Tony Daltorio

Tony, a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, contributes articles regularly to CommodityHQ. He has spent nearly three decades in the investment business, including 17 years working with retail clients at Charles Schwab giving him insight to the average investor. For the past handful of years, Tony has written numerous articles, with an emphasis on commodities and emerging markets, for many of the best investing sites for retail investors including Investopedia, Seeking Alpha, Investment U, the OIl and Gas Investments newsletter and the Motley Fool Blog Network.

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Posts By Tony


CU Vs. JJC: How They’ve Performed So Far In 2012

The history of copper and its two main alloys, bronze and brass, is basically a chapter by chapter story of humankind’s progress from the Stone Age to the present. It was the first metal used in any quantity by people thanks to it being very ductile, malleable and resistance to corrosion. In modern times, these characteristics, along with copper’s ability to conduct heat and electricity, continue to make it among the most used metals. The red commodity being at the heart of so many industrial applications is the reason why analysts offer refer to it as “Dr. Copper,” with a Ph.D. in economics [for more copper news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Academic Research, Actionable Ideas, Asset Allocation, Commodity ETF Analysis, Commodity ETFs, Copper, Industrial Metals | Leave a comment

An Investor’s Primer To Gold Mining: How They Dig Up The Yellow Metal

Gold mining has certainly come a long ways from the images in the history books of the 49ers in California using their picks and shovels or of the Yukon Gold Rush of the late 1890s panning for gold in streams. Today, mining for gold is a multinational, multimillion dollar business taken up largely by big companies, such as Barrick Gold (ABX), using much more sophisticated methods and equipment than swinging a pick at a rock. That is because most of the surface gold, called alluvial gold, has been found and gold now must be mined from the earth [for more gold news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Academic Research, Commodity Producers, Gold, Precious Metals | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

What South Africa Means To The Platinum Market

Platinum generally receives less attention from investors than other precious metals, but it is rarer than gold or silver. The metal’s physical characteristics have made it important for a wide variety of industrial applications. Its resistance to corrosion, for example, makes it ideal for use in automobile catalytic converters. This use alone accounts for about 50% of its usage. In addition, it used in electronics and fuel cells. The petroleum industry uses it in the cracking process in oil refineries. And of course, platinum is used extensively in jewelry [for more platinum news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Actionable Ideas, Asset Allocation, Commodity ETFs, Commodity Futures, Commodity Producers, Platinum, Precious Metals | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

3 Countries with Largest Silver Reserves

Like its commodity cousin gold, silver has a rich history dating back thousands of years. It was first mined about 5,000 years ago in Anatolia (modern day Turkey). When the Europeans came to the New World, they found abundant silver. In fact, in the period between 1500 and 1800, the Latin American countries of Peru, Bolivia and Mexico accounted for more than 85% of global silver production. Since then, however, silver has been discovered in regions all over the world, making silver mining a global industry [for more silver news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Asset Allocation, Commodity ETFs, Commodity Producers, Precious Metals, Silver | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

3 Countries With The Largest Gold Reserves

Gold has a rich history throughout the centuries as a store of value and a means of exchange (money) for goods and services between peoples all over the world, no matter the particular culture. Perhaps that is because gold is found in so many locations around the globe. Today, gold producing countries are found on nearly all continents and run the gamut from economic superpowers like the United States to small, emerging market economies. No single country produces more than 14% of the gold mined each year, making it truly a global industry [for more gold news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Academic Research, Actionable Ideas, Gold, Precious Metals | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Oil and Corn: 2 Volatile Commodities

Commodities may be the most fascinating of investments. No worries about quarterly earnings or a company cooking its books with commodities. But investors do have to be alert to a multitude of factors including the weather, geopolitics, and trends in supply and demand for a specific commodity. All of these factors can sometimes lead to a good amount of volatility in the price of a particular commodity.

Posted in Agriculture, Asset Allocation, Brent Oil, Commodity ETFs, Commodity Futures, Corn, Energy, WTI | Tagged | Leave a comment

The Five Minute Guide to Cocoa ETFs

There may be no words to adequately describe what a chocoholic feels as he or she indulges their taste for anything and everything chocolate. Now, thanks to advancements made in the investment markets, chocoholics and anyone else can make money from the global craze for chocolate through an investment in cocoa, the main ingredient in chocolate.

Posted in Agriculture, Asset Allocation, Cocoa, Commodity ETFs, Commodity Futures | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

The Five Minute Guide to Cotton ETFs

The world of commodities was not accessible to most average investors just a few short years ago. But today, there are exchange-traded funds that allow investors to gain exposure to many commodities, both as an asset class and as a way to participate in the movements of an individual commodity, even rather obscure ones, without a futures account.

Posted in Actionable Ideas, Agriculture, Asset Allocation, Commodity ETFs, Commodity Futures, Cotton | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

The Five Minute Guide To Sugar ETFs

Sugar is another of the so-called breakfast commodities, along with coffee, cocoa and orange juice. Like the others, it also has a rich history. It is thought to have been first used by humans in Polynesia many centuries ago, but was not discovered by Europeans until the 11th century thanks to the Crusades. It was first brought to the Americas by Columbus in 1493 and soon thereafter it was found that the sugar cane plant grew extremely well in tropical environments [see also Jim Rogers Says: Buy Commodities Now, Or You’ll Hate Yourself Later]. 

Posted in Actionable Ideas, Agriculture, Asset Allocation, Commodity ETFs, Commodity Futures, Sugar | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

ETFs to Hedge Rising Prices at the Pump

If there is one economic item that unites Americans in frustration, it’s the rising price of gasoline. The fuel for our vehicles has become a necessity for many of us, so price hikes hit hard in the wallet, affecting purchases of other items. So why are gasoline prices on a long-term upward slope? Some Americans point the finger at greedy oil companies, but that is not the answer. Yes, refining margins do play a role in the price of gasoline, but there is one critical factor behind higher gasoline prices: the rising price of crude oil [for more commodity news subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Actionable Ideas, Asset Allocation, Brent Oil, Commodity ETFs, Energy, Gasoline, WTI | Tagged , , | 7 Comments
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