Weekend Edition

Alexei Miller, CEO of OAO Gazprom, the world's biggest natural-gas company, said oil would hit $250 in the "foreseeable future." Option traders are already making bets. At least 3,008 options contracts have been purchased giving owners the right to buy oil at $250 in December, according to Bloomberg.

 

From 2004 to 2006, the top 27 oil companies tracked by the Energy Information Administration saw their tax bills nearly double, from $48.4 billion to $90.4 billion. Check out ExxonMobil's 2007 tax bill: sales, excise, and income taxes totaled $102 billion on $390 billion in sales. Think that might affect gasoline prices a little?

 

Legendary oilman and billionaire T. Boone Pickens called our imports of foreign oil "the biggest transfer of wealth in the history of mankind" – from the U.S. to oil-exporting nations.

 

In an interview with Oil and Gas Investor, Pickens said we pay about $700 billion per year for imported oil, a figure he predicts will rise to $10 trillion within the next 10 years. America is increasingly at the mercy of oil-producing countries.

 

We published the July issue of the S&A Dividend Grabber on Thursday, and Goldsmith showed readers how to grab a nearly $7 cash dividend and own shares in one of the top oil and gas companies in the country.

 

This is the perfect way to buy into oil right now. You get upside potential holding the stock, but you also get a huge cash payment to protect your downside. To learn more about Dividend Grabber, click here.

 

Watching the prices of commodities soar while the value of our dollar plummets against other currencies, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke now says he will "strongly resist an erosion of long-term inflation expectations."

 

We will interpret that for you: "Look, we've printed enough money to bail out the banks and the brokers. We've wiped out 40%-60% of the value of our foreign debts. And as a result, the standard of living in America has probably fallen in half. So the poor middle-class Americans who have no protection against inflation are starting to squeal. We'd better turn off the presses for a little while or else we risk losing the confidence of 'everyday' Americans. After all, without the saps, we've got nothing..."

 

Out of all of the countries in the world, Argentina's economy ought to be booming. Argentina is the breadbasket of the Western Hemisphere. It has the richest farmland in the world and all the infrastructure needed to support large-scale, modern farming.

 

But thanks to boneheaded export taxes set at 40%, Argentina's farmers have no incentive to work. As a result, the country is slipping back into an economic crisis.

 

Argentina's debt levels are now higher than in 2001, when the country crashed into the biggest sovereign debt default in history. It won't be long now before you can go to Buenos Aires again and buy a $2 million luxury penthouse apartment for $200,000 in cash.

 

While that's terrible for Argentines, at least Americans still have a place to travel where their dollar goes far... And International Strategist editor Tom Dyson thinks there's a couple ways to profit. Click here for his essay.

 

According to the Financial Times, the big engine makers – Pratt & Whitney, Rolls Royce, and General Electric – are building the next generation of jet engine out of "super-alloys" to cut fuel consumption. The alloys are a special mixture of steel and exotic metals like rhenium, cobalt, and titanium.

 

Rhenium, in particular, is so rare and in such demand that the price hit a record of $5,000 per pound (more than $300 per ounce) last week. That's more than double the price this time last year.

 

But commercial rhenium production comes from roasting copper ores that contain molybdenum. That could give some copper companies a kick in the balance sheet for 2008.

 

I've spent the past 12 years in the investment publishing business... and I've seen advisors of all types. It's extremely rare to find one who is world-class at one discipline – be it analyzing oil stocks, currencies, trading options, etc.

 

Jeff is easily the best short-term options trader I've ever seen. But what has truly amazed me in the past nine months is his ability to generate fantastic income ideas for readers of Advanced Income. I guarantee you'll feel the same way after a few months of reading his unusual income strategies.

 

Jeff's latest trade is a way to safely earn a double-digit income payoff in just five months. You can learn about taking Advanced Income for a "test drive" here.

 

Regards,

 

S&A Research

• A Strange New Way to Invest in Corn
  By Rob Fannon Friday, June 20, 2008
  
• If You Have No Common Sense, Buy These Stocks
  By Jeff Clark Thursday, June 19, 2008
  
• The Commodity Investor Q&A
  With Matt Badiali Wednesday, June 18, 2008
  
• How to Make a Lot of Money Trading Oil This Summer
  By Jeff Clark Tuesday, June 17, 2008
  
• Why Oil May Be Headed for $50
  By Ian Davis Monday, June 16, 2008