"I've long believed that China's currency is due to appreciate notably against the buck," says currency expert Jack Crooks, upon returning from speaking at a Forex seminar in Beijing.

In his World Currency Alert he explains, "Until now, there's been no straight-forward, highly-liquid way to play it. Now there is: the WisdomTree Chinese Yuan Fund (NYSE: CYB)."

"I now think it makes sense to secure some exposure to the Chinese yuan. There's been a major U.S.-China dynamic that's drastically altered the global economic landscape over the last several years. It goes a little something like this:

• China sends goods to the U.S.
• The U.S. sends dollars to China.
• China sends dollars back to U.S.
• The U.S. sends treasuries to China.

"Ultimately, China supplies the globe with liquidity. Behind this capital flow is an artificially undervalued Chinese yuan. This exchange rate situation is why China has become a major supplier of goods and capital to the rest of the world.

Each year Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, surveys the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is part of his 24th annual Top Picks Report.

China Life Insurance Co. (NYSE: LFC) is the favorite conservative stock for 2007 from Jim Trippon, editor of The China Stock Digest. The advisor, who maintains permanent offices in China, says, "Although the stock has performed strongly in 2006, we still see strong gains ahead.

"China Life is China's largest insurance company; it has written more than 48 million individual and group policies and has a huge sales force of 640,000 agents who operate in 9,300 field offices throughout the world's most populous country.

"China Life first caught our attention as a potentially huge growth engine in December 2005 with its announcement that it had been given the go-ahead by the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) to set up a pension business as it moves to expand into the fast-growing corporate annuities sector.

"This is a major breakthrough in a nation of 1.3 billion prospects who can no longer rely on the government for their pensions. CIRC expects the country's corporate annuity net premiums to grow by 100 billion Yuan, or US$124 million, annually for the next several years. We expect China Life's historical statistics to move up rapidly as its large sales force is tasked to move aggressively into pension funding."

To see Jim's favorite speculation for 2007, click here.

Each year Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, surveys the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is part of his 24th annual Top Picks Report.

China Direct, Inc. (OTCBB: CHND) is the favorite speculative idea for 2007 from Jim Trippon. The editor of The China Stock Digest explains, "China Direct invests in companies that need a capital infusion to achieve the next level in their growth.

"Unfortunately, major Chinese banks and other large financial institutions have shunned smaller institutions and typically lend only to the country's very large cap companies. The small to mid-cap investment gap is where China Direct comes in.

"This year China Direct has invested $4 million to acquire controlling interests in five companies, including a chemical maker, a magnesium refiner, a logistics company, a toy producer, and a metals recycling firm. China Direct projects that revenues will double from 2007 to 2008 as it continues its small and mid-cap acquisition and expansion strategy.