Brian Hicks, co-manager of our Global Resources Fund (PSPFX), is in London this week for the London Metal Exchangersquo;s 2009 Metals Seminar, which kicked off the annual LME Week gathering of leading commodities analysts from around the world. Here are Brianrsquo;s notes from the seminar: Danny Quah, professor at the London School of Economics, gave a compelling presentation that centered on China and the global recovery.nbsp; His main theme focused on the global economys shifting center of gravity, which has been steadily moving eastward to China over the past decade.nbsp;nbsp; He also mentioned that China isnt dependent upon U.S. consumption to create growth ndash; that notion is an old paradigm from the 1970s. Exports to the U.S. only make up approximately 15 percent of total exports, versus the 40 percent of total exports going to Southeast Asia.nbsp; Michael Jansen, director of commodities at JP Morgan, is one of a few who see ...

“Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. [RS: 39.95, -0.05 (-0.12%)] is one of the largest metals service center companies in the United States. Though a network of more than 200 locations in 38 states, Belgium, Canada, China, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea and the United Kingdom, the Company provides value-added metals processing services and distributes a full line of more than 100,000 metal products. These products include galvanized, hot-rolled and cold-finished steel, stainless steel, aluminum, brass, copper, titanium and alloy steel sold to more than 125,000 customers in a broad range of industries. Some of these metal service centers provide processing services for specialty metals only.”

The challenge for Reliance, and all other metal service centers, is that lower demand for steel and aluminum is expected to continue through the first half of 2009. Perhaps, we will see the beginnings of a pick-up in demand by the end of the

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Laura Cadden has found a small cap biotech company with huge growth potential. OpenCell BioMed Inc. (OTC:OCBM) is hoping to revolutionize dental surgery using titanium to help fix implants. Laura says investors willing to take on a risky venture could win big with ‘early-mover’ profits.

More from Today’s Financial News:

What is found in everything from pyrotechnics to toothpaste, golf clubs to spacecraft, horseshoes to joint replacements? One word… titanium.

An incredibly versatile, lightweight-yet-strong, corrosion-resistant mineral, titanium is often alloyed with other metals with beneficial results such as lowering carbon content (stainless steel) or to harden (copper).

And it’s just as good with human bone and tissue.

One of the most exciting uses of the metal is in the medical field due to its ability to osseointegrate (human bone actually integrates with it).

This growth anchors titanium medical implants to the degree that they may remain in place for up to 20 years!

Putting their money

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Trading on the OTCBB, Vortex Resources Corporation is an emerging natural resources company. Their focus is on the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of oil, natural gas, and minerals. With current operations in West Texas, the Company’s objective is to find, acquire, and develop natural resources at the lowest cost possible. They then look to recycle their cash flows into new projects that yield high returns with controlled risk.

Vortex Resources Corporation has their corporate headquarters in Beverly Hills, California. They are currently active in Crockett County, Texas. They are proceeding there with their 180-well infill-drilling program in Adams-Baggett field to produce natural gas from Wolfcamp Canyon Sandstone reservoir. The drilling program will also target deeper Canyon Sandstone, Strawn, and Ellenburger sites.

Vortex’s mineral interests consist of a chromium mineral lease in southern Turkey. The estimated apparent reserves in this location are 135,000 tons with an equal amount of probable reserves.

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Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, Banneker, Inc. is a manufacturer and distributor of quality watches and fine jewelry. Trading on the Pink Sheets, the company bases their products on the legend of Benjamin Banneker. Benjamin Banneker made the first fully assembled clock in America, entirely out of wood. In honor of him, Banneker Inc. makes all of their timepieces featuring luxury woods. The wood types they use include ebony, Zebra, Cocobola, Padvk Red, Purple Heart and several others.

Banneker, Inc.’s Esteem Enterprises, a wholly-owned subsidiary, has teamed with Jostens, Inc. and created the first urban line of graduation jewelry and class rings. Nationally, high school students have a new and innovative way to commemorate their high-school years. Through Jostens, Inc., the team created an affordable product line for students that have a luxurious quality to them. The company keeps the prices affordable through replacing diamonds with crystals, and silver with stainless steel.

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Metalico, Inc. (MEA), the scrap metal processor with 20 recycling facilities across the United States, reported the strongest quarter in the company's history as soaring metal prices hiked revenues by 342%.

The company, a Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy), operates in two segments: ferrous and non-ferrous scrap metal recycling and lead fabrication.

It is the scrap metal recycling segment which is spurring the company's growth. In the second quarter, volumes rose 185% for ferrous and 93% for non-ferrous metals year-over-year.

Prices have skyrocketed. In the second quarter, ferrous metal prices increased 126% and non-ferrous soared 215% quarter-over-quarter. The largest source of non-ferrous revenue in the quarter was in the Platinum Group Metals (PGM).

Metalico Cautions About The Third Quarter

MEA obviously operates in the highly volatile commodities sector and is susceptible to price fluctuations. For the third quarter, the company expects ferrous metal pricing to remain

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Metalico, Inc. (MEA), the scrap metal processor with 20 recycling facilities across the United States, reported the strongest quarter in the company's history as soaring metal prices hiked revenues by 342%.

The company, a Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy), operates in two segments: ferrous and non-ferrous scrap metal recycling and lead fabrication.

It is the scrap metal recycling segment which is spurring the company's growth. In the second quarter, volumes rose 185% for ferrous and 93% for non-ferrous metals year-over-year.

Prices have skyrocketed. In the second quarter, ferrous metal prices increased 126% and non-ferrous soared 215% quarter-over-quarter. The largest source of non-ferrous revenue in the quarter was in the Platinum Group Metals (PGM).

Metalico Cautions About The Third Quarter

MEA obviously operates in the highly volatile commodities sector and is susceptible to price fluctuations. For the third quarter, the company expects ferrous metal pricing to remain

...

You know when your sales for 2007 are $2.2 billion that you’re doing something right. That’s the case for Cleveland, Ohio based Ferro Corporation who garnered those kinds of numbers last year. Trading on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), Ferro is a worldwide supplier of technology-based performance materials for manufacturers. They are part of the Specialty Chemical industry and manufacture and sell their products in over 100 countries through the efforts of approximately 6,300 employees.

Ferro’s materials enhance the performance of products in diverse end-market applications. These are electronics, solar energy, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, building and renovation, appliances, automotive, household furnishings, and industrial products, among others. The company operates a variety of businesses.

Their Electronic Material Systems segment develops, manufactures, and markets high-purity powders, pastes, and tapes for many electronic applications. Their Color & Glass Performance Materials business supplies glass colors and coatings for automotive, flat, and container glass in the global

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When investing in China, one only needs to understand a few key elements to succeed. The primary element is business fundamentals; the next is the use of political party power. Put the two together and an investor will soon understand that the entire concept of the Chinese transformation to a semi-capitalistic system rests in the retention of power. Those that had it in the past do not want to lose it and are/have positioned themselves to retain it. To this end, an investor in China should look at a company’s fundamentals first and then move onto who is in charge or who knows who in the overall Chinese political/business model planning structure. If both fall into line, profit and stability will most likely reign.

Terra Nostra Resources Corp., a copper and stainless steel manufacturer, works to vertically produce stainless steel, copper billet and downstream products. The company operates the second largest

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When investing in China, one only needs to understand a few key elements to succeed. The primary element is business fundamentals; the next is the use of political party power. Put the two together and an investor will soon understand that the entire concept of the Chinese transformation to a semi-capitalistic system rests in the retention of power. Those that had it in the past do not want to lose it and are/have positioned themselves to retain it. To this end, an investor in China should look at a company’s fundamentals first and then move onto who is in charge or who knows who in the overall Chinese political/business model planning structure. If both fall into line, profit and stability will most likely reign.

Terra Nostra Resources Corp., a copper and stainless steel manufacturer, works to vertically produce stainless steel, copper billet and downstream products. The company operates the second largest

...