Biofuels Market - covers one of the industries expected to grow dynamically. Government initiatives and the large demand for green fuel are expected to attract investments in the sector. In order to meet renewable energy targets, implementation of certain policies have been forecasted. This is expected to boost the market.

Last week, AGCO Corp. (AGCO) reported third-quarter results. The company posted earnings of 13 cents per share, compared $1.01 per share in the prior-year quarter. The significant decline in quarterly earnings was driven by lower sales volumes, weaker product mix and the negative impact of currency translation. Net sales in the quarter were $1,403.7 million, down 32.7% compared to the third quarter of 2008. AGCO is experiencing soft demand conditions in most of its markets. Lower commodity prices, along with expectations of decreased farm income, are hampering investments in farm equipment around the world. AGCO is aggressively cutting production in order to reduce its own and dealer’s inventories. Sales in North America were down 31.9% on a constant currency basis due to weaker sales of low horsepower tractors and hay products, as well as reduction in dealer inventory. Unit retail sales of lower horsepower tractors were ...

One great thing about my position here as Director of Marketing is my extensive contact list. I say that because I have access to thousands of excellent traders, investors, and economists at my finger tips! So when things around the world catch my attention, I can quickly find someone who can give me the skinny on what’s really going down. One of my contacts is Nicholas Vardy, Editor, The Global Guru, and he’s got a MUCH better pulse on the world aboard then I do. That’s why I asked him to give us his reasons why the markets outside the US are doing so well and WHY!

He told me he’d love to get feedback from the Trader’s Blog readers, so let’s not let him down! You can also visit The Global Guru to get his new report on his favorite global picks.

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Russia 'counts on a controlling stake' in the three small hydropower plants it is building in Tajikistan and 'hope[s] for the Tajik side's understanding' in the matter.  The United Nations nuclear watchdog is in the process of inspecting Iran's uranium enrichment plant.  Both Iran and the U.S. are wary of falling into a trap over the nuclear question, reports the New York Times, and President Barack Obama reportedly called Dmitry Medvedev over the weekend to discuss the need to maintain Russian and U.S. unity over the issue.  The environmental safety of the Nord Stream project has been questioned by several of the transit countries, including Finland, but Vladimir Putin's meeting with his Finnish counterpart yesterday seemed to leave the schedule for completion in place.  China's oil demand is recovering at its fastest rate since June 2006.  ...

The ever-positive Vladimir Putin is forecasting 8% inflation for the coming year, which would be a 'post-Soviet low'.  The government will sell tons of its gold stockpile this year to cover its budget deficit and help it fund other supporting measures such as Moscow's $570 million federal loan.  Private lender Alfa Bank is working on debt restructuring terms for giants BasEl and RusAl, and threatening to take the latter to court over unpaid debts.  St Petersburg Bank plans to raise up to $150 million selling additional preference shares to cope with its losses.  Reuters has compiled a timeline on Russia's bad loans.  'For all of the vaunted stability of the current regime, Russians still don't believe in the permanence of their system enough to invest into their society,' comments this reporter in a piece about ...

This analysis is from John Derrick, U.S. Global Investors Director of Research. The market has rallied dramatically since the March 9 low, with the biggest beneficiary of this rally being low-quality companies. This intuitively makes sense, given that companies with the most troubled outlooks are the ones most likely to have a strong recovery when the dire outcomes predicted at the bottom of the crisis failed to transpire. Quality may have different meanings to different investors, but in a recent research piece, Citigroup ranked performance based on multiple definitions of quality. Samp;P earnings quality ranking, debt-to-capitalization ratio and return on equity were used as proxies for quality. The research universe was the small-cap Russell 2000 Index, but I believe broader market conclusions can be drawn as well. Based on Samp;P earnings quality rankings, companies with C or D (the two lowest categories) ratings returned about 55 percent over the past six months, while the ...

TODAY: United Russia sweep polls at regional elections; accusation of vote-rigging fly.  Mitvol receives unusual delivery.  Medvedev had no time for Yushchenko at CIS summit; positive on Obama's peace prize; Ecuador looking for weapons deals?; Russia bids to host World CupWith almost 90% of the votes counted in Moscow, the city's election Committee has reported that the United Russia party has garnered 66.10% of the vote, with the Communist Party coming in second at 13.28%, sufficient for three seats in the 35-member chamber.  Vladimir Putin's party is apparently likely to have dominated in other regions.  The Guardian reports on allegations of vote-rigging; talk of which has seen leading opposition candidates scorn Medvedev's promise to uphold ...

Rahaxi, Inc., an international card payments processor and technology company, today told investors that its subsidiary Rahaxi Processing Oy and jeweller chain giant Kultajousi Oy have entered into an agreement to supply its OTI solution to over 60 different stores in 27 different cities in Finland. Kultajousi is owned by Golden Heights Group which has a notable presence in Sweden through its subsidiary Golden Heights AB Group.

Fionn Stakelum, MD of Rahaxi, Inc. stated, “To team up with the largest high end jewellers in Scandinavia is testament to the reputation of Rahaxi’s OTI solution in the marketplace. Enabling us to bring OTI to the Scandinavian market is the first of many steps we will take in launching OTI across Europe.”

Niko Aaltola, Sales Director of Rahaxi commented, “Kultajousi is a household name in Finland and we are delighted to be associated with them at this time.”

Kaj Wikstrom, MD of

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The global recession claims another victim - the United States is no longer the worlds most competitive economy. Switzerland, a beacon of relative stability during the past 18 months of worldwide economic turmoil, toppled the topsy-turvy U.S. from the No. 1 spot in the latest update of quot;The Global Competitiveness Reportquot; from the World Economic Forum. The WEF uses a wide range of metrics to measure competitiveness, which it defines as quot;the set of institutions, policies and factors that determine the level of productivity of a countryquot; as a means to produce prosperity for its citizens. The U.S. was panned in the report for too-close relationships between government regulators and the private sector, and for quot;the perception that the government spends its resources wastefully.quot; Specifically mentioned were the massive additions to the federal deficit made by the Bush and Obama administrations, used to finance the Iraq war and economic stimulus. Singapore ranked third, with ...

The global recession claims another victim - the United States is no longer the worlds most competitive economy. Switzerland, a beacon of relative stability during the past 18 months of worldwide economic turmoil, toppled the topsy-turvy U.S. from the No. 1 spot in the latest update of quot;The Global Competitiveness Reportquot; from the World Economic Forum. The WEF uses a wide range of metrics to measure competitiveness, which it defines as quot;the set of institutions, policies and factors that determine the level of productivity of a countryquot; as a means to produce prosperity for its citizens. The U.S. was panned in the report for too-close relationships between government regulators and the private sector, and for quot;the perception that the government spends its resources wastefully.quot; Specifically mentioned were the massive additions to the federal deficit made by the Bush and Obama administrations, used to finance the Iraq war and economic stimulus. Singapore ranked third, with ...