Every U.S. state boasts its own unique claim to fame. Louisiana has Mardi Gras and Cajun food. Florida has sugar-white beaches and Disney World. And Alaska has millions of acres of beautiful, untamed wilderness. Of course, Alaska also has something else deep underground: Crude oil — lots of it. Every day, the Trans-Alaska Pipeline carries about 670,000 barrels of oil from North Slope production grounds south to Valdez, where it’s loaded into waiting tankers. That represents about 15% of the nation’s total oil output. Thanks to the riches of Prudhoe Bay,… Read More

Every U.S. state boasts its own unique claim to fame. Louisiana has Mardi Gras and Cajun food. Florida has sugar-white beaches and Disney World. And Alaska has millions of acres of beautiful, untamed wilderness. Of course, Alaska also has something else deep underground: Crude oil — lots of it. Every day, the Trans-Alaska Pipeline carries about 670,000 barrels of oil from North Slope production grounds south to Valdez, where it’s loaded into waiting tankers. That represents about 15% of the nation’s total oil output. Thanks to the riches of Prudhoe Bay, every man, woman and child living in the state receives an annual royalty dividend distribution — last year’s check was $1,281. But if the Department of Energy (DOE) is right, then Alaska could soon relinquish its title as America’s largest oil producer – so I’ve already set my sights on its successor. The latest projections from the DOE have Alaska’s daily production rates slipping to 450,000 barrels within the next seven years. Meanwhile, output from the oil-rich Bakken Shale of North Dakota could potentially climb to 700,000 barrels a day by 2015 — more aggressive… Read More

Investors often make one key mistake: They look to bag profits after an investment has made an impressive move. That makes sense — if the reasons to buy that stock have changed, or if the stock is now too pricey in relation to future earnings. But there are… Read More

Pop Quiz: This versatile metal, which is light enough to float on water and soft enough to be cut with a knife, has commercial applications ranging from pharmaceuticals to rocket fuel. If you said lithium, go to the head of the class — and bonus points… Read More

The world is undergoing massive changes at a torrid pace. The pace and magnitude of these changes is greater than humanity has ever known. With these changes come great opportunities and great challenges that will have to be confronted. Perhaps the greatest challenge of all is the… Read More

It’s not your imagination… it is getting more expensive to fill up at the gas pump. We had a reprieve for several months. Following the crash in oil, gas plunged well below $2 a gallon. Now it’s knocking down the $3 mark. As a… Read More

On an unseasonably warm day this past November, two men you might have heard of — Bill Gates and Warren Buffett — visited the town of Gillette. This tiny city in northeastern Wyoming is home to less than 30,000 people. Yet, it was important enough to host… Read More

There is a clear downside to the impressive bull market we’ve seen during the last 22 months: it’s getting harder and harder to find real bargains. To ferret out value plays, investors are increasingly turning to stocks that have lagged the market, hoping to… Read More

As we move into 2011, economists increasingly believe that the United States and Europe will start to see an economic rebound, joining China, Brazil, India and other emerging economies in a full-fledged global economic upturn. A closer look at recent price action in the crude oil markets underscores a risk that rising economic activity brings — and an opportunity for investors… Just as when oil prices moved below $40 a barrel when the economy hit the skids a few years ago, the price reflected a sense that demand for oil… Read More

As we move into 2011, economists increasingly believe that the United States and Europe will start to see an economic rebound, joining China, Brazil, India and other emerging economies in a full-fledged global economic upturn. A closer look at recent price action in the crude oil markets underscores a risk that rising economic activity brings — and an opportunity for investors… Just as when oil prices moved below $40 a barrel when the economy hit the skids a few years ago, the price reflected a sense that demand for oil would collapse in the face of an even deeper economic meltdown. But it also created some clear winners and losers. When it became apparent that no such cataclysm would emerge, oil prices rebounded back to the $50-75 range, reflecting a global economy that was lukewarm. That set the stage for a reversal of winners and losers as oil approaches $100 a barrel (more on that in a bit). Like the proverbial frog in the boiling pot of water, rising oil prices are already starting to impact the economy in various subtle ways. Read More

Companies are doing everything in their power to make investors focus on the long-term. Monthly sales reports have been replaced by quarterly sales updates by many retailers, and quarterly forward guidance is increasingly being replaced by once-a-year outlooks that get incrementally adjusted throughout the year. That’s why this coming… Read More

With each passing year, investors need to change up their playbook. What worked in the prior year may not work this time around [See: “5 Pitfalls for Investors in 2011”] It’s pretty easy to find out what didn’t work in the past year. I ran a screen… Read More