Why Did I Invest in Shipping Containers And Should You?

Over the last couple of years I have been overwhelmed by the number of investment seekers who have asked me why I invested in shipping containers. For most, it is an investing opportunity that very few knew existed. For others, they were cynical of the international shipping industry's recovery and thus very apprehensive. I must admit, at the beginning I belonged to both of these groups of investors.

I had heard about the opportunity to invest in shipping containers from others in the investment community, but until the GFC in 2008-2009 I had never been given the option of considering it, or learning more about it. For years it seemed to be a secret investment that only a select few investors were given access to. So, when the opportunity presented itself in the form of an email message from Pacific Tycoon, I immediately began doing my research and challenged the investment from every angle.

Like most other investors, I found it difficult to believe that the global shipping industry wasn't suffering like many other industries and that lease rates are not affected by overcapacity in the sector. To my surprise I learned that governments everywhere rely heavily on the maritime shipping industry to fuel their economic recovery, and thus making an investment in cargo containers is like making an investment in economic growth. The truth be told, as nations look to raise their GDP, shipping containers play a vital role in helping them achieve their economic goals. Without a continuous supply of them, it is impossible for countries to maintain steady growth.

From my perspective, any opportunity for investment that is in such high demand around the world and makes such an important contribution to economic growth, is an ideal replacement for struggling equities and uncertain bonds; in any investor's portfolio. This is why I recommend investors review shipping container investments and make a hard comparison to the assets that currently occupy their investment portfolio.

Wise Investors Diversify Portfolios With Alternative Assets

Because many investors still carry damaged portfolios, as a  result of the Global Financial Crisis, they are determined to prepare for continued market volatility and protect their portfolios. This has led to an increasing interest in the utility of alternative investments to assist in the diversification of portfolios and the steady increase of investment returns, even in a market that contains low interest rates. In addition, financial advisers have had an opportunity to help clients understand a large number of options for adding alternative assets to their portfolio. Before investors and clients rush to a mutual fund, exchange-traded fund, managed futures platform or hedge fund, wise investment advisers should carefully assist their clients to evaluate other options such as variable annuities with alternative asset classes and strategies. This is essentially what has been a growing trend within funds, and investment advisers are helping clients reach a more versatile portfolio.

It has been established that precious metals such as gold and silver have been hot alternative investments in recent years, until of course as of very recently. Nevertheless, the “M.E.T.A.L.S” approach used by investment advisers to evaluate an investment in precious metals, can be applied to most any alternative investment offering; especially those in hard assets.

• The "M" is for minimum, and this is because many alternative investment VAs give investors access to alternative investments for a manageable minimum investment.
• The "E" is for expenses, because expenses for alternative investment products are relatively low when compared with managed futures platforms and hedge funds, which typically layer a performance fee on gains on top of an asset management fee.
• The "T" is for taxes, because trades within alternative investment VAs do not create a taxable event. Taxes are assessed only upon distribution.
• Next is "A" which stands for accreditation, meaning that most clients have to have a certain income or amount of capital available for investment, in hopes that the client will be able to stay on their feet, if something were to go wrong.
• The "L" stands for liquidity, which is very important for hedge fund managers.
• Lastly, the "S" stands for spousal protection, meaning that investing in alternative offerings can help surviving spouses maintain financial stability after the owner’s death.

As the growing trend of investing in alternative assets increases, the investment community will continue to see financial advisers urging their clients to review investment options and alternatives, that will allow them to diversify their portfolios and avoid exposing themselves to the unnecessary risks; presented by many traditional investments. As well, this approach encourages investors to branch out and take advantage of some of the other very profitable alternative investment opportunities, that have become available in the market.

Alternatives Offer A Great Hedge Against Market Volatility

There are two words that send shivers down the spine of every stock market investor. Market volatility. This is because the global stock markets are directly tied to the inflation rate. Whenever the inflation rate rises, the overall stock market values go down. In the last five years, the markets have been extremely volatile in the wake of the western financial troubles that had a devastating effect to the global markets and crippling many world economies. Millions of investors lost billions of dollars leading to (what some people are calling) The Great Recession of the 21st century. Unfortunately, there are still some lingering negative effects, as the latest developments in the Europe clearly illustrate, particularly highlighted by the financial problems experienced in Greece and Cyprus.

There once was a time not long ago, when the only choice investment-seekers had was to take a gamble on the stock market and fill their portfolio with shares. Thankfully that strategy has become less popular with the emergence of alternative investment options, that are proving they can consistently outperform the traditional offerings. Nowadays, investors have lost their confidence (not to mention a lot of money as well) in the traditional methods of investing and are beginning to take advantage of the many profitable alternatives, dominating the investment landscape.

Most alternative investments are not correlated with stocks and bonds and as a result are not negatively affected when the inflation rates go up. In fact, the opposite happens. Their value actually increases making them a great addition to any investor’s portfolio. Many established investment advisers and firms are now strongly recommending that a well-balanced portfolio contain a large measure of alternatives to protect it against under-performing stocks and volatile market conditions which lead to high inflation rates.

The investment landscape is definitely undergoing a massive shift as global alternative investments are now valued in the trillions of dollars annually and the trend is expected to continue for years to come as the global economy grows. For the longest time, the traditional method of investing into stocks and bonds ruled the financial world. While they did not always deliver a great investing experience, for investors looking to grow their money, they were the only option at the time. Nowadays, times are changing as investors now have a much wider range of many profitable alternative options to choose from.

Learn About All Investing Options Before Making A Commitment

Whether looking through fruits and vegetables at the local market or vehicles at a car lot, consumers are constantly confronted by opportunities and surrounded by options. The growing list of investment offerings are no different. There are an increasing number of alternatives for investment seekers to consider, that can offer them varying degrees of investing risks and returns. After determining what strategy (risk versus reward) they are comfortable with, it is time for investors to learn everything they can about their available options for investment, before making the commitment to invest or not.

It can be expected that some investment providers might inflate their profit/revenue figures slightly and embellish upon their projected performance record, to draw the attention of investment seekers. Because of this, it is incredibly important for investors to conduct independent research on their short-list of investing options, to determine the reliability of the information that is being presented. In doing so, it is also recommended that investors seek-out the advice of the investment community, not only for help learning the truth about investments, but also for sharing past investing experiences and valuable industry knowledge. The contributions from fellow investors, coupled with established corporate facts and figures collected, can build a solid foundation for making a well thought-out and educated investment decision.

Taking the time to learn as much as they can about an investment offering, is the wisest investment an investor can make. Speaking at length with company representatives, as well as other investors, is likely to eliminate much of the doubt that investors may have accumulated; prior to embarking upon their in depth analysis and detailed research. Once the information is collected and carefully analyzed, investment-seekers should be able to establish which of the investment offerings on their short-list of options will make a meaningful commitment to investors, and which ones will not.

African Markets Create Business and Investment Opportunities

Emerging markets, like those in Africa, are becoming important contributors to the global economy. According to a United Nations economic annual report, African economies expect to record an average of 4.5 percent growth this year, despite a slowdown in the global economy. This can be attributed to the fact that the African continent is on the breaking edge of a new technological revolution. Various African countries are generating and implementing innovative ideas, and creating new technologies, that will change the way African countries interact with each other; and with the rest of the world.

Most analysts are predicting that African countries, will demonstrate a growth rate this year, that is stronger than the global average. To encourage this strong and steady growth, many African countries are updating their regulations to allow for more flexibility with regards to entrepreneurship, which will create opportunities for international businesses; that result in investing alternatives for investors. It is expected that these new regulations, will allow for a rise in mutually beneficial engagement, with the international investment community and businesses. The countries within the African continent, present many opportunities for investors and businesses, because of its rapid growth and strong development.

A recent study by Forbes, reported that the projected progression in emerging markets, is likely to have a rate two or three times faster than developed nations; such as the US. 2013 is set to be a shifting year for the global economy. It is expected that for the first time, the combined GDP of the emerging markets, will surpass those of the developed markets. It’s time for Africa to make its mark. The global economy isn't just about trading with China, India and European countries; Africa is making an impact as well. With the status of the African countries continuing to show substantial improvements, the investment community can expect many opportunities to be created, that will allow investors to profit.

Do You See Alternatives As An Essential Portfolio Addition?

There once was a time when diversifying an investment portfolio meant to shift certain stocks around, sprinkle in some bonds and CD’s and hope for the best. That was pre-2008 when that was pretty much the status quo. The stock market pretty well dominated the investment landscape. Since the United States banking scandal erupted and turned the global investment world upside-down, investors have had little choice but to look elsewhere if they wanted to generate positive returns on their investments. This is when alternative options actually began to come to prominence and many global financial firms were left with little or no choice but to adhere to the wishes of the investment community. That being, produce investment options that were more consistent and profitable, tangible and transparent.

In the past five years, while the stock markets have remained flat overall, alternative investments like hard assets have been delivering constant above-average yields and dependable alternatives for confused investors. This fact has not been lost on many global money managers as they have increased their alternative holdings in their client’s portfolios by as much as 50 per cent and some experts even agree that it doesn't hurt to have even more of a percentage. As a result, the overall returns have been extremely positive and the trend is continuing moving forward into 2013.

One of the main benefits of hard assets is that they are not directly correlated to the stock markets which makes them unaffected by inflationary pressures. In an investment portfolio, they act as a guard against traditional holdings such as stocks and bonds and it increases the odds of an overall positive return at the end of the day. In fact many investors have completely turned away from having any traditional options in their portfolios and have strictly gone the alternative route and many are very satisfied with their results. The days of the traditional investment formula for portfolios no longer apply for the average investor. Many investment-seekers are more educated and they want to, not only alleviate the risk factors, but eliminate them entirely; if they possibly can. One way to do this is to steer clear of risky stocks and bonds. Instead, investors should lean heavily on the alternative options that are making a commitment to investors and have consistently proven their worth in the market, particularly since 2008.

The global economy is growing and with it the demand for hard assets such as precious metals, real estate and even shipping containers for that matter, is rising alongside and investors all around the world have begun to take advantage of it; for their own gain. In the investment world, making a profit at the end of the day is all that matters to investors. These days, stocks and bonds just happen to be out-performed by the alternative investing options and investors are more than willing to take advantage of them.

More Investors Leave Traditional Investing For Alternatives

When analyzing the markets for investment opportunities, it can be a confusing and frustrating experience, for the average investor. That is why investors generally trust investment advisers  to make the right investing decisions on their behalf, since they are considered to be the most educated and experienced. Unfortunately for many investors, over the course of the last five years, many of the financial experts have turned out to be wrong in their speculations and it has cost investors billions of dollars; as a result. This has led to a significant shift in global investor confidence, leading many over to alternative investments and away from traditional investing strategies.

If you take a moment to review these two main investing options, the reasons that investors are flocking to alternative investments (hard assets in particular) and away from the traditional options; will become more and more apparent. Above all, it seems that the number one reason for the shift to investment alternatives, is the options' impressive track record, across the globe. For example, a comparison between shipping container investments and traditional stock market performance since the western financial crisis first began in 2008, has shipping containers returning above-average returns while stock markets have remained relatively flat; over the same time period. Many investors would consider that to be a pretty good reason right there to choose hard assets over stocks. One sector consistently delivers profits, while the other simply has not been performing.

Who can blame investors for abandoning their traditional methods if they aren't producing the desired results? After all, investing all boils down to revenues, income and profit at the end of the day. That is all that investors are concerned about in the first place. One other main point of difference between the two investment sectors, is the fact that they are not directly tied to each other, in the overall global economy. In other words, when stocks are down, alternatives investments are not affected by the adverse shift in the market's performance. In fact, history repeatedly shows that hard asset demand increases, each and every time the market struggles. Judging by the overall unstable and unreliable state of the global markets these days, it looks as though it could be a long time, before investors regain their trust and confidence; in any of the world's stock markets.

Investors Enjoy Safety and Success With Tangible Hard Assets

The traditional methods of investing money, like real estate, stocks and bonds, are consistently providing disappointing returns; for unhappy investors across the globe. The limited growth potential and lack of profits demonstrated by traditional investments, has inspired more and more investment-seekers, to look beyond the most common and established strategies; to discover investing safety and long-term success.

There are signs all around us that the economy is making serious improvement, and that now could be the opportune time to look back on investing lessons learned over the past 5 years, and apply them to an educated investment strategy. It would be an understatement to say it has been nerve-wracking for fund managers, who have had to manage their portfolios through a global credit crunch, a bear market, the Great Recession, the worst labor market since the 1930s, bank bailouts, the collapse of the housing market and an unprecedented monetary easing by the central banks.

With that being said, I am certain that there are a lot of very good reasons, for a person to invest in tangible hard assets; especially in times of uncertainty. Hard assets can offer benefits that other investments cannot. For an investor who has a traditional portfolio filled with stocks and bonds, adding something tangible like investing in diamonds, can help them diversity their investment portfolio; and accommodate risk. Furthermore, with hard asset investment, there is also the opportunity for very competitive returns, as well as; the opportunity to preserve personal wealth.

Amid Economic Turmoil Investors Are Guarding Against Scams

With an abundance of economic uncertainty in the world's financial markets, global investors are becoming increasingly apprehensive about making investments, and are guarding against investment scams or get-rich-quick schemes. As an alternative to traditional investments, such as gold, real estate and stocks, apprehensive investors are searching for established low risk investments, that have consistently proven that they can grow and protect; an investor's investment principle. Not to be considered overly cynical, this growing suspicion has encouraged many investment-seekers to be highly critical of questionable investing strategies, and has helped officials and cautious investors; expose very elaborate investment scams around the world.

To investors, the ideal low risk investment is one that is the easiest to understand, easy to monitor and even easier to liquidate. In contrast, investment scams are notorious for being intricate and difficult to figure out, nearly impossible to supervise investment progress, and even more problematic to convert back into cash. When making an investment nowadays, investors do not want to be "left in the dark." Instead, they want to build and maintain long-term, profitable relationships with investment providers, that clearly demonstrates an appreciation for the value of their hard-earned money. Furthermore, investors are also insisting upon better communication of updates, such as; investment growth and betterment.

The modern investor's cynical and frugal approach to investing, albeit inspired by the need to avoid an investment scam, has ushered-in a demand for transparency and responsibility from the people behind traditional and alternative investment opportunities, as more and more investors keep a watchful eye on their investments; and their hard-earned money. The bottom line is, that people are no longer satisfied to trust their money to so-called professionals, without establishing a meaningful relationship; that is founded on trust and accountability. Operators of an investment scam, will prey on the misguided trust of novice investors and will cleverly position themselves, to avoid any responsibility or answer-ability should anything go wrong with the investment. On the other hand, most reputable and world renowned companies are not afraid to build personal relationships with investors and international business partners.

With that being said, because there are those who have chosen to exploit unfortunate circumstances and prey on the naive and innocent, reputable companies with legitimate and profitable investments have been subject to intense scrutiny and criticism from serious investors and the global investment audience; who are all trying to avoid a scam. As such, when a legitimate and profitable opportunity arises, like shipping container investments for example; investors are naturally skeptical. However, the good thing about their skepticism, is that reluctant investors will conduct extensive investment research, and will discover assurances in the abundance of positive industry information and find "piece of mind" in the absence of negative investment reviews; or poor investor sentiment.

Great Opportunities Still Exist Despite Economic Hardship

Perhaps the most remarkable trend in the investment world today, is the global movement toward alternative investment strategies. More and more investors are seeking a different avenue to making their investments, and are happy to consider any profitable opportunities, that differ from the traditional approaches.

In many instances, investors are embracing the tangible benefits of some investing alternatives which has inspired a renewed confidence in the investment marketplace, as well as a strong belief that great opportunities still exist; despite economic hardship around the world. In fact, a growing number of investors have said that their favorite alternative investments, are those which focus on the most popular hard assets, that can be closely observed and even touched; by unsure and apprehensive investors. As well, more and more investors are learning that hard assets are generally unaffected by the performance of other asset classes, and thus provide a level of safety against inflation, etc., that traditional investments like stocks and bonds; cannot provide.

In addition to their repeated bad performances, the downfall of stocks and bonds, has also been their lack of transparency. A stock or bond certificate provides very little in the way of assurances to investors, that their hard-earned money is in good hands and is working every minute to increase in value, and provide a sizable return in the end. This distrust of the normal approaches to investing, has encouraged investors to begin looking seriously at the alternatives to common investments, to provide safety and security for their precious investment principle; against the political and economic hardships being experience throughout the world.

Retirement: Hard Assets Versus Pension and Personal Savings

In most developed nations, retirees depended upon an approach that is known as the three-legged stool. This strategy for retirement includes a pension, social security and personal savings. However, people are beginning to see that their stool actually has only one leg ... their personal savings.

In regards to the safety or security of a pension, most companies and governments have easy access to the retirement funds. For example, the Treasury and the European Stabilization Mechanism (ESM) have full access to  pension money, and can use it as a source of raising capital. Furthermore, the United States' social security is on the brink of insolvency, and its days are numbered; as well. With that being said, it is understandable why these actions would create uncertainty in most people, who are desperately trying to save for their retirement. But that's not all ...

In a credit-induced community, their isn't much hope for personal savings either. The Employee Benefit Research Institute reported in March 2012, that 60 percent of American workers revealed that the total value of their savings and investments, is less than $25,000. The three pillars of retirement income for citizens in developed economies – Social Security, private pensions and savings, appear to be on shaky ground and quickly becoming a growing concern for hard-working people and apprehensive investors all over the world; who are actively seeking alternatives to common investments and traditional investing.

One of the first things individuals must do immediately to strengthen their retirement system, is to invest their money in hard assets. Usually, hard assets are non-perishable real (tangible) assets and include real estate and commodity-related assets, such as energy (oil and gas), precious metals (gold and silver), industrial metals (aluminum and copper) or timber; and often function as a  key part of most people's retirement strategy. As simple as it may sound, investing in hard assets is not like investing in stocks or bonds, and there are many alternatives for confused investors; each with its own benefits and rewards.

Investors Can Increase Private Savings Through Investment

Sometimes owning hard assets such as a shipping container, is the only satisfactory option. The returns on hard assets determined in established lease agreements, are typically greater than the rates paid by banks on high interest savings accounts. In most instances, a shipping lease agreement is almost always a fixed contract, so it is relatively easy for investors to forecast investment returns. Furthermore, if an investor's goal is to save and not use the money in the short term, hard assets will provide the greatest investment return; without posing too much risk to the principle.

Private savings from the working class, are a great example of funds that need to increase through investment, while also protecting the principle from any risk factors. Depositing money into a bank account is a start, however it is not going to give you any phenomenal returns (one must remember that global nominal interest rates have been close to zero per cent for years). Therefore one thing is for certain. In the case of investing in shipping containers, aspiring investors can predict their investment earnings, and thus determine the amount they will have to contribute; to meet their investment/savings goals.

So, when stocks are performing poorly amid global uncertainty, owning a hard asset such as shipping containers, provides a great vehicle for saving money; when investors do not want to put investment money at risk. Investors must remember that global economies will recover and grow in time, and that this recessionary period will eventually end. When this happens, demand for shipping containers will rise, putting pressure on purchase/leasing prices and further maximize the value; of an investor's fleet of shipping containers.

Investor Advice For Making The Best Safe Investment

It is never an easy decision for an investor to make, when they have to decide where to invest, the hard earned money; they have worked so hard to save. Most investors are extremely interested in knowing how safe the investment is, how much money will be returned to the investor; and when profits will be paid.

The famous investor Warren Buffett recently told an audience of investors, that he likes simple investments, that he can easily understand. This reinforces the notion, that it is important for any investor to understand an investment, and how it will work for them; to constantly generate profitable returns. It provides investors with a measure of peace of mind.

Where should I invest? How much should I invest? How much can I expect to be returned on the investment? These three common questions asked by investors, can be answered by conducting investment research, to find out more about investment opportunities. Investors should use the information that is collected, to select an investment company that works best for them, and offers a proven track record of delivering safe investments, and happy returns for investors.