The 5 Worst Commodities of 2012

This past year has certainly been a volatile one for the commodity space, but the majority of these assets has been able to net a positive return on the year. Lumber and soybeans led the pack, as each appreciated more than 35% for the year. But bringing up the rear are a few commodities who are no strangers to volatility and weak performances. Below, we outline the five worst performing commodities of 2012 to give investors a better idea of how the year shaped up [for more commodity news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Actionable Ideas, Agriculture, Asset Allocation, Coffee, Cotton, Energy, Natural Gas, Orange Juice, Sugar | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

The Best And Worst Soft Commodity ETPs Of 2012

In the commodity world, active trading reigns supreme; many investors measure their holding period by minutes and hours rather than by weeks and months. Among the most popular items to trade, soft commodities have found a particular niche with those who can stomach their risk. Made up of cocoa, coffee, cotton and sugar, the soft commodities are among the most volatile on the market and, as such, have become a trader’s dream [for more soft commodity news subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Agriculture, Asset Allocation, Cocoa, Coffee, Commodity ETF Analysis, Commodity ETFs, Cotton, Sugar | Leave a comment

A Deeper Look At Brazil’s Commodity Industry

Due to better governance practices and a commodity boom, Brazil’s economy has enjoyed incredible growth over the past 20 years. Brazil is now the largest economy in Latin America and the sixth or seventh largest economy depending upon the metric used. On the other hand, while Brazil’s GDP per capita has improved, it still ranks at a relatively low 64th in the world – meaning that it is a large economy, but not an especially wealthy one yet (at least not uniformly so). While Brazil has made a concerted effort to build up its manufacturing sector (and reduce the risk of being trapped as a commodity-driven economy), minerals, energy and agriculture are still very significant to the Brazilian economy, as well as the larger global economy [for more commodity news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Academic Research, Agriculture, Aluminum, Biofuels, Coal, Coffee, Commodity ETFs, Commodity Futures, Commodity Producers, Copper, Corn, Energy, Gold, Industrial Metals, Natural Gas, Precious Metals, Soybeans, Steel, Sugar, Wheat | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Soft Commodity ETFs Suffer A Slaughter

As markets prepare for another four years of Barack Obama, it is safe to say that trading has been anything but smooth. With most benchmarks suffering a poor string of sessions last week, many are looking to the near-term or have focused on exactly what happened last week. But with commodity investing, it is always important to take a look at longer-developing trends, as they can often signal how a particular asset will perform in the near future [for more softs news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Agriculture, Cocoa, Coffee, Cotton, Sugar | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

For Day Traders: The Most Liquid ETF for Every Commodity

The introduction of commodity ETFs brought trading to a whole new level, as your average retail investor now has the opportunity to trade something like natural gas futures through a single ticker. As the years have gone on, a number of these products have grown to be some of the most widely-used financial instruments for their respective commodity. One advantage to ETFs, however, is that liquidity is not hindered by average volume due the the creation process. Instead, there will just be some funds that are more liquid and tradable than others [for more commodity ETF news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Academic Research, Actionable Ideas, Agriculture, Alternative Energy, Aluminum, Asset Allocation, Brent Oil, Cocoa, Coffee, Commodity ETF Analysis, Commodity ETFs, Copper, Corn, Cotton, Energy, Gasoline, Gold, Heating Oil, Industrial Metals, Lead, Livestock, Natural Gas, Nickel, Nuclear, Palladium, Platinum, Precious Metals, Silver, Solar, Soybeans, Sugar, Tin, Wheat, Wind | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

For Long Term Investors: The Cheapest ETF for Every Commodity

After gathering more than $1 trillion in total assets under management, ETFs have cemented their place in the financial world. Among the universe of nearly 1,500 products, commodity funds have garnered a lot of attention, as these products have democratized an asset class that was once difficult to reach by retail investors. Now, there are a number of exchange-traded options to help you gain exposure to your favorite hard assets, all at a low cost.

Posted in Academic Research, Actionable Ideas, Agriculture, Alternative Energy, Aluminum, Asset Allocation, Brent Oil, Cocoa, Coffee, Commodity ETF Analysis, Commodity ETFs, Commodity Futures, Copper, Corn, Cotton, Energy, Gasoline, Gold, Heating Oil, Industrial Metals, Lead, Livestock, Natural Gas, Nickel, Nuclear, Palladium, Platinum, Precious Metals, Silver, Solar, Soybeans, Steel, Sugar, Tin, Wheat, Wind, WTI | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Why Jim Rogers Still Loves Agricultural Commodities

Given all of the turmoil in markets this year, we have seen a number of investors change their positions on statements made in the past. Jim Rogers, for example, has now stated that he is looking into investing in Russia after snubbing the country for his entire investing life. But there is one thing that Rogers is still as bullish as ever on, agricultural commodities. It has been no secret that he has been a fan of these hard assets for quite some time, but a recent interview shows that he still loves these commodities and is as bullish as ever [for more agricultural news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Academic Research, Actionable Ideas, Agriculture, Asset Allocation, Cocoa, Coffee, Commodity ETFs, Corn, Cotton, Soybeans, Sugar, Wheat | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments

Which Coffee ETF Is Right For You? JO vs. CAFE

Although most might think of coffee as their breakfast-time drink of choice (or in most cases, necessity), its popularity as a lucrative financial instrument has surged in recent years. This soft commodity is well known around the world as a staple of many diets. While coffee’s uses are quite limited outside of the consumption scope, the massive demand for this product has allowed it to become one of the most active futures contracts on the market [for more coffee news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Agriculture, Asset Allocation, Coffee, Commodity ETF Analysis, Commodity ETFs | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Three Commodities To Watch in Q4

As we wrap up the third quarter of 2012, many look ahead to finalize their portfolios for the year. By most equity standards, 2012 has been a very successful year, but the same cannot be said for commodities. As always, the commodity industry has picked its darlings and singled out its laggards, making profits for some and drawing up big losses for others. With nine months of the year in the bag, it will be a good time to reassess your holdings to see if it may be the right time to reallocate or if there are more promising opportunities out there [for more commodity news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Actionable Ideas, Agriculture, Asset Allocation, Cocoa, Coffee, Commodity Futures, Cotton, Energy, Natural Gas, Soybeans, Sugar | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

The Five Minute Guide To Coffee ETFs

The average coffee drinker probably doesn’t realize what a huge global business coffee is. As one of the so-called breakfast commodities (along with orange juice, sugar and cocoa), coffee is the world’s most widely-traded tropical agricultural commodity. It is also the world’s second-highest traded commodity, trailing only crude oil [for more commodity news subscribe to our free newsletter].

Posted in Academic Research, Agriculture, Asset Allocation, Coffee, Commodity ETFs, Commodity Futures | Tagged , | 3 Comments
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