This week we interviewed Mr. Nick Barisheff, President & CEO, Bullion Management Group, and discussed with him the importance of gold bullion. Mr. Barisheff founded Bullion Management Group Inc. in 1997, and is the portfolio manager of BMG BullionFund, Canada’s only open-ended fund investing purely in gold, silver, and platinum bullion.

For a PDF version, click here.

Despite the fact that you may not ever come close to catching up to Warren Buffett’s wealth does not mean you shouldn’t follow his investing style - which entails regularly purchasing or investing in excellent companies selling for less than they’re worth. Oddly, many investors mistakenly believe that the only hope for securing life-changing wealth is to get in early on “the next big thing.” Besides, how would one go about discovering this? It should come as no surprise that successful business-focused value-oriented investors seem to have historically had a lock on this outcome, often cornering the next big thing as a matter of practice, and not luck.

Nothing compares to the kinds of gains investors have enjoyed in “under-the-radar” stocks over the past decade. Disciplined, business-focused stock picking will get you far closer to your retirement goals than almost any other investment vehicle known to man.

The nature of the economic strength and stability of the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) countries is a less well known or understood fact among investors. There remains a wide gap between perceptions and reality.

Remember 1997 and 1998? Many investors, excited about the growth of Asian and emerging countries in the late nineties and invested their money found out about credit related risk first when the 1997 'Asian Contagion' occurred and was followed upon by the Long Term Capital Management bailout which unfolded in 1998. These events destabilized global markets and investors were taken by surprise as markets melted down.

Watch out below. There is sure to be more volatility to the downside in the coming weeks, as the carry trade and proprietary traders continue to unwind profitable trades.

Finding themselves unable to collect on credit default swaps vis-a-vis AMBAC (ABK), MBIA (MBI), ACA, large institutions (banks) and hedge funds are finding themselves under pressure from a substantial cash call.

You really have to hand it to Chief Strategists Don Coxe [BMO], Byron Wien (Pequot), and Jeffrey Saut (Raymond James) for accurately calling agricultural commodities higher during the last year.

Back in October, in his investment letter, Jeffrey Saut called for continued strength in the agricultural commodities due to the demand from China.