Another Use for Gold: Rub It on Your Face

A spa in Thailand has come up with another use for gold. The spa is offering gold facials. People are taking advantage of it because they believe the gold removes toxins from the skin. At the Princess Beauty spa in Bangkok, demand for gold facials has increased at the price of gold has risen.

How to Pan for Gold on the Streets of New York City

This video is pretty incredible. It shows how one guy makes a living by prospecting for gold on the sidewalks of New York. This guy is hundred percent genuine.

Buying gold online

Most of us do some shopping online, some regularly shop online while a small number of us even shop online 100% of the time choosing not to go through the hassle of driving to a physical store thus avoiding traffic jams and long queues at the checkout counter. And for some, shopping online could be the best thing that's ever happened!

We buy books, clothes, shoes, household items, kitchenware, insurance, movie tickets, watches, CDs, DVDs, medications, exercise equipment and lots of others online. Perhaps, it's now time that we also buy gold coin online. Besides the price factor, the next stumbling block to buying gold (or silver and other precious metals) is that it is not that convenient. Wouldn't you agree? For instance, over here, in order to buy gold, one has to go to a bank, open an account by filling in a form before ownership of gold can happen. Maybe it's the same procedure in other countries, I don't know.

I just received an email about a vending machine for buying gold coins in many denominations but that is only in Abu Dhabi. I'm pretty sure this convenience won't happen anywhere else in the world for a long time or perhaps never at all. If you are looking to buying gold online or to buy gold coin, the next best thing would be buying it online. Buying gold online offers many advantages especially if you are shopping with Oxbridge House where they have experts to help you with your transaction whether it's for an investment or a collection.

This is The Seventh Lunar Month

Bad news sells (newspapers). Indeed. Some say to stay away from reading the papers. But then again, how else are we to get news if we stay away from papers and the media. These are the places we get news from. Unfortunately, there is more bad news than good news these days. These are just a couple of the happenings around the world today.

1. London burns. I have a couple of girlfriends who are in England as we speak. I hope the city they are in is not affected by this rioting violence happening in various parts of the country. This chaos does not augur well for a country gearing up for the 2012 Summer Olympics less than a year away.

2. The share markets all over are going south, first in the US with Stocks Suffering Sharpest Drop Since 2008 and the trend spreading to Asia, including Malaysia. Last time I checked at 12:30PM, the FBMKLCI closed at 1461.21 (-35.78). Is a recession in the offing? May be a good time (as any) to further tighten your belts or if you have cash to spare pick up some good stocks (and gold) which has hit a record high?

These are just two examples of bad (understatement) news around and affecting most if not all of us. It's tiring to talk about negative events. Things, bad things, happen this time of the year, the infamous seventh month of the lunar calendar. Gosh, do I sound superstitious or what! No, I'm actually not superstitious, maybe a little, but being of Chinese descent and growing up in a Buddhist/Taoist environment, Chinese family traditions and customs are part of my life.

Anyway, there is this prediction of the seventh lunar month that I read and the events happening right now around the world seem to ring true. According to the reading, this seventh month is set to see more severe negative energy in the world, much more severe than that of previous seventh lunar months. There is prediction of frequent or worse natural disasters, diseases, violence and freak incidents.

On the personal front, this being the month of the Hungry Ghost Festival, best to avoid dark and secluded places and places with negative connotations including hospitals. Children are more vulnerable to the negative effects of such places, so best to avoid bringing them to places with negative Ying energies. This month especially is where (stray) spirits hang around all over. One thing I've often been told as a child is to avoid street corners and junctions especially when night falls lest we bump or rather they bump into us. The seventh month is not a good month for auspicious events including engagements and weddings or moving house, etc. It's even not a good month to go swimming. Old wives tale perhaps but still, better be safe than sorry.

The seventh lunar month began on July 31 ending on Aug 28. From now until the 15th day (Aug 14), you may come across elaborate prayer setups and stage shows. These are normally arranged by business organizations made up of local business owners and they are specifically for the hungry/stray ghosts that are free to roam the earth just this time of the year. Front-row seats at these stage shows are usually left vacant, reserved for the spirits. By midnight of the 15th day, i.e., Aug 14, they would all have to return to where they come from, the underworld.

For families that are not in business, they can pray outside their homes by the roadside. This act of kindness and generosity is optional but it is believed that once a family starts this tradition, it would have to be a yearly affair. Joss-sticks and candles would be lit, food, underworld currency, gold and silver ingots and clothes are the usual offerings. Other than the food, everything else would be set alight. This is the only way, the offerings can be received. This prayer ritual is carried out either on the 14th or 15th evening of the seventh lunar month depending on the dialect clan the family belongs to. Other than the family carrying out this ritual, people normally avoid going near the prayer site so as to avoid bumping into the spirits.

Today is the 10th day of the seventh lunar month of 29 days. Nineteen more days to go before we go into the 8th month, the joyous month of the Mooncake Festival or also known as the Lantern Festival which falls on Sep 12. On a brighter note, mooncakes are already on sale. I saw them on sale at Genting Highlands even in July!

Whatever..
Take care and stay safe, Everyone!


Image source: The Star

Zimbabwe May Back Their Currency with Gold

Anyone who has read this blog on a regular basis knows that Zimbabwe and its financial situation has been covered extensively. The article on Zimbabwe in Pictures received a substantial number of views. And of course the articles on the Zimbabwe 100 trillion dollar bill has generated significant interest. Also the inflation rate of over a trillion percent.

Now even more news, the government of Zimbabwe is now considering backing the country's currency with gold, saying that the "days of the US dollar as the world's reserve currency are numbered.". I'm not sure what will happen to the Zimbabwe 100 trillion dollar bills that are held by collectors.

Gold Broke Above $1500 an Ounce Again: Income Gold Stocks

On Monday, the price of gold penetrated up through the $1500 an ounce level again. By happenstance, Jim Cramer interviewed Mark Bristow, the CEO of Randgold Resources (GOLD) on the Mad money television show. Cramer considers this stock the best high risk high reward gold miner, with the risk due to the fact that much of the company's operations are in African countries with significant investment concerns. Randgold, which is one of over twenty stocks on the list of dividend paying gold mining stocks at WallStreetNewsnetwork.com, pays a small yield of 0.2%. It trades at 14 times forward earnings.

In terms of gold's future, Randgold's Bristow said on the show that the price of gold has a "lot of upside". So for more conservative investors, what gold stocks are worth looking into? Cramer mentioned that he liked Goldcorp Inc. (GG), one of the few gold miners that pays dividends monthly. Payouts have been made regularly since 2005. The current yield on the stock is 0.9%. The stock sports a forward price to earnings ratio of 18. It has mines in Canada, United States, Mexico, and Central and South America.

Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (FCX) is a stock that pays quarterly and currently yields 2.0%. The company has operations in North and South America, Indonesia; and in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It trades at 8 times forward earnings.

For a free list of gold mining stocks that pay dividends, which can be downloaded and updated, go to WallStreetNewsnetwork.com.

Disclosure: Author did not own any of the above at the time the article was written.
By Stockerblog.com

Dividend Based on the Price of Gold

Here is an interesting inflation hedge for income investors. Newmont Mining Corporation (NEM) is planning its dividend payments based on the average sales price for gold. The expected payment date based on this formula is June 29, 2011. According to the company:

"The annual payout will increase at a rate of $0.20 per share for each $100 per ounce rise in the average realized gold price. At the current gold price of approximately $1,450 per ounce (i.e. between $1,400 - $1,499 per ounce), Newmont's annual dividend would be $1.00 per share. Subject to Board approval, the first quarterly dividend under this policy is expected to be payable on June 29, 2011 to shareholders of record on June 16, 2011."

The company believes that by 2017, it can produce 7 million ounces of attributable annual gold production, and that based on today's prices of precious metals, it can achieve internal rates of return in excess of 20%. At the end of last year, the company has $5 billion in cash and marketable securities. This was prior to the purchase of Fronteer for $2 billion. The stock trades at 12.75 times forward earnings and is currently generating a yield of 1.0%.

Newmont isn't the only gold mining company that generates a yield. There are plenty of others, according to the list of gold mining dividend stocks at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com, with yields as high as 6%.

One example is Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (FCX), which yields 1.7%, payable quarterly. The company, which mines for copper, gold, molybdenum, silver, and cobalt, trades at 9 times forward earnings.

Another is ASA Limited (ASA), which is an investment trust that invests in stocks of companies engaged in the exploration, mining or processing of gold, silver, platinum, and diamonds. It sports a price to earnings ratio of 7 and a yield of 2.0%.

For a list of all the dividend paying gold mining companies, which can be downloaded, sorted, and updated, go to WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.

Disclosure: Author didn't own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com

Wave Theory for Alternative Investments

I love alternative investments. They can be much more exciting than stocks and bonds. Venture capital, private equity, hedge funds, commodities, and precious metals make up the investment arena of 'alternatives'.

Wave Theory For Alternative Investments: Riding The Wave with Hedge Funds, Commodities, and Venture Capital by Stephen Todd Walker is the most complete book on alternative investments I have ever read. It is filled with numerous tables, charts, and graphs to make for easy reading.

Chapter 3 is probably the most important as it covers the advantages and disadvantages of all types of alternatives, and even more important, the section called Top 25 Alternative Surfing Maneuvers.

Here's a bit of trivia from the book. Did you know that back in 1999, the CIA (yes the US government's Central Intelligence Agency) set up its own venture capital fund? The fund, called In-Q-Tel, has invested in over 100 companies. It even invested in the technology that is now known as Google Earth.

Chapter 9 is my favorite section of the book, called Venture Capital Investment Vehicles. It covers what to invest in, how to invest, and the top twenty questions you should be asking before committing your money.

One great feature of the book is that Walker provides plenty of suggested web sites and other books.

If you have ever been interested in investing in alternative investments, or have started to dig your foot in the alternative water, or even if you have already been investing for a while, you should read Wave Theory For Alternative Investments.

What Warren Buffett Thinks of Gold

With the news about gold and silver making new recent highs, it is interesting to hear what Berkshire Hathaway's (BRK-A) (BRK-B) Warren Buffett says about gold, farmland, and ExxonMobil (XOM).

All that glitters is Gold

Gold does not go out of style. Despite its high price, goldsmith shops here are still doing good business. People buy gold jewelry as gifts for weddings and new arrivals to the family or simply to add to one's collection though people don't flaunt them so much these days for safety reasons.

Investors, however, are looking at another angle to owning gold. Gold is and has been for centuries been used to preserve one's wealth hedging against inflation, now more urgently needed than ever. You can start small and slowly build up your investment portfolio. You can buy gold coins to start with or open a gold investment account with a bank here.

Spot gold is around US$1,412 per ounce. As for the Ringgit, Ringgit is quoted at 3.0555 to the US dollar.

Odd Lots for February

The official definition of odd lot is a group of shares amounting to less than 100 shares. For purposes of Stockerblog.com, it is a group of snippets about various financial and business web sites. It has nothing to do with being 'odd'.

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Want to see a Risk Chart of your favorite stock? Check out RiskGrades.

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If you are a gold bug, you should buy the largest California Gold Rush Nugget in existence. The 100 troy ounce gold will be auctioned off by Holabird-Kagin Americana March 16 in Sacramento.

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I'm sure everyone reading this, won't be taken in by an online swindler. But maybe you know someone (a parent or child or friend?) who is not so Internet savvy. If so, have them check out Facecrooks which provides the latest up-to-the-second on online scams, especially relating to Facebook.

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"America’s First IPO” is an exhibit on the country’s first public company, the Bank of North America, and the origins of the US stock market, currently held at the Museum of Financial History until the end of March.

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Protect yourself from RFID crooks. Thieves can now use electronic pickpocketing to scan your credit card numbers from your new credit cards that have the RFID chips. The thieves can do this without even touching you. Identity Stronghold sells RFID blocking products.

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The perfect place to hide your gold, silver, and stock and bond certificates: A book safe you can make yourself.

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What would a $3 steak dinner be worth in today's dollars?

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Do you really think the government wastes money? Check out CAGW to substantiate your belief.

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The Warren Buffett Berkshire Hathaway letter to shareholders.

Secret Year-End Tax Tips

I am not a CPA nor am I a tax attorney, and any of the following suggestions are just ideas that should be reviewed with your own CPA and/or tax attorney. Second, some of these suggestions may trigger or adversely affect the Alternative Minimum Tax, so talk to your tax advisor about this. I tried to come up with some uncommon tips that you normally wouldn't see written about elsewhere.

1. $20 Gold Pieces for Your Heirs
This is one I heard from a coin dealer, so be very skeptical about this and definitely run it by your accountant. The technique is to buy a bunch of rare $20 Gold Pieces which you will eventually leave to your heirs. When I say rare, I mean $100,000 or $200,000 for a coin. When you pass away, because the coins are still considered currency, they will only be valued at $20 each for estate tax purposes (according to this coin dealer). The coin dealer has other suggestions with these coins (i.e. being paid with them to reduce capital gains, etc.), but I'm even more skeptical about that. (Do you think the coin dealer has a hidden motive by saying this?) Like I said, ask your CPA or tax attorney.

2. Anonymous Donations to Charity
If you have ever wanted to make a totally anonymous donation to a charity (and there are several reasons you may want to) but still want to be able to take a tax deduction, here is what you can do. Go to your local post office and buy some Postal Money Orders. You are allowed up to $1000 per money order. Don't request more than three at once, otherwise the Post Office will request identification from you. On the money orders, write the name of the charity where it says "Pay to" along with the charity's address, but leave the part where it says "From" blank. However, on the receipt, which you will keep with your tax records, you can fill in your name as the sender. As for the original, send it in to the charitable organization in a plain envelope and no one will be able to trace it back to you.

3. Worthless Stocks
According to the IRS, "a taxpayer who owns stock that was acquired on the open market for investment and that has declined in value is allowed a deduction for a capital loss in the taxable year in which the stock is sold or exchanged or becomes wholly worthless." But the big question is "When do they become worthless?" Worthless is kind of a nebulous word. Just because a company declares bankruptcy, doesn't necessarily mean that the stock stops trading. And I've seen several stocks stop trading for a year or two then start up again. If you have the stock in the form of a certificate, there are companies that will buy your old certificates as collectibles. It may not be much, maybe only a dollar, unless the company is in an unusual industry or has an interesting picture on it. The sale might be considered a transaction for capital loss purposes, but you need to ask your advisor.

Please note, if a public company committed accounting fraud (e.g Enron), you cannot deduct the loss as a theft loss. The IRS states that they will disallow such deductions and may impose penalties.

4. Short Selling
If you are a short seller, and you short a lot of stocks that pay dividends, remember that technically you owe and pay the dividends to the owner of the shares that you shorted. Since this is an investment expense, make sure your accountant takes this into consideration.

5. Municipal Bonds from US Territories
For the owners of a diverse portfolio of municipal bonds who live in states with income taxes, remember that if you have any munis from Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, or Guam, the income is exempt from state income taxes. On the Tax Statement Form from brokerage firms, generally all income from municipal bonds are lumped together in the same section. If you live in California, and you own munis from New York, California, Puerto Rico, and Texas, the interest on the California and Puerto Rico bonds are exempt. Occasionally, staff workers at accounting firms may carve out (in this case) just the California interest, and lump all the other interest together, including the Puerto Rico interest, as taxable California income. Of course, it's always a good idea to check your entire return before you sign it.

You will of course see a lot of other tax saving tip articles this week. A couple things to keep in mind. Many income and deduction adjustments can trigger the AMT. Also, if you expect your income to be much higher next year, take a longer term approach to planning your deductions. As previously mentioned, check any tax techniques, the ones above and any others that you read about, with your tax advisor.

By Stockerblog.com

The Day the Dollar Died

If you are into gloom and doom, or you just want to know what the gloom and doomers are predicting, you should check out this video.

Why People Don't Buy Gold

Gold and the economy explained in simple terms with cartoon characters. I seem to be seeing a trend here. First it was babies talking about real financial issues, now it is cartoon characters.