And I’m still recommending the company as a strong buy.

Freeport-McMoRan is one of the world’s biggest copper miners, with 12 producing mines in Indonesia, North America, and South America, along with exploration projects in Africa.  As of December 31, 2008, consolidated recoverable proven and probable reserves totaled 102.0 billion pounds of copper.  As copper prices rise, the value of the ore they have in the ground increases, resulting in a higher stock price.

Freeport-McMoRan is well positioned to capitalize on rising demand for copper.  The company’s copper production totaled 4.0 billion pounds last year, while gold production totaled 1.3 million ounces.

I expect a full recovery in the demand for copper and much less supply.  Copper is at $2.80 per pound and it could easily go over $3 per pound in a couple of months.  Production of copper can’t keep up with demand, as production at existing mines is dropping and a smaller number new mines start production.  Falling scrap supplies are also leading to lower copper inventories.

Copper is one of the best conductors of electricity.  It doesn’t corrode easily and it’s bendable and strong.  Copper is used in every industry and is absolutely necessary to sustain our society.  It’s widely used in construction, coinage, electronics and automobiles, and the price is closely tied to economic activity.  Economic activity is showing signs of a recovery and copper prices will benefit.

China, the world’s biggest metals user, should also help revive copper prices with a new wave of government stimulus spending, leading to steady construction and infrastructure activity.  Copper demand is already picking up in China during its peak construction season.  It also appears that China desires to triple its government copper reserves.

Other countries are also increasing spending on infrastructure projects like roads and bridges as well, which will boost demand for the copper used in wires and pipes.

Worldwide government stimulus spending programs spur economic growth and encourage higher copper consumption.  Copper will benefit from the “reflation trade”, which is playing out due to central governments attempting to stimulate the economy by increasing the money supply.  This “reflation” can cause inflation and benefit copper prices, and therefore FCX.

Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) stock looks good from a technical perspective as well.  The 50-day moving average is rising (a bullish indicator).  Moving Average Convergence/Divergence (MACD) and relative strength is bullish.  And the stock recently broke a double-top chart formation which is very positive, see the chart below:

I recommend you own some Freeport-McMoRan stock (FCX) as a long-term core holding for your stock portfolio.  Also, I have my eye on a new round of call options on Freeport-McMoRan that have the potential to produce gains of 200% or more as the stock moves higher.

My Options Power Trader takes all the guesswork out of selecting the right options contracts.  I will send you all the details on the options contracts that have maximum profit potential with limited downside.  There are many opportunities in these fast moving markets for options profits.  Click here to find out more about the Options Power Trader.

Best Wishes,

Ted Peroulakis

Source: Freeport-McMoRan Is Off to the Races

This phenomenon will push price inflation much higher, giving you an opportunity to profit on the “reflation trade” that will play out over the next decade.

One day I told my lovely wife to get her passport ready because we were going to Moscow.  She was quite excited because Moscow is a shopping mecca with many historical sites to see.  But, I assure you—I was there for business.

We traveled to Russia in December of last year and I saw firsthand how the country operates.  I observed that the Russians are a hard working and productive people that just want the best for their families.  Russians are striving for a better quality of life just like anyone else.  I knew right away that the country offers investor’s high profit potential.

I assure you that Russia is still a super power and their society is quite advanced.  The energy sector in Russia is still a powerful force in the world.  Plus, Russia is one of the biggest producers of palladium, platinum, diamonds, nickel and gold.  Russia is a natural resource power house and should do great as commodity prices skyrocket.

When I got back to America I watched the Russian markets for some time and waited for the right moment to tell you to invest.

Then on 04/09/09 in this column, I wrote:

“the Russian market is way oversold and now is a good time to be a contrarian investor and invest when no one else will.”

I told you to buy the Market Vectors Russia ETF (RSX).  This Exchange Traded Fund holds a basket of Russian stocks and seeks to mirror the Russian stock market as measured by the DAX Global Russia+ Index.

I hope you took the advice.  If so, you’re sitting on a 39% gain in just 53 days.  And that’s not the only profitable advice you’ve received for free in these pages…

In fact, just this year I sent you lots of big winners including:

7% SPDR Gold Shares (GLD)
21% iShares Silver Trust (SLV)
85% Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (FCX)
45% Plum Creek Timber (PCL)
13% PowerShares DB Agriculture ETF (DBA)
26% iShares MSCI Brazil Index (EWZ)
39% Market Vectors Russia ETF (RSX)
29% PowerShares India ETF (PIN)
18% iShares FTSE/Xinhua China 25 Index ETF (FXI)
13% The Coca-Cola Company (KO)
11% Market Vectors Agribusiness ETF (MOO)

If you missed this opportunity to get into any of the above positions, it’s not too late.  Each one of these picks has the potential to run much higher.

I’m sure you are happy we deliver these great ideas for FREE in this Investor’s Daily Edge daily newsletter.  Our staff here at Investor’s Daily Edge strives to give you information that can help you accumulate wealth and enhance your financial well-being.

Now I have an important favor to ask of you.  I need you to tell your friends and family to sign up for our free daily newsletter.  Simply just tell them to go to http://www.investorsdailyedge.com/ and sign up.  Or forward this email to everyone in your address book.

We currently have over 300,000 elite members like you getting Investor’s Daily Edge on a daily basis.  Our goal is to get to one million subscribers.

Tell your friends and family that can benefit from independent and profitable financial insight.

Thank You,

Ted Peroulakis

Source: The Russia Pick I Recommended to You Is Up 39 in 53 Days

We are in the middle of a global economic crisis and commodities are on sale. Buy commodities now while they are still cheap. When we finally emerge from this global economic crisis — prices will explode higher. I’m talking about another long-term bull market in commodities. Let me explain…

Inflation Will Push Commodities Prices Higher

Our Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is an inflationist, which is an advocate of the policy of deliberate inflation achieved by increasing the supply of available currency and credit. They call him helicopter Ben because he once quoted a statement made by Milton Friedman, about using a “helicopter drop” of money into the economy to fight deflation.

Bernanke is a student of the causes of the Great Depression, and he has written extensively on this subject. Bernanke knows that deflation is quite negative for an economy and should be avoided at all costs. We have recently seen deflation as prices for real estate and commodities dropped during this recession. But, Ben Bernanke’s Fed and other central banks around the world have fired up the printing presses to combat deflation. They have been dumping new currency into the economy to reverse deflation and stimulate the economy. It’s working! One measure of inflation- the Consumer Price Index (CPI) has recently turned positive. Deflation is out—Inflation is starting.

The problem is, inflation could really skyrocket, especially when we finally emerge from this recession. Inflation eats away at your purchasing power and takes away your wealth.

One of the best ways to protect against inflation is to invest in commodities.

In the 1970s, when inflation in the U.S. was high and the economy was in a deep recession, commodity prices soared.

You want to own tangible assets like metals, energy, agriculture, and livestock as these commodities hold their value in inflationary times.

Exploding Population and Living Standards will Push Commodity Prices Higher

We have already seen a surge in demand for commodities from developing countries, like India and China. Plus, global commodity supplies are low; the inventories for food are the lowest they have been in 50 years. Rising income levels in emerging countries and the spread of western ideologies are having an effect on food consumption. We are seeing greater consumer demand for certain foods like meat and poultry.

The Earth’s population is estimated to be about 6.77 billion, and the world’s population is expected to reach 9 billion by the year 2040. The world’s masses are already demanding more vegetables, fruits, meats and dairy products. Imagine what the demand for agricultural products will be in 10 to 20 years.

Growing global demand from population growth and a rising standard of living will push commodity prices much higher.

Some Good Commodity Picks

The fundamentals make commodities an extremely attractive investment.

Plus, adding commodities to your portfolio gives you added diversification.

Here are some good ways to invest in commodities right in your normal brokerage account:

GLD - This gold tracking Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) mirrors the price of gold.

SLV - This silver tracking ETF mirrors the price of silver.

DBA – This ETF tracks widely traded agricultural commodities like corn, wheat, soy beans and sugar. As agricultural prices rise the price of this ETF goes up.

MOO – This ETF comprises a basket of companies engaged in various sectors of agribusiness like agricultural chemicals, livestock operations, agricultural equipment and ethanol/biodiesel.

PCL – One of the best timber producer stocks. Historically, timber prices have done exceptionally well under inflationary circumstances.

FCX - Freeport is one of the world’s largest copper producers and this copper stock goes up when copper prices go up.

XOM - Exxon Mobil Corporation, a great way to invest in oil.

Take a close look at investing in commodities. We are at the beginning of an unprecedented bull market in the commodity sector.

Source: Commodities Are The Best Place To Be For The Next Decade

Nickel was also down early, rallied during the New York morning, but fell off again late to close at $5.146/lb., down 5½ cents. Zinc followed a similar path, ending at $0.6443/lb., down a half-cent. Aluminum did make it back into positive territory, adding just short of a penny, to $0.6452/lb., while lead was little changed, adding less than a quarter-cent, to $0.6674/lb.

Copper tried to fight its way back to green numbers, but wound up with the biggest cumulative 3-day loss since January, as Wall Street’s very choppy day set the stage for wild swings in the industrial metals and, ultimately, recession fears prevailed.

Patrick Chidley, an analyst at Barnard Jacobs Mellet in Stamford, Connecticut, put it simply: “The major reason that copper is falling is that people are just worried about the economy.”

Also factoring in was a report released yesterday by the International Copper Study Group which foresaw a global surplus of refined copper that will widen through at least 2010 as use drops “significantly.”

World copper use will fall by at least 4.3% this year, led by declines averaging 14% percent in the U.S., Europe and Japan, the ICSG said. However, in China, the group predicts that demand will rise 3%.

Recent Chinese data has been very bullish. Imports of refined copper by the world’s largest consumer—at about 30% of global demand—rose to a record high of 296,843 metric tons of refined copper in March. That’s an increase of 137.6%, year over year.

And the ongoing stockpile drawdown continued. Copper inventories monitored by the LME plunged again yesterday, falling by 7,200 metric tons to 450,100 tons. That’s a three-month low, and a decline of more than 20% since February.

In company news, Freeport McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) reported that first quarter profit dropped more than 90%. There have been “very weak market conditions in the U.S. and the rest of the developed world” for copper use, Freeport CEO Richard Adkerson said.

But while Adkerson sees “volatility in the near term” for prices, he expressed confidence that in the long term, “the world is going to have strong demand” as emerging economies build infrastructure and expand.

Source: Base Metals Mixed Again

The US, Britain, Japan and the Euro zone are in a recession, as a result, the price of copper is well off its highs, giving you a good buying opportunity.

Just last week, copper prices went up 11 percent on the hope that the government stimulus programs will spur economic growth and encourage higher metals consumption.

China, the world’s biggest metals user, should also help revive copper prices with a new wave of government stimulus spending leading to steady construction and infrastructure activity.

It also appears that China desires to triple its government copper reserves.

Other countries are planning to increase spending on infrastructure projects like roads and bridges as well, which will boost demand for the copper used in wires and pipes.

Furthermore, analysts at a recent mining conference in South Africa were quite optimistic on copper.

Additionally, many hedge funds are currently shorting copper futures and short covering may push prices higher.

Chile is the world’s biggest supplier of copper. A recent earthquake there may hurt copper supply and push prices even higher. Also, the world’s largest copper mine in Escondida, Chile is experiencing falling output.

Check out this 60-day chart of copper. From a technical perspective, it looks like it will head higher.

My fundamental and technical indicators are pointing towards higher copper prices.

One of the best ways to play copper: Buy Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (NYSE:FCX). FCX is one of the largest copper producers in the world and buying their stock gives you good exposure to copper.

Source: Invest in Copper!

Gold made another attempt to rally at the London close, but got nowhere…as the same not-for-profit seller was still lurking about. Once Comex trading ended, gold rallied to its high of the day.

click to enlarge

Silver’s chart was similar…with its low occurring at the London open. Silver got smacked at the same time as gold…shortly after the Comex open…and from there it went sideways for the rest of the trading day. Even the gold rally at the London close yesterday didn’t help it. I was somewhat disappointed that the shares didn’t do better, but in the face of the hammering that the Dow took yesterday, I guess we should be thankful for small mercies. The performance of Freeport-McMoran (NYSE:FCX) didn’t help either…as the stock was down 6.92%.

Open interest for Monday’s trading showed that gold open interest fell 1,114 contracts to 350,957…while silver added an insignificant 67 contracts…and total o.i. rose to 94,906.

A fair amount of gold news today. There was a front page (second section) gold story in London’s Financial Times on Monday that read “Bullion sales hit record in rush to safety”. When stories like that make the front page, we will be in the ‘mania’ phase…and judging by the way events are unfolding…we probably don’t have a lot longer to wait. Apparently [according to Bloomberg] there are close to 10,000 contracts of open interest in April $1,000 gold call options. And if you check the 3-year gold chart below, you will note that we are going to have a rather dramatic ‘golden cross’…as the 50-day moving average is about to blast through the 200-day m.a. in rather spectacular fashion.

click to enlarge

Yesterday, the GLD ETF (NYSE:GLD) added more huge stacks of gold bars…another13 tonnes in all…that’s 413,000 ounces troy. In the past nine days, GLD has added 62 tonnes of gold. That’s 2 million ounces…$1.8 billion! This is serious money! To top that off, there was huge volume in the GLD shares yesterday as well, so that most likely means that more gold bars will be added sometime next week. The silver ETF…SLV…showed no changes yesterday. Comex warehouse silver stocks dropped another 840,000 ounces. Talking about the Comex warehouse, Ted Butler pointed out to me that on first day notice for February delivery…the last business day of January…there were about 5,000 contracts to be delivered. This is physical delivery I’m talking about now. Most of the time, the vast majority of these contracts are delivered in the first few days after first day notice. The rest are delivered in dribs and drabs over the balance of the month. Well, as of yesterday, only 2,156 contracts have been delivered so far in February…none at all in the last five business days! Ted says that this is highly unusual…and he’s not sure what it means. I’ll keep you posted on developments. And lastly is this Reuters story headined “Mexico strike hits Penoles silver, gold refining”…and you can read all about it here.

In other news, I have three Bloomberg stories for you…thanks to the King Report…UBS reported a SF8.1 billion fourth-quarter loss on writedowns and will cut 15,000 jobs world wide by the end of 2009…”Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the mortgage-finance companies seized by regulators, may need more than the $200 billion in funding pledged by the U.S. government if the housing market continues to deteriorate, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director James Lockhart said.” [Note to James: You said 'may need'...try 'will need' $200 billion...as the bottom in real estate is still at least four years away. Call me in 2013 and we'll talk. - Ed] And lastly…”The euro fell after a Russian bank official said the nation’s lenders are in talks with foreign creditors about $400 billion of loans, adding to speculation the financial turmoil in Europe is worsening.” [Worsening??? It's terminal! - Ed]

My first contribution of the day is this Bloomberg story headlined “CFTC Should Have Criminal Authority, Commissioner Chilton Says”. [Well, Bart...that's all well and good...but you have the two most egregious examples of criminal activity occurring right under your nose right now...crimes in progress...the grotesque concentrated gold and silver short positions of three [or less] U.S. bullion banks…and you and your buddies just sit there with your belly-button lint brushes and do nothing. Don’t worry about more power…just enforce the rules you have on the books now…and let the Department of Justice take care of the rest. – Ed] The link is here.

The next story is from zerohedge.blogspot.com. It’s entitled “A Glance at the Upcoming Eastern European Cataclysm”. I knew that the situation was bad…terminal to be exact…but to see it spelled out ‘chapter and verse’, is quite something. The graph and chart are worth spending some time on as well. The link is here.

And lastly, in a story in The Independent in the U.K., comes this headline…”This is the worst recession for over 100 years”. Finally, a politician has got it right. Ed Balls, Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s most senior cabinet minister has finally admitted the obvious. He warns that the “downturn is ferocious and says the impact will last 15 years.” Yep, that’s a lot closer to the truth. This ‘must read’ story is linked here.

What strange madness is this? Why would anyone think the economy will be made better off by squandering money now on projects that were deemed unworthy or unaffordable only a few months ago? The country got into trouble because people squandered too much money; now they think they will get out of trouble by letting the government squander money. – Bill Bonner, The Daily Reckoning, February 10, 2009

click to enlarge

Well, the rescue package was a bust. And I hate to say it, but it sure looks like the White House et al dropped the ball big time on this one. From here, I expect things to go from bad to worse really quick…and all the King’s horses and all the king’s men [or the PPT] aren’t going to be able to hold the deluge back much longer. I sure hope you have lots of physical gold and silver.

See you Thursday.

Source: And Then There’s This…Wednesday, February 11th, 2009

Over in New York, Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) posted its biggest quarterly loss in company history, losing nearly $14 billion during the fourth quarter. The company reported a loss of $13.9 billion, or $36.78 per share, compared with a net income of $414 million, or $1.05 per share in the prior-year period. The results, however, include special charges of about $14 billion, or $36.84 per share, largely due to commodity price declines and the acquisition of Phelps Dodge. The major is also going to the market looking to raise up to $750 million. Freeport ended the session up C$2.10 at C$24.91.

Mergers amongst the explorers continued, with Detour Gold and PDX Resources looking to join forces. PDX is Detour Gold’s largest shareholder with already a 42 per cent stake. Under the proposal, each PDX share will be exchanged for 0.2571 of a Detour Gold share marking a value of C$2.12 per PDX share. Detour ended the session up C$0.42 at C$8.68, while PDX added C$0.50 to close at C$2.15.

Osisko Mining tabled an inferred resource estimate of 1.81 million ounces of gold grading 2.12 grams gold per tonne on the western portion of the South Barnat deposit on its Canadian Malartic property in Quebec. Osisko closed down C$0.04 at C$4.56.

Uranium North added C$0.025 to close at C$0.115 after announcing that its Amer Lake Main zone deposit in Nunavut hosts 6.2 tonne grading 0.084% U308 representing 11.5 million pounds of yellow cake.

The annual Round-Up Mining & Exploration Convention is now underway in Vancouver and that may have sparked a little of the interest in the junior explorers. All the talk is centered on gold with speakers generally preaching to the converted. We will see what Tuesday trading has in store.

Source: Resource Stock Roundup:Tuesday, January 27th, 2009

• Pfizer Inc. (PFE), the world’s No. 1 drug maker, said yesterday (Monday) that it would acquire U.S. rival Wyeth (WYE) for about $68 billion in a strategic buyout that diversifies its revenue base. To help finance the deal, Pfizer said it would cut its dividend and use about $22.5 billion in debt that it raised from a consortium of global banks. The deal is key because it will help Pfizer cope with a major revenue gap that will emerge in 2011, when its blockbuster cholesterol-treatment drug, Lipitor, will begin to face U.S. generic competition, Reuters reported. Next year, Wyeth loses patent protection on its own top drug, the anti-depressant Effexor XR.

• Two measures of U.S. economic performance unexpectedly turned positive in December Bloomberg reported.  The National Association of Realtors said sales of existing homes rose 6.5%, propelled by the biggest slump in prices since the Great Depression. Also, the index of leading economic indicators increased 0.3% reacting to an expansion of the money supply, the Conference Board said.  The positive numbers are a sharp contrast to the tens of thousands of layoffs announced yesterday (Monday) which may accelerate the pullback in consumer spending and deepen the longest recession since 1982.

• McDonald’s Corp. (MCD) reported softening in some overseas markets, but still managed to produce a quarterly profit that handily topped Wall Street estimates, Reuters reported. The company posted a 5.8% rise in worldwide sales in December at restaurants open at least 13 months, despite a U.S. recession that has spread to global economies.  The world’s biggest hamburger chain reported a slowdown in its German business due to price hikes and slower same-store sales in China, where growth has been red-hot. McDonald’s said it was also hit by a stronger dollar in foreign markets, including Canada, Europe, Britain and Australia.

• Plummeting metal prices led Freeport McMoran (FCX) to lower projected copper and molybdenum sales targets for both 2009 and 2010 as it posted a gigantic net loss of $13.9 billion, or $36.78 per share yesterday (Monday), Reuters reported.  But its shares rallied on Wall Street as the losses were primarily blamed on $14 billion in noncash charges, including writedowns of inventory values and goodwill from the acquisition of rival Phelps Dodge. Still, citing the worldwide construction slump, Freeport lowered its forecasts for copper sales by 9% and cut its outlook for molybdenum production by 25% for 2009.

• After posting five straight declines in quarterly profit, Lincoln National Corp. (LNC), the Philadelphia-based life insurer, said yesterday (Monday) that it is cutting 5% of staff, or about 540 jobs. North American insurers have announced more than 5,000 job cuts over the past two years as the industry reported at least $125 billion in losses and writedowns tied to the collapse of the U.S. mortgage market, Bloomberg reported. The insurer’s third-quarter net income plunged 55 percent to about $148.4 million. Fourth-quarter results are scheduled to be released Feb. 9.

• General Motors Corp. (GM) said it will eliminate shifts in the second quarter at Ohio and Michigan plants, a move that will shed about 2,000 jobs. The carmaker will also cut production at 13 other U.S. and Canadian plants, Bloomberg reported.

• Brazil’s state-controlled oil company, Petroleo Brazileiro SA (ADR:PBR), said it will seek to cut costs by as much as $4 billion annually. Officials said the move is necessary for its plans to double output and develop the Americas’ largest oil-field discovery in the past three decades, Bloomberg reported.

• Halliburton Co. (HAL) will pay $559 million – $382 million to the Department of Justice and $177 million to the Securities and Exchange Commission – to end an investigation into its KBR Inc. unit. The unit allegedly bribed Nigerian officials for as much as 20 years, Reuters reported.

Source: Global Investment News Briefs, Tuesday, January 27th, 2009

I’m not sure about death, but the broader U.S. economy is like a 2:00 A.M. drunk, continuing to stumble towards the end of a mind-altering 2008, with little long-term relief in sight. Will it ever find its way home again?

One of President-elect Barack Obama’s most ambitious and large-scale plans quite literally seeks to dig America out of this mess – and here’s how you can profit, too. But you’d better act fast. Some of Wall Street’s big boys are already placing their bets.

The Eisenhower Model

Obama will take the oath as 44th president of the United States on Jan. 20.

Since his Nov. 4 victory, the more he’s said about “getting to work immediately” and having “no time to waste,” the more I think the inauguration ceremony will be a time-consuming inconvenience, distracting him from fixing America’s problems.

One key area in which he’s pledged to spend his way out of the mire is by tackling the country’s aging and rapidly deteriorating infrastructure. He plans to make the largest investment to repair and upgrade the country’s public works systems since Dwight Eisenhower spearheaded the nationwide interstate highway system in the 1950s.

In short, this means utility industries like electric and water will receive huge cash infusions. Roads and bridges will be repaired and rebuilt. Schools will be modernized, part of which will include improving Internet access to a nation that ranks 15th in the world in broadband adoption. Energy efficiency, particularly in government buildings, will be increased. The healthcare industry will make greater use of technology to streamline and computerize medical records to cut costs.

That’s the plan anyway. And Obama says it will create 2.5 million jobs by 2011.

Obama’s economic brain trust is currently “busy working, crunching the numbers… to determine what the size and scope of the economic recovery plan needs to be. But it’s going to be substantial.”

Kind of vague right now, I know. But just yesterday (Thursday), one of his advisers floated a dollar figure of $850 billion. In terms of infrastructure upgrades, 5,000 road and bridge projects could get under Caterpillar Digs Deep into the Developing World for Profit way immediately after Obama puts his autograph on the bill.

Brick By Brick… Bridge By Bridge

With U.S. infrastructure set to have a sweaty wad of cash lobbed in its direction, construction firms are lining up to grab a share of the spoils, particularly as the need for equipment and raw materials rises.

Appropriately, we start in Obama’s home state of Illinois, which is also home to the world’s largest manufacturers of construction and mining equipment, engines, and industrial turbines. Founded in 1986 and based in Peoria, Caterpillar (CAT) has seen its shares shoot up from $37 to over $45, as the company feeds off the infrastructure buzz.

One of Caterpillar’s fellow Illinois-based construction equipment manufacturers, Deere & Company (DE), could also be set to extend a share price boost that has seen the price surge from the upper $20s on November 20 to over $39 today.

If you want a more diversified way to play the industrial and construction sector, take a look at the Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) exchange traded fund (ETF).

On the engineering front, head west and look no further than California’s Jacobs Engineering Group (JEC), which is the largest publicly traded engineering firm in the U.S. The infrastructure love is spreading across the sector, as the stock shot up on news that it has secured two more contracts…

1. A five-year, $17.5 million contract from the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board that will see Jacobs serve SamTrans and the San Mateo County Transportation Authority agencies to work on three programs. This includes project management, scheduling, budget management, and more.

1. A contract from Pima County, Arizona to provide project management and construction inspection services for the Ina Road water reclamation project. Construction costs here will total about $200 million.

Jacobs pulls in a whopping $11 billion annually and employs more than 57,000 workers – a number that could grow under Obama’s bold plan.

Speaking of water, if you’re looking to cash in on this critical industry amid a surging global population, increasing pollution, and a depleting, finite amount of water resources, check out leading firm Watts Water Technologies Inc. (WTS) or the sector ETF, PowerShares Water Resources (PHO), which tracks the price and yield performance of the Palisades Water index.

Be sure to also pay a visit to our own free Smart Profits Report research section, where you can read much more about the water problems facing the world – and the vast profit potential that the industry holds. We’ve got two in-depth (pun intended) water reports up there.

Get Raw

On the raw materials side, several firms spring to mind as potential winners of the Obama infrastructure initiative. And as Jim Cramer might say, they’re “best of breed” in their industries.

• Cement: South of the border – in Garza Garcia, Mexico, to be exact – you can find Cemex SAB de CV (ADR: CX), a world leader in producing, distributing, and selling cement. And when it comes to infrastructure rebuilding and repairs, you don’t get many more commodities more important than this one. Its market cap of almost $8 billion is evidence of this.

• Steel: Talk about a liftoff. U.S. Steel Corp. (X) shares have surged from the mid $20s on November 20 to a current price around $37 a share.

• Copper: Copper hit a 52-week high of $127.24/ton on May 21, 2008. The price now sits around $20/ton. Quite a slump for what is the largest publicly traded copper producer, Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (FCX). You can blame the prolonged commodities sector slump for that, in addition to the stock market’s woes. But in an Obama-fueled, infrastructure rebuilding rampage, I’m betting on a resurgence.

• Aluminum: Go large. The leader here is Alcoa Inc. (AA). Like FCX, Alcoa has endured a rocky year. Having traded at a 52-week high of $44.77 in May, the stock market’s tank job has whipped this stock into submission. Shares are currently trading around $10 and with a 0.37 Price/Earnings-to-Growth (PEG) ratio, the market thinks it’s ridiculously undervalued.

The bottom line here is that companies like these could all stand to profit from a huge ramp up in infrastructure spending. What’s more, they’re all solid, well-established, industry-leading firms with strong cash positions, doing business in areas where there are clear, critical needs. If you’re looking for outperformers, infrastructure stocks are set up well for 2009.

From Eisenhower To Obama …The Firms Poised To Cash In On The New U.S. Infrastructure Revolution