Brian Hicks - Angel Publishing

The Shrinking Value of the U.S. Dollar

Publisher’s Note: If you peruse CNBC, Bloomberg or even the Drudge Report on a daily basis like I do, then you’ve undoubtedly noticed an emerging market theme: The U.S. dollar is dead!

It seems like every day we hear calls from the leaders of India, Russia and China to create a new world reserve currency to replace the weakening dollar.

Will it happen?

Nobody knows.

But I do know this: America is printing so much money, and it's going into so much debt, there’s absolutely no way the US dollar will rebound anytime soon.

And for the morons who think that Obama knows what he’s doing by spending trillions of dollars to jump start the economy, just remember this: Bush started this spending spree. In terms of the economy, Obama is no different than Bush.

In the article below, the newest member of the Angel Publishing team — Alex Koyfman — explains why the dollar may never return to its status as the world’s reserve currency.

Enjoy,

Brian Hicks
Publisher, Wealth Daily

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The US government and Federal Reserve would like you to believe that the US dollar has inherent value. . . that it's stable. . . that it's a store of value. . . that it is, and will always be, the world's preferred currency.

But, as more and more people are learning everyday, that is all just a fairytale. . . a fantastic misrepresentation of reality. The truth is. . .

The Value of the US Dollar is Gone

A 1928 $1 Silver Certificate

A dollar, once redeemable for physical gold or silver, is only backed today “by the full faith and credit of the United States government.”

That means the US dollar is given credit and strengthened by the government's ability to levy taxes or borrow from a separate entity, like the Federal Reserve or a foreign government.

Think about that for a minute.

First of all, no entity, not even one as large as the United States government, has unlimited credit.

The American government, just like you or me, is limited by how much it can borrow. And with the national public debt already approaching $11.5 trillion — and growing by an astonishing $3.8 billion per day — the nation must be quickly reaching its credit limit.

Perhaps more frightening is the government's guarantee to back the US dollar through its ability to tax the American people.

If you don't pay your taxes, you may be fined, your paychecks may be garnished, your property may be seized, and you may even be thrown in prison. . . federal prison!

In other words, the government's guarantee of the dollar ultimately rests on your fear of incarceration.

What once derived its value from gold now takes its strength from state-sponsored intimidation.

It's true, we've fallen quite a ways from the days when the greenback meant something. And what's really scary is that. . .

The US Dollar's Value Has Eroded in Just a Few Decades

At the close of WWII, with just around 5% of the world population living in the US, the nation nevertheless produced 75% of the manufactured goods consumed globally.

It was an astounding achievement that set the stage for what many historians dubbed “America’s Century.”

That century is now over, literally and figuratively.

Although our economy was once responsible for a constant flow of steel, cars, ships, high-tech equipment, and all varieties of household goods. . . although our nation once fought off the Nazis and supplied the Allies with the goods and capital required to defeat the forces of evil and build the modern world up from the ravages of global war. . . today, America's number one product is debt.

And the mountains of debt we accumulate on a daily basis will only keep growing because our industry and exports simply cannot keep up.

We've all felt it, from the common citizen to the biggest corporations.

Unfortunately, the Fed’s main tactic for combating this mounting crisis is adding to the money supply, which they’re doing at an unprecedented rate today.

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Economist and executive editor of Shadow Government Statistics John Williams began tracking the total supply of money in circulation after the Federal Reserve refused to continue publishing the figures in 2006. Today, Williams estimates the total supply of US dollars — including large time deposits, institutional money-market funds, short-term repurchase agreements, and other larger liquid assets — is approximately $15 trillion.

This is a shocking 250% increase to the supply of US dollars in the past 15 years alone!

Of course, you know the result of this approach. . .

Every dollar the Federal Reserve prints, when not supported by an equivalent growth in productivity, just leads to a devaluation of every dollar in circulation. That includes all those dollars you’ve slaved to put away for your household improvements, your kids’ college fund, and your retirement.

Inevitably, as the Federal Reserve's hunger for capital increases, and the individual value of each dollar decreases, the taxpayer — the true backer of the US Dollar — will be coerced into paying ever-increasing chunks of precious income to keep the machine alive.

Eventually, something will have to give: either your ability to earn or Uncle Sam's ability to take it from you.

You make the call which will outlast which.

There is a way out, however. You can still salvage your savings and secure the value of your assets, as they're valued today, before it’s too late.

But for that, you’ll have to return to the antiquated practice our national economy dropped back in the early 1970s.

You can take your faith out of the future prospects of the US economy and put it back into something inherently valuable. . . something that maintains and even increases its worth just by existing.

The political machine that has ravaged our economy has had its chance, and has blown it every step of the way. Take your financial future into your hands today and learn why now is the best time in American history to invest in the metal that was once the backbone of an empire. . .

Gold!

Good Investing,

Alex Koyfman
Contributing Editor, Gold World

P.S. Let's face it, the only place to keep your money safe is in gold. But today's market offers investors new ways to hedge against a falling US dollar and profit handsomely in the process. Last week, I took a much closer look at Greg McCoach's latest gold investment recommendation, which yields 2x the profits made by gold. It turns out that every time gold goes up 1%, you're paid 2%. . . or every time gold goes up 10%, you're paid 20%. It's a pretty sweet deal any way you cut it. To learn more on how you can profit from Greg's new investment vehicle, just click on this link: http://www.angelnexus.com/o/web/13592

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From Gold World's Gold and Guns blog...

Banks to Stop Accepting IOUs from California
...as early as Friday!

Last week, the state of California began issuing IOUs — or “individual registered warrants” — to hundreds of thousands of its creditors. State Controller John Chiang said that without IOUs California would run out of cash by the end of this month.

But now a group of the biggest US banks — including Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and JP Morgan — say that they will stop accepting California's IOUs as early as Friday, adding pressure on the state to close its $26.3 billion annual budget gap.

Meanwhile, Fitch Ratings dropped California's bond rating from A to BBB amid the budget deadlock.

We'll keep you posted as the story develops...

— Luke Burgess

Natural Gas ETF

If you've been keeping an eye on your monthly utility bill, you have probably noticed that it's dropped dramatically.

That's because the price of natural gas has collapsed to a 7-year low.

Here's a chart of the price of natural gas for the past 2 years:

While most commodities have bounced back from their financial crisis lows (like oil, see below), natural gas prices remain below $4 per mcf.

Why?

We now have the answer.

Smart Grid: The $2 Trillion Market

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Solar, wind, and geothermal will all benefit. But one technology makes them all possible:

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Last week, it was reported that America's natural gas reserves are much larger than previously thought.

That's because of a new technology which has allowed producers to drill for gas in shale rock (like that found in the Barnett Shale). Now, the country's estimated reserves are 35 percent higher than just two years ago and have reached the highest level in 44 years.

The report comes at a time when natural gas is being touted as a way to help reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil and cut emissions that lead to global warming.

According to the report:

The country's estimated total natural gas resources stand at 2,074 trillion cubic feet, an increase of 542 trillion cubic feet from its last report.

The figure includes 238 trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves as established by the Department of Energy and 1,836 trillion cubic feet of reserves labeled as probable, possible, and speculative.

The report reinforces a study released last year for the natural gas-backed American Clean Skies Foundation. It found the U.S. had 2,247 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves — a 118-year supply. The U.S. consumes about 22 trillion cubic feet of gas per year, almost all of it produced in the U.S.

Natural gas is used to generate about a fifth of the nation's electricity. It emits about half of the heat-trapping greenhouse gas that coal does. Those who are pushing natural gas production the hardest, like Texas oilman T. Boone Pickens, have promoted natural gas as a transportation fuel that could be used to reduce dependence on foreign oil.

According to Pickens, "I launched the Pickens Plan a year ago to help reduce our dangerous dependence on foreign oil, and using our abundant supply of natural gas as a transition fuel for fleet vehicles and heavy-duty trucks is a key element of that plan. On the same day this report is going out, diesel prices are again on the rise, squeezing the trucking industry. Now more than ever we need to take action to enact energy reform that will immediately reduce oil imports."

Thursday's report said shale now makes up one-third of the 1,836 trillion cubic feet of potential resources, much of it from a re-evaluation of shale gas in the Marcellus basin as well as the mid-continent region, the Gulf coast, and Rocky Mountain areas. Reserves jumped 16 percent overall from the group's last report two years ago, and estimates could go even higher because not all areas that have shale have been tested and explored.

Even though natural gas prices are trading at a 7-year low, I'm buying. It's the one commodity that hasn't rebounded from the sell-off experienced during the economic crisis.

My guess is natural gas prices will increase off their lows, as the surge in reserves was already priced into the market.

An easy way to play the rebound in natural gas is the US Natural Gas ETF (UNG). UNG is an ETF I own in my personal trading account.

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks

No Recovery without a Bottom in Housing

On Tuesday, Deutsche Bank threw a bucket of ice cold water on the "green shoots" believers that the US economy was recovering or near a bottom.

Deutsche's argument, in my opinion, is irrefutable:

Without a bottom in housing, there can be no recovery.

It goes like this. . . The US economy can't bottom until banks and financials bottom (start lending to fuel consumption). . . and banks and financials can't bottom until housing prices bottom.

According to Deutsche, U.S. home prices may fall another 14 percent, led by the New York and Orange County, California, metropolitan areas, before reaching a bottom as an increase in unemployment offsets lower prices.

"Affordability is no longer the driving issue in the housing market, and we believe prices still have a ways to fall in many areas before home prices reach their trough," Deutsche Bank analysts led by Karen Weaver, wrote in a report yesterday. "The bottom is getting closer, but we are not there yet."

Home prices are forecast to fall 41.7% from their peak, Weaver said. That's higher than a forecast she released in March and reflects "the actual declines to date and the expected future impact on home prices from rising foreclosure inventory and unemployment."

I think Weaver has it a little wrong.

Here at Wealth Daily, our analysts believe home prices will overshoot on the downside just like it did on the upside.

Think about it.

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And while most other investment advisories are getting ripped to shreds, Steve's showing his readers a way to steer clear of the financial melee... and actually profit.

It's a bulletproof strategy giving investors exactly the thing they're looking for to protect and preserve their wealth in today's market: safe, steady income.

To learn more about this winning investment strategy click here.

In order for home prices to go up or to just bottom, there has to be a supply of home buyers that outpaces the available supply of homes.

We're talking about buyers who are employed.

Forty percent of jobs created between 2001 and 2006 were housing related. Whether it was construction, lumberjacks, truck drivers transporting building materials, engineers, real estate agents, mortgage brokers, the construction of Lowe's and Home Depots. . . US unemployment was nil during the housing boom.

That was then. . . this is now.

Most economists now believe that unemployment will hit at least 10%. . . with some suggesting 12% and higher.

Couple that with the fact the US consumer is up to his eyeballs in debt, and what you get is a perfect storm for a destructive downturn that has only begun.

Seriously, let me ask you this: If 70% of the US economy is consumption. . . and the US consumer has no room to consume anymore, where does the economic rebound occur?

Government spending?

But Obama. . . for all his business brilliance. . . cannot buy every single home on the market.

So. . . we wouldn't be surprised to see home prices decline anywhere from 50 to 66 percent from their peak.

In fact, we could be looking at a decades-long bear market in housing as the baby boomer generation try to sell their McMansions to downsize into condos, retirement communities or out of the States altogether.

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks
Publisher, Wealth Daily

P.S. I'm sure you're aware of the storm brewing in commercial real estate. Here's what James Koury, a senior VP in the Boston real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle, has to say about it...

"We're at the front edge of this... This is a few drops we're just feeling on our forehead of what's going to be a hurricane."

Make no mistake—We're staring at what could be a catastrophic drop in commercial real estate with damages of more than $1 trillion.

Still, the bust in commercial real estate is also an incredible profit opportunity for Wealth Daily readers. That's because my colleague, Steve Christ (who came to us after 10-plus years in the mortgage industry), has just put together a new report that can help you position yourself to receive large payouts while the commercial real estate market nosedives. You can read Steve's new report right here. But don't waste any time. Steve thinks it's going to pay off in a huge way over the next several months.

Oil Economics

About this time last year, the oil was trading for $137 a barrel.

Speculators were to blame for pushing oil to these unprecedented levels.

At a June 17 Congressional hearing, an assembled panel of "experts" unanimously agreed that speculation is responsible for driving oil prices 50% higher than they would otherwise be.

Congressman Joe Barton (R-Tex), an oil and gas industry advocate, argued high oil prices are purely the result of supply/demand forces and called for increased domestic drilling. The experts listened respectfully and ignored him.

As a result of the hearings, the House on June 26 voted 402-to-19 to direct the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to use all its authority, including the agency's emergency powers, to "curb immediately" the role of excessive speculation in energy futures markets.

The House bill required the CFTC to act against "sudden or unreasonable fluctuations" in energy futures prices and other trading activities that "prevent the market from accurately reflecting the forces of supply and demand for energy commodities."

Six months after the Congressional hearings, oil sank to a multi-year low of $32 a barrel.

This prompted a chorus of morons to sing, "Told ya so."

Some even suggested oil would return to its historic normal level of $22 a barrel.

What a difference half a year makes.

Today, oil is again on the rise. . .

It's up 60% since February?

Are speculators responsible for this move?

No!

Are you Ready for Oil's Next Rally?

Watching oil prices hover around $50 per barrel, do you really believe prices are heading anywhere but higher?

The most important mistake an investor can make is to wait. And when the world economy begins to bounce back from this recession, there are going to be some serious gains to be made in rising oil and gas stocks. In fact, nearly all of these oil and gas investments have made double-digit gains during the last three months... perhaps it's time to check them out for yourself.

Find out more about this opportunity.

The Economics Behind Current Oil Prices

As oil trader Phil Flynn writes. . .

People are finally starting to get what has been moving oil and are starting to get bullish. Instead of blaming speculators or saying that there is no fundamental reason for oil to be where it is, many are finally starting to understand what has been diving oil. Oil has been driven by the credit crisis. Oil has been driven by the dollar. Oil has been driven by the stimulative and inflationary effects of quantitative easing and record budget and trade deficits.

Another reason for the rise in oil is a lack of investment. As energy companies pinch pennies to preserve cash and remain profitable, projects to produce costly oil have been delayed or shutdown altogether.

So, as demand has declined with this economic downturn, so has the supply of oil. In other words, supply is keeping pace with demand.

And when the global economy rebounds, there will be hell to pay as demand begins to increase.

Why?

Because the projects that were shut down were meant to help supply the global economy with oil. It will take months if not years to bring them back.

This will cause a severe disequilibrium. . . and investors who foresee this imbalance are gonna clean up.

In February, I loaded up on energy and gas trusts. I got lucky.

I held my nose and dove in, purchasing trusts like Baytex Energy Trust (BTE - NYSE) for $9.50. Today Baytex trades for nearly $18 a share. . . and at the time of my purchase, was kicking off a dividend of 13%.

It's not too late to get positions in Baytex or in the oil sector in general. In fact, my colleague, Ian Cooper, recently revealed the details behind one of oil's most profitable secrets... a rare opportunity to actually collect at least double the gains oil makes.

Since that 60% price spike in February? Investors following his advice are already up more than 159%. And this run's just getting started.

To find out exactly how it works and - more importantly - how you can take advantage of it, starting today, just click here!

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks

Classic Government Investment

The Market Maven of Montana sent me this note titled "Classic Govt. Investment."

He writes. . .

"For $41.2 billion, the US Gov't bought 60% of a company (GM) currently worth a bit less than $500 million. They (we) need a 100+ to-1 return to break even.

Anyone willing to take that bet?"

Oh dear reader. . . did you buy any GM stock on May 22 when it traded for the paltry sum of just $2?

If you waited a week, you're a savvy investor because you could've picked up some GM stock for $1 on May 29.

But don't kick yourself for missing the deal of a lifetime because, as you read this, GM goes for just $0.61 a share. And if you didn't buy any, don't worry, Obama bought some with your money. So, you're set.

All you have to do is wait for GM stock to rally to $100 a share for the investment to be in the money.

Obama, in his infinite business wisdom, thinks this is a good investment for your money.

How does that make you feel, Mr. Taxpayer???

I can tell you one thing: Madison and Hamilton are rolling over in their f***ing graves.

Seriously, I want to hear from the clowns who support this crap. And I want to ask you this: are you personally buying GM stock right now in your 401k, IRA, or individual trading account. If not, why not?

Do yourself a favor, forget GM. The stock is sitting at a record low. The company was founded in 1908!!!

Instead, I have 3 stocks you should buy right now that will make you money. And if you purchased these stocks when I recommended them in Wealth Daily 2 months ago, you're already up 50%.

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A Classic Hicks Investment

On March 18, I released my much-awaited "Obama Portfolio."

In this report, I listed 3 companies that would benefit from the Obama Administration's gut-busting spending spree.

To read the report, you can go here: http://www.wealthdaily.com/articles/obama-portfolio-stocks/1741

The companies listed as the beneficiaries were:

SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWRA). . . Solar play
Argentex (OTCBB: AGXM). . . Indium play for solar, plus a gold play as a hedge against inflation
PowerShares Dynamic Building & Construction ETF (NYSE: PKB). . . Infrastructure play

I recommended each company's stock for immediate purchase. (In the case of Argentex, my initial recommendation appeared in Wealth Daily on December 28, 2008, available here.)

Since my March 18 recommendation, each stock is up 41%, 79%, and 30%. So, the Obama Portfolio is up 50% as a whole in just two-and-a-half months.

Not bad, if I do say so myself.

But it gets even better. . .

If you calculate from the December recommendation, the return on Argentex is even bigger, as AGXM has gained +180% since:

The thing is, the Obama people are spending money like my ex-wife did on QVC. See it, buy it. She was QVC's customer of the month for 3 straight months.

Same thing is happening today.

It doesn't matter if we need all this spending. Seriously. . . politicians are calling for a newspaper bailout, calling them "National Treasures." Are you kidding me?!?

Whatever, it's gonna happen. I can't stop it. And that's the bottom line.

So. . . I will profit from it.

Buy the 3 stocks mentioned above. They'll benefit from the Obama spending boom. But you might want to wait for a pullback, as all 3 stocks have been on a rampage as of late.

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks

PS. While the three stocks above will certainly benefit, Mr. Obama is doing much to lift the entire cleantech sector. My colleague, Nick Hodge, has guided members of the Alternative Energy Speculator to 23 double-digit wins in the space so far this year. Click here to get in on the next one.

Blame the Federal Reserve

Last April, I wrote an article for Wealth Daily titled "There Is No Free Market in America."

The thesis of the article was simple: The current financial crisis isn't the result of a free market failure because there is no free market. The current financial crisis is the result of a credit bubble created by the U.S. government.

I wrote. . .

The housing bubble was the result of a massive government stimulus plan. Right after 9/11, the U.S. Treasury and U.S. Federal Reserve cut rates to historic lows and increased money supply to obscene levels.

Couple that with the push for more home ownership. . . and what you get is a toxic brew of government-sponsored economic activity.

This raised the ire of every government lover who read my article.

Steven writes. . . "Bullcrap. Read the tea leaves, dude, and leave the Kool-aid alone."

Conner comments. . . "The problem wasn't expanding home ownership to include low income home buyers. The problem was deregulation, which is the fault of the GOP. The Clinton Administration never said do it at all cost. The GOP has always supported laissez-faire. That's the very reason why our food supply and medicine is tainted. Are you going to blame the Democrats for that too?"

Tony says. . . "The heading of your article is to the point; but like many others you are just stoking the partisan debate by pointing out what liberals did wrong instead of what you think a free market should be."

And Susan writes. . . "Fess up. . . deregulation and the free market are to blame. It's time for a change! Only the government can properly manage an industry like housing."

Well, well, well. . .

My article was published on April 1.

The Wall Street Journal ran this on May 12:

MAY 12, 2009 - Geithner's Revelation

He concedes that monetary policy was "too loose, too long."

The Earth stood still, the seas parted and a member of the U.S. political class admitted last week that the Federal Reserve helped to cause the financial meltdown. OK, only the last of those happened, but it's a welcome miracle nonetheless.

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The revelation came from Timothy Geithner last Wednesday with PBS's Charlie Rose, who asked the Treasury Secretary: "Looking back, what are the mistakes and what should you have done more of? Where were your instincts right, but you didn't go far enough?"

Mr. Geithner: "We need a little more time to get full perspective."

Mr. Rose: "Right."

Mr. Geithner: "But I would say there were three types of broad errors of policy and policy both here and around the world. One was that monetary policy around the world was too loose too long. And that created this just huge boom in asset prices, money chasing risk. People trying to get a higher return. That was just overwhelmingly powerful."

Mr. Rose: "It was too easy."

Mr. Geithner: "It was too easy, yes. In some ways less so here in the United States, but it was true globally. Real interest rates were very low for a long period of time."

Mr. Rose: "Now, that's an observation. The mistake was that monetary policy was not by the Fed, was not. . ."

Mr. Geithner: "Globally is what matters."

Mr. Rose: "By central bankers around the world."

Mr. Geithner: "Remember as the Fed started — the Fed started tightening earlier, but our long rates in the United States started to come down — even were coming down even as the Fed was tightening over that period of time, and partly because monetary policy around the world was too loose, and that kind of overwhelmed the efforts of the Fed to initially tighten. Now, but you know, we all bear a responsibility for that. I'm not trying to put it on the world."

Mr. Geithner went on to cite a lack of supervision over bank risk-taking and the slow pace of government response to the problem — both of which are now conventional wisdom. But the real news here is Mr. Geithner's concession that monetary policy was "too loose, too long." The Washington crowd has tried to place all of the blame for the panic on bankers, the better to absolve themselves. But as Mr. Geithner notes, Fed policy flooded the world with dollars that created a boom in asset prices and inspired the credit mania. Bankers made mistakes, but in part they were responding rationally to the subsidy for credit created by central bankers.

We disagree with Mr. Geithner on one point. He's right that monetary policy needs to be considered in global terms, but he's still too quick to pass the buck from the Fed to other central banks. The European Central Bank was much tighter than the Fed throughout this period. The Fed was by far the major monetary player because much of the world was on a dollar standard, with its monetary policy linked to the Fed's. That was true of China, most of Asia and the Middle East.

The Fed's loose policy from 2003 to 2005 created the commodity and credit bubbles that made these countries flush with dollars. Given their low domestic propensity to consume, these countries then recycled those dollars back into dollar-denominated assets, such as Treasurys and real-estate-related assets such as Fannie Mae securities. The Fed itself had created the surplus dollars that kept long rates low and undermined for a substantial period its belated attempts to tighten.

Mr. Geithner's concession is important nonetheless because before he moved to Treasury, he was vice chairman of the Fed's Open Market Committee that sets monetary policy. His comments mark a break with the steadfast refusal of Fed Chairmen Alan Greenspan and Ben Bernanke to admit any responsibility. They prefer to blame bankers and what they call the "global savings glut," as if the Fed had nothing to do with creating that glut.

Mr. Geithner's remarks are a sign of intellectual progress, and they suggest that at least some in government are thinking about their own part in creating the mess. The role of Fed policy should also be at the heart of the hearings that Speaker Nancy Pelosi is planning on the causes of the financial meltdown. We won't begin to understand the credit mania and panic until we acknowledge their monetary roots.

How does this make y'all feel?

Vindicatedly yours,

Brian Hicks

Editor's Note: The government is making the same mistake it did during the housing bubble... loose money supply. Bailout after bailout after bailout means one thing: The government is printing money it doesn't have. And when the bill finally comes due, the dollar is toast. Mark my words. That's why gold is up nearly $250 an ounce in the past year and a half. But 2 years from, gold at $950 will seem cheap. It will most likely be twice that price... as investors head to gold to hedge against the dreaded inflation the dollar will experience. That's why we're recommending a little-known investment vehicle — directly related to gold prices — that pays you double the gains gold makes. And the full scoop on it is right here.

The Pure Asset Trader

Dear reader:

I've got great news...

On Wednesday morning, Bank of America announced they'll only need another $34 billion more from Uncle Sam.

Somehow that's bullish news, according to CEO Ken Lewis.

The truth is, while we're not out of the woods just yet, we are finally starting to see some signs of a slow recovery.

Amex, JP Morgan, and the Bank of New Mellon Corp all got a passing grade on their "stress tests." And to top it off, it seems the Dow's low of 6,600 looks well behind us, and oil prices are starting to charge full steam ahead.

But like I said, we're not in the clear yet.

Want proof?

Just take a look at the sheer number of blockbuster trades that Ian Cooper's made from issuing puts in the Options Trading Pit portfolio recently.

Ian and his team are still cleaning house by safely betting that companies — major companies — will plummet.

And as far as high-profit trades go, they've been spot on for readers who can stomach the fast-paced world of options.

Of course, not many can.

In fact, over the past several months, we've been getting swamped with emails from investors who crave those rapid, reliable profits, but don't want anything to do with the all-or-nothing world of options.

If that sounds like you, trust me—You can't afford to miss this:

You see, after months of scouring the markets and applying many of his own, unique indicators to qualify worthy options plays for his Options Trading Pit readers, Ian Cooper stumbled across another moneymaking trend so astounding, some of his close friends are already talking about early retirement...

... Those very indicators he uses to uncover the +100% options plays have also been - over and over - pinpointing explosive whole stocks as well.

... Stocks that don't quite fit the profile for one of his legendary options trades but still experience share price surges that rapidly and reliably skyrocket upwards of 20% - 50%.

For example, just take a look at the 265% jump that one online gaming software developer made in anticipation of the recent movement to legalize online gaming:

Then there's the 301% explosion his indicators pointed out from National Coal, after the Dow bottomed in early March:

And then there's the 182% jackpot he uncovered from, once again, anticipation of online gambling legalization with YouBet:

And those are just a few. Since Ian started following some of his "discarded" stocks, he's been finding these opportunities left and right.

For example, earlier today, he raced upstairs to my desk to share with me two natural gas stocks and one major oil play that those same indicators tell him are about to go absolutely ballistic!

Unfortunately, these - increasingly more common - jackpots don't fit into the scope of his Options Trading Pit... or any other advisory we offer, for that matter.

And that means that, as investors, we're leaving a lot of easy money (3 near-guaranteed winners even as I write this) on the table...

That is, until now.

In fact, I have a very special invitation I'd like to extend your way.

It's a deeply discounted, sneak-peak into a groundbreaking new advisory Ian recently launched called the Pure Asset Trader.

In it, he shares with you the details behind every single one of these explosive trades he's been uncovering... starting with the oil play that he just recommended, which could hand you rapid double (even triple) digit gains in less than a week or two.

And the two natural gas stocks Ian has been tracking will be recommended in the next two weeks.

One thing you'll notice with Ian's new cutting-edge service is that these powerful trades come from anywhere and everywhere. That's because Ian doesn't like to pigeonhole himself - or you - into any specific sector.

The truth is, at any given moment, somewhere in the market, Ian's indicators are firing on all cylinders about one company or another, whether it be on news, general market trends, overselling, earnings reports, or any of Ian's indicators.

In other words, he's everywhere... but nowhere for too long.

And that's exactly how this unique advisory is geared - for investors like you to take advantage of the scores of rapid-fire gains coming from stocks across the market as our economy slowly starts to recover.

Inside of just a few weeks - even in this market - not only could you recoup some of your losses... You could make fortunes without needing to rely on all-or-nothing options trades!

Plus, if you accept this offer right now, I'll show you how you could secure a test run of this $1,495 service for only $199!

Just click here for more information.

Sincerely,

Brian Hicks

Stock Market Panic

Buy the rumor, sell the news.

That's why I just went short Novavax (NVAX - NASDAQ).

Here are yesterday's headlines, verbatim, from the popular "news" website Drudge Report:

    EU: Don't travel to USA and Mexico...
     US calls EU travel warning unwarranted...
     Russia to check all planes from Americas...
     JANET: NO TESTING OF INCOMING PLANE PASSENGERS...
     STATE DEPT TO ISSUE TRAVEL WARNING TO MEXICO...
     Every passenger arriving in Britain from Mexico screened...
     Has globalization made us more catastrophe-prone?
     'NO EVIDENCE' OF BIO-TERROR...
     PIG SICK: NYC...
     Could mutate to 'more dangerous' strain...
     Flu could boost gov't intervention further...
     Mexico flu scare empties streets, churches, bars...
     Spreads to Europe, markets edgy...

Right now, the world is panicking over confirmation the swine flu is spreading to parts outside of Mexico.

Pandemic is now the buzzword of the day.

And it's easy to see why. The outcome of a full-blown flu pandemic is a grim scenario. . .

At least two million dead.

Hospitals turning away thousands of the sick and dying because there a no available beds. Schools closed for weeks. Hundreds of thousands of empty seats at sports stadiums and churches. A market recovery wiped out.

That's the government's own assessment. (Not that I put a lot of weight in it. See Iraq and WMD. :-) )

But their conclusions, reported by the media, paint a ghoulish picture of what would happen if the swine flu cascades out of control.

According to the report. . .

A full-scale pandemic — if it ever comes — could be expected to claim the lives of about 2 percent of those infected, about 2 million Americans.

The government estimates that a pandemic like the 1918 Spanish flu would sicken 90 million Americans, or about 30 percent of the population. Of those, nearly 10 million would have to be admitted to a hospital, and nearly 1.5 million would need intensive care. About 750,000 would need the help of mechanical ventilators to keep breathing.

So again, it's easy to see why markets are nervous.

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In Europe, over one third of all new electrical generating capacity will come from wind for the next 10 years. After that, wind's share will grow to 46% of all new generation capacity.

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In fact, once the news broke about the spread of swine flu, it produced mini-Black Swans in the biotech sector. (See "Biotechs and Black Swans.")

Investors and traders alike, looking for an easy score, were buying every pharmaceutical and biotech stock that had exposure to a flu vaccine.

Gilead Sciences was up nearly $2. . .
Glaxo was up nearly $2 too. . .
But small biotech Novavax was up more than $1.90 intraday. . . representing a gain of more than 120%.

Check out this chart of Novavax. . .

I love going short panic buying.

And I think you should too.

Novavax's "pandemic" flu vaccine is currently in Phase I/IIa clinical trials. It'll take years before it hits the market. Once the swine flu panic subsides, Novavax's stock should revert back to the mean.

That's why I went short Novavax yesterday.

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks

P.S. A perfect example of trading the rumor comes from my colleague, Ian Cooper. He's just directed his readers to trade the growing momentum behind legalizing online gambling in the U.S. So far, his readers have pocketed gains of over 20% on two stocks. And Ian's confident the news that's about to break will push these two plays much, much higher. To get all the details on his two trades, just click here.

Investing in Biotechnology Stocks

A small biotech company, Dendreon (DNDN), made a big splash last week when it released positive data for its prostate cancer vaccine Provenge.

In a nano-second, Dendreon went from obscurity to savior.

Investors holding Dendreon stock suddenly found themselves instant millionaires.

Dendreon is an excellent example of how a stock can shock the market, or what I call a "mini-Black Swan."

You see, in early March of this year, Dendreon's stock was trading for less than $3. Its market cap was less than $300 million... a true microcap by definition.

If you peruse the stock message boards on Yahoo! Finance prior to last week's announcement, you'll see everybody and his brother badmouthing Dendreon, calling it a "POS stock" and a "quick way to land yourself in the poorhouse." "Go short or go home."

Then came April 3, 2009.

On that day, Dendreon traded a mind-boggling 22.6 million shares. To put that into perspective, Dendreon traded 2.4 million shares the day before.

In fact, here's the historical trading action of Dendreon for March and April:

The April 3^rd trading action is a volume spike. In other words, volume was surging from unusual buying on no news.

The trading was so frantic, Dendreon was trading nearly 58,000 shares every minute!

This prompted Dendreon to put out a public statement. According to a Reuters release:

A spokeswoman for the U.S. biotechnology company Dendreon, Katherine Stueland, said she knew of no clear reason for the stock gains. But she noted that the American Urological Association on Friday had reserved a time slot at one of its upcoming scientific meetings for Provenge researchers to present findings from a late-stage trial of the product.

"We don't know whether we'll definitely be releasing the data there," said Stueland, who noted the urological group had invited Dendreon to make a "late-breaker" presentation on April 28 at its meeting in Chicago.

What was really going on?

Easy. . .

Somebody close to the situation probably leaked — intentionally or unintentionally — the results of Provenge ahead of the official release date. If that was indeed the case, the leaked information of positive results would have spread throughout the market like the waves that result from a rock thrown into the middle of a pond.

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Then on April 14, Dendreon announced those results. . . and thus created the mini-Black Swan.

The Black Swan theory refers to a large-impact, hard-to-predict, and rare event beyond the realm of normal expectations.

The theory was described by Nassim Nicholas Taleb in his 2007 book The Black Swan. Taleb regards many scientific discoveries as "black swans" — undirected and unpredicted. He gives the rise of the Internet, the personal computer, World War I, and the September 11, 2001 attacks as examples of Black Swan events.

The term Black Swan comes from the assumption that 'All swans are white'. In that context, a black swan was a metaphor for something that could not exist. The 18th Century discovery of black swans in Australia metamorphosed the term to connote that the perceived impossibility actually came to pass.

To put it another way. . . a single observation can erase thousands of years of belief or what's considered fact.

If you take that theory and overlay it on a much smaller model, you can potentially make a fortune finding stocks that shock the market with their own version of a Black Swan.

And there's no better sector to do this then biotechnology.

Investing in Biotechnology Stocks

I can give you hundreds of examples of biotechnology stocks doubling. . . tripling. . . quadrupling in a single day because they've announced positive results on a drug and the marketplace has interpreted it as a cure for cancer, or some other major disease.

But the best example I can cite is Entremed. In 1998 Entremed, a rather unknown biotech company, shocked the market, and its stock went nuts. Here's the chart:

I have written my views of the biotechnology sector and how I believe this century is the "Biotech Century." I truly believe that — next to robots — biotechnology is the next big bull market.

As a result, Ian Cooper and I have decided to construct a database of all publicly traded biotech stocks. The database will be robust, assigning values to each company's drug development pipeline with a coordinated timeline for the respective drug's progress through clinical trials and eventual FDA review.

We will couple this database with a trading monitor to detect unusual buying (or selling) patterns in the companies' stocks.

In other words, we're going to attempt catching Black Swans in the biotechnology sector before they are realized by the market.

Next week, I will reveal a biotech stock I think is ripe for a Black Swan.

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks
Publisher, Wealth Daily

Editor's Note: Readers are still emailing Ian Cooper with thanks and praise for his Dendreon call (One reader even claimed a million-dollar windfall from this amazing biotech trade.) But, as Ian is quick to point out here in the office, when it comes to making his readers money... he's just getting warmed up. Fortunately for Wealth Daily members, there's still time (a little more than 24 hours, in fact) to take on Ian in his 50-trade "gauntlet" challenge. Click here to learn more.

Options Investing Newsletter

Investment newsletter editors are an odd lot. I'll be the first to admit that.

In fact, if you ever run into one at the bar, my advice is to buy 'em one drink and be on your way. Otherwise you'll find yourself doing a "dance macabre" from bar to bar until 6 am.

One of the dark secrets of our business is that it takes a certain type of personality to be a successful newsletter editor: The more unusual, the better.

Case in point. . . none of us at Wealth Daily has a formal education in finance or business. Truth be told, we think that a degree in finance or business is a disadvantage.

Looking at my staff, their sheepskin dividends are in philosophy, English lit, linguistics, education, and the Classics.

Another common denominator among newsletter editors is that most of us are social misfits. We hate the conventional and love the bizarre.

If it wasn't for our wives to keep us grounded, we'd spiral out of control in an inescapable vortex of self-destruction fueled by booze and speculation.

But it's that unconventional lifestyle that results in unconventional market analysis for dramatic results. And when an editor's unconventional market analysis hits a bulls-eye, it's a game changer.

Ian Cooper is one such example.

Ian Cooper: The Man Behind the Trades

I've known Ian since 2000, and he's still a complete enigma to me. I have no idea what makes him tick.

Every day, at the same time. . . Ian heads to Subway and orders the exact same sub, the Veggie. His desk is immaculate. His desktop computer spotless.

He's quiet. . . almost in a perpetual state of meditation.

It's gotten to the point where I've instructed my staff not to talk to Ian unless he talks to you first. It's not that we don't like him. . . or that he smells bad. I simply don't want to disrupt his "mojo."

Ian's approach to work is completely unconventional. I have no clue to his methodology. None.

And I don't care, as long as the results are stellar.

That's why I want to tell you about Ian's last trade. He told me about it beforehand. I considered taking a position myself. But everything about the trade seemed illogical to me. . . a trainwreck waiting to happen.

It was a microcap biotech stock. Already it had 2 strikes against it. . . How could I go long a microcap biotech stock (the epitome of speculation) in the worst market since the Great Depression?!?!?!?

My reply: "Do what you want, Ian. Go with God."

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He did.

And now I'm kicking myself in the hindquarters for not mortgaging the house on his trade.

Here's a chart of the stock Ian went long on April 6, 2009. It's Dendreon [NASDAQ: DNDN]

(By the way, on the same day, Jim Cramer advised viewers to sell their shares of Dendreon. Said Cramer, "This is the one where I got in trouble. . . I do not like Dendreon. I think it is up too much on a spike sell sell sell.")

Ian, on the other hand, was bullish. He played the call options on Dendreon. . . getting his subscribers into it at the paltry price of $2.80.

Yesterday, Dendreon announced incredible results for its prostate cancer drug, Provenge. Ian instructed his subscribers to sell.

Please take a moment to read the flood of testimonials that are pouring in. . .

Ian - Great call - pun intended. This is why I love options. Thnx Don

Hi Ian - I just bought yesterday at $2.90 and sold at $12.65. . .YEAH! Merci Beaucoup! (I'm in France) - Peggy

Ian, Made 200% on the DNDN trade. ThANKS. - Fred

In at $2.70 on 4/6. . . Out at $12.00 on 4/14. . . - John M.

Thank you Ian. I bought the August 7.50 call for $3.00 yesterday. I am extremely grateful. - Brad

I am really impressed. Of course I regret not subscribing to your newsletter until last night after the close, when there was nothing to be done to put on a trade, but WELL DONE! I am looking forward to the opportunity to make money from your recommendations in the coming year. —Lisa D.

Thanks for the great recommendation Ian! Waited patiently on an entry point and got in at $2.69 last Thursday, and exited half my position at $12.00 this morning for a hefty 346% gain! Paid off my subscription fee plus a whole lot more, can't wait for our next new opportunity! - Richard G.

Wow.........bought in at 3......sold at 11.30. Thank You!!!! - Milton M.

You are the MAN to follow on these tough times, I'm glad I chose this service because I just doubled my money. Thank you, Thank You. Let me tell you that I'm tried other services and I could never find a service that would pay-off as quick as this. I'm extremely grateful for your picks and I will keep using your service for as long as you are in this business. - Gabriel M.

Thanks Ian - this made my day!! I bought in at $3.25 a call and sold out at $12.15 a call for half my position. - Rich C.

Ian, thanks for the DNDN winner. I'm up over $1 million from your options recommendations - Steve
I almost hurt myself doing a double-take when I glanced at the daily profit & loss column of my trading software this morning. The profit I made on a small position in DNDN has paid for the subscription for years to come! I bought the options at $1.01 and sold at $6.60. Those are the returns I like to see. You're spoiling me, keep it up! - Mark C.

I have monitored Ian L. Cooper's "Option Pit" since the end of May/beginning of June 2008, which was BEFORE it was even a paid-service. Any subscriber who applied basic asset-allocation rules to each of Ian's recommendations, eventually even only investing a maximum of 2.0% total equity per recommendation, would have MORE than doubled their equity during the Option Pits first 6 months alone - during a period that will otherwise be known for the Lehman Bankruptcy, Fannie and Freddie Failures, AIG's meltdown and numerous other corporate downfalls that Option Pit subscribers made a KILLING on.Ian's latest DNDN recommendation is a perfect example of how 2.0% placed on a single trade can result in a NET 6.0% gain for the ENTIRE portfolio. I bought Dendreon Calls at 3.30 based on Ian's recommendation and sold it @ open on April 14 for $12.50.I think that's what's called a 4-bagger..." - Anonymous

The Options Trading Pit

If you think I'm cherry-picking Ian's Options Trading Pit service, think again.

Here's his track record YTD:

54 winners out of 67 trades. Cumulative gain of 3,923%. . . an average gain of 60% per trade. . . 10 days average hold time.

George Soros recently said he was "having a good crisis." If Soros is having a good crisis. . . Cooper is having a GREAT crisis.

If you haven't tried Ian's Options Trading Pit service, you should. There's a 30-day full money back guarantee. So you can test it for one month essentially free of charge.

Right now, Ian is about to issue a new trade based on an annual, spring "event" he says is foolproof.

Last year at this time, you could've locked in a 120% to 140% profit on this "event." According to Ian, we're just days away from this event occurring again.

If you want to test-drive Ian's OTP for a month, go here: http://www.angelnexus.com/o/op/11850

To learn more about Ian's OTP service, feel free to read this report: http://www.angelnexus.com/o/web/11850

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks
Publisher, Wealth Daily

Options Investing Newsletter

Investment newsletter editors are an odd lot. I'll be the first to admit that.

In fact, if you ever run into one at the bar, my advice is to buy 'em one drink and be on your way. Otherwise you'll find yourself doing a "dance macabre" from bar to bar until 6 am.

One of the dark secrets of our business is that it takes a certain type of personality to be a successful newsletter editor: The more unusual, the better.

Case in point. . . none of us at Wealth Daily has a formal education in finance or business. Truth be told, we think that a degree in finance or business is a disadvantage.

Looking at my staff, their sheepskin dividends are in philosophy, English lit, linguistics, education, and the Classics.

Another common denominator among newsletter editors is that most of us are social misfits. We hate the conventional and love the bizarre.

If it wasn't for our wives to keep us grounded, we'd spiral out of control in an inescapable vortex of self-destruction fueled by booze and speculation.

But it's that unconventional lifestyle that results in unconventional market analysis for dramatic results. And when an editor's unconventional market analysis hits a bulls-eye, it's a game changer.

Ian Cooper is one such example.

Ian Cooper: The Man Behind the Trades

I've known Ian since 2000, and he's still a complete enigma to me. I have no idea what makes him tick.

Every day, at the same time. . . Ian heads to Subway and orders the exact same sub, the Veggie. His desk is immaculate. His desktop computer spotless.

He's quiet. . . almost in a perpetual state of meditation.

Ian's approach to work is completely unconventional. I have no clue to his methodology. None.

And I don't care, as long as the results are stellar.

My reply: "Do what you want, Ian. Go with God."

Buffett Loves Batteries

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He did.

And now I'm kicking myself in the hindquarters for not mortgaging the house on his trade.

Here's a chart of the stock Ian went long on April 6, 2009. It's Dendreon (DNDN - NASDAQ)

Ian, on the other hand, was bullish. He played the call options on Dendreon. . . getting his subscribers into it at the paltry price of $2.80.

Yesterday, Dendreon announced incredible results for its prostate cancer drug, Provenge. Ian instructed his subscribers to sell.

Please take a moment to read the flood of testimonials that are pouring in. . .

Ian - Great call - pun intended. This is why I love options. Thnx Don

Hi Ian - I just bought yesterday at $2.90 and sold at $12.65. . .YEAH! Merci Beaucoup! (I'm in France) - Peggy

Ian, Made 200% on the DNDN trade. ThANKS. - Fred

In at $2.70 on 4/6. . . Out at $12.00 on 4/14. . . - John M.

Thank you Ian. I bought the August 7.50 call for $3.00 yesterday. I am extremely grateful. - Brad

I am really impressed. Of course I regret not subscribing to your newsletter until last night after the close, when there was nothing to be done to put on a trade, but WELL DONE! I am looking forward to the opportunity to make money from your recommendations in the coming year. —Lisa D.

Thanks for the great recommendation Ian! Waited patiently on an entry point and got in at $2.69 last Thursday, and exited half my position at $12.00 this morning for a hefty 346% gain! Paid off my subscription fee plus a whole lot more, can't wait for our next new opportunity! - Richard G.

Wow.........bought in at 3......sold at 11.30. Thank You!!!! - Milton M.

You are the MAN to follow on these tough times, I'm glad I chose this service because I just doubled my money. Thank you, Thank You. Let me tell you that I'm tried other services and I could never find a service that would pay-off as quick as this. I'm extremely grateful for your picks and I will keep using your service for as long as you are in this business. - Gabriel M.

Thanks Ian - this made my day!! I bought in at $3.25 a call and sold out at $12.15 a call for half my position. - Rich C.

Ian, thanks for the DNDN winner. I'm up over $1 million from your options recommendations - Steve
I almost hurt myself doing a double-take when I glanced at the daily profit & loss column of my trading software this morning. The profit I made on a small position in DNDN has paid for the subscription for years to come! I bought the options at $1.01 and sold at $6.60. Those are the returns I like to see. You're spoiling me, keep it up! - Mark C.

I have monitored Ian L. Cooper's "Option Pit" since the end of May/beginning of June 2008, which was BEFORE it was even a paid-service. Any subscriber who applied basic asset-allocation rules to each of Ian's recommendations, eventually even only investing a maximum of 2.0% total equity per recommendation, would have MORE than doubled their equity during the Option Pits first 6 months alone - during a period that will otherwise be known for the Lehman Bankruptcy, Fannie and Freddie Failures, AIG's meltdown and numerous other corporate downfalls that Option Pit subscribers made a KILLING on.Ian's latest DNDN recommendation is a perfect example of how 2.0% placed on a single trade can result in a NET 6.0% gain for the ENTIRE portfolio. I bought Dendreon Calls at 3.30 based on Ian's recommendation and sold it @ open on April 14 for $12.50.I think that's what's called a 4-bagger..." - Anonymous

The Options Trading Pit

If you think I'm cherry-picking Ian's Options Trading Pit service, think again.

Here's his track record YTD:

54 winners out of 67 trades. Cumulative gain of 3,923%. . . an average gain of 60% per trade. . . 10 days average hold time.

George Soros recently said he was "having a good crisis." If Soros is having a good crisis. . . Cooper is having a GREAT crisis.

If you haven't tried Ian's Options Trading Pit service, you should. There's a 30-day full money back guarantee. So you can test it for one month essentially free of charge.

Right now, Ian is about to issue a new trade based on an annual, spring "event" he says is foolproof.

Last year at this time, you could've locked in a 120% to 140% profit on this "event." According to Ian, we're just days away from this event occurring again.

If you want to test-drive Ian's OTP for a month, go here: http://www.angelnexus.com/o/op/11850

To learn more about Ian's OTP service, feel free to read this report: http://www.angelnexus.com/o/web/11850

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks
Publisher, Wealth Daily
Angel Publishing Investment Research

There Is No Free Market in America

Editor's Note: I'd like to share an article with you from Gold World's sister publication Wealth Daily which was featured last week. The article was written by Angel Publishing founder and New York Times Best-Selling Author Brian Hicks. Brian is one of the only writers around who is brave enough to tell the truth about the deception of free markets in America. This is one that you don't want to miss.

Sincerely,

Greg McCoach
Editor, Gold World

————-

The Democrats and liberals among Wealth Daily's readership aren't going to like this article.

That's because I'm about to dispel a longstanding belief among partisan Democrats. . . especially among the more naive.

And that is that the Democrats weren't a willing party to the current economic crisis. (Don't worry. . . George W. and the neocons are responsible for the trillions spent in the never-ending whatever that is in Iraq and Afghanistan, but I'll save that argument for another day.)

Here's the proof. . .

This is an article from the New York Times dated September 30, 1999. . .

How does that make you feel???

Now, you're constantly hearing spin in the media and from politicians about how the current economic situation is a result of "free market failure."

Nothing could be farther from the truth.

Double... Triple... Even Quadruple your Money as Oil Recovers

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In fact, as oil recovers, we expect our $3 stock to soar to at least $15 to $20 in the next few months. Isn't it time you started making these gains?

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Let me state for the record. . . THERE IS NO FREE MARKET IN AMERICA.

The market in the U.S. is heavily regulated and manipulated.

The housing bubble was the result of a massive government stimulus plan. Right after 9/11, the U.S. Treasury and U.S. Federal Reserve cut rates to historic lows and increased money supply to obscene levels.

Couple that with the push for more home ownership. . . and what you get is a toxic brew of government-sponsored economic activity.

As Ron Paul has said thousands of times (and he's been vindicated 1000x over), the free market would never have let rates drop as low as they did after 9/11.

You see, one of the primary components of a healthy, functioning free market is risk.

Risk is necessary to weed out bad and irrational actors.

When you start handing out what is essentially free money and allowing borrowers to take out mortgages with $0 down, you eliminate risk. And when that happens, you're indicating there's no consequence of action.

That's why so many homeowners are so willing to walk away from their homes: because they have no skin in the game. They lose nothing if they allow their home to go into foreclosure.

Had these same homeowners put 10% down, I guarantee they'd be less willing to walk away from that investment.

But trying to explain that to a socialist is like trying to tell somebody from Philly that Brooks Robinson was the greatest third baseman in history. It's an argument with no ending.

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks
Publisher, Wealth Daily

P.S. Uncle Sam's massive construction of debt over the past several years virtually guarantees inflationary pressure and the continuing decline in value of the U.S. dollar. And now that the greenback has had some strength, there's never been a better time to go short on the U.S. dollar. Luke Burgess has recently added the two leveraged U.S. dollar short investment positions to his 2009 Secret Stock Files Investment Strategy Portfolio. And he wants to share them with you today, so you too can protect your future financial well-being and profit from the continuing decline of the U.S. dollar. If you're interested in learning more about these two investment vehicles, just click here.

The Best Investment Research Today

As the owner and publisher of over 10 investment newsletters, I'm often asked the following question by investors...

"What's the purpose and usefulness of a financial newsletter, especially if I already have a stockbroker and/or financial planner?"

Let me answer that by sharing a personal experience. It happened last year, before the financial crisis began, when few market thinkers were already warning of it.

My story is 100% true. I've changed one name to save the poor soul from extreme embarrassment.

I'll start my story on September 29, 2008, when I was driving back from Bethany Beach, Delaware. The market had been closed for about 30 minutes when I got a panicked call from "Bill the Financial Dude."

Bill, who's about 35 years old, was an up-and-coming investment planner. . . and landed me as a client in 2007.

Though I manage 75% of my investments personally, I passed off the other 25% to Bill for estate tax purposes. Up until about a year ago, these funds HAD BEEN invested in the market.

On the day Bill called me, the Dow had dropped 873 points. . . or 8%.

When I answered my cell phone, Bill was frantic. . .

"Brian. . . how far do you think the market is going to drop??? What are you doing now??? What do you think I should be doing??? Is it too late to sell??? (By the way, the Dow closed that day at 10,365.45. It's currently down another 25% from those levels.)

I swear I heard his voice quiver. . . about to shed a tear. . . or maybe 100.

That's right. This was my financial advisor.

He was now calling me to get advice!

Why?

Because between September '07 and February '08, I fought with him and his company to get my family and me out of the market and into cash.

This was the boilerplate reply I got every time I wanted to go to cash:

"Brian you're making a mistake. You're not thinking rationally and not abiding by sound investment principles. You should be averaging down on quality positions. I urge you to reconsider and get back to me next week."

I finally was able to get my (as well as my parents') investment funds out of the stock market and into cash in February '08.

What follows is my email conversation with Bill regarding this matter. I'll pick it up in April of last year. . .

From: "Bill the Financial Dude"
To: My mom and dad
Subject: Investments
Date: Tue, 1 Apr 2008 10:37:33 -0400

Mr. & Mrs. Hicks,

It's time to revisit your investment strategy and decide what to do. We moved to cash a couple months ago in your IRA accounts, and I feel it's time to review our options and make some changes. Let's schedule a phone meeting. Does early evening work best for you? Let me know a couple dates that work for you.

Warm Regards,

"Bill the Financial Dude"

In the above email message, Bill was going behind my back in an attempt to convince my parents to get back into the market. . . and I'm talking about growth funds!!!

My mom forwarded his email to me. . . and here's my reply to mom. . .

From: Brian Hicks
Subject: FW: Mom Hick's IRA
To: Mom Hicks
Date: Wed. April 2, 2008, 4:47 PM

Mom, don't do anything he says. The markets are undergoing once-in-a-lifetime turmoil. . . and he doesn't have any idea how to work thru this.

-Your loving son

That stopped Bill the Financial Dude for a couple months. But by June, he was back wanting us to jump into the market full bore.

From: Bill the Financial Dude
To: 'Brian Hicks'
Cc: Mom Hicks
Subject: RE: Mom Hick's IRA
Sent: Wednesday, June 11, 2008 4:40 PM

Brian and Mom Hicks,

I left a message on your voicemails on Monday. There is a lack of communication between the three of us. Please tell me what I can do to help you. I'm trying to set up a 3-way phone meeting to talk about your accounts. It is very important that we do this.

The IRA was initially in a growth and income allocation. We went to cash in February at your request. Since the fund is a C share, there is a 1% deferred load if sold within one year. The load will drop in one year or in July. My recommendation was either to stay in cash or move out of cash into a moderate or balanced fund until you decided what to do with the money. I want to talk with you before I do anything.

Regarding the LPL analysts (their report said the worst was behind us), I'm not going to debate the validity of any economic report. You understand that there are many credible sources that have different opinions on everything. It is our job to take information and do the best we can with it, knowing that the predictions could very well be wrong. LPL's quarterly review is one source's interpretation of the economy and certainly not the only source I use.

When it comes to recommending an appropriate fund for you or any other client, there are many other considerations than what the economy, specific sector, or security is doing. One challenge that we have is trying to address growth, income, liquidity, market volatility, fees, and account minimum needs with a small amount of money. Getting in and out of securities generates trading costs that directly affects the returns. More trading costs equal lower returns in many cases.

Warm Regards,

Bill the Financial Dude

Here's What Every Wealthy Energy Investor Already Knows...

The U.S. Department of Energy has indicated that enough electric power for the entire country can be generated by covering about 9% of Nevada with solar power systems. This is a plot of land roughly 92 miles by 92 miles.
According to M.I.T., there are over 100 million quads of accessible geothermal energy worldwide. The world only consumes about 400 quads.
The Institute for the Analysis of Global Security has stated that if all cars on the road were hybrids, and half were Plug-In Hybrids by 2025 -- U.S. imports would be reduced by 8 million barrels per day. That's about 80% of our daily consumption!

Want a million more reasons that renewable energy investors have become some of the wealthiest in 2009?

Click here for all the proof you'll ever need!

My reply?

"Whatever" and "You're fired."

Then came this earlier this year. . .

From: Bill the Financial Dude
Sent: Thursday, January 15, 2009 9:00 AM
To: 'Brian Hicks'
Subject: An Obama bounce?

Brian,

I'd like to talk to you about the stock market. How does Wednesday at noon sound? I'll come by your office and we can get a bite to eat.

One of my many goals this year is to get a better handle on the economy. I'd like to talk about the sources of information you have that help to predict market trends. A year ago before the credit crisis, you were bearish and in cash when everyone else was more or less fully invested. Apparently a lot of people are missing information that turns out to be costly.

Warm Regards,

Bill

And that, dear reader, is why investment newsletters exist. We give you investment ideas that the parochial investment planning industry cannot.

Are we right all the time? Of course not.

But unlike the financial planning industry, we're not salesmen for a specific family of funds. We live and die by the big investment ideas we give you. When we were talking about Peak Oil as early as 2004, we were laughed at, ridiculed, and even called "Peak Freaks" when we appeared as guests on Fox News.

But we stuck by our prediction that oil would trade above $80 a barrel. It did.

The bottom line is this: if you make money following our research, you'll stay with us. If you lose money, you won't.

That's about as academic as it gets.

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks

Publisher's Note: My research team and I have just put the finishing touches on a breakthrough new report... one that uncovers 3 blockbuster plays hidden within President Obama's 1,047-page stimulus plan. (One of the stocks is already up 166% since the election.) To find out the names of these 3 stocks, simply click here to read the report.

Mark to Market Accounting

Dear Wealth Daily reader:

By now you already know we feature a diversity of voices every week. That's because we live and die—and succeed—by our ideas. . . We just can't afford to ignore challenges to our preconceived notions or investment approaches. So this week, we're thrilled to bring you the first of many guest articles from a friend of Wealth Daily, Euro Pacific Capital's Peter Schiff.

I've known Peter for over a decade, and as president of Euro Pacific, Peter's goal has been very simple and similar to ours here at WD: keeping his audience ahead of the mainstream.

Peter has become a YouTube viral video sensation with compilations of his calls on the housing bubble, the dollar's demise, and other forecasts that went against the pop-finance grain while the bull market roared. Confronted by a gauntlet of CNBC talking heads, Peter never backed down when he knew he was right. And in the end, the see-no-evil crowd got taken to the cleaners and Peter was vindicated.

Expect more honest and accurate insight from Peter in the weeks and months to come.

Good investing,

Brian Hicks

Let's Play Pretend!

When elementary school kids want to escape the confines of their circumstances they pretend to be pirates, princesses, and Jedi knights. Now, with the relaxation of "mark to market" valuation rules announced yesterday by the accounting trade's self-regulatory body, our bankrupt financial institutions can escape their own reality by pretending to be solvent. The unraveling of our fairytale economy over the last few months has not yet convinced us that the time has come to put away childish things. The applause that greeted the news yesterday on Wall Street is a clear sign that we still have some growing up to do.

The imaginative conceit that lies behind the accounting change is that the toxic assets polluting bank balance sheets are not really toxic at all. They are in fact highly valuable assets that for some irrational reason no one wants to buy.

Using the "mark to market" accounting method, mortgage-backed securities were valued relative to the latest prices fetched by the sale of similar assets on the open market. Currently, those bonds are being sold at deep discounts to their original value. By "marking" their unsold bonds down to those prices, the insolvency of our financial institutions had been laid bare. The new accounting changes will allow the nervous owners to assign more "appropriate" (i.e. higher) values. Problem solved.

It is important to note that the Financial Accounting Standards Board made their rule modifications only after intense pressure had been applied by Washington and Wall Street. In their heart of hearts, I can't imagine that there are too many bean counters happy with the outcome.

The banks and the government have argued that the assets should be valued based solely on current cash flow. Most mortgages, after all, are not delinquent. Therefore, a few bad apples should not spoil the whole cart, and those that are not yet delinquent should be valued at par. This method assumes we have no ability to look into the future and make assumptions about what is likely to happen, which is presumably what the market is already doing by valuing the assets lower than the banks wish.

All kinds of bonds (corporate, government and municipal, etc.) that are not in default frequently trade at discounts. In fact, the reason that agencies such as Moody's and Standard and Poor's rate bonds is to assess the probability of default. The higher that probability, the lower the value placed on the bonds, regardless of their current cash flow.

For example, GM bonds that mature 10 years from now currently trade for only 8 to 10 cents on the dollar, despite the fact that GM is current on all interest payments. The 90% discount reflects investor awareness that GM will likely default long before the bonds mature. By the new logic, financial institutions with GM bonds on their balance sheets should be able to ignore the market and value these bonds at par.

Some argue that the comparison is invalid because GM's bonds are liquid while mortgage-backed securities are not. However, if sellers of GM bonds were holding out for 70 or 80 cents on the dollar, those bonds would be illiquid too. The reason GM bonds are trading is that sellers are realistic.

The same should apply to bonds backed by mortgages. To assume that a 30-year, $500,000 mortgage on a house that has declined in value to $300,000 has a high probability of remaining current to maturity is ridiculous. The borrower could lose his job, his ARM might reset higher, or he may simply tire of paying an expensive mortgage for a house that is unlikely to be sold at a profit. Any bond investor with half a brain will factor in these probabilities and look for deep discounts. The only way to accurately assess a real present value is to let the market discover the price.

Mortgages Lack Value. . . not Liquidity

Despite the pleas from bankers and politicians, mortgages are not plagued by a lack of liquidity but a lack of value. If sellers would be more negotiable, there would be plenty of liquidity. Who knows, at the right price I might even buy a few. The problem is that putting a market price on these assets would render most financial institutions insolvent, which is precisely why they do not want to let that happen.

Simply pretending that all these mortgages will be repaid does not solve the underlying problems. It may keep some banks alive longer, but when they ultimately do fail, the losses will be that much greater. In the meantime, solvent institutions are deprived of capital as more funds are funneled into insolvent "too big to fail" institutions — hiding their toxic assets behind rosy assumptions and phony marks.

Going from the sublime to the completely ridiculous, in a speech at the just-concluded G20 summit in London, President Obama urged Americans not to let their fears crimp their spending. It would be unwise, he argued, for Americans to let the fear of job loss, lack of savings, unpaid bills, credit card debt or student loans deter them from making major purchases. According to the president, "we must spend now as an investment for the future." So in this land of imagination (where subprime mortgages are valued at par), instead of saving for the future, we must spend for the future.

I guess Ben Franklin had it wrong too — apparently a penny spent is a penny earned.

Peter Schiff

For a more in depth analysis of our financial problems and the inherent dangers they pose for the U.S. economy and U.S. dollar, read my newest book "The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets." Click here to order your copy now.

And you can download my free Special Report, "Peter Schiff's Five Favorite Investment Choices for the Next Five Years," at http://www.europac.net/report/index_fivefavorites.asp.

There Is No Free Market in America

Dear Reader:

The Democrats and liberals among Wealth Daily's readership aren't going to like this article.

That's because I'm about to dispel a longstanding belief among partisan Democrats... especially among the more naive.

And that is - the Democrats were a willing party to the current economic crisis. (Don't worry... George W and the neocons are responsible for the trillions spent in the never-ending whatever that is in Iraq and Afghanistan, but I'll save that argument for another day.)

Here's the proof.

This is an article from the New York Times dated September 30, 1999...

How does that make you feel???

Now, you're constantly hearing spin in the media and from politicians about how the current economic situation is a result of "free market failure."

Nothing could be farther from the truth.

The Most Profitable Energy Transition The World Has Ever Seen!

On November 12, 2008, the International Energy Agency (IEA) officially confirmed that every fossil fuel resource we rely on today will simply not be able to keep pace with demand.

As a result, the IEA stated in very clear terms that renewable energy will soon become the second largest source of energy.

Want to know which renewable energy source will take the lion's share of tomorrow's power generation?

Click here, and see where the experts are putting their money!

Let me state for the record... THERE IS NO FREE MARKET IN AMERICA.

The market in the U.S. is heavily regulated and manipulated.

Couple that with the push for more home ownership... and what you get is a toxic brew of government sponsored economic activity.

As Ron Paul has said thousands of times (and he's been vindicated 1000x over), the free market would never have let rates drop as low as they did after 9/11.

You see, one of the primary components of a healthy, functioning free market is risk.

Risk is necessary to weed out bad and irrational actors.

That's why so many homeowners are so willing to walk away from their homes, because they have no skin in the game. They lose nothing if they allow their home to go into foreclosure.

Had these same homeowners put 10% down, I guarantee they'd be less willing to walk away from that investment.

But trying to explain that to a socialist is like trying to tell somebody from Philly that Brooks Robinson was the greatest third basemen in history. It's an argument with no ending.

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks
Publisher, Wealth Daily

The Obama Stimulus Plan

Last week I told you how to make money off the Obama stimulus plan.

This week I'm going to show you how to protect your portfolio from the Obama stimulus plan!

The Obama Paradox

I run in some fairly obscure financial circles. A lot of my contacts are global. . . an Iranian trader who practices his craft in a Central American nation. . . a globe-trotting Greek who builds yachts in China. . . a cowboy who owns more mansions than a Saudi prince. . . a survivalist who grows and kills all his food. . . and a handful of brokers, hedge fund managers, and entrepreneurs from Kiev to Calgary.

You'll never see their names in the Wall Street Journal. . . or see them eating at Spago. They are low-key players who shun the limelight.

And for good reason.

In terms of winning investments, they are always ahead of the crowd.

Among these market players, the opinion is unanimous: it's amateur hour at the White House. . . and this keystone cop approach to the financial crisis will result in the final death knell of American supremacy.

There is a silver lining though:

They all think there's a window of about 3 years left to get rich (or richer), to get out. . . and then protect your profits.

Last week I showed you 3 ways to make money from the trillion-dollar stimulus plan:

Argentex (AGXM - OTCBB). . . Up 21% since last week's recommendation
SunPower (SPWRA - NASDAQ). . . a gain of 10%
PowerShares Dynamic Building and Construction ETF (PKB). . . up 4%

In the case of Argentex, whose mine could be a major source of indium for the solar energy market, its stock is up 216% since the election of Obama.

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The Push Toward a New Reserve Currency

I know what you're thinking: Why 3 years?

Because they think that's about the time it would take for a new world reserve currency to be created and implemented into the global economy.

It took Europe 6 years to introduce the Euro currency. Under a crisis situation, my group thinks the other major global powers could do it in half the time.

According to a Reuters piece that ran last week...

"China and other emerging nations back Russia's call for a discussion on how to replace the dollar as the world's primary reserve currency, a senior Russian government source said last Thursday. Russia has proposed the creation of a new reserve currency, to be issued by international financial institutions, among other measures in the text of its proposals to the April G20 summit published last Monday."

And then on Monday the Financial Times reported that the Chinese are serious...

"China's central bank on Monday proposed replacing the U.S. dollar as the international reserve currency with a new global system controlled by the International Monetary Fund."

In an essay posted on the People's Bank of China's website, the central bank's governor Zhou Xiaochuan said the goal would be to create a reserve currency "that is disconnected from individual nations and is able to remain stable in the long run, thus removing the inherent deficiencies caused by using credit-based national currencies."

Uh oh.

Think about that for a second. The federal budget depends on an endless stream of lending by foreigners. China, Japan, and Russia have lent America tons of dough because the U.S. dollar is the world's reserve currency.

If the other powers agree on creating a new reserve currency to replace the dollar, it's game over for America.

Done. Finito. Kaput.

In fact, one legendary investor is betting on just that: John Paulson. . .

Gold: the "Ultimate Safe Haven"

Paulson made billions shorting subprime mortgages at the height of the housing bubble. Now he appears to be betting on the destruction of the U.S. dollar.

In what could be considered a "doomsday" trade, inflation play, or a bet on the implosion of the U.S. dollar, Paulson now has quite a large position in gold by way of gold companies.

It was recently reported John Paulson's hedge fund Paulson & Co has taken a $1.28 billion stake in AngloGold Ashanti. He took an 11.3% stake at $32 per share and is now the company's 2nd largest shareholder.

I think you should do the same. At least 5% of your portfolio should be in gold.

Gold is the ultimate safe haven. I personally own physical gold as well as a position in Greg McCoach's gold's "Doubling Effect" strategy. I consider it the one way to protect my portfolio from the federal government's spending orgy.

Greg reveals his strategy in this free report: http://www.angelnexus.com/o/web/11407

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks
Publisher, Wealth Daily

The Obama Portfolio

On February 22, 2005, Barack Obama, a U.S. Senator at the time, placed a trade on a tiny biotechnology company out of Oregon. The biotech company's name is AVI Biopharma.

Records show that Obama purchased tiny AVI Biopharma just above $2 a share.

What was AVI's claim to fame? Not much.

It's a biotech company that's been around for years. It develops drugs intended for the use to treat infectious diseases... some of which the Department of Homeland Security have deemed "bioterrorism" viruses like West Nile, Dengue fever, SARS and Ebola.

I know the company very well. I have played golf with former AVI CEO Dennis Burger in Sun Valley, Idaho. And Dennis gave a presentation at my biotech conference in August 2000.

But even though the company was founded in 1980, it has never successfully brought a drug to market.

25 years in business. 0 drugs on market.

So why did Obama buy it?

Maybe he knew something 99.9% of investors didn't...

You see, 8 months after Obama bought the stock, the company was awarded a $28 million contract from the federal government to research treatments against biological warfare or a bioterrorism attack.

AVI Biopharma spiked in price... and days after the announcement, Obama sold his shares and booked a 73% profit.

Not bad for a community activist from Chi-town, right?

Sure, but Obama understood one of the most fundamental trading strategies on the street: Buy the rumor, sell the news.

Add to that "don't fight the Fed" and what you have is the potential for a massive payday.

But here's the best part... the Obama trading strategy is about to pay off again. Today, inside his 1,047-page stimulus plan, the White House pinpoints potentially massive deals for 3 more companies that could pay even larger gains.

I'm calling it the Obama Portfolio: 3 Stocks to Profit from the Stimulus Plan

$555 Billion by 2020

There's a new leader in the global green energy market.

This underestimated nation already dominates the solar, wind, and hydro power industries. Now they're raising the stakes even higher... All told, their clean-tech market will be worth $555 billion by 2020.

G.E., DuPont, and even T. Boone Pickens have already staked a claim. Now it's your turn.

You can't afford to let these profits pass you by. Read the full report today.

The investments are...

1. Argentex (AGXM - OTCBB)

2. SunPower (SPWRA - NASDAQ)

3. PowerShares Dynamic Building & Construction ETF (PKB)

One of the stocks - Argentex (AGXM - OTCBB) is up nearly 166% since the election.

Why is Argentex rallying?

Because in addition to its gold and silver potential, Argentex's massive mine in Argentina could contain as much as 20% indium.

And indium is being used in high-efficient solar cells. This could be huge...

Argentex: Not Just A Gold Stock

Many factors limit the efficiency of photovoltaic cells. Silicon is cheap, for example, but in converting light to electricity it wastes most of the energy as heat. The most efficient semiconductors in solar cells are alloys made from elements from group III of the periodic table, like indium.

With Obama pushing renewables hard in his Green Building Agenda, solar energy is going to be a major play in the energy complex.

According to a February report published by Piper Jaffray:

Federal building solar market may be larger than all of U.S. solar market today: While specific solar carve-outs are not recognized, wind, biogas, and geothermal are unlikely for federal buildings or schools. Thus we believe rooftop and BIPV solar are the prime beneficiaries; the GSA estimates 75% of projects will use solar technology.

Indium demand for solar cells will increase dramatically.

Now, even though I own Argentex in my personal portfolio, I rate it for aggressive investors. It currently trades for just less than $0.40 a share. In my opinion, Argentex has 10-to-1 return potential within the next 12 months.

If you're looking for a solar play on the Obama plan but don't want to get too aggressive, look at SunPower (SPWRA).

SunPower does $1.4 billion in annual revenue, and unlike many renewable energy companies, it has been profitable.

When the stimulus money begins flowing into the economy, SunPower's solar panels should fly off of the shelves.

Like many renewable energy companies, SunPower's stock has plunged during the credit crisis.

But it now trades for $20 a share... a level I think it will rally from.

My final play on the Obama Stimulus Plan is the PowerShares Dynamic Building & Construction ETF (PKB).

This ETF gives you broad exposure to companies that will benefit under the infrastructure building boom Obama is planning. Companies like Caterpillar, Jacobs Engineering, Fluor and Lowe's.

It trades just less than $9 a share. I do own this in my personal portfolio... and I think it's a great way to play the Obama stimulus with limited risk.

Profitably yours,

Brian Hicks

Publisher, Wealth Daily

PS. To see what other areas Obama is about to bounce, check out this report from my colleague and clean energy expert Nick Hodge. It details where billions of stimulus dollars will go, and how you can use them for you own personal gain.

2009 Stock Market Outlook

Happy Holidays!

I've been receiving an avalanche of emails from readers wondering if there are any opportunities or anything good that will result from the current crisis on Wall Street.

Call me a perma-bull, but I am cautiously optimistic on the stock market for 2009.

For starters, my wife is Chinese, so every December she tells me the prediction for the upcoming Chinese New Year. (Even if it's superstitious, it helps my standing with the in-laws.)

So here we go...

2009 is the year of the ox, also known as the bull. So there's a good sign!

According to the Year of the Ox forecast for 2009:

"The global economy will begin to recover from the financial meltdown. 2009 is a year of opportunities with the emergence of many new global empires following the collapse of big names like Lehman Brothers. Under the new administration of Barack Obama (self element earth person), the Wall Street stock market will recover faster than expected as Barack Obama enters his peak luck cycle. We will see world major economies put aside their differences to overcome the financial crisis. The full impact of the unison can be seen in the second half of 2009.

The property market of United States will continue to recover as 2009 is the year of earth. Employment statistics will improve as United States' job market bounce back from the financial meltdown. This will in turn lead to an improvement of the world's stock market. However, many major corporations will also undergo restructuring or even a change in leadership."

Okay, so it's not exactly market analysis worthy of Jim Rogers or Warren Buffett. But after the year we've had, I'll take any glimmer of hope.

With regard to the financial markets, I still believe we will see continued volatility as hedge funds are forced to sell positions to meet redemptions.

However, I consider this to be a buying opportunity to the patient investor.

In fact, I have a "watch list" of about 20 stocks that I am itching to buy once I see the selling pressure decline. Their valuations have been obliterated so badly by the indiscriminate selling, that I think these are guaranteed triples in the next 2 to three years.

For example, GPS device maker Garmin (GRMN - Nasdaq) is currently trading at a p/e multiple of 4.75. Its current eps is $4.09!

More importantly, it has ZERO debt!

At the start of '08, Garmin's stock was trading over $100 a share. Today? It trades for less than $20.

I'm buying.

I have also initiated another new position: Argentex Mining (AGXM - OTCBB). This has been a favorite of Greg McCoach. But like all junior mining stocks, it's been crushed by the systemic de-leveraging by the global economy.

However, for Argentex, I think we've witnessed a selling climax. A major fund has been selling the stock the last 2 weeks driving the price all the way down to $0.07.

Why did I buy Argentex?

The junior mining sector is the most despised sector in the world right now. Okay, maybe housing and financials are hated more.

But in the case of the juniors, the quality companies that have real assets are trading at a 99% discount to their potential resource. When the commodity sector recovers (and it could take a couple years), you could be looking at a 100-to-1 return on your investment. Again though, you have to be patient.

In addition to Garmin and Argentex, I still think healthcare is the best-positioned sector for 2009 and beyond.

Right now, cash-rich healthcare companies are on a buying binge, acquiring and striking deals with smaller players.

So even if stock investors are'nt buying stock, healthcare companies are. This speaks volumes. There's a lot of value out there... and big big pharma companies like Johnson & Johnson are like kids in a candy store in today's depressed market.

Here's a small sampling of what has occurred in just the past 2 weeks...

· GlaxoSmithKline and Archemix Corp ink $200 million development deal. -December 23

· Wyeth has acquired the U.K.-based biotech company Thiakis Limited for an upfront payment of $30 million. An additional $120 is on the table for future development milestones. -Dec. 18

· GlaxoSmithKline has signed a drug development deal with Dynavax Technologies Corp. that could be worth as much as $800 million. -Dec 18

I continue to own the S&P Biotech ETF (XBI). But I think the best way to position yourself for a major score is to own a tiny biotech company called Anavex (AVXL - OTCBB).

I have talked about Anavex many times before, but recently the company has garnered national attention.

Anavex's Alzheimer's compound ANAVEX 1-41 was featured in the Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology. This is huge... and validates Anavex's unique approach to addressing Alzheimer's, a disease that is expected to spike in the coming years with the baby boomer generation.

You can read more about it here: http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/081217/to444.html?.v=46

Anavex currently trades for $2.20 a share. I'm a buyer at these levels.

I also like Pfizer (PFE - NYSE). The company is cash rich with no debt... and pays an 8% dividend. I just collected my first dividend check from Pfizer earlier this month. In this market, dividends are an important and effective way to supplement your income.

My colleague Steve Christ is an expert stock picker in these industries. In fact, his Wealth Advisory service is exactly the portfolio to weather the financial storm... and come out with gains to last a lifetime. You can read more on Steve's research in his new report here.

One final note. Gold spiked yesterday, moving up $23 an ounce to close at $871. We've been big bulls on gold for years. But we're fanatical bulls now... as the US government prints dollars like mad to save every failing business on the planet.

With all these dollars being pumped into the economy, inflation will eventually rear its head, driving the value of the dollar into the dirt.

Greg McCoach has discovered a unique investment that allows you to make $2 every time gold goes up $1.

Greg first introduced this investment to his readers on October 30, 2008. In 2-months' time, that investment has already paid off 28%! But it's not too late to get in. In this report, Greg outlines why this is a must-have for your portfolio: http://www.angelnexus.com/o/web/10379

And finally, our readers who've been closely following Ian Cooper over the last 6 months are banking unprecedented gains through his Options Trading Pit service. Not only have his subscribers enjoyed 32 wins out of 38 trades (along with an average gain of 74%), they're also learning how to easily and efficiently trade options from one of the industry's foremost experts.

To read how Ian's doing it, just follow this link.

Best regards,

Brian Hicks

3 Rules for Today's Markets

I've been asked by several friends, family and readers of this letter...

"What are you doing with your money?"

"Is this the end of the stock market, of America's empire???"

"Are we headed for a great depression?

Or even worse, are we headed for a post-apocalyptic version of Cormac McCarthy's best selling novel, The Road?"

In the next several pages, I'm going to tell you what I'm doing with my personal investment capital, the precautions I've taken, and what I see on the horizon as possibly the greatest investment opportunity this century (hint: we're getting the opportunity to turn back the clock to 2003).

My Personal Investment Decisions

Rule #1: Protect your cash: That's how fortunes are made

In July of 2007, I started to raise cash. I began selling my speculative holdings in pretty much all sectors except for energy, biotech and few microcaps and precious metals stocks.

I didn't have any great insight into coming crisis. I didn't see it coming. Instead, I couldn't figure out the direction of the market. As a result, my gut told me that if the market couldn't figure out which way it wanted to go, neither could I.

You see, on July 19, 2007, the Dow made a new record high. I, like many other market analysts, thought this was confirmation of a new bull market.

After all, by any technical definition, the market had been in a bear market for 7 years. For instance, the NASDAQ topped out at the lofty level of 5000 in March 2000. For 6 of the last 7 years, it's been trading below 3000.

So I figured it was about time that the broader markets broke out to a new bull.

But after making a new record high in July, the Dow completely broke down.

In the following 9 trading days after breaking above 14,000, the Dow lost 1000 points. It rebounded, only to sell-off 1300 points.

More disconcerting and ominous, some of the intraday moves during this period were massive.

This was about the time of Jim Cramer's famous rant about how the fixed income market had ceased to exist.

This confirmed the worst. Gold World's Greg McCoach's warnings were right! Subprime and housing were about to crash the market and the economy.

I immediately started raising cash.

Rule #2: Go Short... It's a Bull Market in Reverse

Super trader Ian Cooper told me something last year that has made me a lot of money in the past year. To paraphrase Ian, "Bull markets never end. They simply change asset classes and psychology."

Ian, like Greg McCoach, was spot on.

If the trend is down, play it for all it's worth.

In the past 14 months, I've played the UltraShort Dow30 ProShares (DXD) a half dozen times. I first played it as a hedge to protect my downside and to protect my long positions when it was clear that the market was in the throes of indecision.

But now I play it for net profit.

Rule #3: Patience Wins the Day: Start Putting Cash to Work

I have recently started putting small amounts of new investment capital to work. I'm building positions in Pfizer (PFE), S&P Biotech ETF (XBI), ProShares Ultra QQQ (QLD) and PowerShares DB Gold Double Long ETN (DGP). I'm going broad to keep risk at a minimum.

I'm buying Pfizer as a defensive play in healthcare. The company is cash rich with $26 billion in the bank. It's estimated forward p/e is 6.4. Assuming the "e" in the p/e is solid, I see very little downside risk at current levels of $16 per share.

The best part is that Pfizer pays a dividend of 8% at current price levels. In this uncertain market, you want yield that is certain.

Pfizer is part of my Baby Boomer Investment Thesis (BBIT). The first cohort of the baby boomer generation began retiring earlier this year... and there's no disputing the demand for more medicine.

Pfizer has been out of favor ever since it launched Viagra in 1998. In fact, all of Big Pharma has been out of favor since 1998-1999.

I believe the environment is ripe for a big pharma revival.

The Biotech ETF (XBI) is also a component of my B.B.I.T.

Biotechnology drugs will play an increasing role in addressing the healthcare needs of the aging population.

In general, biotech companies have minimal exposure to the credit and housing crisis. They don't have any exotic derivatives hidden in the cellar.

Once considered the market's most speculative industry, biotechnology has become somewhat of a safe haven. Year-to-date, the XBI has returned +2.45%. Small for sure. But when you compare it to the Dow's loss of 35% YTD, I'll take it any day.

The Ultra QQQ ProShares is play on the tech-heavy NASDAQ. My thesis on this is that technology will lead this market out of the bear because technology companies are sitting on record cash reserves.

Check this out. The top 10 holdings in the QLD are sitting on $108 billion in cash against $28 billion in debt.

And lastly, I'm long gold through PowerShares DB Gold Double Long ETN (DGP). I'm not going to debate whether owning physical gold is safer than owning a paper certificate for gold.

I'm simply looking for liquidity. And owning DGP gives me a very liquid way to play gold.

Why gold?

With the number of dollars being printed, at some point we will have inflation. And gold is still the best hedge against inflation.

That's my investment strategy for now.

However, I'm waiting for an opportunity to play our Peak Oil Trade. The price of oil has come down more than 60% since July. We are still believers in Peak Oil... and the recent IEA World Energy Outlook report confirms our thesis that oil supplies are dwindling.

We could be looking at a once-and-a-lifetime opportunity to play oil futures for a 1000-to-1 return. In my next article, I will lay it out for you.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Brian Hicks

P.S. Without a doubt, the best way of making money in this market is by playing options. Fortunately, we have options genius Ian Cooper leading the way... earning our readers (many with little or no experience trading options) unmatched profits. Ian's track record is simply phenomenal: 29 wins out of 34 trades... 78% average gain... and all with an average hold time of just 11 days. To learn more on how Ian's doing it, take a read of our new report.

This Is When Fortunes Are Made

"This is when fortunes are made."

That's what a friend and colleague told me yesterday as we talked about the current state of the domestic and global markets.

Whenever this guy speaks on the markets, I listen closely. Just shy of 40 years old, he's built a fortune most men in their 50s and 60s only dream of.

And he's a wildly successful investor for 3 reasons: 1) He never overpays for an asset, 2) he's patient and 3) he knows how to manage risk.

Yesterday I asked him to run down a list of investments he currently owns. Without hesitation, he rattled off:

gold bars,
gold dust,
Krugerrands,
US treasuries,
Canadian treasuries,
a select group of junior mining stocks and
a handful of MLPs (Master Limited Partnerships that) that kick off fairly large yields.

He also told me he was very close to getting very active in oil and gas income trusts... and in real estate.

Oil and gas I understood, but real estate? He explained... "I'm thinking about making ‘stink bids' on property to see if anybody bites."

What's he consider a "stink bid?"

"An offer 50% below market price."

Even though he had exposure to the stock markets, he reinforced to me that "you have to protect the cash, because it's cash that will let you pick up insane bargains while everybody is selling."

On this point he was emphatic... "This is when fortunes are made."

Indeed.

How to Make Your Fortune

Nobody knows when the bottom will occur. But I have to think we're getting somewhat close.

Think about it...

Congress is holding hearings on the credit crisis
President Bush spoke last night to the nation on the bailout
Warren Buffett made a $5 billion investment in Goldman Sachs
There's blood in the streets... Lehman Brothers is gone... banks are failing...Fannie, Freddie, AIG, Bear Stearns and Merrill Lynch would all be dead if it weren't for government intervention
The Wall Street crisis is all the media is talking about

Moreover, last week we witnessed a panic run on banks as consumers and companies alike put in an estimated $500 billion worth of sell orders from money market accounts.

The week before? $7.1 billion was withdrawn from money market accounts.

But regardless of when the bottom occurs, that shouldn't stop you from making money. Because it hasn't stopped us.

And that's our goal - to make money in good times and bad.

And that's exactly what we've been doing.

Take options trader Ian Cooper, for instance. He initiated an option call trade on ExxonMobil last week... a week when the US market was described as "Armageddon." We're already up 22% on the XOM calls.

And in Ian's Options Trading Pit service, the gains have been nothing short of extraordinary. Take a look...

Company	Symbol	Exchange	Buy Date	Sell Date	Bought	Sold	Gain/Loss
Coca Cola Enterprises November 20 put - From Options Blog	CCEWD.x	option	2008-05-28	2008-07-21	$1.05	$3.80	261.90%
CurrencyShares British Pound Sterling December 2008 177 put — exited half	FFKXU.x	option	2008-09-03	2008-09-11	$4.70	$5.90	25.53%
CurrencyShares British Pound Sterling December 2008 177 put — exited half	FFKXU.x	option	2008-09-03	2008-09-12	$4.70	$3.70	-21.28%
Expedia Inc. October 22.50 put - From Options Blog	UEDVX.x	option	2008-05-28	2008-07-21	$1.80	$5.10	183.33%
Fannie Mae December 2008 9 put - From Options Blog	NJWXH.x	option	2008-07-14	2008-08-21	$3.80	$5.55	46.05%
Freddie Mac January 2009 6 put - From Options Blog	FREMQ.x	option	2008-07-14	2008-08-21	$2.50	$3.60	44.00%
JA Solar September 15 call - From Options Blog	QJPIC.x	option	2008-08-11	2008-08-21	$1.60	$3.40	112.50%
Lehman Brothers January 2009 10 put - reiterated buy — exited half	NJSMB.x	option	2008-09-09	2008-09-11	$4.20	$6.25	48.81%
Lehman Brothers January 2009 10 put - reiterated buy — exited half	NJSMB.x	option	2008-09-09	2008-09-15	$4.20	$9.85	134.52%
Lehman Brothers January 2009 10 put — exited half	NJSMB.x	option	2008-09-09	2008-09-15	$3.20	$9.85	207.81%
Lehman Brothers January 2009 10 put — exited half	NJSMB.x	option	2008-09-09	2008-09-11	$3.20	$6.25	95.31%
Lehman Brothers October 20 put - From Options Blog	LYHVE.x	option	2008-06-02	2008-07-21	$3.00	$8.65	188.33%
Masco Corporation October 20 put - From Options Blog	MASVD.x	option	2008-06-02	2008-07-21	$3.00	$4.80	60.00%
Merrill Lynch January 2009 17.50 put	MOJMW.x	option	2008-09-11	2008-09-15	$3.10	$2.80	-9.68%
Morgan Stanley January 2009 25 put - exited half	MSME.x	option	2008-09-15	2008-09-18	$6.20	$7.00	12.90%
Morgan Stanley January 2009 25 put - exited half	MSME.x	option	2008-09-16	2008-09-17	$6.20	$10.60	70.97%
Murphy Oil October 2008 70 put	MURVN.x	option	2008-09-03	2008-09-09	$3.30	$5.35	62.12%
UBS AG September 2008 22.50 put - From Options Blog	UJWUX.x	option	2008-06-10	2008-07-21	$1.30	$1.85	42.31%
UBS January 2009 15 put	UBSMC.x	option	2008-09-15	2008-09-19	$3.15	$1.00	-68.25%

That's about an 80% average return on each trade. And the average hold period of each trade in Ian's Options Trading Pit is roughly 14 days.

But you don't need to trade options to make money... even in this market.

Right now, I'm personally building a position in a very unique investment vehicle. It's an investment that allows you to take an ownership position in 63 wind turbines.

Green guru Jeff Siegel and I researched this investment inside and out. And after we were finished kicking the tires, we realized we were looking at possibly one of the best renewable energy investments for decades to come.

You see, for just a small investment of about $5.90, you'll get access to the monthly cash flow these 63 wind turbines kick off. That's right, every month... you'll get a check from the electricity that this wind farm produces and sells.

I've been receiving checks from these wind turbines since June. Believe me, it helps in this crazy market.

Not only do I get piece of mind that these checks show up consistently every month... but this is an investment that's almost guaranteed to go up as our economy converts over to a renewable energy complex.

In the coming weeks Jeff and I will show you how you can receive monthly cash flow from these wind turbines. It's very simple. And... you don't need to be an accredited investor, which makes this investment very attractive.

I know the current market turmoil can be nerve-wracking, but this is when fortunes are made.

Remember, we were ahead of the curve on Peak Oil, renewable energy, precious metals... and we even warned you that many banks were going to fail during this housing and credit crisis.

We'll continue to help you every step of the way through this financial crisis... and we'll show you exactly where the sweet spots are to build your fortune.

Best regards,

Brian Hicks