When you are in a hole, stop digging -- no expression better exemplifies the situation in Venezuela caused by Hugo Chavez and his government. Obviously, this is not something they understand, as the current administration keeps digging the Venezuelan economy into a deeper hole, intensified by its attempt to nationalize rigs owned by a U.S.-based company.

On Wednesday, Venezuelan Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez issued a statement that Petroleos de Venezuela SA, the state oil company, was going to nationalize 11 oil rigs owned by Helmerich & Payne, a Tulsa, Oklahoma-based drilling company.

Continue reading Hugo Chavez Government to Nationalize U.S. Company Rigs

Hugo Chavez Government to Nationalize U.S. Company Rigs originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 25 Jun 2010 10:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Hugo Chavez Racing Toward Economic Peril

Hugo Chavez Racing Toward Economic Peril originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 16 Mar 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Revlon (REV) is not a company I typically think of when planning an investment strategy. But the rise in its shares over the last year has put the business on many trading radars. Looking at the fourth quarter report, I myself have to wonder if the story is now worth more investigation.

Sales decreased just under 2% once currency effects are stripped out. Net income as a whole increased 9% to 24 cents per share. Profit from continuing operations did a little better, jumping over 13% to 25 cents per share. This wasn't enough to satisfy the analysts. They were projecting 35 cents per share.

Continue reading Revlon Reports Earnings Growth, but Misses Estimates

Revlon Reports Earnings Growth, but Misses Estimates originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 26 Feb 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

If you look at the growth rates, however, things don't appear to be so bad. According to the actual corporate press release, diluted earnings per share increased 15% on a reported basis. Sales shot up 13% (or 8% in terms of local currency). Gross margin also expanded.

Continue reading Avon Grows Q4 Profit, but Stock Selling Off

Avon Grows Q4 Profit, but Stock Selling Off originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 05 Feb 2010 15:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Investors in developing countries no doubt wonder which countries that issue debt are safe and which ones could default. CMA Datavision, a subsidiary of CME, has put together the "Sovereign Risk Monitor."

The Risk Monitor uses five-year credit default swaps (CDSs) and ranks the countries according to volatility. It uses the percent of change to determine the ranking of these countries. The new index is called the cumulative possibility of default (CPD). If, for example, a country has a 20% CPD, it has a one in five chance of defaulting in the next five years. Also included is their most recent credit rating.

Continue reading Which Government Debt Issuers Are Most Likely to Default?

Which Government Debt Issuers Are Most Likely to Default? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 20 Dec 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Under the radar: Saudi oil exports to U.S. fall to 22-year low

Under the radar: Saudi oil exports to U.S. fall to 22-year low originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Iran will waste four more years

Iran will waste four more years originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 15 Jun 2009 18:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It's bad enough that Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) killed its C2 brand a few years ago -- I still have one memorial (empty) can I keep in my china cabinet for posterity. Now Coke Zero, the soft-drink behemoth's alternative for those of us that don't quite dig the Diet Coke taste, poses a "danger to health" in South America? What the what?

Yesterday, the Venezuelan government ordered Coca-Cola to pull the Coke Zero brand from the country's shelves, claiming unspecified health risks. The nation's health minister simply said that the zero-calorie fizzy drink "should be withdrawn from circulation to preserve the health of Venezuelans."

Continue reading Coke Zero, dangerous? Venezuela says yes

Coke Zero, dangerous? Venezuela says yes originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 11 Jun 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Sheldon Liber is the CEO of a small private investment company and the principal for design and research at an architecture & planning firm. He writes the columns Chasing Value and Serious Money. DISCLOSURE: I own shares of CX but not XOM .

Hugo Chavez wants those bad capitalists to bail him out of a jam originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 15 Jan 2009 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Slowdown pushing oil toward $60 as OPEC prepares to cut production

Slowdown pushing oil toward $60 as OPEC prepares to cut production originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 20 Oct 2008 11:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Oil falls to $75 after OPEC cuts 2009 global oil demand forecast

Oil falls to $75 after OPEC cuts 2009 global oil demand forecast originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 15 Oct 2008 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Saudis, sensing ominous global situation, seen letting oil price fall to assist recovery

Saudis, sensing ominous global situation, seen letting oil price fall to assist recovery originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 10 Oct 2008 13:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

U.S. consumers have another reason to worry about gas prices. Two of the largest oil-producing nations in the world are forming a military alliance, and neither nation likes the U.S.

According to The Wall Street Journal, "Venezuela's President Hugo Chávez signed new energy agreements with Russia on Friday, shortly after obtaining a $1 billion loan to buy more Russian arms."

Chavez has kicked a number of U.S. and EU oil companies out of his country as he has nationalized the industry. It would not be beyond imagination that Russia and the South American nation would use a combination of oil and guns to try to weaken U.S. influence in its own hemisphere and force America into more military spending to patrol the regions to its south.

Chavez has already begun spreading money around to his neighbors in the hope of being viewed favorably. Having a stronger military presence should help him make the case that he can keep the U.S. from using its power to push him out of his role as the most powerful political figure north of Brazil and south of Mexico.

Continue reading Another problem with oil: Russia gives Venezuela cash

Another problem with oil: Russia gives Venezuela cash originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 27 Sep 2008 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

One wouldn't call it the best week in the world for OPEC.

Once again, the world's best-known cartel has demonstrated that the coalition is not as cohesive or harmonious as a symphony orchestra.

Saudi Arabia, in confidential communications, let it be known that the kingdom would ignore the stated intent of other cartel members and continue to pump plenty of oil, The New York Times reported.

On Wednesday, OPEC announced that members would redouble effort to adhere to production quotas -- not exceed them as some members typically do -- an effort that, if effective, would be tantamount to a roughly 500,000-barrel per day cut in production, The Times reported.

OPEC's hawkish members said lower production is needed to eliminate what it believes is an oversupply in the market, and they cited this as the reason oil's price has fallen about 30% in two months to the $100-range, Bloomberg News reported. Oil closed Friday up 31 cents to $101.18 per barrel.

Continue reading Once again, as the Saudis go, so goes the price of oil

Once again, as the Saudis go, so goes the price of oil originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 13 Sep 2008 17:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In the margins of Barron's this week there was a smallish note about the government of Venezuela nationalizing Cemex's (NYSE: CX) operations in that country. For some reason the government of Hugo Chavez thinks that stealing all of the private companies in 'his' country will lead to greater prosperity for 'his' people.

While it is a long journey from Venezuela to Zimbabwe, with its exponential inflation rate and a near-total economic breakdown, every journey begins with a first step. Mr. Chavez will move much closer to this inevitable outcome if he continues on his chosen path.

Motley Fool has a good write-up on the subject in which they detail the sour relations between Chavez and foreign businesses. Chavez recently offered to re-open negotiations with Cemex, but since he has already decided to take the company, that offer is suspect -- you can't negotiate with a gun pointing at you. To date, Chavez has nationalized the telecommunications industry, electricity, and oil. How many steps down the road is that? Why would anyone want to invest in Venezuela?

Continue reading Could Venezuela become Zimbabwe? Ask Cemex

Could Venezuela become Zimbabwe? Ask Cemex originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 26 Aug 2008 14:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

At this juncture, investors/readers thinking about speculating a little in oil via shares in the United States Oil Fund (AMEX: USO) or via an integrated oil company should think again.

With the U.S. stock market meandering and the nation's economic doldrums continuing, the urge can build in investors, particularly those less-experienced, to try something daring.

However, the oil market is currently in a tug-of-war between the geopolitical concern-oriented bulls and the global economy slowdown-oriented bears.

In other words, the oil market is about as balanced -- or as divided -- as it has been in about two years, so says energy trader Jim Dietz. Oil closed Friday up $1.02 to $125.10 per barrel. Oil is down about 15% from its all-time high of $147.27 registered on July 11, 2008, but is still up about 100% over the past year and about 400% since 2000.

Continue reading Oil market caught in bullish-geopolitical, bearish-economy tug-of-war

Oil market caught in bullish-geopolitical, bearish-economy tug-of-war originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 02 Aug 2008 16:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

OPEC has repeated what it has said before, but with a little twist. It will not raise supply before its September meeting. That means that relief from $130 plus crude prices may not be coming.

But, the small addition to the group's comments is that "OPEC has no plans to meet to discuss oil's surge to a fresh record, and would need to see a real supply threat to gather before the next scheduled meeting," according to Reuters.

While it is not entirely clear what that means, it probably includes disruptions of oil production in areas that have little political stability, especially Nigeria and Venezuela.

In general, OPEC says that speculation and a weak dollar are driving oil up. That is a convenient excuse for a cartel that is making hundreds of billions of dollars while gasoline prices move toward $5.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

OPEC: Supply only rises on "a real supply threat" originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 08 Jun 2008 06:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

When oil was at $65 a barrel, almost no one believed it would double. There were a few nuts making the case, but they were ignored like Galileo was when he said the Earth moved around the sun.

Now, it is hard to find analysts who do not believe oil is going to move over $140 a barrel, and, perhaps above $200. Their reasoning is sound enough. Demand in emerging nations like China and India is still increasing. While crude use in the U.S. may be off slightly, it's not off enough to matter. Supplies may be drying up as fields in the Middle East, Mexico, and Russia age. A political catastrophe in Nigeria or Venezuela could cut production.

Against all that, a case for a sharp drop in oil prices is quietly forming and its logic is powerful but poorly understood.

The first argument that oil is too high is that it has been pushed up in part by speculators rushing to cover bets that crude will fall. It is a bit like a "short squeeze" in stocks. Once the "covering" is done, oil prices will face less pressure on the upside.

Continue reading Finally, a powerful bear case for oil prices

Finally, a powerful bear case for oil prices originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 25 May 2008 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

American motorists, already stung by an 80% increase in gasoline prices in the past year, sense that $5 per gallon is ahead, and they may be (regrettably) right.

A CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll found that 94% of respondents expect to pay $4 per gallon this year, and 78% expect to pay as much as $5, CNNMoney reported Tuesday.

The national average currently is $3.62 per gallon as tracked by the Lundberg Survey, Bloomberg News reported. Many higher-cost areas of the United States -- including New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Boston -- are already experiencing prices over $4 per gallon.

Further, traders and analysts say seasonal, structural, and geopolitical factors are likely to push gasoline considerably higher in the weeks ahead -- with gasoline's upward arc lasting months, if the price of oil continues to rise.

Primary culprit: Rising oil prices

The biggest factor in gasoline's rise is the price of oil, which Tuesday topped $122 per barrel in NYMEX trading for the first time in its history. Oil is up more than 100% since 2006. In November 2001, oil traded at about $17 per barrel. Moreover, because the crude component accounts for more than 60% of the price of a gallon of gasoline, refiners have passed that added cost onto consumers.

Continue reading Americans sense $5 gas is near, and $122 oil says they're probably right

Americans sense $5 gas is near, and $122 oil says they're probably right originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 06 May 2008 13:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Venezuela starts collecting new windfall profits tax on oil companies

Venezuela starts collecting new windfall profits tax on oil companies originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 18 Apr 2008 14:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.