Alternative Outlook

Demand for gold has continued to grow in 2012 and is predicted to increase further next year.

Research by Source, a provider of exchange traded products, shows that inflows into European gold ETPs have reached $6.8bn this year to date, constituting a staggering 15.4pc growth.

ETPs are funds that are traded on a stock exchange like shares. They are a pooled investment fund, where an individual can gain exposure to a particular indices or commodity, providing the investor with the same returns as the underl…

Gold equities have underperformed for more than a year despite the gold price hitting a series of new all-time highs. But things could be about to change.

Investors have preferred to invest in physical gold, despite the storage costs, and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), as they are perceived to be less risky than mining companies.

Paul Hissey, an analyst at Goldman Sachs, thinks miners need to do a number of things to entice investors away from gold ETFs, including reducing perceived operational risk; deliver to, and manage market e…

Investment banks have put out differing forecasts for commodities next year as the US economy and Eurozone crisis take their toll and global growth forecasts are revised down.

JP Morgan downgraded its commodity forecast to underweight last month while Morgan Stanley recently advised that slower GDP outlook means commodity investors need to be more selective with their positioning and exposure to certain commodities.

Morgan Stanley’s analysts said in a note: “We are more selective about commodity exposure, preferring relative…

Following BRICs and CIVETs, Joe Roseman identifies the next acronym to hit the investment world as silver, wine, art and gold (SWAG) punch well above their weight.

A few years ago, Jim O’Neill of Goldman Sachs almost revolutionised the way many people thought about emerging markets. He coined the term ‘BRICs’. It is successful because it works on so many levels.

Investing in the BRICs has become an asset class of its own.

This got me thinking about asset classes generally and just what it is that differentiates one asset class fr…

Rising food prices have pushed up the price of arable land in parts of the UK, but life is tougher for livestock farmers.

Agricultural land prices in Britain have hit record levels following the surge in global food prices, according to figures from Savills.

An acre of prime arable land in East Anglia is fetching up to £8,500 compared with around £3,000 in 2005, with demand driven by the dramatic increase in wheat prices over the past year. Last week, feed wheat was selling for nearly £200 a tonne, a 115% gain on the £93 a t…

Introduction to Green Oil

Very simply, green oil is the oil derived from the seeds of crops such as Jatropha, Oil Palm, Millettia and Silverleaf. The basic process involves planting fast growing trees that will be productive within two or three years.

At this point the seeds can be harvested and crushed to produce green oil which can be used to generate electricity, as a Bio-Fuel, as Animal Stockfeed and as Organic Fertilizer.

The key uses that earn the highest revenues are to generate electricity and as Bio-Fuel.

It’s ac…

Jatropha has been championed as a major environmental opportunity for developing countries with a semi-arid climate and marginal soil. Scientist Karl Hilding Thunes of the Norwegian Forest and Landscape Institute has been investigating whether this small, hardy and relatively pest-free tree lives up to its billing.

Biofuel of the future

Jatropha is a top candidate for future large-scale biodiesel production, according to investment bank Goldman Sachs. TIME Magazine reported that jatropha could yield 6 tonnes of biodiesel per acre (…