Over the past 20 years, various commodities have experienced drastic fluctuations in price due to changes in supply, demand, market sentiments, geopolitical events, and other factors. Let’s dive into the analysis of the top-performing commodities that have outperformed others in terms of return from 2003 to 2023.

Gold

Gold has been a reliable store of value and a hedge against inflation for centuries. From 2003 to 2023, gold prices have risen significantly, driven by global economic instability, geopolitical events, and periods of high inflation. In 2003, gold was priced around $363 per ounce. By 2023, the price has more than quintupled, highlighting the long-term investment appeal of this precious metal.

Crude Oil

Over the last 20 years, crude oil has shown some dramatic price movements, primarily influenced by global supply and demand dynamics, geopolitical risks, and macroeconomic factors. In 2003, a barrel of crude oil cost around $30. By mid-2008, the price skyrocketed to nearly $140 per barrel before plummeting during the global financial crisis. Oil prices rebounded and remained volatile over the years, reaching new highs by 2023, making it a rewarding commodity for risk-tolerant investors who navigated the market fluctuations successfully.

Palladium

Palladium, a lustrous white material used in electronics, dentistry, medicine, and as a catalyst for chemical reactions, has seen enormous price appreciation in the last two decades. Its price per ounce increased almost tenfold from 2003 to 2023 due to supply constraints and rising demand in sectors like automobile manufacturing for catalytic converters, which reduce harmful emissions.

Copper

Copper, widely used in construction and electronics, experienced a substantial surge in price over the past 20 years. The copper market is deeply intertwined with the health of the global economy and infrastructure spending, particularly in developing economies like China and India. Over the period, the increased demand, coupled with periods of supply constraints, has driven up the price of copper significantly.

Lithium

A relatively recent entrant to the commodities market, lithium, has also seen significant returns over the past 20 years. As a key component in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, the demand for lithium has soared with the growth of electric vehicles (EVs) and renewable energy storage solutions. Lithium was not widely traded in 2003, but by 2023, its price has seen exponential growth, underpinned by the worldwide push towards greener technologies.

While the commodities mentioned above have been among the top performers over the past 20 years, it’s crucial to remember that commodities can be highly volatile and influenced by numerous external factors. Hence, it’s advisable for investors to have a diverse portfolio and avoid putting all their eggs in one basket. As with any investment, potential commodity investors should conduct thorough research or seek advice from financial advisors before making investment decisions.

Lastly, it is important to note that past performance is not always indicative of future results. Although these commodities have provided impressive returns over the past 20 years, it does not guarantee they will continue to do so in the future. It is important to stay updated with market trends and developments that may impact these commodities moving forward.…

In an ever-evolving financial landscape, investment diversification is an absolute must. Among the myriad investment opportunities available, real assets, including real estate, commodities, and tangible assets like gold, often hold center stage for several compelling reasons. Today, we will explore the importance of investing in real assets and how it can serve as a crucial strategy for financial stability and growth.

What are Real Assets?

First, let’s lay down the groundwork. Real assets, in the simplest terms, are tangible or physical assets that have intrinsic value due to their substance and properties. These assets include precious metals like gold and silver, real estate properties, farmland, oil, and other commodities. Their physical nature often makes them resistant to the whims of economic downturns and periods of inflation, thus earning them a deserved place in any robust investment portfolio.

Inflation Hedge

One of the key advantages of investing in real assets is their potential to serve as a hedge against inflation. When inflation rises, the purchasing power of money decreases. However, real assets tend to retain their value or even appreciate during inflationary periods. For example, if the price of goods and services increase, so does the value of real estate or commodities, helping protect your investment portfolio’s real value.

Diversification

Investing in real assets provides diversification to your investment portfolio. They often show a low correlation to traditional financial assets like stocks and bonds, meaning they don’t move in sync. When stocks are performing poorly, real assets like gold or real estate might be doing well, thus offsetting potential losses.

Cash Flow and Yield

Real assets such as rental properties or farmland can provide a consistent source of income, generating regular cash flows for investors. This feature is especially appealing for investors seeking a steady income stream or a cushion during financial downturns.

Stability and Predictability

While all investments carry some degree of risk, real assets offer a certain level of stability and predictability. The value of tangible assets tends not to fluctuate as rapidly or as significantly as the stock market. Furthermore, with many real assets like property, you have more control over your investment and can add value through improvements or developments.

Inherent Value

Real assets have inherent value. Whether it’s gold or a parcel of land, these assets hold tangible value in their physical form. They serve a practical purpose and meet fundamental needs such as shelter (real estate), consumption (commodities), or value storage (precious metals). This inherent value provides a safety net not often found in financial assets whose value can dwindle to zero under certain circumstances.

Conclusion

Investing in real assets should be a significant consideration for investors striving for a well-rounded and resilient portfolio. By offering a hedge against inflation, portfolio diversification, stability, and intrinsic value, real assets can provide a level of financial security that’s hard to replicate with purely financial assets.

As with any investment, it’s crucial to thoroughly research and consider your individual financial situation and goals before investing in real assets. Consulting with a trusted financial advisor can be an invaluable step to make sure you’re investing wisely and strategically.

Remember, financial freedom and stability is not a sprint but a marathon, and real assets can make a substantial contribution to this rewarding journey.…

Buying Gold & Silver

There are a lot of options for buying gold and silver these days. The availability of so many options also means that most people want to know the best way to invest in these precious metals. We understand that there is no best way. The right way to invest in these precious metals depends on the preferences of the individual as well as their needs. We are biased in our opinion but here is what we think are some of the best ways to invest in these precious metals.

Places for Buying Gold and Silver

Many investors and retirees are asking how to convert 401k to physical gold so they can protect their saving from inflation.  This is something that is easy to do with a precious metals IRA that can hold physical gold and silver.  If you are looking to simply make some cash purchases, then there are other options.

There are common places where people can invest in these precious metals, and these include online dealers such as JM Bullion the other option is the local jewelry shop. The local coin shops have always been there. Many of these shops began their journey as a pawnshop and then transitioned into specialized resale stores.

The biggest advantage of using a local shop is that buyers can check the item before buying. On the other hand, online dealers have become a reality only in recent years. These online establishments act as virtual storefront that allows customers to buy precious metals online.

Buying Online or Local

At the foundation level, there is not much difference between buying locally and online. The only thing you need to do is go through the available selection and buy something you find interesting. With that said, there is a lot of difference in the trade practices of these stores and that has a great effect on your shopping as well as customer experience.

The biggest difference between these two options is convenience. When it comes to buying from local shops, you are limited to a particular location which means you need to physically visit that store to buy something. Also, when you want to buy locally, you will have to visit that particular establishment during some particular hours.

On the other hand, there are no such limitations with online shops as they are available 24 x 7, and you can access these from anywhere in the world. It simply means that you do not have any time and location constraints when it comes to buying precious metals online.

Another major difference between these options is the extent of selection. Local coin shops typically have a limited selection as they carry things to cater to a smaller base of customers whereas online shops offer a lot more variety as they cater to a much bigger client base who visit their website.

Virtual stores score over local shops as they can display a large number of products in their shops which is not the case with local stores. Local coin shops have a limited amount of selection that can easily fit inside their store display cases.

The biggest difference between these alternatives is the safety aspect. There is this argument that online purchase of precious metals is risky as buyers cannot see the product before paying money, but the risk is equally big when buying precious metals locally. There are all kinds of local dealers and not everybody is known for selling good quality products but that is not the case with reputed online stores as most of these online stores get their products directly from mints and distributors involved in the manufacturing of these products.

It simply means that customers are paying money for a genuine product as online stores guarantee the purity of their products. On the other hand, local dealers which may also be resale shops do not always have the expertise to check the authenticity of their products before they sell them to clients.

Another advantage of buying online is that it guarantees a customer’s safety as they can buy precious metals sitting in their own home. No such anonymity is available to customers buying these metals from local establishments. When individuals visit a local dealer, others may notice them and assume that they own precious metals. Since they do not remain anonymous, it makes them a potential target for burglary, theft, and assault.

Paper or Physical Metals

When you think of buying precious metals, one of the decisions you will need to make is whether to invest in paper metal or physical metal. You must be wondering what the difference between these two terms is and how it works.

Physical metal is what the term implies. It is a real piece of precious metal bullion that you can buy and keep. When you buy physical bullion, you are the only owner of that metal, and you can trade or sell it. Nobody else has access to that piece of metal. As far as the transaction cost of physical metal is concerned, it is higher than paper metal, but a large number of investors consider it to be the only way to own precious metals.

On the other hand, paper metal means that you will not get delivery of precious metals in physical form. It is like a share certificate where you only get a document that certifies your ownership. You can invest in paper metal in a variety of ways.

One of the ways is to buy shares in a precious metal exchange-traded funds. It acts as a trust that buys physical metals and, in turn, allows investors to buy shares. One other alternative is to buy stock in companies involved in the mining operations of metals.

The only difference here is that you need to open an account with a stock exchange to buy the stocks. There is one more way to invest in precious metals which is in the form of precious metals futures where you can buy precious metals at a future date.

As discussed earlier, the transaction costs of paper metal are lower as compared to physical precious metals, but it also has certain risks and drawbacks. When it comes to investing in paper metal, the ownership or control of precious metal is held by another company or institution, and investors do not have access to physical metal.

In case of a financial crisis, your precious metals can be seized by these establishments which means you will not have anything other than that documentation. If you want more personal control and security over your precious metal assets, the ownership of physical metal is a better option.

If you’re looking for more information, here is another good article on this topic: https://bulliontradingllc.com/blog/paper-vs-physical-precious-metals-which-is-the-best-option/…

One of the best practices is to use hiring out services to cover skill gaps. Small companies cannot afford to hire people to handle separately each part of the business starting from legal to finance and tech support. Sometimes, employees are required to take on multiple roles but there is still a need to get additional tech help to keep the business operational.

The impact of hired out services can decide the fate of a start-up. Cutting down costs on the financial and tech department is the first problem that needs to be addressed. The best hiring business model for a start-up requires the company to use external help to cover missing skills and tech in the company.

This leads to cost reduction as the need to hire a tech engineer or an accountant are completely removed. At the same time, their workload would not justify the salary that the company has to pay them. Hired out services are the better choice in this case. hired out tech services can end up being cheaper than hiring one tech support engineer. The same thing goes for other departments that require very few people to operate.

At the same time, the quality of hired out tech services can sometimes overpass the one provided by an internal employee. hiring out companies tend to develop advanced solutions for the services provided that are not available or are not cost-effective for small scale businesses.…