Penny Stocks

Oil Retail sales weak, jobless claims up last week

2013-11-30T14:56:00.001-08:00

Oil Retail sales weak, jobless claims up last week WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Retail sales rose at the weakest pace in seven months in December and first-time claims for jobless benefits moved higher last week, signs the economic recovery remains shaky despite a pick-up in growth. Total retail sales increased 0.1 percent after rising by an upwardly revised 0.4 percent in November, the Commerce Department said on Thursday. 'The retail sales (data) suggests that spending isn't really picking up any momentum,' said Sean Incremona, economist at 4Cast Ltd in New York. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast retail sales climbing 0.3 percent last month. In a separate report, the Labor Department said initial unemployment claims jumped to 399,000 in the first week of 2012, the highest in six weeks. The unemployment rate has fallen sharply in recent months and was 8.5 percent December, putting the economy on better footing as the euro zone grapples with an economic downturn. But some analysts worry the drop in unemployment has been due in part to discouraged workers dropping out of the labor force. 'The jobless claims are certainly not going in the right direction, said Joe Saluzzi, co-head of equity trading at Themis Trading in Chatham, New Jersey. Stocks fell after the data's release, also hurt by a profit warning from energy major Chevron. U.S. Treasury prices were mostly flat. Another report showed business inventories rose 0.3 percent in November, reinforcing the view that fourth-quarter economic growth could get a boost as companies restock their shelves. Some Federal Reserve officials earlier this week signaled more help for the U.S. economy may be necessary despite recent data that suggested the recovery was picking up steam going into 2012. Many economists see the economy growing by at least a 3 percent annual rate during the last quarter of 2011 after growing 1.8 percent during the July-September period. Growth, however, is expected to slow during the first three months of this year. A report from real estate data firm RealtyTrac showed foreclosure activity slowed last year following claims in 2010 that lenders had relied on 'robo-signing' where documents were signed without a review of the case files. A wave of foreclosures has kept downward pressure on home prices, and economists say the market might need to clear before it can mount a convincing recovery and provide a significant boost to the overall economy. The central bank has tried to boost the sector by lowering interest rates and buying mortgage securities, which helped bring the average rate on 30-year fixed rate mortgages down to a record low this week. The U.S. central bank is not expected to take any action at its next meeting on January 24-25. Within the retail report, the upward revision for November sales suggests consumers frontloaded their holiday shopping as retailers discounted heavily and extended store hours in the days following Thanksgiving. By the end of the season, however, consumers cut back, with spending at electronics and appliance stores down 3.9 percent in December. Shopping at department stores slipped 0.2 percent, while receipts at gasoline stations dropped 1.6 percent. The government had initially estimated retail sales gained 0.2 percent in November. Fueling the overall increase in retail sales during December, receipts for motor vehicles and parts increased 1.5 percent. Excluding autos, retail sales fell 0.2 percent, the first decline since May 2010. Core retail sales, which exclude autos, gasoline and building materials, dropped 0.1 percent in December after advancing 0.3 percent the prior month. Core sales correspond most closely with the consumer spending component of the government's gross domestic product report. (Additional reporting by Pedro Nicolaci da Costa in Washington and by Chris Reese and Angela Moon in New York; Editing by Andrea Ricci)

Oil LDSI - Turning Higher?

2013-11-28T15:35:00.001-08:00

Oil

LDSI has been in a tremendous tailspin the last two months. The stock has seen a bevy of selling bring the stock to fresh new lows for the year.

However the last two trading session reveal a stock that may be starting to turn higher. Today and Friday the stock was able to over comb selling pressure and post gains. Today we had strong buying volume and the stock looks poised to break out of its two month slump.

The stock was over $.07 last month and closed today at $.0031. We could see a sharp rally out of these oversold conditions.

Backstage Vibe(TM) Testing Features and Functionality

Marketwire 'Press Releases'
NEW YORK, NY -- (Marketwire) -- 08/20/12 --
Backstage Vibe™ (PINKSHEETS: LDSI) has created an incredibly creative and groundbreaking web platform for artists, their adoring fans, music promoters and producers. The company is currently testing all of the features and functionality to ensure that customers can't resist coming back after their initial experience.

Backstage Vibe™ promises the ultimate social music experience and has provided screenshots to showcase the streamlined and powerful functionality. The online store enables artists, music labels, and others to present and sell their products and services. The web platform provides artists with an option to create their own personal store open to the community that then feeds into a larger store open to the public.

Another exciting feature is the incorporation of SoundCloud, which will serve as an incredible resource for music integration and critical feedback, facilitate collaboration and provide ease of sales. Backstage Vibe™ will also offer a file sharing feature that will accommodate professional audio software file formats (such as ProTools files) to further optimize artists' and bands' ability to collaborate at a professional level.

These are but a few of the features and functionality already built into the web platform. As you can see from the screenshots, Backstage Vibe™ is providing artists the tools to chart their own course, whether it's promoting their art, collaborating with other artists or selling their music, goods and services.

Artists, producers, promoters, fans, and music aficionados can pre-register for the innovative social music site at www.BackstageVibes.com. Pre-registrants will receive 2 months of the service FREE when the full site goes live.

About Life Design Station International, Inc.

Life Design Station International, Inc. (LDSI) is a music-inspired corporation. The Company empowers artists, producers and other music professionals to reach millions of potential customers. Life Design Station International, through its Internet-based division, develops and directs an innovative global social platform allowing artists from the U.S. and the world to interface collaboratively in order to promote, produce and sell their musical artistry. LDSI's Backstage Vibe™ provides a leading-edge, secure and user-friendly environment for the sale, distribution and securing of world talent from one source.

Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2070780

CONTACT:
Life Design Station International, Inc.
info@backstagevibes.com

Source: Life Design Station International, Inc.

Forex SAGD - Chart Looks Promising

2013-09-03T20:10:00.001-07:00

Forex

Even with SAGD's 80%+ gain today, I think the stock has more room to rally. With continued buying pressire the stock should break $.01 tomorrow and head into the weekend with some strong momentum.

South American Gold Expands Baltimore Silver Project
RICHMOND, IN, Aug 23, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- South American Gold (OTCQB: SAGD) is pleased to announce it has acquired two unpatented mining claims which expands its Baltimore Silver Mine project by forty acres.

The Baltimore Silver Mine is a former producing silver mine in a historic mining district located on private land in Jefferson County, Montana, at an elevation of approximately five thousand eight hundred feet above sea level. The company has signed a memorandum of Understanding to lease the mine with an option to purchase. The new unpatented mining claims acquired expand the project to a total of approximately one hundred acres, and an existing tunnel is on the property which will need rehabilitation.

--  The additional mining claims have been untested by modern drilling
    methods and technology, thus are considered an early-stage exploration
    prospect. Parallel structures have been identified to the south of the
    Baltimore Mine area according to initial evaluation.
--  Our initial exploration objective is to determine whether veins from
    the Baltimore Mine extend onto the newly-acquired claims.

Our recent site visit resulted in our consulting geologist identifying these unpatented mining claims for acquisition by location, and we have identified dumps from prior production activities that we intend to sample. For more information please consult our recently filed 8k on the project.

About South American Gold:

South American Gold Corp (OTCQB: SAGD) is an exploration mining company focused on the discovery, acquisition, exploration and development of gold and silver deposits in North and South America. Our strategy is to acquire a pipeline of mining prospects in historic mining districts to explore, develop or joint venture, with an objective of establishing commercial production. The company in the last ten months has acquired mining prospects in Arizona, Nevada, and Montana; and continues to consider projects in Colombia, Mexico and Southeastern Europe.

We have fewer than 80 million shares issued and outstanding, of which 2.5 million shares are held by current officers and directors.

Disclaimer

This release contains forward-looking statements that are based on beliefs of South American Gold Corp. management and reflect South American Gold Corp.'s current expectations as contemplated under section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. When we use in this release, the words 'estimate,' 'project,' 'believe,' 'anticipate,' 'intend,' 'expect,' 'plan,' 'predict,' 'may,' 'should,' 'will,' 'can,' the negative of these words, or such other variations thereon, or comparable terminology, are all intended to identify forward looking statements. Such statements reflect the current views of South American Gold Corp. with respect to future events based on currently available information and are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to, risks and uncertainties pertaining to development of mining properties, changes in economic conditions and other risks, uncertainties and factors, which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievement expressed or implied by such forward looking statements to differ materially from the forward looking statements. The information contained in this press release is historical in nature, has not been updated, and is current only to the date shown in this press release. This information may no longer be accurate and therefore you should not rely on the information contained in this press release. To the extent permitted by law, South American Gold Corp. and its employees, agents and consultants exclude all liability for any loss or damage arising from the use of, or reliance on, any such information, whether or not caused by any negligent act or omission. This press release incorporates by reference the Company's filings with the SEC including 10k, 10Q, 8K reports and other filings. Investors are encouraged to review all filings. The company has limited financial capability to implement its business plan. The Baltimore Mine information is based on historic information, and the company has not conducted a preliminary economic assessment, nor has determined the costs of rehabilitation to gain access to historic production areas. There is no assurance of an economic deposit on the property, nor the capital required to be available for drilling, rehabilitation and infrastructure construction.

Investor Inquiries: 

1-765-356-9726
1-765-356-9737 (FAX)

Web Site: www.sagoldcorp.com

Email: info@sagoldcorp.com

SOURCE: South American Gold

Oil Gold & Copper Trends Are Still Higher: Holmes

2013-05-27T20:19:00.001-07:00

Oil If you told me yesterday that the largest bank in the U.S. was going to report lackluster earnings results, and Standard & Poor's was going to take its credit rating clever to Europe, but the markets would largely shrug it off - I probably would have politely told said 'you're crazy!' Welcome to reality; it all happened today. And the little market that could clearly thinks it can still test higher levels and isn't going to let some silly headlines derail it. While JP Morgan (JPM), the big banks (^BKX), and the Euro are getting whacked today, it doesn't change the strategy of money managers like Frank Holmes, the CEO & CIO of US Global Investors, who says the crisis du jour has no bearing on the long term opportunities. 'I am a big believer that you buy gold on down days,' this transplanted Torontonian tells us from his new home in Texas. He believes this year could be 'one of those odd years' that the dollar and commodity prices rise together. And much as Holmes likes gold, he loves the gold miners (GDX) even more, largely because they got sold off alongside other stocks last year while the precious metal they produce rose 10%. 'I think the really big opportunity right now is gold stocks,' he says pointing to their relative price compared to spot gold, as well as their historically low price-to-book ratios, and in some cases dividend yields too. Among the names he likes and owns now are Yamana (AUY), RandGold Resources (GOLD), and lesser-known Franco Nevada (FNV) --which Holmes says pays a monthly dividend. As for the metal itself, Holmes is unmoved by the most recent developments and has had no change in his belief that 'anytime you have inflation running at 3% and you're getting 0.1% in a money market fund, it's always better to own gold.' He is similarly undaunted and unchanged in his conviction about copper and belief that China will successfully engineer a soft landing. He's staying long copper because of the country's plans to build 24,000 miles of high speed rail, and he likes the recent uptick in the JP Morgan Global Purchasing Managers Index, which signaled expansion for the first time in almost a year. 'I think copper will go higher,' he states. 'Just like oil can easily have supply restricted, you have seen copper restricted.' Related Quotes: JPM 35.92 -0.93 -2.52% ^BKX 43.44 -0.17 -0.39% XLF 13.81 -0.11 -0.75% EURUSD=X 1.268 -0.0029 -0.23% FXE 126.33 -1.43 -1.12% ^STOXX50E 2,338.01 -7.84 -0.33% FEZ 29.06 -0.57 -1.92% GCF12.CMX 1,632.40 -14.90 (-0.90%) GLD 159.26 -1.12 -0.70% IAU 15.97 -0.11 -0.68% GDX 54.05 -0.67 -1.22% AUY 15.68 -0.12 -0.76% GOLD 108.83 -2.03 -1.83% FNV 39.90 -0.40 -0.99% FXI 36.74 -0.10 -0.27% HGF12.CMX 3.597 -0.05 (-1.29%) COPX 13.91 -0.12 -0.86% CU 31.45 -0.33 -1.04%

Forex BBDA Hits New Highs - Continues its 2 Month Long Rally

2013-05-26T20:18:00.001-07:00

Forex

I don't like to revisit a stock on a daily basis, but BBDA continues to give me a reason to write about them. The stock sat at $.0003 a little over two months ago (its 52 week low) and hit a high today of .0172 today. If you bought $1,000 of BBDA stock at the $.0003 price, today those shares were worth $57,333 at the high. If you bought $1,000 of BBDA stock when I alerted it my subscribers at $.0003/.0004, they were worth $43,000 at the high today. Just a great rally and just when you think its going to stop, it picks right back up and heads to new highs.

http://pennystockgurus.blogspot.com/2012/08/bbda-stock-soars-from-00030004-to-0144.html

http://pennystockgurus.blogspot.com/2012/08/bbda-stock-hits-01-share.html

http://pennystockgurus.blogspot.com/2012/08/bbda-hit-0119-share-from-0003-alert.html

Earn SRGE Continues It Strong Move Out Of Triple Zero's

2013-05-23T21:02:00.001-07:00

Earn

Southridge Announces Record Mineral Production and Revenues for Fourth Quarter of 2012
DALLAS, TX, Sep 05, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- Southridge Enterprises Inc. (PINKSHEETS: SRGE) ('Southridge' or the 'Company') is pleased to announce that it has recorded milestone mineral production and revenues for the fourth quarter and year ending August 31, 2012, from its 60 ton per day (tpd) mill site at Cinco Minas in Jalisco, Mexico. In fiscal 2012, the Company processed over 9,000 tons of ore and recorded revenues of $3.14 Million.

Cinco Minas is the Company's flagship mineral property with a 60 tpd mill and 2 year supply of ore production currently on surface. In 2012, the Company confirmed the surface stockpile grades cited in the 2007 Behre Dolbear Report and released the planned expansion to increase the mill capacity to 500 tpd. Additionally, the Cinco Minas property has a world-class confirmed gold and silver resource of 235,000 oz. gold, and 23.3 million oz. silver with 80% of the known vein system at Cinco Minas has yet to be tested. Today's market value of the confirmed resource at Cinco Minas is well over $1 Billion USD, prior to the completion of further planned exploration to expand the resource.

'We are excited to announce our initial mineral production and revenues. It has been a challenging couple of years for both management and shareholders, since we first began our new Mexican gold and silver exploration and production initiative. Today's announcement of our record revenues clearly shows our undeniable success in making the Company's goals a reality,' expressed Southridge President & CEO, Michael Davies.

In other recent Company developments, the anticipated and long-awaited public update at the Mexican Mining Registry of the Cinco Minas mineral concession ownership being duly reflected in Southridge's name is now complete. Also, the Company had now engaged the necessary professional services to migrate and up-list the Company's reporting status back to the Over-The-Counter Bulletin Board. It is anticipated that this process will be complete before the end of 2012.

Additionally, Mathers Research has initiated research coverage of Southridge, with a 'Speculative BUY' Opinion and a near term price target of $0.20 cents per share. The Mathers Research report is available as a free download on the Mathers Research Website @http://mathersresearch.com/srge-report

For further information on the Company's Gold and Silver projects, visit our website, http://www.southridgeminerals.com

Southridge Investors can access the following Southridge Minerals social media channels:

YouTube Cinco Minas Mexico Project: (http://youtu.be/R6P8oght4Ik)

(http://youtu.be/o2LfLaSu8ww)

(http://www.facebook.com/pages/Southridge-Minerals-Inc/163457600376466 ) (http://twitter.com/SouthridgeSRGE)

About Southridge Minerals, Inc. (PINKSHEETS: SRGE) Southridge Minerals, Inc. is a U.S.-based mineral exploration company dedicated to acquiring and developing mineral resources in geologically permissible and politically stable areas of the world. The Company seeks out early stage opportunities with good mineralization indicators that exhibit significant blue-sky potential. Southridge pursues and advances these projects that are or will be of interest to mid-size and major producers. By forming alliances on individual projects, the Company expects to develop its interests in mines operated by its partners, allowing it to continue to build value through continued exploration. Southridge is currently focused on projects in Mexico.

What sets Southridge apart is its vast experience in Mexico and the knowledge of the geological conditions and formations pertaining to known large gold deposits that have received very little attention to date. This comparative advantage, combined with a specific geographical and mineral focus, will allow for more efficient asset and income growth in the future for the benefit of shareholders' investments.

Forward-Looking Statements Although the Company believes that the forward-looking statement of beliefs, plans, expectations, and intentions contained in this press release are reasonable, there can be no assurance those beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions will prove to be accurate. Investors should consider all of the information set forth herein and should also refer to the risk factors disclosed in the Company's published current and periodic reports.

Oil LDSI - Turning Higher?

2013-04-15T22:14:00.001-07:00

Oil

CONTACT:
Life Design Station International, Inc.
info@backstagevibes.com

Source: Life Design Station International, Inc.

Oil Netflix shares rise on investor optimism

2013-04-14T15:42:00.001-07:00

Oil NEW YORK (AP) -- Shares of Netflix Inc. rose Friday on expectations that its shares will get a boost from the upcoming release of its fourth-quarter results. THE SPARK: Netflix shares have risen more than 40 percent in just the past week, prompting investors to wonder just how high they can go. But B. Riley & Co. backed its 'Buy' rating for Los Gatos, Calif.-based Netflix, saying that investors should hold on to their shares until after the company's fourth-quarter conference call on Jan. 25, when it's expected to update its outlook for the year. THE BIG PICTURE: Netflix shares took a beating and subscribers fled after the company said in July that it would increase U.S. prices by as much as 60 percent. Things only got worse two months later when Netflix said it would spin off its DVD-by-mail rental service into a separate website called Qwikster. It scrapped that idea in October. Since peaking in mid-July, Netflix shares have lost about 70 percent of their value. THE ANALYSIS: Analysts for B. Riley noted that Netflix shares are rapidly approaching the firm's $100 price target and said the company will probably post quarterly losses through at least the first half of the year. But they also said that Netflix's customer base appears to be stabilizing, which should reassure investors that the company is holding its own against the competition. 'We continue to believe that Netflix offers consumers the greatest content variety versus price relationship of the various choices,' the analysts wrote in a note to investors. 'And with the surprisingly positive announcement early last week that Netflix streamed more than 2 billion hours of movie and TV show content in the fourth quarter, we believe this is more likely to be the case than not.' In addition, the company should eventually get a boost from the expansion of its steaming services into new international markets. THE SHARES: Up $2.32, or 2.5 percent, to $94.47 in afternoon trading.

Signals Japan sees upward pressure on yen waning

2013-04-12T17:29:00.001-07:00

Signals Japan sees upward pressure on yen waning Foreign exchange dealers are seen beneath an electronic board displaying the Japanese Yen's exchange rate against the U.S. dollar at a foreign exchange trading company in Tokyo February 22, 2012. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonEnlarge Photo Foreign exchange dealers are seen beneath an electronic board displaying the Japanese Yen's exchange rate against the U.S. dollar at a foreign exchange trading company in Tokyo February 22, 2012. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon By Tetsushi Kajimoto MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A senior Japanese Finance Ministry official said the upward pressure on the yen was easing and he saw nothing strange in the currency's movements as it pulls away from record highs below 80 yen versus the dollar. The official, speaking after the first day of the weekend gathering of Group of 20 finance ministers and central bankers, said the yen was not discussed at the meeting which was dominated by talks on the euro-zone sovereign debt crisis. But the G20 did discuss volatility in currencies as well as crude oil prices, the official said, adding that these issues may be mentioned in the communique expected at the end of the meeting on Sunday. Brent crude futures settled near a 10-month high above $125 a barrel on Friday on heightened concerns over tensions with Iran about its nuclear program. Japanese authorities will continue to respond to excess volatility in currencies, he added, signaling readiness to intervene if speculators push up the yen too high again to deal a blow to the export-reliant economy. 'We hear opinions overall, including at deputies' meeting, that volatility exists in the foreign exchange market, so I expect (G20) may mention that volatility warants close monitoring,' the official said. 'We have said that (the yen's) moves have been excessive including before and after (last year's) earthquake, which was not reflecting economic fundamentals. But I see nothing strange in the current movement,' he added. The yen, meanwhile, tumbled across the board, a downtrend that started with the Bank of Japan's recent monetary easing. Japan's trade deficit, widening interest rate differentials with the United States favoring the dollar and rising crude oil prices also have hurt the yen's prospects. The dollar hit a fresh 7-1/2-month high of 81.062 yen on trading platform EBS and was last 80.990, away from 75.31 yen hit last October when Japan intervened heavily to protect exporters and drew criticism from the United States. The Bank of Japan, along with the European Central Bank and the U.S. Federal Reserve, is taking unconventional steps to boost the economy. The BOJ boosted asset purchases by 10 trillion yen on February 14 and pledged to keep ultra-easy policy until a 1 percent inflation goal is in sight. Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa said on Saturday that policymakers were also closely watching the effects of monetary easing on crude prices. But he said he did not see monetary easing as a big factor and the recent spike was more due to geopolitical tensions and some bright spots in advanced economies after the New Year. 'Generally speaking, we'll closely watch effects and side-effects of monetary easing,' he said. (Additional writing by Krista Hughes; Editing by Ed Lane)

Earn BRICS call for open selection of next World Bank chief

2013-03-31T19:34:00.000-07:00

Earn BRICS call for open selection of next World Bank chief MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A meeting of BRICS major emerging countries discussed the selection process of the next head of the World Bank and emphasized it should be open to all countries, rejecting the tradition that the job automatically goes to an American, a senior BRIC official said on Saturday. The official, speaking after a meeting of the BRICS - Russia, South Africa, Brazil, India and China - said the United States had not circulated the name of its proposed candidate for the World Bank. Asked whether emerging economies could field their own candidate for the post, the official said: 'That is certainly a discussion we will have.' (Reporting By Lesley Wroughton; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

Forex Exxon to sell part of Tonen stake for about $3.9 billion:sources

2013-03-31T19:33:00.001-07:00

Forex Exxon to sell part of Tonen stake for about $3.9 billion:sources RELATED QUOTES Symbol Price Change TRI 27.82 -0.10 XOM 85.83 -0.94 By Taro Fuse and Emi Emoto TOKYO (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM - News) plans to sell a large part of its 50 percent stake in TonenGeneral Sekiyu KK (:5012.T) back to its Japanese refining partner in a deal that could be worth about 300 billion yen ($3.9 billion), and will make an announcement as early as Monday, four sources with direct knowledge of the matter said. Exxon Mobil will retain about a 20 percent stake in TonenGeneral but the deal will mark a de facto retreat from the world's third-largest economy by the U.S. oil giant, which is focusing its resources on emerging markets and development of natural resources. The move could also spark realignment among Japan's oil refiners, which have been cutting capacity to cope with falling demand caused by a weak economy and a shift to more efficient and environmentally friendly forms of energy, analysts have said. Reuters reported earlier this month that Exxon was in talks to sell part of the stake back to TonenGeneral. TonenGeneral, which imports and distributes Exxon oil in Japan, ranks as the country's No. 2 refiner behind JX Holdings (:5020.T). Smaller rivals include Idemitsu Kosan Co (:5019.T), Cosmo Oil (:5007.T) and Showa Shell (:5002.T). Exxon and TonenGeneral aim to complete the deal around summer, the sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity. TonenGeneral will seek funds from Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp, Sumitomo Trust Banking, Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ and Mitsubishi Trust Bank to buy back the stake, the sources said. ($1 = 76.7350 Japanese yen) (Reporting by Taro Fuse and Emoto Emi; Writing by Kaori Kaneko; Editing by Chris Gallagher and Ed Lane)

Earn BBDA Gearing For Third Leg Higher?

2013-03-10T21:05:00.001-07:00

Earn

I have successfully called each of BBDA's rallies this year. First the rally from $.0004 to over $.004, which I alerted my subscribers to before the stock moved, when the stock was virtually dormant and trading only $5,000 to $10,000 a day at most compared to the $500,000+ its has been seeing on this latest rally. The second from $.0029 to $.0199. Both ended up being very profitable. Had you bought at $.0004 (there were millions upon millions of shares for sale when I alerted it at $.0004) and sold at the recent high of $.0199 you are looking at a possible $400 into $19,900 return.

Right now I think BBDA is gearing up for its next leg higher, a move that will take the stock over 100% higher from current levels. The short term chart is showing a cup and handle formation which is bullish. Also note that any bouts of selling only sends the stock down temporarily. The uptrend is not done yet.

BBDA's most recent news:

BeBevCo: E-Z Shops are Latest Chain to Jump onto the Relaxation Revolution with KOMA UNWIND
STATESVILLE, N.C., Sept. 6, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Bebida Beverage Company (OTC markets: BBDA) (BeBevCo), a developer, manufacturer and marketer of liquid relaxation products, announced today that E-Z Shop Convenience Stores will join the relaxation revolution by carrying Koma Unwind products in their 28 stores throughout eastern South Carolina. This is in aftermath of the roll-out of Koma Unwind at a major retailer in South Carolina that began in August.

'It is amazing how many new store chains and distributors are coming out of the woodwork following our announcement on 28 June, 2012. We have gained a huge amount of credibility in the beverage market in the last few weeks. Now, our European expansion is well underway and we expect that the sky is the limit. After all, in today's busy world, people everywhere need to relax and unwind as well as get a better night's sleep. It won't be long now before liquid relaxation products are everywhere; and, we are a market leader,' said Brian Weber, CEO of Bebida Beverage Company.

About BeBevCo

BeBevCo (Bebida Beverage Company) develops, manufactures and markets liquid relaxation products including KOMA Unwind 'Liquid Relaxation' (TM), KOMA Unwind Sugar-free 'Liquid Relaxation' (TM) and KOMA Unwind 'Liquid Relaxation' Shot(TM) as well as Potencia Energy, Potencia 'BLAST' energy shot, Relax 5 shots and Piranha Water.

Safe Harbor Statement

Except for historic information contained in this release, the statements in this news release are forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which may cause a company's actual results in the future to differ materially from forecasted results. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things, the company's ability to attract qualified management, raise sufficient capital to execute its business plan, and effectively compete against similar companies.

Forex Is the Euro Decoupling From U.S. Stocks?

2013-02-27T18:18:00.001-08:00

Forex Is the Euro Decoupling From U.S. Stocks? Companies: EUR/USD S&P 500 NASDAQ Composite RELATED QUOTES Symbol Price Change EURUSD=X 1.2832 +0.0123 ^GSPC 1,291.87 -0.61 ^IXIC 2,715.73 +4.97 ^DJI 12,432.35 -17.10 FXE 127.78 +1.22 For much of the last 15 years the S&P 500 and euro (the EU currency) have been moving in the same direction. Since its May 4, 2011 high (the euro topped two days after U.S. stocks) the euro has tumbled 15%. Worse yet, the euro has been falling over the past few weeks even though the S&P has remained stable. Will the S&P soon catch up with the euro, or is the euro about to decouple its positive correlation with U.S. equities? Euro Problems Euro problems are the reason for the bad euro season. U.S. stocks got to enjoy the Santa Claus Rally while the euro was stuck with debt concerns that include: - Eurozone governments need to refinance more than $1.3 trillion in debt in 2012. - Yields on Italian bonds crept up about 7% again (above 7% yields send Greece into a tailspin). - Standard & Poor's is expected to strip France of its AAA rating as early as this month. - Spain's banks need to raise an extra $65 billion to cover bad property loans. - In February, Italy needs to sell more debt than could be covered even if investors used all the proceeds of maturing securities to buy the bonds. Euro Hope Things are so bad for the euro (EURUSD=X), they are good. So it seems at least. The chart below shows the euro holdings of the 'smart' and 'dumb' money published by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The first gray graph shows total non-reportable short positions. Non-reportable are small traders considered the dumb money. The second gray graph shows reportable commercial short positions. Commercial traders are the 'pros' that actually provide a commodity or instrument and are considered the smart money. The data shows that non-reportable short positions are pretty high right now (data as of Tuesday) while commercial traders have closed nearly all their short positions. Based on COT sentiment data, the euro should be close to a bottom, at least a temporary one. Cause for U.S. Stock Rally? But wouldn't a rising euro translate into rising U.S. stocks? Under normal circumstances, yes it would. A look at the chart below shows that a rising euro usually correlates with a rising S&P 500. The red boxes highlight periods of falling euro and rising S&P (such as lately). The green box identifies a period of time when a rising euro (NYSEArca: FXE - News) coincided with falling (even rapidly falling) U.S. stock prices. This happened from October 2007 - July 2008. Putting Odds in Your Favor It's no secret that I declared the rally from the October lows to be a counter trend rally. Back on October 2, I stated via the ETF Profit Strategy updated that: 'I don't think October will 'kill' this bear market, but it should spur a powerful counter trend rally. Towards the end of this rally Wall Street may applaud the Fed for launching Operation Twist and QE3 may be considered unnecessary. This kind of positive environment would be fertile soil for the next bear market leg (Q1 or Q2 2012). From a technical point of view this counter trend rally should end somewhere around 1,275 - 1,300.' To identify high-probability trade setups, I like to see technicals, sentiment, and seasonality point in the same direction, such as they did in early October. From a seasonal perspective, October has the reputation of a 'bear market killer.' Sentiment polls showed the most bearish readings in over a year and the VIX (Chicago Options: ^VIX) was close to the 2010 high. At the same time, the S&P had reached rock bottom support. Based on the weight of evidence, the October 2 ETF Profit Strategy update also predicted that: 'The ideal market bottom would see the S&P dip below 1,088 intraday followed by a strong recovery and a close above 1,088.' On October 4, the S&P briefly dipped below 1,088 and closed the day at 1,124. A massive counter trend rally was born that day. The Next Setup? Seasonality is once again turning bearish (or at the very least less bullish). Since 2002, the S&P reached a January top followed by a drop greater than 8% five (out of ten) times. 51.1% of all investment advisors and newsletter-writing colleagues (polled by II) are bullish on stocks (the highest reading since May 3) while only 17% of individual investors (polled by AAII) are bearish, the second lowest reading in six years. From a technical point of view, the S&P (SNP: ^GSPC - News) is about to reach a daunting resistance cluster comprised of Fibonacci levels and various long and short-term trend lines. The Dow (DJI: ^DJI - News) is about to encounter two trend lines that go back nearly five years. The resistance clusters for the Nasdaq (Nasdaq: ^IXIC - News), Russell 2000 (NYSEArca: IJR - News), and financials (NYSEArca: XLF - News) are not as glaring but they're there. The only thing that doesn't quite fit into the equation is the euro's sentiment data illustrated above. Nevertheless, the weight of evidence suggests that a turnaround for stocks, and possibly another significant market top, may be just around the corner. The high probability strategy is to short U.S. stocks as soon as the resistance cluster is reached or support is broken. The ETF Profit Strategy Newsletter identifies the target of this rally along with a short, mid and long-term outlook and the corresponding ETF profit strategies.

Forex BRICS call for open selection of next World Bank chief

2013-02-13T19:23:00.001-08:00

Forex BRICS call for open selection of next World Bank chief MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A meeting of BRICS major emerging countries discussed the selection process of the next head of the World Bank and emphasized it should be open to all countries, rejecting the tradition that the job automatically goes to an American, a senior BRIC official said on Saturday. The official, speaking after a meeting of the BRICS - Russia, South Africa, Brazil, India and China - said the United States had not circulated the name of its proposed candidate for the World Bank. Asked whether emerging economies could field their own candidate for the post, the official said: 'That is certainly a discussion we will have.' (Reporting By Lesley Wroughton; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

Signals SANT - Stock Waking Up Soon?

2013-02-12T17:47:00.001-08:00

Signals

This is a stock I gave to my subscribers as a chart to watch. The stock sits at lows with very little interest on both sides. The buyers are waiting for cheaper prices and the sellers looks to have finished their jobs for now.

The company continues to update the investing public about their operations and I think the stock could see a recovery of some of its losses this year. A move from today's $.004 price to over $.01 is what I think will happen in the short term.

Add SANT to your watchlist.

Santeon Teams Up With Sage to Deliver Cloud-Based Carrier Connections
RESTON, VA, Aug 22, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- Santeon Group, Inc. (OTCBB: SANT) today announced that it has partnered with Sage North America to deliver Sage HRMS Benefits Messenger, a cloud-based automated benefits communications system, to the Sage HRMS client base. Sage HRMS Benefits Messenger simplifies benefits administration processes by securely automating the delivery of employee benefits enrollment data to health insurance carriers. Through the Santeon eBenefits Network (eBN), the leading independent provider of automated benefits carrier connectivity services in the U.S., Sage HRMS users gain the benefits of on-time and error-free enrollment updates, including elimination of error-related premium costs, improved employee benefit usage experience, and reduction of HR and IT workloads. eBN's innovative cloud-based transactional BPA (business process automation) approach integrates with virtually any employer system and provides immediate employer access to eBN's ever-growing network of over 200 group benefits providers, including health plans, group voluntary benefits, 401K, FSA, COBRA administrators and others.

'There is significant and increasing interest by employers of all sizes in having seamless interfaces between their own benefits systems and carrier systems,' said Tom Tillman, general manager of Santeon eBenefits Network. 'The Sage HRMS Benefits Messenger is a straight-forward and cost-effective solution to meet this demand in the Sage client community.'

Johnny Laurent, vice president and general manager of Sage Employer Solutions, said, 'Sage HRMS is an industry-leading, customizable HRMS solution that helps companies optimize their HR business processes. The tightly integrated Sage HRMS Benefits Messenger provides the key functionality to help employers efficiently and accurately automate the end-to-end benefits admin process.'

About Sage North America Sage is a world-leading supplier of accounting and business management software to small and midsized businesses. Our purpose is to help our customers run their businesses more effectively -- helping them gain greater insight into their business activities and providing them with lasting benefits by automating their business processes. Our applications cover a wide range of business requirements, including accounting, customer relationship management, contact management, human resources, warehouse management, and specialized products for specific industries.

Our brand, Sage, is used by all operating entities of The Sage Group, plc. The Sage Group, plc is the parent company of Sage North America and is located in the United Kingdom. With more than 6 million customers, Sage has offices in 23 countries worldwide.

Sage North America has more than 3.2 million customers with offices across the U.S. and Canada. Our corporate office is located in Irvine, California.

About Santeon Group, Inc. Santeon Group is a technology company headquartered in Northern Virginia with offices in Reston, VA, Tampa, FL, Cairo, Egypt and Pune, India. Santeon offers products and services in Agile training and transformation, healthcare, energy and media. Santeon's goal is to serve emerging markets by providing technically superior products and solutions while reducing the cost of ownership and deployment of these solutions through a strong channel partner and distribution model. For more information please visit our web site athttp://www.santeon.com.

Safe Harbor Statement: The preceding press release may include statements that include, among others, forward-looking statements about our beliefs, plans, objectives, goals, expectations, estimates and intentions that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties and are subject to change based on various factors, many of which are beyond our control. The words 'may', 'could', 'should', 'would', 'believe', 'anticipate', 'estimate', 'expect', 'intend', 'plan', 'target', 'goal' and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements, by their nature, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Our actual future results may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Our ability to achieve our financial objectives could be adversely affected by many factors, including, without limitation, the following factors: The strength of the United States economy, changes in the securities markets legislative or regulatory changes, the loss of key personnel, technological changes, changes in customer habits, our ability to manage these and other risks, and our ability to deliver products and services on time. However, other factors besides those listed above could adversely affect our results, and you should not consider any such list of factors to be a complete set of all potential risks or uncertainties. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, but reflect the present expectations of future events by our management and are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statements made by us speak only as of the date they are made. We do not undertake to update any forward-looking statement, except as required by applicable law. For additional information about Santeon's future business and financial results, refer to Santeon's Annual Report on Form 10-K that may be found at sec.gov or on http://santeon.com/Sec_Filings.html. Santeon undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements that may be made from time to time by the company, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Signals Five Sub-Penny Charts To Watch

2013-02-11T18:54:00.001-08:00

Signals At the start of 2012 I posted charts to watch heading into the year. All of them rose 150% or more: http://pennystockgurus.blogspot.com/2012/02/150-or-bust.html

With the year 67% over I have five charts to watch. I think all five will at some point post an over 100% gain from their current prices. The stocks are UYMG at $.001, ERBB at $.0021, STKO at $.001, ELRA at $.0012 and MCVE at $.03.

Forex Top 5 Global Mutual Funds

2013-02-05T12:56:00.001-08:00

Forex Top 5 Global Mutual Funds Companies: Thornburg Global Opportunities A Artio Global Equity A Oppenheimer Global Opportunities A RELATED QUOTES Symbol Price Change THOAX 14.34 0.00 BJGQX 33.60 -0.06 OPGIX 27.86 +0.50 MWOFX 24.77 -0.12 ICDAX 11.66 +0.06 The fortunes of U.S. equity markets continue to be a key determinant of the health of the global economy. However, their dominance has receded significantly over the years and a world of exciting opportunities has emerged in global markets. Moreover, research has shown that a portfolio with a combination of domestic and foreign securities produces greater returns over the long term. Global funds allow investors to hold an optimum combination of international and domestic investments without incurring the costs of holding such securities individually. Below we will share with you 5 top rated global mutual funds. Each has earned a Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) as we expect these mutual funds to outperform their peers in the future. To view the Zacks Rank and past performance of all global funds, then click here. Thornburg Global Opportunities A (NASDAQ:THOAX - News) seeks capital growth over the long term. The fund invests in a wide range of equity securities worldwide. This includes common and preferred stocks, real estate investment trusts and other equity trusts. The global mutual fund has a five year annualized return of 2.1%. The global mutual fund has a minimum initial investment of $5,000 and an expense ratio of 1.48% compared to a category average of 1.44%. Artio Global Equity A (NASDAQ:BJGQX - News) invests the majority of its assets in companies worldwide. Under normal circumstances, not less than 40% of its assets are invested in at least three foreign countries. A maximum of 35% of its assets may be utilized to purchase emerging market securities. The global mutual fund has a three year annualized return of 10.04%. Rudolph-Riad Younes is the fund manager and he has managed this global mutual fund since 2004. Oppenheimer Global Opportunities A (NASDAQ:OPGIX - News) seeks capital growth as well as current income. The fund invests in a wide range of equity securities worldwide. The fund focuses on acquiring stocks, but may also purchase debt securities. The global mutual fund has a ten year annualized return of 8.53%. As of November 2011, this global mutual fund held 100 issues, with 5.24% of its total assets invested in Advanced Micro Devices Inc. MFS Global Growth A (NASDAQ:MWOFX - News) invests in both domestic and foreign securities, as well as emerging market securities. The fund may invest a substantial part of its assets in a relatively small number of countries. The global mutual fund returned 2.36% in the last one year period. The global mutual fund has a minimum initial investment of $1,000 and an expense ratio of 1.53% compared to a category average of 1.44%. Ivy Cundill Global Value A (ICDAX) seeks capital growth. The fund purchases both domestic and foreign equity securities. Not more than 20% of its assets are invested in debt securities issued by companies which have filed for bankruptcy or are likely to do so shortly. The global mutual fund has a three year annualized return of 8.15%. The fund manager is James Thompson and he has managed this global mutual fund since 2009. To view the Zacks Rank and past performance of all global mutual funds, then click here. About Zacks Mutual Fund Rank By applying the Zacks Rank to mutual funds, investors can find funds that not only outpaced the market in the past but are also expected to outperform going forward. Learn more about the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank at http://www.zacks.com/funds.

Forex Quest for the golden cross

2013-02-05T12:55:00.001-08:00

Forex Quest for the golden cross RELATED QUOTES Symbol Price Change MA 348.79 +0.96 XOM 85.83 -0.94 PFE 21.48 -0.15 K 49.73 -0.26 TRI 27.82 -0.10 By Rodrigo Campos NEW YORK (Reuters) - January has turned out strong for equities with just two trading days to go. If you're afraid to miss the ride, there's still time to jump in. You just might want to wear a neck brace. The new year lured buyers into growth-related sectors, the ones that were more beaten down last year. The economy is getting better, but not dramatically. Earnings are beating expectations, but at a lower rate than in recent quarters. Nothing too bad is coming out of Europe's debt crisis - and nothing good, either - at least not yet. 'No one item is a major positive, but collectively, it's been enough to tilt it towards net buying,' said John Schlitz, chief market technician at Instinet in New York. Still, relatively weak volume and a six-month high hit this week make some doubt that the gains are sustainable. But then there's the golden cross. Many market skeptics take notice when this technical indicator, a holy grail of sorts for many technicians, shows up on the horizon. As early as Monday, the rising 50-day moving average of the S&P 500 could tick above its rising 200-day moving average. This occurrence - known as a golden cross - means the medium-term momentum is increasingly bullish. You have a good chance of making money in the next six months if you put it to work in large-cap stocks. In the last 50 years, according to data compiled by Birinyi Associates, a golden cross on the S&P 500 has augured further gains six months ahead in eight out of 10 times. The average gain has been 6.6 percent. That means the benchmark is on solid footing to not only hold onto the 14 percent advance over the last nine weeks, but to flirt with 1,400, a level it hasn't hit since mid-2008. The gains, as expected, would not be in a straight line. But any weakness could be used by long-term investors as buying opportunities. 'The cross is an intermediate bullish event,' Schlitz said. 'You have to interpret it as constructive, but I caution people to take a bullish stance, if they have a short-term horizon .' GREECE, U.S. PAYROLLS AND MOMENTUM Less than halfway into the earnings season and with Greek debt talks over the weekend, payrolls data next week and the S&P 500 near its highest since July, there's plenty of room for something to go wrong. If that happens, the market could easily give back some of its recent advance. But the benchmark's recent rally and momentum shift allow for a pullback before the technical picture deteriorates. 'We bounced off 1,325, which is resistance. We're testing 1,310, which should be support. We are stuck in that range,' said Ken Polcari, managing director at ICAP Equities in New York. 'If over the weekend, Greece comes out with another big nothing, then you will see further weakness next week,' he said. 'A 1 (percent) or 2 percent pullback isn't out of the question or out of line.' On Friday, the S&P 500 (Chicago Options:^INX - News) and the Nasdaq Composite (Nasdaq:^IXIC - News) closed their fourth consecutive week of gains, while the Dow Jones industrial average (DJI:^DJI - News) dipped and capped three weeks of gains. For the day, the Dow dropped 74.17 points, or 0.58 percent, to close at 12,660.46. The S&P 500 fell 2.10 points, or 0.16 percent, to 1,316.33. But the Nasdaq gained 11.27 points, or 0.40 percent, to end at 2,816.55. For the week, the Dow slipped 0.47 percent, while the S&P 500 inched up 0.07 percent and the Nasdaq jumped 1.07 percent. A DATA-PACKED EARNINGS WEEK Next week is filled with heavy-hitting data on the housing, manufacturing and employment sectors. Personal income and consumption on Monday will be followed by the S&P/Case-Shiller home prices index, consumer confidence and the Chicago PMI - all on Tuesday. Wednesday will bring the Institute for Supply Management index on U.S. manufacturing and the first of three key readings on the labor market - namely, the ADP private-sector employment report. Jobless claims on Thursday will give way on Friday to the U.S. government's non-farm payrolls report. The forecast calls for a net gain of 150,000 jobs in January, according to economists polled by Reuters. Another hectic earnings week will kick into gear with almost a fifth of the S&P 500 components posting quarterly results. Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM - News), Amazon (NasdaqGS:AMZN - News), UPS (NYSE:UPS - News), Pfizer (NYSE:PFE - News), Kellogg (NYSE:K - News) and MasterCard (NYSE:MA - News) are among the names most likely to grab the headlines. With almost 200 companies' reports in so far, about 59 percent have beaten earnings expectations - down from about 70 percent in recent quarters. (Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Additional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak and Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Jan Paschal)

Earn September 7th Penny Stock Winners, Losers, and Stock Scans

2013-01-24T19:06:00.001-08:00

Earn

Today's Winners and Losers

Today's Bottom Scan

Signals Few good setups

2013-01-16T19:00:00.001-08:00

Signals

Swing Play

pullback play

Swing Play

145 possible target

Swing Play

24.5 possible target.

Swing Play

24 possible target

Stock To watch

Earnings last night.

Forex Swing trading opportunities

2013-01-08T18:41:00.001-08:00

Forex

Several stocks are breaking out and there are some nice setups showing up in our scans. Many stocks are going sideways during market consolidation and are now breaking out.

Forex Swing trade idea: RYL

2013-01-07T18:53:00.001-08:00

Forex

RYL seems to be ready to head higher after 2 months sideways base for swing trade. 10 to 20% potential from here.

Forex UYMG Issues Impressive News Today

2013-01-05T07:23:00.001-08:00

Forex UYMG is a stock I posted last week as a bounce candidate. Today's news could help bolster investor sentiment. After posting some strong revenue numbers the president of UYMG stated:

'Our authorized share count has risen this year to account for our transition into On Track Technology becoming our main subsidiary. We will not be raising the Authorized share count any further while we control/own UYMG,' said Michael Oliver president of Unity Management group Inc. He went on to add that our valuation or market capitalization is very low for the nature of what we are trying to accomplish. Our valuation is that of many OTC Market shell companies at this time. We are not a shell and have many results, announcements, and filings coming, that will yield a higher value immediately as traders and investors participate in the trading of our stock. We are looking for millions of dollars of value and business here, not 10s of thousands or hundreds of thousands.

Might not be a bad time to take a closer look at UYMG. I think the stock heads back over $.002 this week... but what do I know?

On Track Technology Begins Work On Production Leases In Navarro County
EAST HANOVER, N.J., Sept. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Unity Management Group (OTC Pink: UYMG), a business resource and service company, is pleased to announce its wholly owned subsidiary, On Track Technology Solutions Inc. (OTT), and their consulting firms have entered into a farm out agreement to begin work to establish production on a group of contiguous leases in Navarro County. There are approximately 52 wellbores with 6 being State approved injection wells; wellbores identified at the Texas Railroad Commission as lease numbers 01689, 02032, 02033, 02216 and 02503.

OTT President, Eddie Schilb said, 'On Track is working with an area Geologist, and a Chemical firm to develop a confidential completion, and chemical Huff & Puff treatment using Co2, Nitrogen or a combination of the two. Based on conversations with one Petroleum Engineer we believe a potential of 89 BOPD may be achievable upon a successful implantation, and successful results of treatment, installation of proper production equipment, and pressurization of certain/specific wellbores within the leases. While the price of oil varies daily we used $86.08 per barrel (todays price although most 5 year forecast is $101.07 Per Barrel); upon successful implementation 89 BOPD would add approximately $186,318 per month or $2,235,821 annually.

On Track Vice President and Staff Engineer Ayo Odetunmibi commented that this property fits nicely with our other properties. 'We are looking forward to testing these wells; it is an exciting time and I am excited about the potential in this field. Eventually we want to test the possibility of other profitable formations on this acreage.'

'Our authorized share count has risen this year to account for our transition into On Track Technology becoming our main subsidiary. We will not be raising the Authorized share count any further while we control/own UYMG,' said Michael Oliver president of Unity Management group Inc. He went on to add that our valuation or market capitalization is very low for the nature of what we are trying to accomplish. Our valuation is that of many OTC Market shell companies at this time. We are not a shell and have many results, announcements, and filings coming, that will yield a higher value immediately as traders and investors participate in the trading of our stock. We are looking for millions of dollars of value and business here, not 10s of thousands or hundreds of thousands.

Earn Hotel industry looks for deal pace to pick up

2013-01-03T15:25:00.001-08:00

Earn LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hotel companies and real estate firms are optimistic that deal transactions will pick up this year despite concerns about Europe's economy and challenges in obtaining debt financing. While a business-led economic recovery has helped lift U.S. hotel occupancy rates, development is still a soft spot as tight credit conditions have limited new-hotel builds. Still, there is a growing sense that the hotel sector has momentum and performance will continue to improve. 'People are expecting 2012 to be a pretty positive year, with solid performance by the industry in terms of the demand for hotel accommodations and the ability to get deals done,' Arthur de Haast, chairman of Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, said at this week's Americas Lodging Investment Summit. The hotel investment services firm has forecast that hotel deals in the Americas this year will at least match the 2011 level in value of an estimated $15 billion. U.S. hotel deal activity picked up in the first half of 2011 but calmed in the latter part of the year as debt woes in Europe began dominating the headlines. While Europe is still a risk, attendees at the three-day hotel conference said a continued recovery marked by rising room rates would make the sector attractive for investment. 'There's a lot of money on the sidelines waiting to pounce and find opportunities,' said Christian Charre, president and chief executive of the Charre Group, a Florida-based hotel brokerage and consulting firm. FOREIGN MONEY Private equity funds that have capital will be in a good position to make acquisitions, some said. Real estate investment trusts were active buyers in the first half of 2011 but are expected to be quieter this year as their share prices suffered in the latter part of 2011. 'The mix of the investors probably will change,' said Sri Sambamurthy, co-founder of real estate firm West Point Partners in New York. He said Middle Eastern, European and Asian investors especially find the U.S. market to be extremely attractive now. 'The U.S. is still considered very safe, the dollar has performed extraordinarily well,' Sambamurthy added. Hotel companies said they were looking to make acquisitions in a bid to expand their reach. 'No question that we'll be active in the marketplace in 2012,' said Paul Whetsell, president and chief executive of Loews Hotels, which owns and/or operates 18 hotels. The unit of Loews Corp (NYSE:L - News) has committed more than $500 million to acquiring hotels or developing new properties. Whetsell said Loews is looking for 4-star or higher-rated hotels in major cities where it does not have a presence such as Boston, Washington, San Francisco, Chicago and Los Angeles, as well as smaller markets like Charlotte, North Carolina, and Baltimore, Maryland. Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH - News), which franchises hotels focused mainly at the mid-tier and economy market segments under brands such as Comfort Inn and Econo Lodge, said it is in the hunt to acquire a value-oriented, full-service upscale brand that would help attract more business customers.

Earn For Europe, Few Options in a Vicious Cycle of Debt

2013-01-01T18:18:00.001-08:00

Earn For Europe, Few Options in a Vicious Cycle of Debt Europe has a $1 trillion problem. As difficult as the last two years have been for Europe, 2012 could be even tougher. Each week, countries will need to sell billions of dollars of bonds - a staggering $1 trillion in total - to replace existing debt and cover their current budget deficits. At any point, should banks, pensions and other big investors balk, anxiety could course through the markets, making government officials feel like they are stuck in a scary financial remake of 'Groundhog Day.' Even if governments attract investors at reasonable interest rates one month, they will have to repeat the process again the next month - and signs of skittish buyers could make each sale harder to manage than the previous one. 'The headline risk is enormous,' said Nick Firoozye, chief European rates strategist at Nomura International in London. Given this vicious cycle, policy makers and investors are closely watching the debt auctions for potential weakness. On Thursday, Spain is set to sell as much as 5 billion euros ($6.3 billion) of government bonds. Italy follows on Friday with an auction of more than $9 billion. The current challenge for Europe is to keep Italy and Spain from ending up like Greece and Portugal, whose borrowing costs rose so high last year that it signaled real likelihood of default, making it impossible for the governments to find buyers for their debt. Since then, Greece and Portugal have been reliant on the financial backing of the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. The intense focus on the sovereign debt auctions - and their importance to the broader economy - starkly underscores the difference between European and American responses to their crises. Since 2008, there has been almost no private sector interest to buy new United States residential mortgage loans, the financial asset at the root of the country's crisis. To make up for that lack of investor demand, the federal government has bought and guaranteed hundreds of billions of dollars of new mortgages. In Europe, policy makers are still expecting private sector buyers to acquire the majority of government debt. Last month, in perhaps the boldest move of the crisis, the European Central Bank lent $620 billion to banks for up to three years at a rate of 1 percent. Some officials had hoped that these cheap loans would spur demand for government debt. The idea is that financial institutions would be able to make a tidy profit by borrowing from the central bank at 1 percent and using the money to buy government bonds that have a higher yield, like Spain's 10-year bond at 5.5 percent. But the sovereign debt markets continue to show signs of stress. Italy's 10-year government bond has fallen in price, lifting its yield to more than 7 percent, a level that shows investors remain worried about the financial strength of Italy's government. And European banks appear to be hoarding much of the money they borrowed from the central bank, rather than lending it to governments. Money deposited by banks at the European Central Bank, where it remains idle, stands at $617 billion, up from $425 billion just a month ago. 'It's hard to see why a banker would want to tie up money in a European sovereign for, say, three years,' said Phillip L. Swagel at the University of Maryland's School of Public Policy, who served as assistant secretary for economic policy under Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. Italy's troubles highlight how hard it is to generate demand for a deluge of new debt from a dwindling pool of investors. The country needs to issue as much as $305 billion of debt this year, the highest in the euro zone. By comparison, France, with the second highest total, needs to auction $243 billion of new debt, according to estimates by Nomura. Governments like Italy's are at the mercy of markets because they simply don't have the cash to pay off even some of their bonds that come due. They must issue new bonds to cover their old debts, as well as their budget deficits, at a time when investors are growing scarce. Banks, traditionally big holders of government bonds, have been selling Italian debt. 'We've seen a lot of liquidation by non-European investors,' said Laurent Fransolet, head of European interest rate strategy at Barclays Capital in London. For instance, Nomura Holdings in Japan slashed its Italian debt holdings, mostly government bonds, to $467 million on Nov. 24, from $2.8 billion at the end of Sept. European banks have also been dumping the debt. BNP Paribas, a French bank, cut its exposure to Italian government bonds to $15.5 billion at the end of October, from $26 billion at the end of June. Italian banks, though large owners of their government's obligations, may not want to take on too much more, to keep their investors happy. Shares in UniCredit have fallen more than 40 percent since last week as the Italian firm has tried to raise capital to comply with new regulations. There are ways to avoid spectacularly bad debt auctions, at least in the short term. The central bank can help by buying a country's bonds in the market ahead of a new debt sale. That would help bolster prices at the auction, or at least keep them stable. There is also some evidence that banks' government-bond selling may have abated at the end of last year, according to Mr. Fransolet. Central bank figures show European financial firms acquired $2.4 billion of Spanish government bonds in November, after selling a monthly average of $4.8 billion in the preceding three months. Governments may also be able to attract new buyers to their bond markets. Belgium sold $7.2 billion of government bonds to local retail investors last month, in part appealing to their patriotism. Opportunistic hedge funds, betting the market is too pessimistic about certain European countries, may also bite. Saba Capital Management, a New York-based hedge fund headed by the former Deutsche Bank trader Boaz Weinstein, owns Italian government bonds, though it does so as part of a wider trading strategy that includes bets that could pay off if Europe's problems worsen. But it is doubtful that Italy and Spain can find enough new buyers this year to bring their bond yields down to sustainable levels. Instead, if their economies slow - and if their governments become unpopular - debt auctions could fail and their cost of borrowing could rise even more. All eyes would then turn to the central bank for drastic action. It could lend more cheap money to banks, in the hope that some of it might find its way into government bonds. Or it could become a big buyer of government bonds itself, printing euros to finance the purchases. But that may not be a lasting solution, since the central bank's actions could scare off private investors. Typically, when government-backed organizations like the central bank hold a country's debt, their claims on the debtor rank higher than those of other creditors. For that reason, private investors might think their holdings would fall in value if the central bank became a big owner of Italian debt - and they might retreat. At the same time, the crisis response in the United States did not depend solely on government-backed entities like the Federal Reserve to buy housing loans. Professor Swagel of the University of Maryland points out that banks and investors also took large losses on existing housing debt. While painful, the mortgage debt proved less of a drag on the financial system. So far, Europe has been averse to taking permanent losses on government bonds. Except in the case of Greek debt, European policy makers have shied away from any plan that could mean private holders of government debt get hurt. However, Nouriel Roubini, a professor of economics at the Stern School of Business at New York University, recently argued in a Financial Times editorial that Italy's debt should be reduced to 90 percent of the gross domestic product from 120 percent. In such a situation, investors might suffer a 25 percent hit on the value of their Italian bonds, he said. Such haircuts might seem like the recipe for more instability right now. But if Europe struggles to find buyers for its debt, more radical options are likely to be considered. Europe's debt problem is huge, and the experience in the United States suggests dealing with it may take several, more drastic approaches. 'If you go halfway, you'll never get to the end,' Professor Swagel said. 'And that describes European policy-making.'