Forbes: The World Has Changed And Leaders Need To Do So Too

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Savvy investors don't spend most of their time trading. They spend their time reading to stay informed about a fast-changing world.

If you don't already do so, try doing the same this year.

A great place to start is the recently published The Leadership Lab: Understanding Leadership in the 21st Century, by Chris Lewis and Pippa Malmgren. Lewis (whom I've met) is a best-selling author and Malmgren (whom I also know) is a former economic advisor to President George W Bush. Read more here.

Forbes: Economic Disaster Threatens Algeria

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Things are bad in Algeria, and they will likely get far worse.

"[...] crunch point is approaching fast," states a recent report from London-based financial analysis firm Capital Economics.

The problems stem from a multitude of factors including a weak oil price and rotten economic policies, which are both exacerbated by recent mass protests.

If things don't change soon, then expect higher inflation, skyrocketing unemployment, and the likelihood of the government running out of cash within a few years, analysts say. In other words, Algeria is heading for something close to an economic Armageddon. Read more here.

Forbes: Norway Makes Multi-billion Dollar Bet On Britain's Economy, And You Should Follow Suit

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Norway has placed a bet on Britain totaling tens of billions of dollars, even though no Brexit deal has been signed with the European Union.

Savvy investors should follow suit by investing in British stocks such as those in the FTSE 100 index, which tracks the largest public companies in the UK. Read more here.

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TheStreet: How Gold Mining Merger Mania Is Here to Stay

By SIMON CONSTABLE

The merger mania sweeping the gold mining sector isn't a flash in the pan - it's likely just begun.

Unless these companies want to shrink, they must continue to gobble each other up.

"There is going to be a new wave of M&A as a way to grow reserves especially because organic growth is so hard to come by," said Matthew Miller, a Denver-based equity research analyst at financial research firm CFRA. Read more here.

Forbes: The Most Innovative U.S Tech Entrepreneurs Are Foreign

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Some people won't like this.

Immigrant technology wizards are the secret sauce behind America's overwhelming lead in the high-tech industry.

These Brainiac non-natives aren't better by a small margin. They win hands down when it comes to inventing things compared to the U.S. peers, according to recent research. Read more here.

Forbes: Multi-billion Dollar Debt Crisis Looms For Dubai

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Investors in the Persian Gulf need to watch out.

A debt-fueled crisis is headed to Dubai, the trading hub of the United Arab Emirates.

"[A] decade after the [E]mirates' crisis, its debt problems are not over," states a recent report from London-based financial firm Capital Economics.

In fact, they may just be beginning. Read more here.

TheStreet: Why the British Pound Is Set for a Big Move

By SIMON CONSTABLE

The British pound looks set to break out soon. The only question is whether it soars or crashes.

Either way, savvy investors could profit by purchasing options on exchange-traded funds.

Range-Bound Pound

For the last six months, the value of the pound has fetched between $1.26 and $1.32, according to data from Bloomberg. It was recently trading just under $1.32. Read more here.

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Barron's: Buy U.K. Baker’s Vegan-Sausage Roll, Sell the Stock

By SIMON CONSTABLE

The Brits have gone crazy for Greggs, a chain of 1,700 or so bakery shops, in part because of its wildly popular new vegan-sausage roll. 

Unfortunately, investors have been gobbling up the stock (ticker: GRG.UK), which has jumped 68% in the six months to Thursday versus losses of 5.1% for the FTSE 100 index, the benchmark for the 100 largest listed stocks in the United Kingdom. It looks like the shares have gotten ahead of the sausage, and shareholders should consider taking profits. Read more here.

John Batchelor Show: Corbyn's Antisemitism Plunges Labour Into A Crisis

By SIMON CONSTABLE 

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TheStreet: Gold Rises as Investors Panic and Pile Into Bullion

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Gold prices were rising again as scared investors seek refuge from paltry bonds yields.
The metal recently fetched $1,344 a troy ounce, a level it hadn't seen since April 2018, or 10 months ago, according to data from Bloomberg. Its also rallied more than 14% since the low of $1,174 in August. The SPDR Gold Shares exchange-traded fund, which holds bars of solid bullion, performed similarly. Read more here.

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Korn Ferry: Brexit's $1 Billion Weekly Price Tag

Brexit has become a nail-biting game of high-stakes poker, and it might be costing Britain big-time.

While the deadline for Britain and the European Union to reach a trade deal is inching dangerously close to the March 29 “leave” date, the costs to the British economy are rising. Already the tab is expanding at blistering rate: £800 million ($1 billion) a week, according to Bank of England estimates. In addition, the United Kingdom’s economy is slowing. It grew at a paltry 1.3% annualized rate in the latest reading, the slowest pace since 2012, according to government data. Read more here.

TheStreet: Why The Pain Isn't Over Yet for Emerging Markets

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Emerging markets took a beating last year, and despite a recent respite, the pain likely isn't over. 

Here's what you need to know.

Barron's: Looking to Reverse Its Slide, Austrian iPhone Supplier Pushes Beyond Apple

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Austria’s AMS was one of many Apple suppliers hit by soft iPhone sales last year. The company, once known as austriamicrosystems, produces 3-D sensors and laser technologies used in smartphones.

The shares (ticker: AMS.Switzerland) have dropped 74% over the past year versus gains of 3.7% for the S&P 500, according to Morningstar data. Both figures include dividends. Read more here.

Briefings Magazine: A New Order of Chaos

By SIMON CONSTABLE

It all seems like it’s unraveling at once. Talk to leaders in Berlin, Bangalore, Boston, or anywhere else trying to do business and the conversation quickly comes around to how there’s so much … disorder. Troubles in Turkey, a Middle East morass, trade disputes, unpredictable leaders, populist protests—it’s all happening at once. It’s making people pine for the halcyon days of 2016, when there was only a US presidential election and a Brexit referendum that caused potential upheaval. Read more here.

xkcd, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons

TheStreet: 3 Reasons to Buy Gold

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Wobbly stock prices are sending many panicked people running scared for gold, sending prices for the yellow metal soaring. Savvy investors should follow suit.

The World Gold Council recently reported that investors sank $3.1 billion into gold-backed exchange-traded funds for the second month in a row during January. That's the fourth consecutive month of net inflows for gold ETFs, with the overwhelming majority of the cash coming from North America over the period. Read more here.

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Barron's: An Italian Tire Maker With a High-Performance Stock

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Pirelli could provide investors with a smooth ride higher. 

The stock (ticker: PIRC.Italy) looks set to rise in the next 12 months, propelled by rising earnings as the company shifts to higher margin products and benefits from the increased demand for performance tires. In addition to a roughly 20% gain, a rising dividend should add 4.5% next year for a total return of about 25%. Read more here.

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WSJ: Two Trendy Cash Phrases

By SIMON CONSTABLE

A shift in the markets means investors may hear the following phrases used more often this year: The first is “Cash as a Reasonable Alternative,” and the second is the acronym CITA, which stands for “Cash Is the Alternative.” Read more here.

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Barron's: Taylor Wimpey -- A U.K. Housing Stock With a Big Dividend

By SIMON CONSTABLE

Shares of British home builder Taylor Wimpey could provide a pretty solid foundation for a portfolio. The shares offer a double-digit dividend yield, the chance of capital appreciation, and will be helped by the government’s favorable homeownership policy. “The market is pricing in an overly bearish outcome for the new housing market,” says Sam Cullen, a senior analyst at European broker Berenberg. “The market for newly constructed housing is significantly outperforming that of the existing home market.” Read more here.