It’s no longer a question of whether Greece will exit the European Economic and Monetary Union, but how and when. And if we think the news from Europe moves the markets now, just wait. The ripple effect from such an event should affect stocks, currencies and commodities in a big way, which I’ll talk with you more about in today’s video.

Sincerely,

Monty

P.S. A Greek exit from the euro zone could mark an incredible buying opportunity for investors. I’ve just identified the types of trades that would benefit most from this kind of event. And as a member of my Million-Dollar Rapid Growth Portfolio, you can be among the first in line to get my newest updates and trades designed to profit from global events like these. Click here to get started today!

Wow, the column I wrote about Facebook on May 1 generated a lot of passionate response. I guess that is to be expected when you criticize a company with 900 million customers!

However, it looks like others — including Facebook’s top executives and its IPO investment-bank underwriters — somewhat share my skepticism. The company announced it will price its IPO somewhere in the $28 to $35 range, which is well-below the widely rumored/expected $40 a share.

Plus, that is well below the $44 a share Facebook traded at earlier this year on private-company stock exchanges, like SharesPost.

In addition, shares of online-game producer Zynga (ZNGA) got clobbered for a 10% loss after it disappointed Wall Street by reporting lower revenues per gaming customer.

What does Zynga have to do with Facebook?

Almost all of Zynga’s revenues come from Facebook, and it’s a significant revenue source for the social-media site as well — more than 11% of Facebook’s revenues come from Zynga — so any slowdown at Zynga is a major negative for Facebook.

The stars may not be aligning for Facebook right now, but that doesn’t mean ALL Internet-based social media stocks are bad. And the Facebook IPO has opened up the gargantuan profit potential of helping people connect with friends, family and loved ones from around the globe and from all walks of life.

I had mentioned Renren (RENN) in that May 1 column, but there is another company with an even-more-attractive business model than the “Facebook of China.” The company I’m talking about has figured out …

How to Make a Fortune Helping Young
Chinese Men Meet Young Chinese Women

Each year, millions of Chinese are moving from the lesser developed, poorer, rural interior to the large, eastern cities in China in search of jobs, opportunity and dreams. It is estimated that 200 million Chinese have left their rural homes in search of high-paying urban jobs.

One of the social consequences of that massive migration, however, is that cities like Beijing and Shanghai are filled with people who have moved away from their families and friends. These big-city newcomers don’t have a local social network, and like anybody else, want to find new friends … and, perhaps, new love.

That is why millions of Chinese are turning to online dating as a solution to relationship woes in a society where the social pressure to find a partner can be oppressive. Chinese parents commonly expect their sons or daughters to be married by the time they reach 30.

There is even a word for those who are unmarried in their 30s: Shengnan and shengnu, literally a “left-over man” or “left-over woman.” The problem is especially acute for Chinese men.

These older men without a wife and without children are called “bare branches” and the social stigma against these unmarried men is strong. Therefore, helping them meet their match is BIG, BIG business in China.

The Large Gender Imbalance

Back in 1980, the Chinese government launched its one-child policy with the aim to keep the population below 1.2 billion. According to the Chinese government’s claims, this policy has prevented 400 million births, but it has also created a large gender imbalance.

Chinese men are under pressure to marry before age 30.

There are 122 baby boys born each year in China for every 100 girls, and millions of Chinese men are finding it difficult to find a wife.

It is going to get worse.

According to the Chinese Academy of Sciences, by 2020 there will be 24 million more men of marrying age than women.

The centuries-old preference for boys, coupled with the millions of aborted female fetuses, puts China at the top of countries where boys outnumber girls. By the way, the ratio of boys to girls in the U.S. is 1.05-to-1.

The odds get dramatically worse, the older a man gets. For Chinese in their 30s, the number of single men to single women is estimated to be nearly 10-to-1. Approximately 5% of Chinese men in their late 30s have never married. That number could hit 15% by 2020, and 25% by 2040.

According to research by the National Women’s Union, China currently has 180 million bachelors, and up to half of them are estimated to be looking for love online. Those numbers mean big business, and that is why Chinese online dating sites attracted three million paying customers last year who collectively spent $150 million.

The online dating market in China is projected by iResearch to grow from US$75 million to US$292 million by 2015. That is a 31% compound annual growth rate, and could grow to three to four times its current size in the next four to five years.

To put that in perspective, that dwarfs the 3.4% growth rate for the online dating market in the United States.

There is one publicly traded Chinese dating service that happens to own the largest market share of that booming industry. According to iResearch, this company has captured 43% of all the money spent on the online dating market in China last year.

It is also number one in (a) number of unique visitors, (b) average time spent per user, and (c) average page views per user among all online dating websites in China.

Bottom line: The business dynamics of the dating industry in China isn’t going to rise or fall with the Chinese economy, so this company has years, if not decades, of great growth ahead of it.

Facebook … schmacebook. Check out Renren and its successful Chinese social-media cousins to potentially make some really big money.

Until next time,

Tony Sagami

P.S. As for the other stock I hinted at today, I’m keeping an eye on it for the right time to play it. For all my favorite Asia-focused plays, give my Asia Stock Alert service a risk-free try.

Gold and silver, and most commodities, are now sliding, just as I’ve forecast. But these declines won’t last long. They will prompt central banks to start printing money again — and soon. And this should transform the global economic and investing landscape. That’s why I want to be sure you don’t miss out on a crucial financial summit Martin Weiss, Mike Larson and I just held that features “8 Shocking New Forecasts for 2012 and Beyond.” So today, rather than give you my usual video update, you’ll find the full transcript from that event below. — Best wishes, Larry

8 Shocking New Forecasts for 2012 and Beyond
With Martin D. Weiss, Larry Edelson and Mike Larson

Martin Weiss: Thank you for joining me today in this emergency briefing, 8 Shocking New Forecasts for 2012 and Beyond. And thank you for your overwhelming response to my emails asking you to share your own forecasts, fears, and financial desires with me on my blog.

The number one question you’ve asked is a compelling one:

“Is the great financial crisis that has plagued America and the world for four long years finally over? Or is this just the calm before the next phase of the storm?

“In other words, should we go back to Wall Street investing as usual, or is this the time to buy gold, silver and other alternative investments?”

Today, it’s our turn to give you our forecasts, and my guests today are two men whose past predictions — on bull markets and bear markets, booms and busts — have proven to be astonishingly accurate over many years.

Larry Edelson, editor of the Real Wealth Report, is our expert on precious metals and other tangible assets. He is one of the very few in the world who nailed the bottom of the gold market at $255 per ounce in 1999 and helped his Real Wealth subscribers profit from the entire bull market, to as high as $1,921 per ounce, so far!

Mike Larson, editor of Safe Money Report, is our expert on conservative investments, interest rates and real estate. He is one of the very few who predicted the housing bust, the debt crisis and the Great Recession well ahead of time, and who also saw the turn as the housing market hit a bottom.

Together, they make a great team, especially now that their forecasts have come to fruition, especially now that we move into what we believe is a brand new phase with enormous consequences for investors.
Larry, you’re famous as a gold bull, but in recent months, you have been probably one of the only gold bulls in the world who warned of a major correction in gold. What’s up?

Larry Edelson: Well, yes that is correct, and initially many of my subscribers were disappointed that I didn’t give them the green-light “GO” signal to buy gold right away. I told them to wait, and now, they’re very glad they did.

Martin: So exactly when and where do you see gold moving? And what about silver?

Larry: I don’t want to jump ahead. Mike and I have eight new forecasts that we are going to issue today, and I think you have to understand the first seven before I can give you the eighth, which is on silver and gold. But, I can assure you, my gold forecast will not disappoint you.

Forecast #1
Country after country will abandon
their so-called “austerity” programs.

Politicians all over the world are going to jump back to their old habits. They’re going to borrow and spend, borrow and spend.

Look at what’s already happening in the U.S. You saw all the hullabaloo last year in Washington about the budget. You saw all the big fighting in congress and all of the politicking, and what did they do to cut the deficit?

Martin: Diddlysquat!

Larry: And guess what! The red ink is already gushing again. We have a fiscal deficit this year of $1.3 trillion and counting.

Also look at what’s happening right now in Europe. Last year, after months of agonizing debate, the Europeans finally cobbled together an agreement to cut deficits.

They called it their new “fiscal pact.” But in just the last couple of weeks, the entire agreement has started to collapse.

Sarkozi in France, a major linchpin of the fiscal pact, has fallen from grace, and the social democrats are taking over France.

The government of the Netherlands, another major supporter of the budget pact, has collapsed.

The elections in Greece could be another game changer.

We have seen new protests and riots on the streets in cities all across Europe, and they are just beginning to kick up the firestorm, just beginning to spread.

So suddenly and without warning, the pressure is building for more spending, bigger deficits, and a bigger pile-up of …  guess what! Debt!

Martin: Larry, stop there for a moment, because in some countries, they are already committed to cutting deficits. So how does that pan out?

Mike Larson: Martin, let me take that question, if you don’t mind. We already know the answer, and it’s our forecast #2.

Forecast #2
If governments cut spending,
the debts will pile up even faster!

Never forget, government spending is a major booster for these European economies. So in any country that pursues deficit reduction despite all the political backlash, here’s what happens:

• The more they cut, the more their economies shrink!

• And the more their economies shrink, the less they collect in tax revenues, which, in turn creates …

• Even bigger deficits and forces them to cut even more. It is a fatal vicious cycle.

We first saw this cycle play out in Greece over a year ago, and now we’re seeing it hit other countries as well.

We have Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic already in recession.

Plus, Spain and the U.K. officially sank back into recession just in the last couple weeks.

You have taxes and other government revenues plunging and their deficits growing by leaps and bounds, which means …

Debt levels soar!

Martin: And this is why we see such a violent political backlash.

Mike: That’s an understatement!

For over three years we have said that Greece was the canary in the coal mine, and that’s exactly what has happened.

The Athens government radically slashed salaries and pensions. It cut entitlements. It raised taxes. And it did all of that to supposedly cut its deficit.

But guess what! Instead of shrinking, its deficit ballooned from 139% of GDP to 159% of GDP.

And its total sovereign debt load is now 17 billion euros higher than it was in 2009.

Martin: But it’s not just Greece.

Mike: No. Ireland’s debt is up by 76 billion euros.

Italy’s debt has surged by 175 billion euros.

Spain’s debt is now larger to the tune of 275 billion euros, and …

France’s debt has jumped by 353 billion euros.

Martin: What about the U.K.?

Mike: They cut teachers’ salaries. They wiped out subsidies for student tuition costs. And yet despite all that, the national debt has still increased by the equivalent of 519 billion euros.

Martin: So what’s the bottom line?

Mike: We are seeing some countries already abandoning austerity …

We see some countries on the verge of abandoning austerity …

And we see some that may try to stick it out through thick and thin.

But no matter what they do, government debts are going to continue to soar globally!

Martin: And those are just the economic pressures for money printing.

Mike: Right. But there are MORE pressures, as you can see with my next forecast …

Forecast #3
Some of the world’s largest banks
will suffer massive losses and huge
new bailouts will be needed.

Martin: More losses from what? From real estate?

Mike: Sure, there are more real estate losses in the pipeline, but that’s almost old news to me.

What I’m mostly talking about is an entirely different disaster. And it’s potentially much bigger than the banking disasters we saw in the U.S. three years ago.

Think about it this way: All U.S. banks combined have roughly $14 trillion in assets, which is obviously a big number.

But the banks of the European Union have almost $45 trillion, or three times more. And they’re loaded down with bad government bonds that are sinking because of those budget and debt disasters that I just told you about.

Martin: In the last debt crisis they got killed in real estate. So they ran to the safety of government bonds.

Mike: Safety? Right. But now they’re getting killed in those supposedly “safe” government bonds, and there’s just no other place to run to.

Martin: Our Weiss Ratings division is tracking this bank by bank. And we’re soon going to launch our new global bank ratings, which you work with also.

Can you give us a sneak preview of those ratings right now?

Mike: Sure.

Deutsche Bank, the largest bank in the world, has assets of more than $3 trillion, and it gets a Weiss rating of D; which means weak.

Plus look at some other huge banks with D- and E+ ratings:

But the most shocking news of all is this: These weak and very weak banks have assets totaling $15.7 trillion.

That’s more than the total assets of ALL U.S. banks combined.

Martin: More than all the U.S. banks combined — just in those few weak banks in Europe!

What are the consequences for investors?

Mike: You could have a massive plunge in bank stocks — for starters.

But more to the point, it means massive new demands for bank bailouts and still more money printing.

Martin: Many of our readers are asking this question …

“With this global disaster rushing towards us like a runaway freight train, why aren’t global stock markets crashing?”

Larry, you predicted this stock market rally scenario just as it’s unfolding. So give us your answer to that question.

Larry: It is a side effect of the money printing. It’s because of wave after wave of money printing by the world’s most powerful central banks.

Martin: Explain how we actually track that.

Larry: For every dollar the central banks print and pump into the economy, they add a dollar to their balance sheets. So you can directly measure the money printing simply by looking at the bloated size of their balance sheet assets.

Martin: What would you say is approximately the normal level for that?

Larry: I would say that each central bank’s assets should be relatively small in proportion to each country’s economy — at about 5% or 6% of GDP.

But the U.S. Federal Reserve has nearly tripled the size of its balance sheet from about 6% of GDP to almost 17% of GDP.

And it has engineered that dramatic, unprecedented change of money printing in just three years.

The Bank of England has followed in lock step with the U.S.

The European Central Bank was the most conservative. But recently, it just exploded its balance sheet to close to 30% of GDP.

And the Bank of Japan, just announced a new round of money printing, it’s also run up the size of its balance sheet assets to about 30% of its economy. Would you care to guess the total size of the balance sheets of these four central banks?

It’s more than $10 trillion! That’s $10 trillion of paper money, fiat paper money, that’s been pumped into the global economy, with nearly half of that hitting in just the last three years.

Martin: What I find most shocking about this is not just how utterly massive and unprecedented it is, but also how passive and disinterested most people are.

Look. My family and I have been tracking speculative bubbles and busts for 80 years.

We have personally witnessed about a dozen recessions, two depressions, four or five stock market crashes, a couple of real estate busts, three bank failure epidemics, and two of the most vicious inflationary spirals of all time.

But we have never seen anything like this.

Larry: Martin, if you think this is extreme, then brace yourself. Because these are just the first waves ushering in a massive tsunami of money printing, which leads me to …

Forecast #4
The European Central Bank (ECB)
will kick its money printing presses
into overdrive and very, very soon.

That’s the only way they know how to react to the riots on the streets, how to finance their budgets, how to rescue their banks and save their own necks politically.

And if you think Europe is too far away from your hometown to matter very much — too far away from Main Street USA — think again.

What they do in Europe will have a direct impact on everything you buy, at the gas pump, in the supermarket, and most immediately, in the financial markets.

In just the last four months, the European Central Bank has embarked on two major, unprecedented waves of money printing.

They’ve just printed 802 billion euros, more than one trillion U.S. dollars, to try to convince investors that the sovereign debt crisis is over! But it is abundantly obvious that the debt crisis is not over.

So they have no choice but to launch yet another round … a third round … a fourth round … and a fifth round.

They’re going to keep kicking the can down the road.

Martin: And they know that.

Larry: Yes they know that they’re confiscating wealth, causing inflation. But they’re buying time in the hope that, somehow, everything will work out fine.

Martin: What makes you so sure they’re going to do this right now?

Larry: Because of everything they’re already doing!

You don’t need to be a Ph.D. or a mind reader to understand these guys.

It’s what they’re doing and it’s what they’re going to continue doing.

They’re not blind. They see all the disastrous numbers we just told you about. They know all about the trouble the economy’s in, and that their banking systems are in. They see no other way out: They must print money.

Mike: But they’re not alone.

Larry: Exactly, which leads me to

Forecast #5
The U.K. and the U.S. will
also join the money printing rampage.

Martin: Okay why don’t you start with the U.K.?  

Larry: The British economy never really healed from the debt crisis. It’s got deep, gaping financial wounds. And now, here we go again: Britain has just slipped back into a double-dip recession, the first since Margaret Thatcher. What will their response be? More money printing.

Or go back to the U.S. Despite everything the Fed may say, in the real world, the U.S. Federal Reserve will also unleash a veritable tidal wave of newly-created greenbacks.

Just look at how much the Fed has already printed since August of 2008: $1.963 trillion.

It’s amazing. That’s in just 3-1/2 years.

Martin: Most people don’t have a clear vision of what it means for them personally.

Larry: Let me put it into a very clear context for you: Remember the 1970s, when inflation hit double digits?

Well, that happened after the Fed printed only $83 billion, which is about $332 billion in today’s money.

As a result of that money-printing binge, the buying power of the U.S. dollar plunged. Everyone’s cost of living went through the roof. Overall inflation surged to nearly 15%.

The price of eggs jumped 145%. Corn soared 248%. Wheat skyrocketed 340%. And gasoline more than quintupled in price, exploding 434% higher.

Martin: But this time, we don’t see as much consumer price inflation in the economy.

Larry: I do!

Look, it takes about 18 months for this kind of money printing to work through the economy. And the consumer inflation doesn’t explode immediately. It starts in specific markets that become the targets of speculation. Then it spreads and builds up over time, working its way through the entire economy.

The key is that this time, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has printed nearly six times more money than his predecessors printed in the 1970s, and that’s even after adjusting for inflation.

And now it’s happening again.

We all know our cost of living is going up. Just since Bernanke began his money printing binge, gasoline prices have jumped 200%. Eggs are up 203%. Wheat is up 236%. Corn is up 288%.

But this is just the beginning because it’s all going to work its way through the economy!

Plus, never forget: Bernanke’s boss in the White House is up for re-election. He’s going to try everything in his power to paper over what’s still the worst long-term unemployment in recorded history in the U.S.

Martin: So let’s add up the all these numbers.

Mike: I’ve been doing just that as you were speaking.

The U.K. has printed the equivalent of $520 billion.

In Europe, they’ve printed an equivalent of $1 trillion so far. And here in the U.S., the Fed has printed nearly $2 trillion.

In addition, Japan has already printed the equivalent of nearly $322 billion.

Plus, other central banks have done the same. It adds up to a grand total of at least four trillion dollars-worth of newly created money.

Larry: And it’s all sloshing around in the global economy, with more money printing to come.

It’s colossal. It’s massive. It’s unprecedented. And it’s going to be a tsunami of unbacked, paper money flooding the entire world.

And now, you’ve got a new recession hitting, starting first in Europe and spreading out from there …

Martin: Which means …

Larry: Which means the money printing we’ve seen so far could pale in comparison to what’s coming.

In fact, top global economists are already starting to demand that governments not only continue, but actually accelerate their money printing.

You’ve got Adam S. Posen, an American economist on the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee, who says,

“I am here to warn policy makers in the United States, Europe, everywhere that we cannot take our foot off the pedal. The outlook is grim — the right thing to do now is engage in more monetary stimulus!”

He says it clearly, we can’t take our foot off the pedal.

You’ve got another, David Miles at the Bank of England, who says:

“The weakness of demand, given the amount of spare capacity in the economy, still made a strategy of having monetary policy even more expansionary the right one.”

There you go again — pedal to the metal! These are two top economists with the Bank of England. You have riots on the streets and global investors in flight — all demanding the same thing.

At all four of the world’s most powerful central banks, the Fed, the European Central Bank, the Bank of England and the Bank of Japan, the momentum is clearly building for more money printing.

All four are now terrified of recession, bank failures, sovereign debt defaults … and their jobs of course. All four will do everything in their power to avoid these disasters.

Here’s my next forecast …

Forecast #6
Before this great financial crisis comes to
its final tipping point a few years from now,
you’ll probably see up to $20 TRILLION
in global money printing.

The worse things get, the more money they’re going to print.

And when you have a massive tsunami of paper money, there’s only one thing that can happen: The value of that money, it’s buying power, plunges. Through the basement!

Forecast #7
This unprecedented global orgy of money printing
is about to light the fuse on an unprecedented
period of global hyperinflation.

Even if they don’t print one more dollar of paper money, you’re going to see some pretty wild inflation coming up!

Just the money they’ve already printed is going to create that massive inflation.

You have to understand the mechanisms at work here and how they view things. So, I want to read to you one of my favorite quotes from economist John Maynard Keynes, who actually was the granddaddy of money printing and advocated it very strongly.

He wrote this particular note about Lenin in Russia:

“Lenin declared that the best way to destroy the capitalist system was to debauch the currency. By a continuing process of inflation, governments confiscate, secretly and unobserved, an important part of the wealth of their citizens.

“Lenin was right. There is no subtler, no surer means of overturning the existing basis of society than to debauch the currency. The process engages all the hidden forces of economic law on the side of destruction, and does it in a manner which not one man in a million is able to diagnose.”

What Keynes and Lenin were saying is that the way to destroy sovereign debt is to devalue the currency and inflate those debts away — rather than outright default.

The problem is that the average citizen doesn’t realize their wealth is being confiscated through inflation — like a ghost that comes into their home at night and steals their money.

Mike: Two Harvard economists have written essentially the same thing — that inflation is a way for governments in debt to suppress and seize the financial wealth of the average person.

Martin: This whole situation feels eerily familiar to me personally. I was raised in Brazil. And when the Brazilian government did what these countries are doing today, inflation surged to 100% in the mid-1980s.

We thought that was bad, but then it hit more than 1,000% per year in the late ‘80s. And it didn’t peak until it hit a record of 5,000% in 1993.

Can you imagine that? At 5,000%, prices were jumping 50 times over the course of 12 months.

Larry: The classic case of hyperinflation was the German Weimar Republic after World War I, when the German government printed trillions of marks, and it took three trillion German marks to buy one U.S. dollar.

A German-born oil consultant now living in New York tells the story about his father who was a lawyer in Germany during that period.

In 1903, his father took out an insurance policy, and every month for 20 years, he paid the premiums faithfully. Then, when the policy came due in 1923, he cashed it in. Guess what he was able to buy with that policy! A single loaf of bread!

At Freiburg University in Germany, a student ordered a cup of coffee at a cafe. The price on the menu was 5,000 German marks. Then he ordered a second cup. The bill came. But by that time, the price had gone up to 14,000 marks.  

Mike: He should have ordered both cups at the same time.

Larry: That’s why, with inflation, you get a hoarding effect. The more prices go up, the more people buy.

Mike: But I don’t think the Brazilian and German inflations are directly comparable to what we’re seeing here today. There are deflationary forces that could interrupt the inflationary spiral.

Larry: Of course. That’s why I warned about a major correction in natural resources over the past nine months or so.

But consider this: The inflation that Brazil and Germany experienced were the result of money printing by just ONE central bank at a time!

Now, we’re seeing coordinated money printing by at least four major central banks at the same time. So in those episodes, the inflation was mostly local. This time, it’s certain to be global.

Martin: How does all this impact our viewers in their pockets?

Larry: It means that every dollar, every euro, every pound you earn, save and invest is going to be worth a lot less. That’s already happening. That’s why food and energy prices are already rising so quickly.

But this is only the beginning. There’s at least four trillion dollars’ of new paper money sloshing around the global economy, just beginning to impact select markets and investments.

And there’s trillions more that are on the way. This money is clearly going to drive the price of gold, silver, oil, and almost all natural resources higher like never before in our lifetime. It’s also going to create profit opportunities for savvy investors and like never before in our lifetime.

Martin: Specifically, how much higher will gold and silver go?

Larry: That’s my last forecast.

Forecast #8
The gold correction I’ve been
forecasting will soon end, and gold will
ultimately soar to at least $5,000 per ounce!

Martin: What about silver?

Larry: On January 21, 1980, the peak price of silver was about $49, or approximately $150 in today’s dollars. So just to match its previous peak, silver would have to rise to that level, $150 per ounce.

The $5,000 gold and $150 silver assume no further money printing, no further decline in the dollar, and no major global catastrophe, financial or otherwise. Add those factors into the mix, and all bets are off.

And don’t forget one of the most important commodities in the world — oil.

Just the decline in the dollar alone could drive it to $200 per barrel! And if we see global supply disruptions, which I’m sure we will, it could spike even higher.

So those are my baseline predictions for gold, silver and oil — my minimal expectations. And they imply the potential for gains of at least double or triple your money.

Martin: Is that with or without leverage?

Larry: Without any leverage whatsoever. Let me stress:

The days of this natural resource correction are numbered, and we’re now closing in on a huge buying opportunity in tangible assets and natural resources.

Martin: Thank you, Larry, Mike. Thank you for your time and insights today. This has been an exceptionally illuminating session.

While some investors are looking to pull money out of Europe, one man is spotting a unique opening in the telecommunications and media markets there.

As France and Greece push back against German-led austerity measures, stocks on the continent are getting hammered … and attracting attention from long-term corporate investors.

The man I’m referring to is Carlos Slim, considered to be the richest man in the world. And he is on a roll!

He heads Mexico’s two main telecoms, Telmex and Telcel, and the news that Mexican antitrust authorities suspended a fine of 11.9 billion pesos (about $920 million) is helping the shares of parent company America Movil (AMX) reach new highs.

3 Reasons Why America Movil May be
A Good ‘Call’ for Investors Right Now

Shares are up almost 20% year-to-date, and the company finds itself in a very sweet spot, with …

• A unique advantage as the largest Mexican carrier. Mexico is the principal destination of international calls originating in the United States. So as more calls are made to Mexico, America Movil’s interconnection revenues increase, too.

• A large market opportunity in smartphones. While the company concluded March with 246 million cell phone customers in the Americas, the vast majority of its wireless clients, around 85%, use low-price prepaid cell phone services. As smartphone prices drop below $100 next year, the handsets will come within reach of the company’s lower-income customer base.

• The financial flexibility to grow and new entry opportunities. America Movil said on Monday it aims to buy up to 28% of the Netherlands’ leading telecom, KPN, to give the Mexican company a base for future expansion in Europe.

This new buy offer is an indication of two important developments in the changing global telecoms sector and a good example of why I have been telling my subscribers to Emerging Market Winners to get ready for gains in this space. (In fact, in just six weeks, they’re up almost 5% in one telecom play designed to take advantage of the Latin American telecom boom.)

Is it Time to Dial into Telecom Profits?

The world’s richest man says he’s going to make his first big move in Europe by buying almost 30% of telecom company KPN, where America Movil says it owns almost a 5% stake already. Plus, Morgan Stanley is grabbing attention these days for being one of KPN’s biggest shareholders.

In other words, investors should sit up and take note, although you may be wondering A) why telecom and, more importantly, B) why Europe?

Europe is only a small part of this story. It’s the emerging-markets angle that captures my attention, because THAT is where the true upside lies!

While mature, slower-growth companies like the European telecom operators are still expanding internationally, the balance of power in the global market is shifting away from old European players to emerging-market giants that have financial resources they have acquired in protected markets.

As for “why telecom” …

Money Does Not Solve Problems;
New Technology and Approaches Do!

The new global players from the emerging markets have acquired and mastered new technologies and are not hampered by legacy systems and approaches. By diversifying into mature markets, they seek to bring this know-how and experience to create leaner, more-productive companies.

However, these emerging-market blue chips do face some challenges, chief among them being political resistance.

Mr. Slim sees a lot of medium- and long-term value here, and I agree. The whole telecom space is undervalued, especially Europe, and he’s taking advantage of the especially negative sentiment surrounding the area.

I’m not recommending European stocks on a wholesale basis, but I too am circling one European-traded stock with a powerful market franchise and great opportunities in emerging markets across the globe. (More on that later.)

Let’s see the results Slim produces from this. In the meantime, I’ll continue following this venture while scouting out new value buys for my Emerging Market Winners members that aren’t currently all over Wall Street’s radar!

Come join us!

Best wishes,

Rudy

P.S. For specific, timely actions you can take to position for profits in not just telecom, but in several other explosive emerging-market segments, get on board and join my Emerging Market Winners service by clicking here.

Remember all those experts who were predicting that gasoline would rise to $5 a gallon? Well, they’re eating their words now, as prices at the pump continue to drop.

Today I’ll share with you some reasons behind the decline, how it will affect our economy and, more importantly, why a price pullback can lead to big investing opportunities. Watch today’s video to learn more.

Yours for trading profits,

Sean

P.S. There are tremendous opportunities awaiting us in the energy space. But the most-obvious plays aren’t going to be the ones that make you money — it’s the smaller, just-off-Wall-Street’s-radar names that are setting up to take a big chunk of the price action. And those are exactly the types of plays I make in my Red-Hot Global Resources service — click here to take it for a test-drive today!

Two weeks ago, we saw the collapse of the Dutch coalition government and the first-round election win by Francois Hollande in France.

The underlying theme in both these political victories was a cry for less austerity and more growth measures. The second major point was that we were starting to see the first cracks in the stronger countries of Northern Europe that form the pillars of the European Union and, in turn, the euro currency.

Over the past weekend, we saw Hollande officially finish his victory over Nicolas Sarkozy to become not just the next president of France, but also the first Socialist in 17 years to control Europe’s second-biggest economy.

Hollande has pledged to push for less austerity and more growth in the region and, in the process, raise income tax rates on the ultra-rich to 75%.

This, in my opinion, is a turning point for Europe.

French Voters Tell Europe:
Au Revoir, Austerity!

While the angst among the poorer southern European countries against the pain of austerity has been quite obvious, as seen in the many riots in Greece, the message being sent by the citizens of the richer countries is new and ominous.

Europe is clearly signaling a move away from austerity toward stimulus-spending and socialism through taxation of the ultra-rich. The United States, in my opinion, is not too far behind in following along the same lines, though some would argue that we are actually leading Europe in that aspect.

For quite a while in my writings on the European crisis, I have stated that a steep decline in government spending and a rise in taxes will equal shrinking employment and massive recession. This does not mean that the European austerity is a bad idea, just bad timing.

What Merkozy Held Together,
Could it All Fall Apart?

The question on many investors’ minds is, what will become of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s commitment to rescuing the euro zone from its sovereign-debt crisis through austerity measures without the newly ousted French president, who was her key ally?

Cutting wasteful spending and privatizing government-held enterprises takes time, usually years. Governments and their workers cannot expect this to be a seamless short-term step that does not lead to a loss of jobs and severe drops in GDPs.

And now, the population of Europe is losing its patience, as can be seen from the election results in Greece, Holland and France, with more to come.

What This Means for Wall Street

The initial market reaction to this breaking news was to sell stocks, sell euros and, for capital, to head to the safety of U.S. Treasuries. I agree with most of these initial moves in the markets, but not all.

I believe that Europe will step back from severe austerity measures and will be forced to increase deficits and print more euros.

This means that the euro will depreciate versus the U.S. dollar as well as hard assets. The hard assets that will stand to benefit are primarily gold, grains and oil.

What I do not agree with is the drop in equities. And the main reason for that is that the new money-printing will need to find a home.

Some of this money will go into hard assets, but some will also find its way into the equity markets, as the European Union and the European Central Bank will want to continue shoring up the banks in Europe. We saw this in 2009, and a repeat is very likely.

So, in summation, my view remains that the exchange rate between the euro and the U.S. dollar will head to 1.2500, then 1.2000 and then, eventually, to parity. Gold will head higher toward $2,000 per troy ounce, and oil will be well-supported around $100 a barrel. A dip lower is an opportunity to buy.

My Million-Dollar Rapid Growth Portfolio members have been maneuvering these turbulent tides in the markets profitably all year and are well-positioned in the trades that I see with the most potential. To get the full details on how to drastically reduce your risk while trading today’s hottest markets, click here to take my service for a risk-free test-drive today!

Sincerely,

Monty

After years of blockbuster growth, the Chinese economy is slowing down. This is taking a toll on some American companies that do business there, in the form of unsold inventory and higher labor and commodity costs.

But don’t write off China just yet. There are still plenty of American companies making a mountain of money there. This means that many U.S. stocks are going to live or die based upon their success (or lack thereof) in China. I’ll talk with you about one of the most-promising ones in today’s video.

Best wishes,

Tony

P.S. My Asia Stock Alert members were up on 8 of the 9 trades they closed so far in 2012. I’m not talking wimpy returns — they saw gains of up to 226%, 54.8% and 37.6%, with plenty more where those came from! See how individual companies are profiting from Asia, and how you can too, by clicking here now!

Right now, I remain bearish most commodity markets. The reason being, they have simply not fulfilled a short-term cyclical test of support. So, more downside is possible in gold, silver, oil and an assortment of other commodities.

But there’s also no doubt in my mind that another inflationary surge is right around the corner. One that may be coming even sooner than I had expected.

For one thing, nearly $4 trillion of printed money is sloshing around the global banking system. Money printed by the U.S. Federal Reserve … by the European Central Bank … by the Bank of Japan … and by the Bank of England.

That money is mainly still in commercial banks’ coffers. It was designed to bail them out. And that it did.

But because loan demand is still soft, the banks aren’t lending. They soon will, and that money — $4 trillion worth — is likely to run rampant through the global economy.

I know. The Federal Reserve and the other central banks are largely following Ben Bernanke’s lead — and they all believe that when the time comes, they can reel that excess liquidity back in, and prevent it from running rampant through the global economy. Thereby snuffing out the next inflation surge.

But in my opinion, there’s no way the central bankers are going to be able to reel that money back in, for two chief reasons …

1. Once the banks start to see an increase in loan demand —instead of hoarding the money, they’re going to use it to make a slew of new loans — which is how banks make most of their profits. And …

2. Believe it or not, the central banks don’t understand interest rates. They think that they can raise rates at the appropriate time and that higher rates will quell loan demand, thereby pulling liquidity out of the system.

That might be true in a more normal economy, but in today’s economy, it’s totally backward.

Reason: Because rates are so low to begin with, as rates rise, it’s likely to have the opposite impact: Investors and consumers will begin to realize that rates are going up — and they are then going to want to buy more, borrow more and invest more.

In other words, as the central banks raise rates somewhere down the road, they’re going to see precisely the opposite of what they intended: A surge in credit and loan demand.

And that means that the $4 trillion the central banks printed will run like crazy through the global economy, pushing up overall price levels.

For another reason, forget reeling in the $4 trillion the central banks have already printed, they are about to print a heck of a lot more!

There’s no question that’s coming. Just look at what’s happening. Britain is now officially back in a recession. France’s economy is slumping. Spain’s economy is toast, in a depression. Portugal’s economy is collapsing again. Even Germany’s economy is starting to slow.

And in each one of the above countries — the debt crisis is getting worse. So I have no doubt the European Central Bank will soon print more money.

The same applies to Japan, who just last week started another round of quantitative easing — printing another $68 billion.

And for the U.S. — where we will have miserable unemployment … where it appears real estate is softening again … and where we have elections in just six months — the status quo in Washington will do just about anything to keep their jobs, including putting pressure on the Fed to print more money.

Bottom Line: There’s no question in my mind that another inflationary surge is right around the corner.

And it will be a big one, the biggest yet. So the questions then become …

“When will it start?”

“What sectors will be impacted the most and what can I do to protect the value of my money?”

And “Where can I make the most profits?”

My answers …

First, while no one can accurately nail down when the next inflation surge will begin, all of my indicators tell me that we should see it by no later than September.

Second, the sector that will respond almost immediately will be none other than the same sector that responded the most in the earlier wave of rising inflation: Commodities, tangible assets, natural resources. We’re not there yet, but we’re getting close.

Third, some of the biggest profits you’ll ever see in your lifetime will also come from the natural resource sector. Because when this next phase begins, it will be a doozy. The price rises we will see in commodities — and in inflation — will be the biggest yet.

In the 1970s, the Fed only printed one-sixth as much money as it has in the past four years. But today, you have access to specialized investment vehicles designed to deliver far-greater profits than anything that was available in the ‘70s … vehicles that could hand you truly massive profits on every $1 move in gold, silver, oil and other tangible assets!

So, as always, stay tuned to this space for all my up-to-the-minute updates on these powerful trends and, best of all, what you can do to protect yourself and profit from them, even and especially in an inflationary scenario.

Best wishes,

Larry

One day recently, a colleague noted a discrepancy in the intraday price action on the S&P 500 versus the Dow Industrials. But upon further review, it appears his analysis overlooked one simple explanation: Apple (AAPL).

Apple was having a big day. (I can’t remember if it was up or down, but I’d bet on the former.) Its performance made up the relative difference between price action in the two indices that day, since the S&P includes holdings in Apple, while the Dow does not.

Apple’s run higher has been one for the record books. Its rally over the last three-plus years is one that only a few lucky investors were able to capture in any significant proportion. But Apple has inspired nearly every investor to not only dabble in its shares or options, but also to seek the “next Apple.”

In my view, looking elsewhere for an Apple-like opportunity might mean missing out on the next big move. But that doesn’t necessarily mean the stock is a buy.

Quite the opposite, in fact. Here’s why …

Why Apple is Still the Next Apple …
But Not Quite the Way You’d Think

Even though the overall stock market has shown gains in this era of money-printing and loose central banking, the performance of the indices can’t hold a candle to the performance of Apple.

Assuming central banks acknowledge that their accommodation mostly influences financial markets … and assuming that this influence has trickle-down benefits for the underlying economy … the central banks should be thankful for the “wealth effect” coming just from watching Apple’s meteoric rise.

But there are a number of items in view right now that just may —  MAY —  indicate a change in direction for Apple and a rethink from investors taking their general market sentiment cues from the iconic technological powerhouse.

So, Apple may still be the next Apple … just as a downside play.

You probably couldn’t avoid hearing about Apple’s spectacular earnings last week. But from here, I begin to wonder whether Apple’s business performance is already factored into its share price.

I’d like to say yes. And I’d like to say Apple’s share price is going to drop sharply. But that reasoning, in and of itself, may be wishful thinking.

That’s why I am also looking intently at the technical price action. A few weeks ago, my dad and colleague Jack Crooks noted the similarities between the parabolic rise of Apple and the similar parabolic rise of the Nasdaq just prior to the tech-bubble burst.

Here’s a chart of the Nasdaq then:

And here’s a chart of Apple, prior to the recent pullback from the high:

OK, fine — I’ve been able to find two parabolic rises and produce those two charts. But that doesn’t necessarily mean anything … right?

Right. But the recent price action in Apple is worth watching for clues ahead of the next big price move.

Now, this may sound elementary, but here is the psychology behind the recent action:

Next:

Next:

Of course, if a dramatic plunge does not materialize soon, say within the next 10 days, a new high and continued rise may be inevitable.

To bring an eternal element to this psychological set-up, consider the reaction to the Federal Open Market Committee last week. The FOMC didn’t offer up anything new, but the Fed chairman dished out plenty of reassurances for the market.

The subsequent rally began to look like an obvious trade.

But if Apple, the stock of all stocks, isn’t playing along — it hasn’t traded above $600 since April 27 — then might there be questions about the market’s kneejerk reaction to the Fed last week?

Last chart — Nasdaq after the parabolic rise:

Who wants to take a bite out of Apple now?

I think Apple will continue to be a bellwether for risk appetite, especially if it turns sharply lower. You can get exposure to a falling Apple – and a technology sector whose shares would likely be dragged lower as well – with options, whether by buying puts on the stock itself or on the Nasdaq, where AAPL is heavily weighted, via the Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX). Another way would be to buy calls on an inverse ETF that shorts technology, such as the ProShares Short QQQ (PSQ).

There are a few other ways to play it too. If I see the signal I’m looking for in AAPL for a break lower, I have a specific ETF option trade ready for my Master Trader subscribers, should Apple turn out to be less polished than poisoned. To be among the first to get all my newest ETF option trades, click here to take my service for a test-drive today!

Best,

JR

A huge expansion of Brazil’s infrastructure is starting to attract the attention of some industrial giants, who now see the country as a new center for commerce in the Americas.

Brazilian billionaire Eike Batista is ready to make some key investments to take advantage of this increasing demand. But you don’t have to be the “Warren Buffett of Brazil” to be able to participate in what he sees as incredible upside. Watch today’s video to get the details on how you can access these opportunities from right here in the U.S.!

Best wishes,

Rudy