"The last time I focused on commodities was back in 2009 when the recovery was piecing itself together. Now, most of the pieces of the recovery are in place, with the notable misfits being job creation and home values," notes Jim Lowell, a leading specialist on Fidelity funds.

The editor of Fidelity Investor explains, "Today, commodities are in increasingly short supply as increasing global consumer demand, geopolitical disruptions, and even Mother Nature have taken their toll on the supply of goods and services.

Continue reading A Six-Pack of Commodity-Based Funds

A Six-Pack of Commodity-Based Funds originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"You're probably having a tough time these days if you live off the interest from your investment portfolio; money market accounts are now yielding a paltry 0.76%," observes fund specialist Ron Rowland.

The contributing editor to Money and Markets explains, "There is no big mystery why this is happening ... Ever since the banking system started blowing up back in 2008, Ben Bernanke and his Federal Reserve have kept short-term interest rates at historic lows. That's great for bankers, terrible for savers.

"Many investors are watching their income slide. These low rates have income-investors looking for new sources of steady interest and dividends. The alternatives are few. And I'm concerned that some people are so desperate that they're risking their principal in ways they don't even realize!

Continue reading Income Partnerships: ETNs That Invest in MLPs

Income Partnerships: ETNs That Invest in MLPs originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 14 May 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

For 25 years, Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, has surveyed the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is one of 100+ ideas in the Best Stocks for 2008 report.

"The commodity bull market has a long way to run, powered by explosive growth in the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) countries," says Sean Broderick, resource stocks editor for Money & Markets.

"My top conservative pick to play the broad commodities bull market is the broad-based exchange-traded PowerShares DB Commodity Index Tracking Fund (NYSE: DBC).

"As an ETF, it is like a mutual fund. However, ETFs usually have lower costs than a mutual fund and you can buy and sell an ETF throughout the day, whereas a mutual fund trades once a day.

The PowerShares DB Commodity Index Tracking Fund has a long name but a simple idea -- the fund invests in commodities: crude oil, heating oil, aluminum, gold, corn and wheat. DBC invests in that basket of commodities by purchasing futures contracts. It rebalances annually to 35% crude, 20% heating oil, and 10% to 12.5% of the other four."

Best Stocks for 2008: Bet on commodity bull with DB Commodity ETF (DBC) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 19 Dec 2007 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"On an ongoing basis, we try to talk with the managers of the funds in our Best Buys portfolio; we recently spoke with Charlie Ober of T. Rowe Price New Era (PRNEX)," says Mark Salzinger in The No-Load Fund Investor. Here are highlights from his discussion with the resources manager.

"Ober has positions New Era not only to benefit from likely strong profits in the broad natural resources sector, but also to protect against rising costs within the sector itself. The fund continues to have a large position in energy stocks, which is now 70% of the portfolio.

"Ober has been gradually adjusting the mix of the fund toward oil and gas services and drilling companies, along with engineering and construction firms.

"These types of companies have pricing power, and they can serve the U.S. energy producers along with non-U.S. independent products and the many state-owned or affiliated oil producers overseas. As of the end of July, these types of companies represented six out of the top ten holdings.

Continue reading Best energy ideas: A 'New Era' for resources

Best energy ideas: A 'New Era' for resources originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 19 Oct 2007 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.