I’m a pretty conservative investor. I knew about the hot stocks market, but I’ve always felt that it was pretty risky. I was willing to take lower returns and keep my capital as safe as possible. I was talking to friend who is at least as conservative as me and he told me about Today’s Hot Stocks newsletter. I thought maybe he’d been out on the golf course too long.

He insisted that he was skeptical about hot stocks trading too, but he found this newsletter that predicted stock trends with a software program and that he was actually getting a great return on hot stock investments by following their advice. I thought it was probably some kind of scam, so I looked it up. I just didn’t see how software could figure all the angles in the hot stock market.

Since the site offered a sixty day money back guarantee, I decided to see if my friend was right. That was three months ago and I have to admit, I am impressed. Using the Today’s Hot Stocks newsletter and email alerts, has helped me make good returns on my investments. Nothing’s perfect and I have had a couple of duds, but I really didn’t lose much since I was able to get out quickly.

Hot stocks isn’t the right investment for people who can’t afford to risk a loss. You just can’t be right all the time. With Today’s Hot Stocks, the risk is a little lower and the rewards can be impressive. I also use software for trend following and I have some other investments since I believe that the best way to protect your investment capital is to diversify your investments. Hot stocks are just a part of my portfolio, but they have become an important part.

Some folks may not be happy paying for advice on stocks figuring they are already paying their broker for that service. If you aren’t making a 30% return on your investments, maybe your broker’s advice isn’t as good as the advice from Today’s Hot Stocks.

Since Today’s Hot Stocks offers a sixty day trial with a money back guarantee, it’s worth trying. If it doesn’t work for you, you can always cancel and get a refund. I don’t think you will though. I, personally, have had a better than 35% return on my investments since signing up for hot stocks.

There are a lot of places, including your broker, where you can get advice on hot stocks. Most of the time they got their information from another source, so the data you’re getting isn’t fresh and may have missed something in the translation. The data from Today’s Hot Stocks comes directly from them to you, so there is less chance of a miscommunication.

If you are serious about including hot stocks in your market strategy, I strongly recommend you try the Today’s Hot Stocks newsletter, You have nothing to lose and you may find yourself surprised at how much you gain. I know I was.

Find more on top stocks to buy right now and hot stocks.

There are plenty of people living in the United Kingdom that have postponed trips to the U.S or Europe because of the awful currency exchange rates; however, you can resolve this situation by using travel money cards, which are not commonly know but offer an appealing variation.

How do travel money cards work?

These cards were lately introduced to the card market and will offer the option of uploading whatever currency you choose to a plastic card, at whatever the existing rate of exchange is, and is your holiday money for whatever destination you’ve chosen to go to.

You can apply via the Internet, and send funds to your card online, via phone, or even (on some cards) by sending a text message. Currently travel money cards support pounds, dollars, and euros.

So what are the perks of using this card?

One major gain is that you will get an exchange rate that is much higher than if you went to High Street and use the services of the bureaux de change. Another plus is that the exchange rate of the uploaded funds is fixed, so there will be no surprises after you use it. Conventional credit cards and debit cards typically use the exchange rate that applies at the moment of the transaction, so you never know what you have spent until you see your bill.

So is that all there is?

No, not really. These cards, different from regular debit and credit cards, don’t have a foreign currency exchange rate fee, which can be an additional 2.75%, that some providers will include on to the basic exchange rate!

If you didn’t know, debit and credit cards might also elicit an additional “till charge” when used in restaurants or shops, but the currency exchange card doesn’t have this fee. Be aware that debit and credit cards have high rates for any cash withdrawals, but the cash on the currency card have been prepaid, not borrowed, so it’s not applicable.

That is great news! Now, what are the possible drawbacks?

Since you are uploading currency onto the card prior your trip, your holiday is paid for up front, not with credit, so you must save for your trip. But, that may not be a bad thing in the current economy. Currency cards do have fees for withdrawing cash from ATMs, but the associated fees are much reduced that those incurred with credit or debit cards.

One case of this is that, when this article was written, NatWest and RBS both had a withdrawal fee of two percent, which amounts to about 6 each time you withdraw the sum of 300. Currency exchange cards, however, have a one off fee that amounts to as little as 1.50 no matter how much your ATM withdrawal is.

The real downfall for you is the charge you’re charged for using your card to pay for something in a currency other than one specified – and FX convert fee; using the example of a dollar transaction which is made with a euro currency card, you could be charged a fee of up to 2.75%. However, there are a number of cards that don’t charge this fee (see list below).

Aren’t there some good companies offering credit cards intended for use abroad?

These classic credit cards are: the Abbey Zero, Nationwide Gold, and the Post Office. The problem that persists (i.e. the last two) is that even though they’re a super deal (no foreign exchange fees), they have cash withdrawal fee of 2.5% at the time of this writing (minimum 3), and don’t measure up with travel money cards (unless you’re considering credit for your holiday).

In contrast, the card from Abbey has no cash withdrawal charges no foreign exchange conversion charges as always, there’s a catch — it’s got the highest interest rate of the three, at 25.9% presently.

That’s me, convinced — tell me more. Who has the best deal on travel money cards?

The best card available for euros is the FairFX Euro Currency card, because its ATM fee is the least at 1.50; it has no foreign currency exchange charges and has excellent exchange rates. Another euro card, the Indigo Travelcard Euro has just a slightly higher ATM fee of 1.95, but its convert fee is high at 2.75%. There is no convert cost associated with the ICE Travellers CashCard Euro, but the ATM fee is a costly 3.

When taking into consideration dollar cards, again, FairFX is the top deal, as the currency card charges just $2 for ATM transactions, and it doesn’t have a convert fee. Another good deal for dollar cards is the ICE Travellers CashCard, because it does not have a convert charge, and the fee for ATM transactions is just $3. Don’t forget that when there is no convert cost, the cards can be used for any available currency.

What’s the best travel money card for world travel?

An ‘Anywhere Card’ has just been released by FairFX as a new global travellers card – an ideal card to take everywhere in the world.

The are no ATM costs with the FairFX Anywhere Card, and no loading fees either! A 1.5% transaction charge is the only fee that applies so it certainly appears to be the cheapest global travel money card on the market.

Currently, FairFX is offering a free dollar, euro or sterling ‘Anywhere Travel Card’, which usually costs 9.95, for a very small initial load. Why are you dragging your heels? Save money buy getting a travel money card from FairFX travel money services now!

categories: travel money,currency,foreign exchange,forex,exchange rates,currency exchange,credit cards,debit cards,prepaid cards,finance,money

Gold is real money – it is something that has real physical and financial value. It has endured the test of time, like no other currency. For thousands of years it has been relied upon as a measure of wealth, and for good reason too.

Currencies all over the world, every single year, go down and down in value, and that’s why every single year prices of goods and services go up. The money in your pocket or in your bank is effectively worth less and less each year. Your money is now buying way less than what it would have bought you 100 years ago, whereas an amount of gold bought a 100 years ago would now buy you way more.

Gold only cost $34 per ounce back in’70 and now, in 2009, it has hit a record price of $1150 per ounce. Gold investors have made huge profits over these past few years – just last year gold could be purchased at $800. That’s a huge 30% increase in just 1 year alone. As for the future, Citigroup, USB and other big investment firms have predicted gold prices to hit over $2000 an ounce in the very near future.

The best way to invest in gold is to buy actual physical gold you can see touch and smell, which is why everybody lately has been investing in gold coins. Buying gold bars is another option, but this is beyond a lot of people due to the huge upfront cost needed. With gold coins though, they come in smaller, more affordable options, meaning that they are accessible to even small or first time investors. You can also divide up your investment and sell any amount off while leaving the balance untouched.

So, where is the best place to purchase gold coins? You can buy them from either a local gold coin store or from an online coin store. Whichever you opt for, be sure to only go with a reputable seller, ideally one that has reviews and testimonials that you can actually check up on. You don’t need a great deal of money to start with, and with just a few hundred dollars you can start amassing your future fortune.

One final point, just in case you’re not yet convinced about the prospect of investing in gold – recent reports have shown that a $1000 investment, made in’70, in rare gold coins, would now be valued at nearly $60,000.

For more information on the best places to buy gold coins visit http://www.gold-coins.com.au, where you can also see the latest gold price.