a break.  However, there seems to be no end in sight. 

We are cautiously long the market.  If they're going to manipulate it higher, we want in.  But don't forget, going back to November – we have not had any corrective pull back.  We are so overdue it is silly.  Yet they continue to take the daily POMO money and jam it into stocks and push them higher.  This will end one day, and it won’t be a fairy tale ending.

Tips:

This week we purchased some miners – and not just of precious metals – examine the following:

Company                              Description              2009 P/E        2013 P/E (est.)
Agnico Eagle (AEM)            Gold Miner                37.0                8.7      $28.20/sh.
Penn Virginia PVA)             Coal Miner                3.3                  1.0      $5.11/sh.
Barrick Gold  (ABX)              Gold Miner                6.8                  2.4      $16.56/sh.
Petrobras (PZE)                   Oil Producer             3.7                  2.9      $4.37/sh.
Peabody Energy (BTU)       Coal Miner                4.4                  3.8      $16.48/sh.
Ultra Petroleum (UPL)        Oil & Gas                   7.0                  5.1      $21.65/sh.
Newmont Mining (NEM)     Gold Miner                4.9                  4.2      $28.73/sh.
Kinross Gold (KGC)            Gold Miner                9.9                  4.0      $5.14/sh.
PetroChina (PTR)                Oil Producer             7.6                  4.0      $118.63/sh.
Arcelor Mittal (MT)                Steel Producer         6.8                  2.8      $12.72/sh.

The point being – these companies have been ‘beaten senseless’ by the market … and their downside is extremely limited (in my view) – while their upside is 300 to 400% in many cases.

My current short-term holds are:
-       SRPT – in at 41.08 (currently 44.25) – stop at 43.75,
-       NXPI – in at 32.51 (currently 32.69) – stop at 32.40,
-       ED – in at 59.01 (currently 60.49) – stop at entry,
-       FB – in at 25.61 (currently 25.93) – stop at entry,
-       AMAT – in at 16.02 (currently 16.56) – stop at entry,
-       JNJ – in at 89.00 (currently 92.42)  - stop at 91.50
-       BTU – in at 16.27 (currently 16.47) – no stop just yet
-       ACI – in at 3.95 (currently 4.12) – no stop just yet
-       SLW – in at 21.64 (currently 21.15) – no stop just yet
-       FCX – in at 28.47 (currently 28.51) – no stop just yet
-       SIL – in at 24.51 (currently 12.62) – no stop
-       GLD (ETF for Gold) – in at 158.28, (currently 125.21) – no stop ($1,293.30 per physical ounce), AND
-       SLV (ETF for Silver) – in at 28.3 (currently 18.90) – no stop ($19.45 per physical ounce).

To follow me on Twitter and 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, RF 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 <rfc@culbertsons.com> to inform me 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 my thoughts - please feel free to sign up as a Twitter follower -  "taylorpamm" is my 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.

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Until next week – be safe.

R.F. Culbertson
<http://rfcfinancialnews.blogspot.com>


Sunday, July 14, 2013

This Week in Barrons - 7-14-2013

This Week in Barrons – 7-14-2013

Somewhere our Attitudes have Changed?

The Martin/Zimmerman case has been decided with a ‘non-guilty’ verdict – in favor of Mr. Zimmerman.  I'm not going to debate the case, there's a court and a jury for that.  But let’s focus on the big pictures – as this is the part that is most disturbing to me, and will shape our lives in the future.  The Twitter and Facebook feeds are lighting up with talk of riots now that Mr. Zimmerman has been found not guilty.  CNN has come out and said that the Zimmerman case should have never gone to trial.  (Bill Lee, who testified Monday, told CNN's George Howell in an exclusive interview that he felt pressure from city officials to arrest Zimmerman to placate the public rather than as a matter of justice.)

This change in attitude is reflected in our economy.  Coal companies (for example) didn't go from $75/share to $4.99 because they changed the way they were mining coal, or coal itself stopped working as a fuel.  No, they were crippled because of the "change of attitude" – our President saying that coal companies will go ‘broke’ while on his watch. 

I’m worried that our attitudes are changing – and often not for the better.  Most people think we live in a Democracy.  We don't, we live in a Representative Republic.  Our forefathers set it that way for good reason.  Just because more than 50% of the people believe in something, that doesn't mean they're right.  Therefore, we elect a very good and decent representative, and their job is to evaluate our concerns and demands and go forth with what they believe is the right path.  When everyone is honest and caring, the system works pretty well.  But in times of attitudinal change – the system is prone to break down.

I normally talk about the economy and the insanity of our financial markets.  But as a person I tend to hang out with ‘salt of the earth’ types.  I get along better with people that have no pretense, and are sort of what you see is what you get.  From where I sit, the ‘salts’ are beginning to grumble.  Their employment situation is always in danger, the hours longer and the pay less.  They see their medical insurance soaring, and wonder how they'll pay for their kid’s college tuition next year.  The middle class ‘salts’ have been the bedrock of stability in the US for decades.  If they decide they've had enough, the results will be disastrous.  This divide is being reflected in numbers:
       The April Philly Fed manufacturing report came in well below consensus, on poor employment and new orders.
-       Consumer confidence has just hit its lowest level since November of 2011.
-       Corporate insiders are selling 9 times as many of their own shares as they are buying. The last time it was this high was in July 2011. Over the next couple of weeks, the Dow crashed about 2,000 points.
-       Suicide rates among middle-aged Americans have risen sharply in the past decade, prompting concern that a generation of baby boomers who have faced years of economic worry and easy access to prescription painkillers may be particularly vulnerable to self-inflicted harm.  And according to the Centers for Disease Control, more people now die of suicide than in car accidents.
-       Over 47 million Americans (one out of every six) are on food stamps. That number has quadrupled in a decade.
-       Over 54 million Americans are on Medicaid, up 60% since 2000.
-       Almost 9 million Americans are on disability insurance, up 70% since 2000.
-       Over 100 million Americans (one in three), are on some form of welfare program administered by the Federal Government.
-       The average student loan debt is now $24,300 per person for the 37 million Americans with outstanding balances.  Nearly 60% of the people who owe on student loans are over 30 years old, and almost 20% of them are over 50 years old.  Total student loan debt is now $1 trillion, more than credit card debt.
-       Total credit card debt is now $849 billion, or over $15,000 per household.
-       Total mortgage debt stands at $7.9 trillion.
-       All together, American consumers are more than $11.19 trillion in debt.
-       In a late-June 2013 survey by Bankrate.com – it was found that 76% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck.  Less than 25% have enough money to cover six months of expenses; about 50% have less than a three-month cushion; and 27% had no savings at all.
-       Another June survey by CashNetUSA found that 46% of Americans have less than $800 to their name.
-       Costs for food and education are up 144% on an inflation-adjusted basis since 1980, but median family income has only grown 8% in the same time, and is actually down over the past 14 years.

These trends are increasing, not decreasing.  Tensions are rising.  And I worry that our President is not bridging the divide(s) but rather making them wider.  The end result will be truly ugly if this keeps up.  There's a game called "knockout" (often called Polar Bear hunting).  This is where young, ethnic groups pick a random white person and sucker punch him until he is knocked unconscious or worse.  They film it and then post it on line.  I worry about the first time the ‘polar bear’ is armed and kills his 3 attackers in self-defense. The social and economic reverberations of an all out race war are something most people cannot fathom.  No one wants it, except it seems for the media.  But if indeed one comes, the situation will be very ugly.  In Zimmerman/Martin – not a word about race should have ever been muttered.  That must stop, or we are going to see massive troubles in the future.


The Market...

With moments left on Friday afternoon, the DOW was lagging a bit, and was in danger of closing "red" by about 10 points.  Well, after pushing the market to all new highs, they weren't going to spoil the weekend mood with a red close, and with a minute left we went green and ended the day "up".  We all know what happened.  The Ben Bernanke saw the market collapse when he started talking about removing QE, and quickly reversed himself saying that the jobs outlook and the economy in general seemed to demand even "more" stimulus.  Wall Street instantly dove right back into stocks and here we are, at all time highs again.

On Friday, J.P. Morgan (JPM) and Wells Fargo (WFC) beat their earnings estimates by accounting manipulations.  Meanwhile UPS (the package delivery company) came out and said that industrial America is soft and they would NOT meet their estimates.  Yet the stock market is at an all time high.  This is an anomaly that Mother Nature will not endure forever.  This will end, and the only question is whether it ends in a week or 2 years.

Right now, the stock market is at an all time high, and unlike the last time that happened back in 2007 not many people (other than stock pimps like CNBC) are terribly excited. People feel that something is wrong with this picture.  Sure, they're happy their 401k statements are looking good, but they aren't stupid.  They see a lousy jobs picture, and feel the inflation at the grocery store and at the pump.

This rally is built purely on the idea of The Ben Bernanke printing money.  We have the proof.  When the Ben Bernanke himself mentioned an end to QE the market tanked.  So, if we fell 800 points simply because The Ben Bernanke talks of ending QE, and we then gain it all back when he takes ‘back’ his statement – you can pretty much rest assured that those 800 points had nothing to do with the economy, earnings or any other fundamental other than ‘free money.’

Okay, so what do we do about it?  If this market holds up for a couple days, we have to consider the idea that they're going to jam it even higher, and we'll have to hold our nose and lean even ‘longer’.  I don't particularly like the idea of investing because of a fraud Central banker printing money, but you need to play the hand that you’re dealt.

On the 17th and the 18th, The Ben Bernanke will be addressing Congress at the once named: ‘Humphrey Hawkins’ meeting.  This is where he explains (to all the politicians) his view of the economy.  Every ear will be on him, dissecting every word for more hints that he's going to keep the pedal to the metal.  If he gives them that belief, I have to believe we'll soar even higher.  But, once again we are being held hostage to The Ben Bernanke.  If he toughens up again and mentions tapering or reducing QE, we'll lose the 800 points we just got back in a flash.  So, it isn't written in stone just yet that this big breakout is going to hold. But, we'll certainly have the answer to that by Friday.

If it's “All QE, All the Time” – we will need to get very involved.  As crazy as this sounds, we could see DOW 17K in just a few months.  If he gets timid on it, we will need to sit on our hands, or begin to short term trade on the short side.  So, instead of investing over growth, earnings, profits, and a 5% GDP – we’re investing based upon whether a Central banker is going to print trillions.  Good luck all, and be careful out there.

Tips:

This week we purchased some SRPT, FB, AMAT and some JNJ.  Our list of stocks that we’re interested in – if this breakout is secure – is a lengthy list indeed.  These are simply chart patterns that are forming and looking attractive.  We'll need to make sure of their earnings dates – because we don’t like to hold stocks over their earnings date.  The list includes:
      RVBD over 17.35,
-       NUAN over 19.60,
-       NXPI over 32.50,
-       NFX over 25.65,
-       ATI over 28.50,
-       MM over 10,
-       RIG over 50.10,
-       BAS over 14.20,
-       BTU over 16.35,
-       SSYS over 95,
-       AXP over 78,
-       BRCM over 35.08,
-       INTC over 24.10,
-       DDD over 50,
-       ABT over 35.60,
-       DECK over 56,
-       FIVE over 40,
-       ED over 59, and
-       SLB over 78.00.

Obviously that is quite a list, but it’s a rough idea of what looks good right now, and what stocks have a good fundamental reason to run.  We can’t buy them all, but as they get into their buy-in areas (if earnings are still over two days away) they could/should make good trades.  I’m not loading up the boat until after The Ben Bernanke does his Humphrey Hawkins testimony (in front of Congress) on Wednesday and Thursday.

Congrats to all who got in on the PCYC run – it was a quick 15+% in one week.

My current short-term holds are:
-       SRPT – in at 41.08 (currently 44.40) – stop at 42.50,
-       FB – in at 25.61 (currently 25.85) – stop at entry,
-       AMAT – in at 16.02 (currently 16.55) – stop at entry,
-       JNJ – in at 89.00 (currently 89.89)  - stop at entry
-       SIL – in at 24.51 (currently 12.07) – no stop
-       GLD (ETF for Gold) – in at 158.28, (currently 124.05) – no stop ($1,277.80 per physical ounce), AND
-       SLV (ETF for Silver) – in at 28.3 (currently 19.24) – no stop ($19.77 per physical ounce).

To follow me on Twitter and 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, RF 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 <rfc@getabby.com> to inform me 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 my thoughts - please feel free to sign up as a Twitter follower -  "taylorpamm" is my 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
<mailto:rfc@getabby.com>
<http://rfcfinancialnews.blogspot.com>