5 Best Asian Stocks To Own For 2014

LONDON -- Stock index futures at 7 a.m. EDT indicate that both the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) and the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC  ) may open up by 0.18% this morning. CNN's Fear & Greed Index is set to open today at 58, unchanged from Friday's close of 58.

Overnight news that China's economy grew at an annualized rate of 7.5% during the second quarter of this year -- down from 7.7% in the first quarter -- dominated markets this morning. The figures were in line with analysts' recently downgraded targets, but they confirmed investors' fears that the country's growth is continuing to slow. However, most Asian stock markets closed slightly higher on relief that the Chinese figures were not any worse than expected.

European markets edged cautiously higher after opening, while oil prices slipped back slightly and the price of gold stayed firm following the news from China. In Europe, France's "AAA" credit rating was downgraded by Fitch to "AA+," making it the third of the major credit-rating agencies to downgrade France, but the change had little impact on bond markets. At 8 a.m. EDT, the FTSE 100 was up 0.42%, the DAX was up 0.2%, and France's CAC 40 was up by 0.43%, while Spain's IBEX 35 index was down by 0.54% as corruption allegations continued to place pressure on the country's prime minister.

Hot Logistics Companies To Buy For 2015: HSBC Holdings PLC (HBCYF)

HSBC Holdings plc (HSBC) is a global banking and financial services organizations. As of December 31, 2012, it provided a range of financial services to around 58 million customers through four global businesses: Retail Banking and Wealth Management, Commercial Banking, Global Banking and Markets, and Global Private Banking. In June 2012, the Company�� indirect wholly owned subsidiary, HSBC Iris Investments (Mauritius) Ltd, sold its 4.73% interest in Axis Bank Limited and 4.74% interest in Yes Bank Limited. In July 2012, its subsidiary, HSBC Europe (Netherlands B.V.), sold its 100% interest in HSBC Credit Zrt, to CentralFund Kockazati Tokealap. On March 31, 2013, Enstar Group Ltd�� subsidiary completed the acquisition from Household Insurance Group Holding Company of HSBC Insurance Company of Delaware and Household Life Insurance Company of Delaware, as well as its three subsidiary insurers. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Mark Thompson]

  The Gold Fixing began as usual at 3 pm. Deutsche Bank (DB), HSBC (HBCYF), Scotiabank and Societe Generale (SCGLF) joined Barclays on a conference call.

5 Best Asian Stocks To Own For 2014: Ishares Nasdaq Biotechnology (IBB)

iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (the Fund) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (the Index). The Index consists of securities of NASDAQ-listed companies that are classified according to the Industry Classification Benchmark as either biotechnology or pharmaceuticals, and which also meet other eligibility criteria. The Index is one of the eight sub-indices of the NASDAQ Composite, which measures all common stocks listed on The NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc.

The Fund invests in a representative sample of securities included in the Index that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Index. The Fund�� investment advisor is Barclays Global Fund Advisors.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Susan J. Aluise]

  The Takeaway: Although GILD shares have soared 70% in the past year, it’s still trading at just 14 times forward earnings and a price/earnings-to-growth ratio of 0.55, indicating it’s still undervalued. Better still, at a beta of 0.9, it’s less volatile than your typical biotech. If you��e looking for a large cap value stock in the biotech sector that combines size and relative stability with growth, there could be a place for GILD in your portfolio.

  Biotech Stocks: iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (IBB)

  Type: ETF
  Assets Under Management: $5.8 billion

• [By John Udovich]

  The biotech roller-coaster continues for investors into 2014 with small cap Chelsea Therapeutics International Ltd (NASDAQ: CHTP) set to more than double when the market opens today, meaning its time to take a closer look at what in the world is going on with the stocks plus take a closer look at the performance of biotech peers like the iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index ETF (NASDAQ: IBB) and SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (NYSEARCA: XBI).

5 Best Asian Stocks To Own For 2014: Lean Hogs (HE)

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc., through its subsidiaries, primarily engages in electric utility and banking businesses primarily in Hawaii. The company is involved in the production, purchase, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity from renewable energy sources, such as wind, solar, photovoltaic, geothermal, wave, hydroelectric, sugarcane waste, municipal waste, and other biofuels, as well as from fuel oil. It distributes and sells electricity on the islands of Oahu, Hawaii, Maui, Lanai, and Molokai; and serves suburban communities, resorts, the United States armed forces installations, and agricultural operations. As of December 31, 2011, the company had net generating and firm purchased capability of 2,326.9 megawatts. It also engages in providing banking and other financial services, such as accepting savings accounts, checking accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit; and providing loans comprising residential and commercial real es tate, residential mortgage, construction and development, multifamily residential and commercial real estate, consumer, and commercial loans to consumers and business. The company operated 57 branches and 119 automated teller machines. Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. was founded in 1891 and is based in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By shash63]

  Ever since the evolution of electricity, demand for electric power has been been rising exponentially. To satisfy America's need for the ever growing demand of power; various companies are looking to generate more power by use of conventional and non conventional methods. Hawaiian Electric Industries (HE) is one such company in the U.S. that supplies 95% of electricity in Hawaii with its customer base of over 450,000.

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Utilities shares dropped by 0.31 percent in the US market today. Among the sector stocks, Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE: HE) was down more than 2.9 percent, while Edison International (NYSE: EIX) tumbled around 1.4 percent.

5 Best Asian Stocks To Own For 2014: Materion Corporation (MTRN)

Materion Corporation, a materials solutions company, engages in the production and supply of high-performance engineered materials in the United States and internationally. The company offers high performance materials solutions for large area coatings, alternative energy, and thin film applications; and specialty inorganic chemicals for semiconductors, LED lighting, and energy storage applications. It also provides precision thin film coatings and optical filters for manufacturers in the defense, commercial, space, science, astronomy, and thermal imaging industries; beryllium-based metals and metal matrix composites for commercial, research, and engineering applications; and copper, copper beryllium, and spinodal alloy products for end-use products in the aerospace, automotive, computers, telecommunications, manufacturing equipment, mobile equipment, medical products, oil and gas, alternative energy, and plastic tooling markets. In addition, the company offers high perfor mance engineered ceramics; beryllium X-ray window and ultra high vacuum products; electron beam welding, vacuum furnace brazing, and waterjet cutting services, as well as engineering support services; and beryllium products, such as speaker domes and microphone transducers. Further, Materion Corporation provides precision-coated materials; thin film deposition materials, electronic packaging products, and specialty materials for the semiconductor, photonics, data storage, wireless, military, and medical markets; and precision parts cleaning, precious metals refining, and recycling services. Additionally, it engages in beryllium mining and milling business; and offers engineered beryllium materials and specialty strip metal products. The company was formerly known as Brush Engineered Materials Inc. and changed its name to Materion Corporation on March 8, 2011. Materion Corporation was founded in 1931 and is headquartered in Mayfield Heights, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  In trading on Thursday, basic materials shares were relative leaders, up on the day by about 1.20 percent. Among the leading sector stocks, gains came from Axiall (NYSE: AXLL), Materion (NYSE: MTRN), Huntsman (NYSE: HUN) and Joy Global (NYSE: JOY).

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  In trading on Thursday, basic materials shares were relative leaders, up on the day by about 1.20 percent. Among the leading sector stocks, gains came from Axiall (NYSE: AXLL), Materion (NYSE: MTRN), Huntsman (NYSE: HUN) and Joy Global (NYSE: JOY).

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Margins matter. The more Materion (NYSE: MTRN  ) keeps of each buck it earns in revenue, the more money it has to invest in growth, fund new strategic plans, or (gasp!) distribute to shareholders. Healthy margins often separate pretenders from the best stocks in the market. That's why we check up on margins at least once a quarter in this series. I'm looking for the absolute numbers, so I can compare them to current and potential competitors, and any trend that may tell me how strong Materion's competitive position could be.