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.

Forbes: A Replay Of 1972 Could Boost U.S. Grain Prices

By SIMON CONSTABLE

U.S. agricultural markets could be about to get a boost.

The matter hinges in part with the on-going, and acrimonious, trade negotiations between the Trump administration and China.

However, there's a good chance that the whole thing ends well and that presents an opportunity for traders to benefit from a possible rally in grain prices. Read more here.

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Forbes: The Unintended Consequences Of Central Bank Policies -- Part 2 of 2

By SIMON CONSTABLE

While many pundits seem to heap praise on the policies that central bank policies introduced after the 2008-2009 financial crisis, their actions came with unintended consequences. Sometimes they were the exact opposite of the outcomes desired. Read more here.