You'd have had to be living on a desert island with no TV, newspaper or internet connection to have missed hearing about the great mutual fund scandal of 2003.

The issue was that some mutual fund companies allowed certain hedge funds to engage in after-hours trading, sometimes incorrectly referred to as market timing. Unfortunately, some companies have used the confusion about the term "market timing" to further their own cause. How?

Lawrence Roulston (This article was extracted from the March 22nd issue of Resource Opportunities)

The previous issue of Resource Opportunities pointed out that metal prices are up sharply across the board as the mining industry scrambles to produce enough metal to satisfy the growing demand. It will likely be at least a couple of years before enough new supply comes on stream to have any meaningful impact on the supply/demand balance. There just aren't enough big new deposits anywhere close to producing metal. In this Internet age, metal prices are likely to continue to be very volatile, reacting at cyber-speed to every event and rumour. On a day to day basis, share prices will amplify the swings in the metal prices.

David Coffin & Eric Coffin
You’ll hear plenty of explanations in the coming days for what’s happening in all markets, and particularly the metals, but there was really only one reason that mattered today. Early this morning, Chinese Premier Wen Jaibao made it clear in an interview before a trip to meet European leaders that Beijing plans to step on the brake, hard, to slow the Chinese economy. Interestingly, he also made it plain yet again that these measures would not include upping the value of the Yuan any time soon.

A lot of attention has been paid to different methods of stock selection. Lately momentum investing has been all the rage, and many have been suggesting that the old methods are no longer valid. But, as we have indicated all along, in the long run, the old rules will apply and those who ignore them may look great for their 15 minutes of fame, but in the end, they ignore the old rules at their peril. Two methods that have stood the test of time are value and growth investing. These are the two methods that we should pay the most attention to. You can use one or the other, or a combination of the two. We should apply both to our decisions, however, in each case we apply them to differing degrees. After all, every stock is an individual and should be treated as such.

The free market economy is a system devised to resolve the basic economic problem (resources having to be allocated to many competing users that have infinite wants) through the market mechanism. The centrally planned economy is an economic system where government go through detailed planning procedures to allocate resources in society. The Free Market Economy: The government provides public goods and services, but in order to pay for these the government need to raise some funds this is done through taxation. The government is also responsible for the issuing of money, it’s value and keeping stable prices.

Eric Coffin
Secular – (adjective (s k y -l r)) Middle English,, meaning “Of an Age” from old Latin, saeculum, meaning “ a generation, an age”

There’s been a lot of talk lately about the bull market in Commodities. Since 2001, most of the major commodity indices have risen by over 40%. That, in itself, is not unusual. Commodity prices are cyclical by nature, moving with the ebb and flow of the world’s economy as a whole. It’s wasn’t very long ago that commodities in general were relegated to the dustbin of history, old economy relics that would scarcely be needed by the “new paradigm” world that would, presumably, survive on nothing but air, water and an AOL account. For those who take the long view however—the real long view, not the Saturday supplement variety, this sort of talk was welcome news indeed. Bull markets are sired by Bear markets and those who pay attention to cycles knew that the distain shown for anything non “new age” was a sure sign that it’s time was at hand.

Stephen Gadsden
On January 15th 2002 the rules of the game changed for Canadian and American investors. With the World Gold Council’s attempts to launch a bullion investment product still on the ropes, Nick Barisheff of Toronto-based Bullion Management Services Inc. was cleared by regulators to offer Canada’s first and only retirement savings plan-eligible precious metals mutual fund that allows people to invest in real gold, platinum and silver bullion – The Millennium BullionFund. Ontarians began to invest in the fund in March 2002. It became available to all Canadians one year later in May 2003. Americans looking to get their cash outside of their borders into a safe haven were able to do so since the inception of the fund. Barisheff’s fund was designed and implemented for a variety of reasons. Most importantly, the fund was created to give Canadian investors more investment choice and to provide investment portfolio insurance for their registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs). American investors could now take their capital to an “offshore” investment in a friendly, politically-stable country outside the reach of U.S. governmental authorities.

The Millennium BullionFund provides investors with protection from the various economic and stock market variables that have devastated many Canadian mutual fund portfolios over the past few years. This is partly because precious metals bullion is negatively correlated with stocks. History shows that, when stocks tank, precious metals rally for substantial periods of time (cf. U.S. markets circa 1972-1980). How does this precious metals fund protect investors? After reading the fund’s 2004 Simplified Prospectus and Annual Information Form, it seems to me that there are two major reasons why investors would want to own The Millennium BullionFund. The first has to do with the operation of the fund. The second has to do with protecting your capital from external, negative economic developments.

Alexander B. Korelin
Listeners to The Korelin Business Report have heard me singing the praises of gold investments for a long time. I started this tune when gold was trading in the very low $250 range, taking the advice of gold stockbroker Walt Raby, and I haven’t stopped. The conversations I had with colleagues this past weekend at Joe Martin’s “Gold Show” in Vancouver, British Columbia strengthened my resolve and today I would challenge anyone who felt that the current strong markets associated with gold and silver were going anywhere but up. Let me recount some of these conversations for you and see if you don’t agree. My co-host on the Korelin Business Report, Paul Warren and I had dinner with Jay Taylor Saturday evening just prior to the Gold Show. As regular listeners to our program are aware, Jay is one of the most respected individuals in our industry and thousands of people seek his advice weekly by subscribing to his newsletter, Jay Taylor’s Gold and Technology Stocks.

Chris Temple
At long last, we’ve recently heard cries of “Uncle” from some quarters where the U.S. dollar’s relentless decline—and the corresponding increase in other currencies—is concerned. As a result, there have been some significant market developments over the last several days. They are not ones likely to change the many longer-term trends that have become evident over the last year or two. However, these changes have been affecting many investors, especially those who were unprepared for them.

On the currency front, the highest-profile grumbling has been coming from the European Central Bank, whose currency has been the most prominent gainer among the major ones versus the greenback. On Monday, the dollar’s decline against Europe’s common currency reached new lows of over $1.29 per euro. Then, new E.C.B. President Jean-Claude Trichet publicly expressed concern for the first time over the “brutal” rise in the euro’s value, one which has hurt exports from the Eurozone and threatened its fragile recovery.

James H. Dimmitt
Kick off 2004 with these 7 money resolutions and get a fresh financial start to the new year. At year’s end, you’ll be surprised at how much you’ve reduced your debt load and the money you’ve saved!

1) I will create and use a budget.

A budget helps you see exactly where your money is going from week to week and month to month. Creating and using a budget, no matter what your income level, will help you reach your financial goals more easily than without one.

2) I will use my budget to help reduce my credit card debts.

Let’s say you are able to save $20 a month by budgeting your money. You could take that $20 and place it in a savings account where you would earn minimal interest. Or you could use that same $20 and add it to your budgeted credit card payment reducing your credit debt in two ways. You’ll be reducing the amount you owe your creditor and you’ll also reduce the finance charge on next month’s bill.