The Little Book of Bull's Eye Investing: Finding Value, Generating Absolute Returns, and Controlling Risk in Turbulent Markets

Chapter Nine

Spreading the Pain Around

The Range of Glittering Opportunities

WHILE THE SECULAR BEAR market, the approach of rising interest rates, a muddle-through economy, and a falling dollar may not be the friendliest environment for the stock and bond markets, they do suggest other investment opportunities. In this chapter, I will examine some of them, including gold, commodities, and real estate. I’ll also offer a few comments on whether this is a good time to start your own business.

Why these topics? First, because I get so many letters from readers of my weekly e-letter asking me about them. Second, they all offer a different way to play what I feel will be the coming trends. Rather than make specific suggestions that would be dated the moment this book is published, I’ll discuss what I see as the general outlook for each of these areas and then direct you elsewhere for further reading and study if you are so inclined.

Gold Is the New Gold

Few things stir the imagination as does gold. Gerald Loeb noted that it seems to be the “most deeply rooted commercial instinct of the human race.”

There are times I really wonder about this. It is, after all, simply a soft metal with few practical uses. Many metals are rarer and more costly and many with a longer list of practical uses. But for some reason, for thousands of years, gold has been the one constant of commerce.

I know all the usual answers about why. Back in the 1980s, I wrote a newsletter on gold stocks that concentrated ...