In February, I wrote that the decline in stocks was just about over. Why? There was more money available to buy shares than at any time in almost two decades. The $8.85 trillion held in cash, bank deposits and money market funds was equal to 74% of the market value of U.S. companies, the highest ratio since 1990, according to the Federal Reserve.

I suggest you only purchase companies that have a history of consistently raising their dividends.  These companies will survive and thrive no matter what happens in the economy.

If you know how to play the volatile nature of the commodity sector, this article is not for you. Lee Lowell of the Smart Profits Report gives three reasons why commodity investing has changed for the better, and how to profit from them.

Last week’s government aid package for homeowners appears to be working. Mortgage rates have fallen sharply, sending applications soaring. Andrew Snyder says this could be the start of a recovery in the real estate market, which would help stabilize the wider economy. This creates a great chance for profits with discounted blue chips like General Electric (NYSE:GE) and Altria (NSYE:MO).

Like Cherry Blossoms in Spring… Believe it or not, we aren’t all philistines here at Taipan. Some of us are culture-loving poets with sensitive souls… like our very own options guru Adam Lass, for example. After a new round of falsehoods from Washington, Adam felt the need to express himself with a haiku.

During our economic downtime, people are talking about how we’re going to survive on the margins. How are we going to pay for gas, clothes, food or even shelter? But there is another area of the economy that has gone largely unnoticed. What about the luxury goods?

Karl Marx once said, “History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce.”

As times change, so do trends. In the old days, the louder and more powerful your car, the better. Now, green is the name of the game and everyone wants to drive super quiet, efficient hybrids.