Deloitte Touche came out with their annual list of the world’s most powerful retailers and I really think this list has some useful investment information tucked inside of it.

You need to look at the list but its is dominated by American and European retailers. The lesson there is that western brand names are popular all over the world, including Asia.

Estee Lauder (NYSE:EL) reported a 15% in Q4 profits and attributed most of that growth to booming sales China, which were up by 44%.

To put that into perspective, sales in North America only increased by 9%.

Via Business Insider, we learn that the amount of gold needed to buy a Manhattan apartment has taken a great round-trip.

In 2011, gold had more purchasing power relative to Manhattan real estate than at anytime during the past 22 years (the limit of our publicly released data).

It would take 908 ounces of gold to purchase the average Manhattan apartment versus the 1996 low point of 1,030 ounces.

Can you think of any other asset class that has held its value so well over the past 22 years?

Read the rest of the story at Business Insider: http://read.bi/y2ntLv

The S&P 500 had a great week last week, and on Friday, it closed near its high for the day.  So why are so many market timers and analysts so bearish?  Let’s look at a weekly chart …

You can see that the S&P 500 is coming up against two levels of overhead resistance.  One is the downtrend from 2007 — the S&P 500 pushed through that on Friday. The other is price action from this summer, which was stubborn overhead resistance then and is stubborn overhead resistance now.

Looking at that, plus the great run the S&P 500 has enjoyed for months, it’s tempting to say “nothing goes up in a straight line,” and yes, this is a great place for a pullback.

And maybe we’ll see a pullback this week.  But if it happens, will you be a buyer or a seller?

Some bulls will point out the “golden cross” of the 50-day moving average rising through the 200-day MA (on a weekly chart, represented by the 10- and 40- period moving averages).  I’d also point out that momentum is strongly bullish.

That can change with the next round of news out of Greece.  It’s funny (not ha-ha funny) that the fortunes of a crumbling country run by kleptomaniacs now has so much weight in the market, but we have to go with reality as it is, not as we wish it.

Even important historical/cultural buildings are not safe from the national bird of China: the construction crane.

In a city that has watched its centuries-old, low-rise fabric steadily be supplanted by soulless glass towers.

Check out the interview I did with Jordan at The Daily Gold. http://thedailygold.com/podcasts/sean-brodrick-2-3/?p=12875/

And you can find me in segment six of Al Korelin’s weekend show … http://www.kereport.com/2012/02/04/business-politics-world-events-investing/

Have a good weekend.

I talked to Phil at HoweStreet.com yesterday, about 5 things to look for in junior miners, Pan American Silver’s (PAAS: 23.78 -0.24 -1.00%) acquisition of Minefinders (MFN: 14.84 -0.07 -0.47%) and what it portends for the industry, and the terrible, no-good, very bad outlook for the U.S dollar.  Here’s the link: http://talkdigitalnetwork.com/2012/02/mining-the-miners/.

And here’s a link to the my video that I mention: http://www.uncommonwisdomdaily.com/5-things-to-look-for-in-a-junior-miner-13668.

And here’s an updated chart of the U.S. Dollar …

And here’s an updated chart of gold …

Looking at the chart of gold, you can see that it has touched that first level of resistance that I put on the chart. It could take some time to work through this. The forces that could cause gold to pull back here are the same forces that could put some support under the U.S. dollar, because gold and the dollar sit at the opposite ends of the see-saw of pain.

Still, the big trend is in place.  I’m playing that trend. Good luck and good trades.

Boy, the chart of the U.S. Dollar Index is looking nasty. Every time it tries to find a toehold of footing, it slides lower, and lower.  Take a look at a recent chart …

Yesterday was touted as a potential “bullish reversal” in the US dollar index, but today’s action says “no way.”  You can see that there are two levels of support for the U.S. dollar index, and it could test both of them in fairly short order.

The dollar is down today because the euro is up, rising against the dollar for the first time in three days as a purchasing managers’ index of manufacturing output in the region beat analysts’ estimates, adding to signs that the economy in Europe is stabilizing.  In Germany, the output gauge reached the highest level in six months.

Meanwhile, manufacturing in China and the U.K. also rose.  This lowers the demand for a safe haven, so that weighs on the dollar.

We’ll get U.S. manufacturing numbers for January today.  Maybe if the ISM number beats expectations (55) we’ll see the dollar rise.

If not – if the U.S. dollar continues its slide, what do you think that will do to gold? What do you think renewed signs of economic growth in Europe and China will do for the price of silver?

Good luck and good trades.

What’s the hottest commodity to invest in? Rare earth metals prices are on fire.  Ytterbium, one of the 17 elements known as rare earths, has surged more than 1,000% since 2009 and is up by 300% since January 2011.

The World Trade Organization has ruled that China’s policy to limit rare earth metals exports has violated international trade rules.

This ruling really emphasizes how crucial rare earth metals are to the world and how desperate non-Chinese countries are to secure access to these key resources.

“China now must comply by removing these export restrictions swiftly and furthermore, I expect China to bring its overall export regime – including for rare earths – in line with WTO rules.”