China is going to build an 8 billion dollar oil refinery in Nigeria. It is the first of 3 refineries that comprise a $23bn agreement between NNPC and CSCEC. Nigeria’s state oil company, NNPC, will cover 20% of the cost while the state of Lagos will provide the land. The China State Construction Engineering Corporation, CSCEC, will cover the additional 80% of the cost. Nigeria already has 4 oil refineries but they are run very poorly and are estimated to be operating at only 40% capacity. Due to this inefficiency, Nigeria has to import some refined oil.

China’s dependence on energy (especially in the form of fossil fuels) is increasing dramatically and will continue in a strong upward trend. New power plants will be built, and more energy will be expended. One of the most obvious indicators of the trend for increased fuel demand is the automobile market.

In the past year, China’s car market expanded by almost 40%. Contrast that to the U.S. where new car sales plunged more than 20 percent in 2009 to a 27-year low of 10.43 million vehicles, less than the 12.23 million sold in China during January-November, making the Asian giant the world’s largest car market for the first time. Since the year 2002, about 50% of all motor vehicles in China have been purchased by individuals instead of large corporations or the government previously. As incomes increase, the high annual growth rate of private ownership is expected to accelerate. A new generation of young adults is emerging in China. This generation demands higher wages, better working conditions, and new material possessions.

However the Chinese government is taking steps to slow inflation, curb overspending, and control the economy. China’s economy expanded 11.9 percent in the first quarter. China International Capital Corp. has said that it expects growth to slow to 7.5 percent by the fourth quarter.

More cars mean more fossil fuels. Therefore along with this comes an increased demand for energy, particularly in the form of fossil fuels, which is still the cheapest form of energy available. Moreover it appears the Chinese government is taking steps to obtain that oil independently, even if that means teaming up with Nigeria.

Ed Lowell, contributing writer

Central banks around the world have been diversifying their own reserves out of the US dollar and into other gold and other commodity currencies like the Canadian dollar, Australian dollar and Brazilian real.  This shift in central bank policy around the world can have a significant impact on your wealth if you are completely in US dollars.

Most Americans believe the US is the land of milk and honey and will always be so.  History proves otherwise.  The US has been on a downward slide for many years and as the snowball rolling down the mountain, it has gained too much momentum to stop.

If you have all of your assets denominated in US dollars, now is the time to act.  You don’t want to be permanently tied to the woes of the US economy.  Diversify your assets through ‘geo-arbitrage’. 

From a practical standpoint, this just means to spread your wealth around the world.  Register a company in a low or no-tax jurisdiction.  Open a multi-currency bank account offshore.  Hold some of your investments outside of the US.  Buy real estate and gold.  But the time to act is now.  Tomorrow may be too late.

Most of the presentations at Fonds were in German, but I attended two that were in English.  One was presented by Jim Rogers, former partner to George Soros at the Quantum fund and the other was presented by Robin Batchelor from Blackrock.  I was especially interested in attending these presentations because they focused on the future of commodity investing.  Considering the world we currently live in, commodities may be something you should personally look at from an investment perspective.  I know I am.

Rogers focused on foodstuffs and metals while Batchelor focused on energy.  They both had essentially the same message; we have a growing population and a shrinking base of investment into production of necessary commodities.  From a long term perspective, we have nowhere to go but up with commodity prices.  Think about it, how many people do you know tell their kids, go to school, get a good education, and work on the farm?  People need to eat and we need famers to produce.  Right now we have a shrinking base of farming activity, but the population of the world is projected to triple in the next 30 years.  We have to feed them somehow and the law of supply and demand says commodity prices must rise. 

The same holds true for oil.  Oil is primarily a transportation fuel.  Most of your developed nations are near a peak or even in a decline with oil consumption.  But China and India alone have nearly half of the world’s population with a hugely growing middle class.  Right now they are consuming the same amount of oil per capita as the US was in the ‘20s.  Do you think China and India’s consumption will go down, or up?  My suggestion here is to look into portfolio diversification and take a long, hard look at commodities.  There are many ETF’s now that track various commodities so it is no more difficult than buying Wal-Mart stock.

I also had a great meeting with a guy named Raoul.  Raoul runs a family office for wealthy individuals and families.  This is not a common practice in the US, but it is quite intriguing.  His firm does not actually manage your money, but they provide you with the tools to assist with asset allocation and risk management.  He also selects and works with your money managers, banks, financial planners, tax planners and anyone else involved with your finances to make sure you are getting what you are paying for.  He can help you find the best money managers, place your money in Swiss banks (or anywhere else), and make sure you aren’t taking unnecessary risks.  His firm can provide you with online access to your portfolio whether it is in real estate, cash, securities, gold, or cattle.  He can even tell you if you have too much money tied up in cattle at any given moment.  It is quite a revolutionary service he offers and for a very reasonable fee.  He charges a small fee based on your asset holdings.  He gets no commission for advising you to buy X stock, or Y commodity.  The more your assets grow, the more he earns.  And most importantly, he is connected.  Very well connected.  He can still provide American citizens with Swiss private banking services and connect you with money managers you would never be able to have access to otherwise.  If anyone is interested in contacting Raoul, please let me know.  I will make the introduction.

I would really like to hear from my readers.  If you have some specific topic of interest, please let me know.  I would be happy to discuss it with you personally, or I can write about it on our blog or in the newsletter.  Feel free to contact me today for your free 30 minute consultation.  Until next week, live well.

The $11 beer and $50 pizza was a good starter.  And I don’t mean some exotic beer and pizza.  I’m talking Pizza Hut quality.  As I found out, Norway has a 200% alcohol tax because they determined citizens drank too much and wanted to eliminate this scourge of modern society, completely disregarding the concept of personal choice.  A basic Porsche 911 costs about $250,000.  A 700 square foot apartment in the city costs about $2500 per month.  Gasoline is about $9 per gallon.  And this is all created by taxation.  On top of that Norwegians pay between 35-50% income tax.  But they do have “free” healthcare.

This “free” healthcare system consists of wait times for basic procedures that can take from just a few weeks to several months before you can get an appointment.  Of course emergency care is quick, but what about an MRI?  Sure, we’ll see you in July.  They also have a great public transportation system.  But a one-way subway ticket costs about $5. 

Unfortunately this is the path I see for the US.  There are many similarities.  Norway even considers their system an improved American government.  Is this really the way we want to go in the US?  I have no interest in living in a place like Norway.  Sure their income is much higher.  A McDonald’s employee earns about $20 per hour, but a Big Mac meal costs $12.  How do they intend to attract competitive companies when the cost of doing business is so high?  Do we want to follow in those footsteps?

For one of my Norwegian friends, we were discussing a program that allows him to ‘escape’ Norway.  He sold his company a few years ago to a large tech firm in Norway.  This firm just recently sold out to a large US company and my friend’s job is now able to be done remotely.  We are looking at ways for him to invest offshore and defer his gains as well as structuring his life around a multi-flag lifestyle.  He will likely continue to work for his company in Norway earning a ridiculously high wage in Norwegian kroners, but he will move to warmer and cheaper climate where his income goes much further.  By doing this he can structure his own investment firm in one country, do his banking and investing in another, continue to earn an income in Norway, and live in another place.  There are also huge tax savings to be gained from this.  He is very interested in intelligent asset protection planning.

Now is the time for you to consider how you want to structure your life.  Maybe you won’t make such a drastic change, but you can too form your own offshore investment company and defer taxation.  You can restructure your business for maximum asset protection.  Or you can find a new country to live in.  But don’t wait until you cannot leave or you are paying $12 per gallon for gas and waiting 6 months for an MRI.  Live well.

You may have noticed in the past few months when you receive your shareholder ballots that if you don’t reply, your broker will send you several reminders asking for your vote.  I know I have noticed it.  And in years past, you received one notice requesting your vote and if you didn’t reply, that was the last you heard of it.

In July 2009, the NYSE Rule 452 was amended to disallow the automatic broker vote.  What  this means is that if you don’t vote, your broker cannot vote for you.  Pre-July 2009, if you didn’t vote, your broker could cast a vote on your behalf.  And 9 times out of 10, the broker would just vote yes to the board recommendations unless there was a major movement to oust executives.

Historically, only about 30% of the shareholder ballots are returned with a vote.  Which leaves 70% with no vote, and before last year, the broker likely just voted in favor of the board recommendations.  Now, without your vote, the broker cannot vote on your behalf, which makes your vote much more important.  This is great news for the small investor.  We actually have won a small battle against the Wall Street behemoths.

Hugo is an interesting guy.  He holds a BS in Computer Science, a JD in General Law, an LLM in International Taxation, a Doctorate in Taxation, a Doctorate in Naturopathy, former CFP, and has traveled to over 100 countries.  Needless to say, he is experienced in international business. 

Recently I heard from Hugo.  Hugo is developing a Wellness Resort and Spa in Costa Rica near the Pan American Highway.  It is surrounded by huge national park and a wildlife refuge.  It is a very interesting concept with medical facilities, spa, hotel, bed and breakfast, and several restaurants.  And right now, Hugo is selling ten of these beautiful lakefront houses for $40,000.

To put the icing on the cake, Hugo has arranged easy, low cost financing for those able to put 30% down.  There will also be property management available for those interested in using this as an income property.  For the entrepreneurs, Hugo is looking for partners for the medical ventures and additional restaurants.  For anyone interested in an absolute bargain in a beautiful location, this deserves serious consideration. 

If you are interested, please send me an email and I will connect you directly with Hugo.  Live well.

Today I want you to be aware of Self-Directed IRA’s, or SDIRA’s.  Most people are unaware that you can not only manage your own IRA investments, but you can invest in whatevever asset class you chose.  Traditional IRA custodians are generally investment brokers and of course they want to sell you investment where they derive fees.  It is highly unlikely you will find an investment broker offering you commercial real estate, gold, oil field rights, vacation properties, or cattle as investment options.

But what if your very familiar with farming and you have a very good understanding of the cattle market?  This may be a very good investment for you, but your investment broker won’t sell you these types of investments and won’t allow them in your IRA.  But there is an option.

With a SDIRA (there is also a Self-Directed RothIRA but I will just group them together and call them both a SDIRA), you can invest in any asset class you wish.  You have full control of your assets and how they are managed.  Essentially, the way it works is the custodian assists you in forming an LLC which is owned by your IRA.  You become the manager of the IRA, giving you full control of the investment of funds.  You can then chose to invest this money as you see fit.  There are restrictions however, but they are minimal and certainly not a deterrent.

If you chose to buy rental properties, vacation properties, gold bullion or coins, tax lien certificates, private placement loans, or cattle – no problem.  Its your IRA and you are the manager.  There are a few custodians that are out there who can set this up for you.  One of them is a friend of mine, Steve.  He runs a company that helps his clients set up SDIRA’s (and Roth’s) in order for them to take control of their retirement savings.  Who do you think is more interested in your success – a mutual fund manager or you?  Steve can also convert your existing IRA or Roth into a SDIRA.

As I stated in yesterday’s article, 2010 is a great year to convert your  IRA into a Roth IRA.  You can take advantage of an  opportunity that  may not come again in your lifetime.  This can save you a huge amount of money over your lifetime in taxes.  And if you really want to supercharge your retirement savings, convert your IRA into a Self-Directed Roth IRA.  If you are interested in contacting Steve, please send me an email and I will provide the connection.  Live well.

The  federal government’s extreme misuse of taxpayer dollars may very well work out to be a huge opportunity for many.  Because of the astronomical deficits, the IRS has given one year opportunity for anyone to convert their IRA to a ROTH IRA.  I won’t go into details about the differences between them as you are either aware of it, or have access to a computer and can google it yourself.

Up until 2010, if you earned more than $100,000 per year, you were not allowed to convert to a ROTH.  This restriction is lifted for 2010 only.  Why would the government do this you may ask?  Short term tax revenues in a midterm election year, of course.  They are sacrificing long term tax revenue for short term gain.  If you have $100,000 in your IRA and convert to a ROTH, you will pay income taxes on the tax basis, for arguments sake, lets say you will pay $30,000.  Then your $70,000 can grow tax free forever and you can take distributions tax free.

As an added benefit, you don’t even have to pay the $30,000 in taxes in 2010.  You can make payments in 2011 and 2012.  Essentially the IRS is hoping many people convert in order to raise tax revenue over the next 3 years in lieu of the higher taxes they would collect when you reach retirement age.  I would highly suggest you seriously consider this option and talk it over with your CPA.

Regardless of your philosophical beliefs, the reality is the world revolves around money.  If you don’t believe me, next time you are at the grocery store tell them you want to pay with ‘goodwill toward man’. 

Businesses require investment to operate.  In exchange for this investment, the business pays investors with dividends or capital appreciation.  What happens when every trade is taxed on both the buyer and seller side?  Just like any other activity, when you tax it, you get less of it.  Much of the liquidity in the financial markets are created by short term trades.  Financial institutions have traders working every day getting into and out of trades on a daily basis.

There are also many who day trade.  This can significantly increase their cost of doing business.  A tax of .25% may not seem like much, but if you are a day trader using $50,000 per day will see an additional cost of $625 per week in tax or $32,500 per year in ADDITIONAL  tax he was not already paying.  Day trading is a risky endeavor and this will likely force all but the wealthiest day traders out of the market severly decreasing the daily volume.

When daily volume decreases, the spread between the bid price and ask price will be wide enough to drive a dump truck through, which will have a negative impact on your returns.  It will also significantly increase the cost of doing business for mutual fund managers.  Do you think they will just ‘eat’ the additional cost?  Of course not, it will be passed on to you dear reader.

Let us not forget about your precious 401k’s, IRA’s, ROTH’s, and educational 529’s.  These are almost exclusively mutual fund holdings which will see major declines if this tax is implemented.  We also need to consider, what will happen to all of this capital that will flee the markets.

My guess is that it will flood into the  real estate market, thereby creating our next bubble in RE prices.  Once traders and investors around the world have their cost of doing business hit this hard, the money will not vanish, but like water it will follow the path of least resistance.  Right now, that is real estate.  Do we really want to blow up that bubble again?