Key Lessons from the Brazil ETF Trade

Back in October, 2009 When Brazil won the 2016 Summer Olympics, I heralded the news as an opportunity to invest in a country that promised to grow faster than the United States. The iShares MSCI Brazil Capped (EWZ) never quite matched its peak from 2008 but managed to ride the wave of a post-recession, commodity … Read more

Little Cliffs Natural Resources Still Talks Like the 900-Pound Gorilla

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on November 3, 2015. Click here to read the entire piece.) Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF) reported earnings last week on the morning of October 29, 2015. {snip} Source: FreeStockCharts.com From my perspective, the always colorful commentary from Chairman, President, and CEO Lourenco … Read more

Finally Stepping In to Start Buying iShares MSCI Brazil Capped ETF

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on October 27, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) The iShares MSCI Brazil Capped ETF (EWZ) has fallen rapidly from a 16-month high to a retest of 2014 lows in just seven weeks. The 27% loss over this timespan represents … Read more

The QE2 Reference Price Identifies the Strongest Iron Ore and Metallurgical Coal Plays

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on September 16, 2012. Click here to read the entire piece.) Last week, I demonstrated how the timing of QE2 provided a useful reference point for buying Freeport-McMoran (FCX) as part of a coming revision of the commodity crash playbook. In this … Read more

2012 Has Delivered Some Attractive Bargains In Commodities

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on April 23, 2012. Click here to read the entire piece.) Commodity stocks have generally underperformed the stock market in 2012. I still cannot decide whether this weakness represents a leading indicator of broader weakness to come or a fortuitous relief to … Read more

Buying Opportunities Arrive As Agricultural Stocks Limp Into 2012

This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on January 1, 2012. Click here to read the entire piece.) In my last post updating the current list of buy candidates for the “commodity crash” portfolio, I neglected to include fertilizer stocks. Phosphate and potash producers – like Mosaic (MOS), Potash … Read more

Chart Review: the Brazil Index Fund (EWZ) Triggers the 20% Rule Again

This post is a very belated acknowledgement that EWZ (iShares MSCI Brazil Index Fund ETF) triggered the 20% rule again. As a reminder, (with a few exceptions) I have been buying EWZ whenever it trades 20% of its recent highs. For example, this rule triggered a purchase in early August; see “Commodities Crash’ Triggers First … Read more

A Review of the Commodities Crash Playbook As Another Phase of Selling Ends

This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha. Click here to read the entire piece.) Commodities across the board have suffered mightily during the stock market’s recent correction. In the first phase of the sell-off (from late July to early August), a few commodity-related stocks triggered buys by erasing all … Read more

Despite Bullish Outlook from Joy Global, the “Commodity Crash” Playbook Stays Active

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha. Click here to read the entire piece.) While the stock market was oversold, I focused on accumulating beaten-down, commodity-related stocks as part of my “commodities crash” playbook as explained in “Profiting from Physical Assets in a Resource-Constrained World – Rules and Picks.” … Read more

“Commodities Crash” Triggers First Trades – ANR and EWZ

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha. Click here to read the entire piece.) In July, I used ideas from Jeremy Grantham to lay out a case for taking advantage of a coming “commodities crash” to invest in and prepare for a future resource-constrained world: “Preparing for Profits in … Read more