I noticed that the spot natural gas price in the US is going down, while the Russian natural gas price is going up. Both natural gas prices started at US $290 per thousand cubic metres in the beginning of 2007. Today Russian natural gas is 4 times more expensive than US natural gas.

Click to enlarge images.

A possible reason is that US shale gas finds have been increasing dramatically in the last few months, putting pressure on American natural gas prices through higher natural gas production.

Also, Russia’s natural gas prices were artificially cheap during the year 2000 and onwards. From 27 May 2007, though, Mikhail Fradkov passed a decree #333 which increased Russia’s natural gas price to parity with Europe’s natural gas.

As

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In 2011, home prices declined a further 4.7%, according to CoreLogic. Until this trend reverses, it is simply difficult for consumers to start to recover from the bursting of the $8 trillion housing bubble. Thirty-year mortgage rates are down to a record 3.87%, but credit is still tight. Companies are also showing signs of trouble. Midway through the earnings season for S&P 500 companies, profit margins are down for the second consecutive quarter to 8.23%. Europe is probably in a recession, and China is shifting away from an economy so reliant on its high-powered real estate markets. We are literally one adverse financial or political event away from falling into a global recession. To play it safe, protect your retirement funds and seek out conservative returns.

Below, I focus upon preferred stocks from utilities because of stable cash flows from customers. I take care to mention those at or below

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Wells Fargo recently issued a cautious forecast of global GDP growth at 3% in 2012, which would be the slowest annual rate of growth since 2009. Also, Invictus Consulting Group states that over 750 banks are at risk of failing in the U.S. over the next two years. Moreover, Dr. John Hussman points out that in the past 10 recessions, payroll employment growth was positive in eight of those 10 recessions in the month that the recession began.

It is too soon to dismiss talks of a recession. After all, a chunk of Q4 GDP growth was attributable to growth in inventories, which signals a likely slowdown in Q1 GDP growth in 2012. Any flashpoint may send the U.S. economy reeling. Do this, protect your money, and seek out conservative returns.

Now may be time to consider adding more fixed income stocks to your portfolio. I like preferred stocks because

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The Street is currently bullish about Cigna (CIG), UnitedHealth (UNH), and WellPoint (WLP) given the inelastic demand markets that they target and room for multiples expansion. While I find risky headwinds to all of these firms, I am mostly optimistic about Cigna given the synergies that will be unlocked by its $3.8B acquisition of Health Spring.

From a multiples perspective, Cigna is the cheapest of the three. It trades at a respective 7.9x and 7.8x past and forward earnings while United and WellPoint trade at a respective 10.9x and 9.1x past earnings. The company may be the most volatile with a beta of 1.4, but it has performed well in a challenging environment.

At the fourth quarter earnings call, Cigna’s CEO, David Cordani, noted a strong close to the year:

“First, we delivered strong revenues and earnings growth for full year 2011. Overall, these results reflect consistent execution of our

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Transportadora de Gas Del Sur S.A. (TGS)

• Per share values in USD, 2-3-2012
• Market value $ 3.00
• Indicated Dividend rate 49%

We seek out quality high yielding global investments that offer both a high yield and a good probability of appreciation, while providing a unique hedge against inflation and/or a continued devaluation of the U.S. dollar. As a result of our diversification research efforts, we have identified and selected Transportadora de Gas Del Sur S.A. , Argentina’s largest natural gas pipeline operator, for our Investment Growth and Income Portfolio.

U.S. Dollar Concerns

Most investors seeking income with growth for their investment portfolios are aware that the artificially very low U.S. Treasury return rates still remain, even before taxes, significantly below current inflation rates. American savers are thus thrust into the tenuous position of continuous wealth erosion. Considering that last year was another year of declining equity and property prices, minimal

Complete Story »

Transportadora de Gas Del Sur S.A. (TGS)

• Per share values in USD, 2-3-2012
• Market value $ 3.00
• Indicated Dividend rate 49%

We seek out quality high yielding global investments that offer both a high yield and a good probability of appreciation, while providing a unique hedge against inflation and/or a continued devaluation of the U.S. dollar. As a result of our diversification research efforts, we have identified and selected Transportadora de Gas Del Sur S.A. , Argentina’s largest natural gas pipeline operator, for our Investment Growth and Income Portfolio.

U.S. Dollar Concerns

Most investors seeking income with growth for their investment portfolios are aware that the artificially very low U.S. Treasury return rates still remain, even before taxes, significantly below current inflation rates. American savers are thus thrust into the tenuous position of continuous wealth erosion. Considering that last year was another year of declining equity and property prices, minimal

Complete Story »