"I have been asked to comment on the economic condition of China. Since this is a long term discussion and since I know that the more you really understand about the global economy the stronger your portfolio will be I am going to do this discussion even though there will be the few that grumble about this not being about a stock in particular. You can’t possibly have a stellar portfolio if you only focus on long term stocks and nothing else. You need to have a window on the world and what it is truly about.

CHINA

China is a country full of promise and full of problems. Since the return of Hong Kong in 1998, China has been faced with the colossal task of shifting its economy from the total unproductive communist style to the highly productive capitalistic style economy.

Communistic economies never really existed what occurred was a dictatorship run economy for all communist countries. That is terribly important to understand. Communism never got off the ground because of the innate greed of a handful of men in power.

Germany is an excellent recent example of just how damaging communistic style dictatorships can be to an economy. West German people were highly productive with a huge GDP per population, a strong economy, and excellent lifestyle for most of its citizens. East Germany was like walking into the past. Time stood still between 1945 and 1988. Nothing got fixed or repaired. Streets were crumbling, buildings rotted. The economy was in shambles. And the West Germans were very upset when they were told they had to foot the bill to repair East Germans. They saw the East Germans as lazy, unproductive and so on.

Germany took a very, very long time to mend its country and bring the east side up to the west side’s standard of living and return its GDP to a good ratio to its population.

China is in the same situation right now. Hong Kong and a Beijing and a couple of other cities are the only places that enjoy a moderate to good lifestyle for the average people. There are vast areas of China that are impoverished and where even running water is not available.

When I evaluate a country’s true GDP, I base it on different criteria than what is norm for most economists.

Below is how the International Monetary Fund and Banks and most economists view the GDP of the world. So at first glance it appears that China is a highly productive country coming in 3rd in the world. BUT I look at it very differently..." Martha Stokes, C.M.T.

Member of Market Technicians Association
Senior Technical Analyst: Decisions Unlimited, Inc.
Instructor and Developer of TechniTrader® Stock Market Courses
Martha Stokes, C.M.T. (c) copyright 2009 all rights reserved.

Disclaimer: All statements, whether expressed verbally or in writing are the opinions of TechniTrader®, its instructors and or employees, and are not to be construed as anything more than an opinion. Student/subscribers are responsible for making their own choices and decisions regarding all purchases or sales of stocks or issues. At no time is any stock or issue on any list written or sent to a student/subscriber by TechniTrader® and its employees to be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell any stock or issue. TechniTrader® is not a broker or an investment advisor it is strictly an educational service.

"Many young IPO’s have been moving out of bottoms of late. CATM is Cardtronics an independent ATM company that also licenses banks to use its ATM machines. It offers ATM machines to store chains such as 7 Eleven, Target, Walgreens, CVS Pharmacy, Duane Reade, ExxonMobile, Chevron, Kroger, Circle K, Rite Aid, Winn Dixie etc. CATM claims to be the largest ATM network in the world. They have over 32,000 ATMs in the US, UK, Mexico.

Their service is surcharge-free nationwide. They also use advertising on the ATM screen to promote their partner companies.

It came to market at a tough time and finally caved under the market pressure of late 2009. It has been moving up since March in a recovery mode.

                         TeleChart2007®.com courtesy of Worden Brothers, Inc

It is not a buy at the moment for long term due to the heavy resistance above current price but it has plenty of potential for the future.

It has moved from a negative earnings to a positive earnings quarter over quarter very rapidly during a time when banks are closing and the banking industry is still trying to settle out. This suggests strong management for CATM.

The company guidance indicates they believe they are postured in a strong position to close out this year. The increase in earnings guidance bodes well for this firms stock price and its ability to overcome the resistance level at some point in the future..."             Martha Stokes, C.M.T.

Member of Market Technicians Association
Senior Technical Analyst: Decisions Unlimited, Inc.
Instructor and Developer of TechniTrader® Stock Market Courses
Martha Stokes, C.M.T. (c) copyright 2009 all rights reserved.

Disclaimer: All statements, whether expressed verbally or in writing are the opinions of TechniTrader®, its instructors and or employees, and are not to be construed as anything more than an opinion. Student/subscribers are responsible for making their own choices and decisions regarding all purchases or sales of stocks or issues. At no time is any stock or issue on any list written or sent to a student/subscriber by TechniTrader® and its employees to be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell any stock or issue. TechniTrader® is not a broker or an investment advisor it is strictly an educational service.

"Stem Cell research is again underway. This form of treatment offers investment opportunities but often companies are smaller with less liquidity and good product foundations.

When drugs are in clinical trials bio tech firms will be as volatile as other traditional drug companies. News media hype can incite sudden speculative buying by smaller lots which fuels large lot traders to take advantage of these situations.

When investing in biotechnology stocks it is important to find companies that have a solid revenue base with drugs already at market rather than companies that are still totally in the R&D stage as it can take 10-20 years to convert research into a viable drug.

Biotechnology investments are not for everyone. The overall industry is more volatile and there are more small unprofitable firms than large profitable firms.

Currently there are about 173 stocks listed under the sector: biotechnology. These range in brand new IPOs to veterans like AMGN.

As our country works to redefine healthcare and as the global population continues to age, drugs and biotechnology will become a more important industry and sector.

There is no doubt that many companies will thrive but even more will perish or be swallowed up by bigger firms. Biotech is young and in an ever-evolving state at this time.

Avoid illiquid stocks and companies that do not yet have any form of revenues from sales. And avoid weaker unprofitable companies. You will find a few companies that are making a turn around and slowly gaining strength.

As stem cell research grows and expands more biotechnology companies will IPO and you should expect to see lots of new young firms. The key is product: do they have something or is it still in the R&D stage? And do they have income.

Those 2 things separate stocks that are ideal for long term from those that are likely to be traded speculatively for brief periods of time.

Many firms are working with stem cells and are discovering many things such as the fact that stem cells play a key role in keeping cancer growing and the return of cancer in many patients. But understanding the role of stem cells within cancer growths, medicine is heading toward new frontiers of drugs, cures, and preventative treatments for cancer and a variety of other high profile diseases.

We are going to discuss an older biotechnology company. This is not a recommendation to buy but a study of a biotech stock as it works out of a bottom..." Martha Stokes, C.M.T.

Member of Market Technicians Association
Senior Technical Analyst: Decisions Unlimited, Inc.
Instructor and Developer of TechniTrader® Stock Market Courses
Martha Stokes, C.M.T. (c) copyright 2009 all rights reserved.

Disclaimer: All statements, whether expressed verbally or in writing are the opinions of TechniTrader®, its instructors and or employees, and are not to be construed as anything more than an opinion. Student/subscribers are responsible for making their own choices and decisions regarding all purchases or sales of stocks or issues. At no time is any stock or issue on any list written or sent to a student/subscriber by TechniTrader® and its employees to be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell any stock or issue. TechniTrader® is not a broker or an investment advisor it is strictly an educational service.