Wind Stocks needed in the portfolio, As a global community we all hope that the nuclear situation in Japan can be fully contained with no impact on human life.  But even if we could do that human life has already been affected, lets say not one person suffers any affects of radiation but for sure some will have seen a psychological impact.  Will we mistrust Nuclear even more than we do now ?   Lets say you see yourself relocating, will the distance to the nearest nuclear reactor be in your mind ?

So what are the new energy alternatives to Nuclear, they seem to be Solar ? Wind ? Tidal ? Biofuels ?   I used to think that Solar was the one and it certainly is the one that gets the most attention, but maybe Wind power is a better option.  From what I see on a like for like comparison Wind Farms seem to be capable of a greater power output, they cost less to setup and are certainly better on the environment to create. The downside is of course that you need wind !  Therefore some countries are likely to benefit more than others, but if we were to pick the best locations I’m sure that would not be an issue.

Environmentally there are complaints about wind, effects on birdlife and the noise level. I’m sure something can be done to reduce the impact of the former, but have no idea about the noise. Personally I actually find them quite attractive to look at, maybe that’s just me.

So how can we invest in Wind ?  I’m not sure at the moment, I bet there are funds out there but as usual I’m going to be drawn to smaller Wind Stocks with a chance of high growth.  New Energy Sources are going to experience huge growth.

Top Cloud Computing Stocks … What is it ? What are they ?  Its the idea of using web-based space and applications, and not on your local machine.  If you use services like Hotmail and Flickr then you are already familiar with the concept whether you realise it or not, and Google Documents further extends the use.  Other cases could be the use of online storage instead of local storage. There is big investment out there by many of the big guns, so this is something that we will see a huge increase in.

Is there a profit to be had ?

Whilst Microsoft, IBM, Amazon are all making huge investments, I fancy these 3 stock picks.

Google .. is heavily involved as you would expect and its Google Apps, Docs and Gmail is complemented by App Engine where developers can create their applications.

VMWare,  is one you may not heard of but is gearing itself up for a real go at taking market share off some of the bigger guns.

Akamai, am market leader in content delivery, this could also be one to watch.

I do not hold shares in any company mentioned here, but look forward to gaining some exposure to the cloud and some Top Cloud Computing Stocks.

Top Cloud Computing Stocks
is a topic that is gathering pace, you may have heard of it and be using it but I think the floodgates are about to open.

McDonalds Business Plan During The Recession

There are some companies out there that have the ability to do well during a recession, I doubt many will find it easy but a few may thrive.

McDonalds are a decent choice, picking up business from resturants and more expensive takeaways. Obviously they have reached these conclusions quicker than me, and have adapted opening hours to help target markets, marketed improved quality of their food, and added new products.

I find it very interesting that coffee gets particular attention, with McDonalds now picking up business from the specialised coffee retailers like Starbucks.

2008 figures were lower than 2007, but better than expected, and as they continue to tailor their business to take advantage during these particular times, I imagine they are looking forward to a very profitable 2009.

The current share price is almost exactly halfway between the 52 week high and low, I do not hold these or any others mentioned but will watch the price with interest, looking to get involved at some point, as it certainly looks like the McDonalds business plan looks to be spot on, and will likely change as per the economic climate.

Rhodium is a precious metal that is used mainly in the auto industry in catalytic converters, and it is primarily the bad fortune of the auto industry that has caused the massive drop in price.

As a bit of a contrarian this intrigues me, because surely this price will go back to where it was in time. As it stands currently this would be 1000% profit, a ten bagger ! In addition as its something we mine then we are almost definitely running out of it.

Now here is the hard bit, how do I invest in Rhodium ? Rhodium is often a by-product of the mining of other precious metals, it is found in ores mixed with Gold, Silver, Platinum and Palladium. There do not appear to be any specific mining companies, nor is there a specific Rhodium ETF available. A company called kitco will allow you to invest in a pool, and this seems to attract some attention.

A high percentage of Rhodium comes from South Africa, so I think I should concentrate on the mining companies based there, maybe one of the platinum miners. I will take a look at Aquarius Platinum AQP.L.

Vast Exploration and other Kurdistan Oil exploration oil companies are hitting the headlines currently as more and more news is received from those with licences.  Here is an interesting article about our current favourite play, Vast Exploration.  The Qara Dagh licence is often described as a possible mini kirkuk.  What am impact any positive news could have on the Vast Exploration Share Price.

September 03, 2009
Vast Exploration Hopes To Emulate Its Kurdistan Neighbour Heritage Oil As It Prepares For High Impact Drilling In 2010

These are exciting times for investors in Calgary’s Vast Exploration. The stock price of the TSX Venture-listed E&P, which is due to appear at oilbarrel.com’s September 15 conference in London, has increased three-fold this year as anticipation mounts ahead of first drilling on its prime asset, the Qara Dagh block in Kurdistan.

Two years ago Vast was a small time producer in Canada, where its properties in the Boyer and Barrhead areas of northern and central Alberta produced a grand total of 32 barrels of oil equivalent per day. The E&P minnow had ambitions to scale up its operations and saw a chance to seek growth opportunities far beyond the Calgary oil patch: in under-explored Kurdistan in northern Iraq, to be exact.

The company signed the PSC for the 846 sq km Qara Dagh block in May 2008, following eight months of competitive bidding and advanced negotiations with the Kurdistan Regional Government. Niko Resources operates the block with a 27 per cent interest, alongside Vast with 27 per cent and Groundstar Resources with six per cent. The KRG has a 20 per cent interest in the block, to be carried by the consortium, with the remaining 20 per cent reserved by the KRG for assigning to a third party of its choice.

This was a major step for Vast, exposing the Calgary firm to a world class proven hydrocarbon province where resources are measured in the billions rather than millions of barrels. The partners have quickly got to work on the block, this summer completing a 355 km 2D seismic shoot over the structure that dominates the block in order to identify a location for the first exploration well by the end of this month. The partners then expect to drill in Q2 2010.

Vast, which earlier this month closed a C$10 million private placing to fund its Qara Dagh PSC commitments, has been keen to highlight the success of its neighbour in Kurdistan: Heritage Oil Limited has made a major oil strike on the adjacent Miran Block, which lies to the north of Qara Dagh. Following the successes of Heritage’s Miran West-1 well, which encountered an estimated gross oil-bearing interval of 710 metres, the Miran West structure is reckoned to have estimated oil-in-place of between 2.3 and 4.2 billion barrels, of which an astonishing 50 to 70 per cent is thought to be recoverable due to the highly fractured nature of the reservoirs.

Vast’s president and CEO Ahmed Said said the Heritage Oil strike “further proves the tremendous hydrocarbon potential of the under explored Kurdistan Region of Iraq”. The success of the London-listed firm has certainly whetted the appetites of Vast’s investors, who will be keen for news of the selected first drilling target and the all-important first spud date, an event that should put further momentum behind the share price.

Taken from

http://www.oilbarrel.com/nc/news/display_news/article/vast-exploration-hopes-to-emulate-its-kurdistan-neighbour-heritage-oil-as-it-prepares-for-high-impac/771.html

Art Investor.
Art Investment is a subject I consider often.  I have on occasions asked people in the art world about in and I always get the same stock answer ‘you buy art you like and not for investment reasons’.  Yet I can not agree with this, for sure there is a business that surrounds the art world, auction houses and galleries surely set out to make a profit. Career artists certainly aim to make a career out of their work, even if not all of them are aiming for super riches. Are all collectors collecting purely for the joy of owning the art ?  are some of them aiming for long term financial gain ?   I have often wondered how some new artists are chosen by galleries to be shown, does the gallery pick them purely on artistic merit, or are they aiming to display artists that will sell and therefore earn the gallery a commission.

There are Art Investment Funds who cater for those who want to invest in Fine Art, obviously these guys are looking for a return.

So lets say I am right and you can buy art as an investment, how do you start. Like other subjects on here I am new to this and to be honest do not have the answers. An Art Investment Fund would probably take the pain out of deciding on an artist for yourself, but its not nearly as exciting, and you wouldn’t get to look at it.  Buying established artists like Rolf Harris seems to be a good idea, but these already command good prices.  Looking at a new artist it would seem wise to get an idea of their career plan, are they aiming for life as a career artist ? or are they looking to pay the way onto a different career. Most art colleges seem to have an end of year art show.  Following artists appearing at famous galleries might be an idea, along with those who have high profile collectors.

I quite fancy life as an Art Investor, maybe one day.