Knowledge is Power: Autos, Barter, Country Risk Edition

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BMW enjoys record annual car sales (The BBC)

Beetter than Buying – Barter Economy Matures from Niche to Trend (Der Speigel)

The problem with stability (Canadian Business)

Canadian housing may be most overvalued in the world, says The Economist (Canadian Business)

Great Canadian real estate crash of 2013 (MaCleans)

Germany is not profiting from the eurozone (The Guardian)

USA: Guns & minds (RT)

Western European car market: Light at the end of the tunnel (DB Research)

Country risk: The safest and riskiest European banking sectors (Euromoney)

American Industry Is on the Move (CFR)

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Manchester-to-Leeds-Canal

 

The Leeds and Liverpool Canal, UK

Five Stocks To Consider

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Here are five randomly selected stocks to consider. Most of these firms have performed well in recent and are good candidates for investing in those specific sectors:

1.Company: Emerson Electric Co (EMR)
Current Dividend Yield: 3.03%
Sector: Scientific & Technical Instruments

2.Company: Bank of Ozarks Inc(OZRK)
Current Dividend Yield: 1.74%
Sector: Regional Banking

3.Company: GATX Corp (GMT)
Current Dividend Yield: 2.67%
Sector: Misc. Transportation

4.Company: Airgas Inc (ARG)
Current Dividend Yield: 1.71%
Sector: Chemical Manufacturing

5.Company: Franklin Resources Inc (BEN)
Current Dividend Yield: 0.88%
Sector: Investment Services

Note: Dividend yields noted are as of Jan 9, 2013

Disclosure: No Positions

The World’s Largest In-Service Jet Fleets by Country 2011

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The World’s Largest In-service Jet Fleets at the end of 2011 is shown below:

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Worlds-Largest-Jet-Fleets-by-Country-2011

 

 

Source: Current Market Outlook 2012-3031, Boeing

With over 6,000 jets, the U.S. has the largest jet fleet (with over 30 seats)  followed by China. There are reasons for the high number of jets in-service in the U.S.  some of which include the vast distances between cities, high population, lack of efficient alternative transportation options for travel, huge state subsidies showered upon the pathetic airline industry, etc. The difference between the U.S. and other countries is striking as well with all the other countries having less than 1,000 jets in service.

Church & Dwight Co: A Solid Mid-Cap Gem

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Church & Dwight Co (CHD) is a mid-cap company that manufactures many of the household products we use including Orajel, OxiClean, Arm & Hammer, Trojan condoms, etc. Over the past 5 years the stock has more than doubled.

From the corporate site:

The Consumer Domestic segment includes our eight power brands, ARM & HAMMER, Trojan, First Response, Nair, Spinbrush, Oxi Clean, Orajel and XTRA and other household and personal care products.

The Consumer International segment sells a variety of household and personal care products, some of which use the same brands as our domestic product lines, in international markets, including Canada, France, Australia, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Brazil and China.

The Specialty Products segment is the largest U.S. producer of sodium bicarbonate, which it sells together with other specialty inorganic chemicals for a variety of industrial, institutional, medical and food applications. This segment also sells a range of animal nutrition and specialty cleaning products.

CHD Performance – 5 years:

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Top-Stocks-CHD-5-years

CHD Performance – Long Term:

Top-Stocks-CHD

Source: Yahoo Finance.

Disclosure: No Positions

The World’s Busiest Cargo Airports 2011

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Yesterday we looked at the world’s busiest passenger airports in 2011. The chart below shows the world’s busiest cargo airports in the same year:

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Worlds-Businest-Cargo-Airport-2011

Source: Current Market Outlook 2012-3031, Boeing

Hong Kong is the world’s top airport in handling cargo since it is the gateway to China. However some may wonder why Memphis, an average city in the rural state of Tennessee in the U.S. appears as the second busiest airport. The reason for the appearance of Memphis airport in the global list is because it is the international hub for courier company FedEx Corporation (FDX). Similarly the Louisville airport in Kentucky is world air hub for competitor United Parcel Service, Inc (UPS). Anchorage, Alaska serves as transit point for air cargo traffic heading to and originating in Asia. Dubai is increasingly becoming as the transit hub between Asia and the West not only for cargo traffic but also for passengers.

Disclosure: No Positions