I'll stick with reading earnings statements and balance sheets. I have some coins and bullion but not enough to matter. Non yielding assets are not my cup of tea. The paycheck from dividends is the easiest way to make money doing nothing. I also dont bother trying to guess what new companies are going to have the most growth. Even when you comb thru the data, it's a wild-ass guess.
Trading metals is like playing roulette. Maybe you get lucky. Maybe you don't. I always got a kick out of the displays they have on roulette tables that reveal the last few winning numbers. Like that matters at all. Those displays are like the guys on TV telling viewers to buy gold and silver. When both are at record high prices. Believing they will continue to rise (and not fall) is mostly based on a wish.
I buy companies with a consistent record of earnings and just let it ride. I dont worry about the ups and downs of the market. Smart investors who are not brokers or insiders suggest the average person is better off buying an index fund and call it a day. Over time, this provides the least risk of picking a loser. If the overall market does well, you do well. And over time, the market always does well.
Most of the people I know who were convinced they had investing all figured out lost money. One of my childhood friends has a seat on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Commodities are a whole 'nuther animal.
Comparatively, commodities typically rank as the most volatile, followed by stocks, with bonds being the least volatile. This is why commodities are often used sparingly in large investment portfolios. For smaller investors, I'm not convinced it's a good strategy at all. Dividends from blue chip companies and a guaranteed 5% return on Treasuries pays all the bills and keeps me in guns and ammo.
