Forrest Gump is the man to design our investments

If Forrest Gump had designed financial products instead of fishing for shrimps, I bet he would have adopted a "simple is as simple does" approach.

Why Warren Buffett can't make money any more

Diary of a private investor: It might be hard to believe, but sometimes not being mega-rich offers you more opportunities.

Rick Rule - One of the Speculative Opportunities of the Decade

With gold and silver consolidating and the Japanese tragedy still unfolding, today King World News interviewed Rick Rule, Founder of Global Resource Investor which is now part of the $8 billion Sprott Asset Management. KWN wanted to get Rick’s take on gold, silver and how the Japanese situation will impact the uranium market. When asked about recent selling in gold Rule commented, “From the look of the markets right now it got soaked up very, very handily, so I suspect you are seeing a continuing pattern of gold going from relatively weak hands to relatively strong hands which to me is very bullish.”

Belgium's Political Crisis Foretells EU's Future

Belgium has just broken the world record for taking the longest time to build a government. The tension between the country's French- and Dutch-speaking halves holds a lesson for the rest of Europe. As the European Union gets stronger, and national governments get weaker, ethnic groups are demanding more self-determination within a Europe of regions.

US Cost of Living Hits Record, Passing Pre-Crisis High

One would think that after the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, Americans could at least catch a break for a while with deflationary forces keeping the cost of living relatively low. That’s not the case.

Don't write off insurance stocks

Trying to forecast exactly how Japan's nuclear plant problems will play out is tough. As John Stepek pointed out in yesterday's money morning: How the disaster in Japan will drive up energy prices, most of the 'experts' seem to have little more idea of what will happen than the rest of us. So perhaps unsurprisingly, stock markets have been spooked worldwide. Before yesterday's big rally, even the FTSE 100 had plunged almost 6% within a week. This fear could well be rational. After all, Japan could yet be facing even bigger horrors than the quake has already caused. Yet if the worst doesn't happen, one sector that's been hit harder than most could start to look very interesting for investors…

Japan's economic crisis could be ours, too

Major countries all face the triple blow of debt, an ageing population and energy insecurity, writes Jeremy Warner.

Japan risks credit crunch as yen thunders

Japan is in imminent danger of a credit-crunch with global implications unless the authorities stabilise Tokyo's stockmarket and take overwhelming action to stop the yen exploding to record levels.

Geithner says Congress must raise debt limit

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Wednesday that there was no alternative except for Congress to raise the debt ceiling so that the government can keep borrowing.

U.S. Debt Jumped $72 Billion Same Day U.S. House Voted to Cut Spending $6 Billion

The national debt jumped by $72 billion on Tuesday even as the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives passed a continuing resolution to fund the government for just three weeks that will cut $6 billion from government spending.

How the disaster in Japan will drive up energy prices

Panic hit the markets last night. First some EU official who should have known better shot his mouth off about an impending 'catastrophe' in Japan. Markets sold off hard. His department then admitted that his views were based as much on media reports as anything else – in other words, he knew nothing more than the rest of us. More worryingly, the US nuclear regulator said that things were worse than the Japanese were letting on. They don't want their people going anywhere within 50 miles of the Fukushima reactors. The Nikkei seems to have regained a touch of composure this morning. It ended down just 1.4% compared to earlier falls of 4%. And the yen has stabilised a little after surging wildly last night, although it remains at post-war record highs against the dollar. So as investors, what can we gather at this stage?

If Market Keeps Falling, Fed Will Keep Printing: 'Dr. Doom'

Falling stock prices will be met only with more money injections from the Federal Reserve, Marc Faber, the so-called "Dr. Doom," told CNBC.

No Getting Away From It, Swiss Francs and Gold Are Still the Surest Havens

With oil prices soaring and revolution in the air in North Africa and the Middle East, it's little wonder investors want to take a few chips off the green baize and cash them in. All of a sudden the world has become uncertain again, so safe havens are sought after. Capital protection is in, gambling firmly out. And yet, as with so many aspects of post-crisis finance, things aren't what they were, even for supposed haven investments. This new world has few of the comforting certainties of the old, even when all you're looking for is the safest, dullest place for your money.

The bull market is over – we're in a bear market now

It's taken the devastating combination of an escalating sovereign debt crisis in Europe, revolution across the Arab world and one of the most horrific natural disasters in modern history to finally take this two-year bull market down, but take it down it has. Until mid-afternoon yesterday, when we saw some welcome respite, this week has seen nothing but inexorable, across-the-board selling. It's felt like 2008 all over again. It doesn't matter what you own, quality or not, everything has been sold. The baby has been thrown out with the bathwater. Panic has set in. This is one of those times, if ever there was one, to 'keep your head when all about you are losing theirs'. So let's take a step back and think…

Are gold and silver warning us of a new stage in the financial crisis?

The earth's crust contains something like 0.08ppm (parts per million) silver. There is, on the other hand, just 0.004ppm gold. In other words silver is about 20 times more abundant in the earth's crust than gold. The historical monetary ratios between the two metals pretty much reflected this. It varies according to time and place, but on average it seems roughly 16-18 silver coins were exchangeable for a gold coin of the same weight wherever – or whenever – you were. In 2009, about 80 million ounces of gold were produced and, according to the Silver Institute, 709 million ounces of silver – about nine times more. But gold is not nine times more expensive than silver. Nor is it 16, 18 or 20 times more expensive than silver. It is 40 times more expensive. That seems rather a lot, especially when you consider that most of the gold that has ever been mined remains in the world, yet much of the silver has been consumed by industry. Is that ratio normal? Or is it some kind of anomaly? Let's have a look…

The world's top bond fund has dumped US government debt - so should you

The world's biggest and most successful bond fund has ditched all its US government-related debt. Bill Gross, manager of the $237bn Pimco Total Return fund, had warned recently that the fund was getting out of US Treasuries. When the latest batch of quantitative easing (QE2) ends in June, he reckons yields could rise substantially (ie bond prices will fall). So it's not a huge surprise. But it's still quite a headline-grabber. I realise that many investors are more comfortable relating to the world of equities. For sake of comparison, this is a bit like reading that Neil Woodford is selling out of all UK stocks because he thinks prices will fall. You might not agree with him. But how comfortable would you feel staying in the market, knowing that such a smart investor was getting out? Of course, that could be part of Gross's game plan…

How will markets cope when the cheap money is taken away?

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn is returning his investors' money. The activist shareholder has said that he's going to give back the money that outside investors have in his $7bn hedge funds because he doesn't want the responsibility of looking after it through another downturn. Now, Icahn isn't exactly warning that the market is heading for another slump. He's still investing his own money, and there are plenty of good reasons for him to stop managing other people's money, which we'll go into below. But he could certainly be forgiven for feeling that after such a good run, it might be time to quit while he's ahead…

Jon Moulton builds £200m green energy fund

Jon Moulton, the venture capital veteran, is to launch a £200m investment fund to focus on sustainable energy and infrastructure.

World energy crunch as nuclear and oil both go wrong

The existential crisis for the world's nuclear industry could hardly have come at a worse moment. The epicentre of the world's oil supply is disturbingly close to its own systemic crisis as the Gulf erupts in conflict.

Twin threats of Japan and Gulf stalk global recovery

As catastrophe at home prompts Japan to repatriate chunks of its vast wealth, it is pulling the rug from under stock and bond markets thousands of miles away.

Banks have £1.6 trillion exposure to ailing quartet of Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Spain

The total exposure of foreign banks to the struggling quartet of Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Spain tops $2.5 trillion (£1.6 trillion) once all forms or risk are included, according to the latest data from the Bank for International Settlements.

Total German triumph as EU minnows subjugated

The Iron Chancellor of Germany could not have been clearer. “Whoever wants credit must fulfill our conditions“.

Spain downgrade sparks storm over rating agencies

Moody's has reignited the storm of controversy over the power of rating agencies after it downgraded Spain, and warned that the bank clean-up will cost vastly more that claimed.

UK austerity plan averted gilts crisis, says debt management chief

The Government's austerity policies have restored investor confidence in UK public finances and may have averted a gilts crisis, according Britain's top debt manager.

Long-term real growth in US GDP per capita 1871-2009

S&P 500 and Recessions

Zell: Dollar's Global Fall Will Be 'Disastrous’ for US Living Standard Read more: Zell: Dollar's Global Fall Will Be 'Disastrous’ for US Living Standard

Billionaire real-estate magnate Sam Zell warns that Americans should brace for a "disastrous" 25 percent decline in the standard of living if the U.S. dollar’s reign as the global reserve currency ever ends. He says that there are signs in the market that it could eventually happen. As it is now, a Korean manufacturer who wants to sell to Brazil must first buy dollars to complete the deal. If countries decide to bypass the dollar, the effect would be a disaster, Zell says. Read more: Zell: Dollar's Global Fall Will Be 'Disastrous’ for US Living Standard

Britain at risk of another financial crisis, Bank of England chief warns

Britain risks suffering another financial crisis without reform of the country’s banks, the Governor of the Bank of England warns today.

Sir John Bond needs to be silver-tongued at miner Xstrata

Investors in Xstrata are nervous about the value of their holdings in the FTSE 100 mining company. They're right to be.

Oil markets brace for Saudi 'rage' as global spare capacity wears thin

Those exhorting OPEC to boost output should be careful what they wish for. The cartel card can be played once only, and it risks exposing the fragility of the global energy system if the Gulf powers are seen struggling to deliver.

Flat-Earth European Central Bank misreads oil spike again, and kicks Spain in the teeth

The European Central Bank has once again risen to the bait. Faced with an oil supply shock that deflates incomes, it plans to tighten the vice yet further with a knee-jerk rate rise in April.

ECB prepares rate rise as global tide turns

The European Central Bank has surprised markets by signalling a rate rise as soon as next month, brushing aside warnings that this may compound damage from the oil shock and push EMU debtor states deeper into crisis.

China "Attacks The Dollar" - Moves To Further Cement Renminbi Reserve Currency Status

In a surprising turn of events, today's biggest piece of news received a mere two paragraph blurb on Reuters, and was thoroughly ignored by the broader media. An announcement appeared shortly after midnight on the website of the People's Bank of China.

With New Government, EU Could Become Next Battleground

Ireland's future prime minister has a tough job ahead of him: Voters who backed Enda Kenny expect him to take a tough line and renegotiate the terms of the country's EU bailout. Some are hoping that his ties with German Chancellor Angela Merkel will lend a helping hand.

Glencore prepares for $60bn float

Glencore has appointed a consortium of eight banks to raise up to $8bn (£5bn) of new funding, firing the starting pistol on its audacious $60bn London stock market listing.

Saudi Arabia contagion triggers Gulf rout

Fears of sectarian uprisings in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have set off the first serious wave of investor flight from the Gulf, compounding market turmoil as civil war in Libya pushes Brent crude over $116 a barrel.

German-Irish brinkmanship raises EMU stakes

German bail-out fatigue and fierce resistance to EMU "rescue creep" threaten to derail a eurozone deal this month, and risk triggering a fresh round of Europe's debt crisis.

Surging orders in the US raise capacity worries

The US economy has already begun to hit capacity constraints in some industries as business orders reach the highest level since the start of the Reagan boom in the early 1980s.

Will 'Chindia' rule the world in 2050, or America after all?

With a small tweak in assumptions and the inexorable force of compound arithmetic, Citigroup and HSBC have come up with radically different pictures of what the world will look like in 2050.