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Copper is one of the most important and popular industrial metals in the world. With 3% per year production growth since 1900, approximately 16 million tons of the metal was produced in 2011, according to the International Copper Study Group. Below, we outline some of the largest and most important copper-producing nations across the world:

Ronald Stoeferle takes an holistic view on the latest developments in the gold market laying out the fundamental arguments why the gold bull market remains intact and concluding, based on conservative assumptions, that the long-term price target for gold is $2,230.

If yields on U.S. Treasury bonds keep rising, things are going to get very messy. What we are ultimately looking at is a sell-off very similar to 2008, only this time we will have to deal with rising interest rates at the same time. The conditions for a "perfect storm" are rapidly developing, and if something is not done we could eventually have a credit crunch unlike anything that we have ever seen before in modern times. Let me explain.

What do 1929, 2000 and 2007 all have in common? Those were all years in which we saw a dramatic spike in margin debt. In all three instances, investors became highly leveraged in order to "take advantage" of a soaring stock market but, of course, we all know what happened each time. The spike in margin debt was rapidly followed by a horrifying stock market crash. Well guess what? It is happening again.

Gold is on it's way to an ultimate long-term target between $1,100 and $1,000/ozt. You can argue with me on this one until you pass out but that won’t change anything. Save your breath and prepare instead. Here's how.

The most dangerous, wealth-destroying investment in the world is leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETFs). On the surface, these ETFs promise to double or triple the movements of the underlying markets they track...but they'll do anything but. You see, double- and triple-leveraged ETFs (whether long or short) pack a nasty surprise. It's almost unbelievable, actually, and particularly in this volatile market, theses ETFs are hardwired for losses. Here's what I mean.

Over the past 6 years, when the yield on high yield bonds (junk bonds) broke above resistance of bullish falling wedges, the S&P 500 ended up declining between 17% & 50%. Will it be different this time?

As investors we crave a specific plan of attack for every conceivable market scenario so here are five alternative courses of action (other than cash) to consider in the current market. (Yes, it’s possible to put the market volatility to work for us.) So writes Louis Basenese (www.wallstreetdaily.com) in edited excerpts from his original article* entitled The Five Smartest Responses to the Stock Market …

Don't give in to your flight instinct in response to the latest stock market volatility. Running for cover in cash right now promises to be the worst possible move. I know, I know. Cash is supposed to be the ultimate safe haven. A riskless investment, if you will but, in truth, cash is the proverbial "Death Star". [Let me explain why and show you some irrefutable proof.] Words: 544; Charts: 3

Fearing that the flow of nourishing mother milk from the Fed could dry up, a resolutely unweaned Wall Street threw a hissy fit and the dummy out of the pram last Thursday. The end of QE is seen as the beginning of the end of super-easy policy and potentially the first towards normalization. There is only one problem: it won’t happen. Here's why.