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This is a thread that focuses on Commodities.

Saudi America: The Truth about Fracking and How It's Changing the World

by Bethany McLean

Synopsis:

Bestselling author Bethany McLean reveals the true story of fracking's impact -- on Wall Street, the economy and geopolitics.

The technology of fracking in shale rock -- particularly in the Permian Basin in Texas -- has transformed America into the world's top producer of both oil and natural gas. The U.S. is expected to be "energy independent" and a "net exporter" in less than a decade, a move that will upend global politics, destabilize Saudi Arabia, crush Russia's chokehold over Europe, and finally bolster American power again.

Or will it?

Investigative journalist Bethany McLean digs deep into the cycles of boom and bust that have plagued the American oil industry for the past decade, from the financial wizardry and mysterious death of fracking pioneer Aubrey McClendon, to the investors who are questioning the very economics of shale itself. McLean finds that fracking is a business built on attracting ever-more gigantic amounts of capital investment, while promises of huge returns have yet to bear out. Saudi America tells a remarkable story that will persuade you to think about the power of oil in a new way.

My Review:

This is an interesting exposé on the economics and finance of fracking. It does not focus on the environmental impacts, which have received plenty of attention in other books and media reporting. McLean, who also wrote the authoritative book on the Enron scandal, focuses on the central characters who built the industry, the economics of it, and the role politics has played in it. She shares perspectives from financial analysts and industry experts, and she finishes with a look at potential future outcomes for how this development will shape the world for the next 20 years and beyond.

Great add.

Boom, Bust, Boom: A Story About Copper, the Metal that Runs the World

by Bill Carter

Synopsis:

COPPER is a miraculous and contradictory metal, essential to nearly every human enterprise. For most of recorded history, this remarkably pliable and sturdy substance has proven invaluable: not only did the ancient Romans build their empire on mining copper but Christopher Columbus protected his ships from rot by lining their hulls with it. Today, the metal can be found in every house, car, airplane, cell phone, computer, and home appliance the world over, including in all the new, so-called green technologies.

Yet the history of copper extraction and our present relationship with the metal are fraught with profound difficulties. Copper mining causes irrevocable damage to the Earth, releasing arsenic, cyanide, sulfuric acid, and other deadly pollutants into the air and water. And the mines themselves have significant effects on the economies and wellbeing of the communities where they are located.

With Red Summer and Fools Rush In, Bill Carter has earned a reputation as an on-the-ground journalist adept at connecting the local elements of a story to its largest consequences. Carter does this again—and brilliantly—in Boom, Bust, Boom, exploring in an entertaining and fact-rich narrative the very human dimension of copper extraction and the colossal implications the industry has for every one of us.

Starting in his own backyard in the old mining town of Bisbee, Arizona—where he discovers that the dirt in his garden contains double the acceptable level of arsenic—Bill Carter follows the story of copper to the controversial Grasberg copper mine in Indonesia; to the “ring� at the London Metal Exchange, where a select group of traders buy and sell enormous amounts of the metal; and to an Alaskan salmon run threatened by mining. Boom, Bust, Boom is a highly readable account—part social history, part mining-town exploration, and part environmental investigation.

Page by page, Carter blends the personal and the international in a narrative that helps us understand the paradoxical relationship we have with a substance whose necessity to civilization costs the environment and the people who mine it dearly. The result is a work of first-rate journalism that fascinates on every level.

My Review:

This is an interesting book about copper, why the mineral is so important, and how its mining affects people and the planet. It is written in a style like travel writing, with a story about his family and their town tying it all together. The writing is decent, but mostly the cases and the big picture of our complex relationship with copper makes this a fascinating read.

An Essay on the Principle of Population

by Thomas Robert Malthus

Synopsis:

While millions face hunger, malnutrition, and starvation, the world's population is increasing by over 225,000 people per day, 80 million per year. In many countries, supplies of food and water are inadequate to support the population, so the world falls deeper and deeper into what economists call the "Malthusian trap."

Here, Malthus examines the tendency of human numbers to outstrip their resources, and argues that poverty, disease, and starvation are necessary to keep societies from moving beyond their means of subsistence.

All good adds - thx

On Borrowed Time: Assessing the Threat of Mineral Depletion

by John Tilton (no photo)

Synopsis:

The sharp rise in mineral use has revived concern about scarcity. Economist John Tilton responds by analyzing recent trends in the consumption and availability of minerals that are most integral to the needs of modern civilization. He reminds readers that, if the arguments about scarcity sound familiar, it is because the story of minerals scarcity is almost as old as human history-and so too is substitution and technological innovation. The issue at hand is the unprecedented acceleration in exploitation and use. Given global population growth, rising living standards, and environmental concerns, how seriously should today s society take the threat of mineral exhaustion? On Borrowed Time? provides general interest and student readers with an accessible framework for understanding scarcity. Tilton defines important concepts and explores the methods used to study mineral scarcity, including physical measures of known reserves and the total resource base, and economic measures, such as extraction and end-user costs. He notes the increasing emphasis on the social and environmental costs of mineral production and use, placing the scarcity debate in context of broader concerns about sustainability and equity. He adds a history of thought about scarcity, from Malthus and Ricardo to Harold Hotelling, Donella Meadows, to the present day."

My Review:

On Borrowed Time is a both comprehensive and concise study of the economics of mined resources and their related commodities. It is the perfect resource for anyone interested in investing or working in these commodities or their related industries or getting a better handle on how to interpret physical and economic measures of resource availability. There are also significant applications for ecology and conservation efforts, which are addressed throughout the book. The included figures are very supportive and accompanied by explanations that make them easy to interpret. Tilton combines history, economics, and industry expertise to approach resource scarcity from every angle, but explains in a way that prior expertise in these areas is not necessary for the reader to comprehend.

The thesis is that enough minerals exist to sustain human usage for potentially millions of years; scarcity at any given moment is the result of the limitations of current technology and capital. As technology improves, it usually allows for extraction at monetary and environmental costs that society is willing to accept. If it ever reaches a point where it is possible, but no longer worth the costs, then society replaces the mineral with something else. We currently see natural gas, wind, and solar energy replacing coal for this reason. We are not running out of coal, it’s just not worth digging up as much as we used to. This is thanks to increased awareness of coal’s environmental costs, government subsidization of renewable energy investment, new technologies like fracking and more efficient wind and power generation, and natural market forces. All of these factors can work together to keep mineral allocation sustainable.

Very good - thx

The First World Oil War

by Timothy C. Winegard

Synopsis:

Oil is the source of wealth and economic opportunity. Oil is also the root source of global conflict, toxicity and economic disparity. When did oil become such a powerful commodity--during, and in the immediate aftermath of, the First World War.

In his groundbreaking book The First World Oil War, Timothy C. Winegard argues that beginning with the First World War, oil became the preeminent commodity to safeguard national security and promote domestic prosperity. For the first time in history, territory was specifically conquered to possess oil fields and resources; vital cogs in the continuation of the industrialized warfare of the Twentieth Century.

This original and pioneering study analyzes the evolution of oil as a catalyst for both war and diplomacy, and connects the events of the First World War to contemporary petroleum geo-politics and international aggression.

Extracted: How the Quest for Mineral Wealth Is Plundering the Planet: A Report to the Club of Rome

by Ugo Bardi (no photo)

Synopsis:

As we dig, drill, and excavate to unearth the planet's mineral bounty, the resources we exploit from ores, veins, seams, and wells are gradually becoming exhausted. Mineral treasures that took millions, or even billions, of years to form are now being squandered in just centuries-or sometimes just decades. Will there come a time when we actually run out of minerals? Debates already soar over how we are going to obtain energy without oil, coal, and gas. But what about the other mineral losses we face? Without metals, and semiconductors, how are we going to keep our industrial system running? Without mineral fertilizers and fuels, how are we going to produce the food we need?Ugo Bardi delivers a sweeping history of the mining industry, starting with its humble beginning when our early ancestors started digging underground to find the stones they needed for their tools. He traces the links between mineral riches and empires, wars, and civilizations, and shows how mining in its various forms came to be one of the largest global industries. He also illustrates how the gigantic mining machine is now starting to show signs of difficulties. The easy mineral resources, the least expensive to extract and process, have been mostly exploited and depleted. There are plenty of minerals left to extract, but at higher costs and with increasing difficulties.The effects of depletion take different forms and one may be the economic crisis that is gripping the world system. And depletion is not the only problem. Mining has a dark side-pollution-that takes many forms and delivers many consequences, including climate change. The world we have been accustomed to, so far, was based on cheap mineral resources and on the ability of the ecosystem to absorb pollution without generating damage to human beings. Both conditions are rapidly disappearing. Having thoroughly plundered planet Earth, we are entering a new world. Bardi draws upon the world's leading minerals experts to offer a compelling glimpse into that new world ahead.

Thanks Douglas for the adds.

Stoned: Jewelry, Obsession, and How Desire Shapes the World

by Aja Raden

Synopsis:

As entertaining as it is incisive, Stoned is a raucous journey through the history of human desire for what is rare, and therefore precious.

What makes a stone a jewel? What makes a jewel priceless? And why do we covet beautiful things? In this brilliant account of how eight jewels shaped the course of history, jeweler and scientist Aja Raden tells an original and often startling story about our unshakeable addiction to beauty and the darker side of human desire.

What moves the world is what moves each of us: desire. Jewelry—which has long served as a stand-in for wealth and power, glamor and success—has birthed cultural movements, launched political dynasties, and started wars. Masterfully weaving together pop science and history, Stoned breaks history into three categories—Want, Take, and Have—and explains what the diamond on your finger has to do with the GI Bill, why green-tinted jewelry has been exalted by so many cultures, why the glass beads that bought Manhattan for the Dutch were initially considered a fair trade, and how the French Revolution started over a coveted necklace.

Studded with lively personalities and fascinating details, Stoned tells the remarkable story of our abiding desire for the rare and extraordinary.

Uranium: War, Energy and the Rock That Shaped the World

by Tom Zoellner

Synopsis:

Uranium is a common element in the earth's crust and the only naturally occurring mineral with the power to end all life on the planet. After World War II, it reshaped the global order-whoever could master uranium could master the world.

Marie Curie gave us hope that uranium would be a miracle panacea, but the Manhattan Project gave us reason to believe that civilization would end with apocalypse. Slave labor camps in Africa and Eastern Europe were built around mine shafts and America would knowingly send more than six hundred uranium miners to their graves in the name of national security.

Fortunes have been made from this yellow dirt; massive energy grids have been run from it. Fear of it panicked the American people into supporting a questionable war with Iraq and its specter threatens to create another conflict in Iran. Now, some are hoping it can help avoid a global warming catastrophe.

In Uranium, Tom Zoellner takes readers around the globe in this intriguing look at the mineral that can sustain life or destroy it.

Very interesting Douglass.

Can you recommend books on how commodity markets functions and what are the fault lines.

Welcome Faiz - I will try to add some for you.

A Trader's First Book on Commodities: An Introduction to the World's Fastest-Growing Market

by Carley Garner

Synopsis:

You can make large profits by trading commodities--but you'll need significant practical knowledge of the associated risks and market characteristics before you start. "A Trader's First Book on Commodities "is a simple, practical and useful guide for new commodities traders. Author Carley Garner provides specific guidance on accessing commodity markets cost-effectively, avoiding common beginners' mistakes, and improving the odds of successful, profitable trades. Drawing on her extensive experience teaching traders, Garner shows how to calculate profit, loss, and risk in commodities, and choose the best brokerage firm, service level, data sources, and market access for your needs. She'll help you: - Master the basics of trading commodities painlessly, avoiding beginners mistakes- Get what you need, and prevent paying for what you don't need- Know what you're buying, what it costs, the returns you're earning and the risk you're taking- Predict price, manage risk, and make trades that reflect your analysis Garner demystifies the industry's colorful language, helps you clearly understand what you're buying and selling, and walks you through the entire trading process. She concludes with a refreshingly new look at topics such as trading plans, handling margin calls, and even maintaining emotional stability as a trader. "This book provides the type of information every trader needs to know and the type of information too many traders had to learn the hard and expensive way. Carley offers practical need-to-know, real-world trading tips that are lacking in many books on futures. It will help not only the novice trader, but seasoned veterans as well. This book will serve as a must-have reference in every trader's library."--Phil Flynn, Vice President and Senior Market analyst at PFGBest Research, and a Fox Business Network contributor "Refreshing-It's nice to see a broker who has actually been exposed to the professional side of trading and who bridges that chasm between exchange floor trading and customer service. Carley takes the time to explain verbiage, not just throw buzz words around. A good educational read in my opinion."--Don Bright, Director, Bright Trading, LLC "This book has the perfect name, the perfect message, and the necessary information for any beginning trader. Take this book home!"--Glen Larson, President, Genesis Financial Technologies, Inc. "As a 35-year veteran of the CME/CBOT trading floor, I can tell you...those who think they can begin trading commodities without knowing the less talked about topics that Carley discusses in "A Trader's First Book on Commodities" are sadly mistaken. Anyone who trades their own account, or would like to, should read this book."--Danny Riley, DT Trading

Higher Probability Commodity Trading

by Carley Garner

Synopsis:

Higher Probability Commodity Trading takes readers on an unprecedented journey through the treacherous commodity markets; shedding light on topics rarely discussed in trading literature from a unique perspective, with the intention of increasing the odds of success for market participants. The Author, Carley Garner, is a frequent contributor of commodity market analysis to CNBC’s Mad Money TV show hosted by Jim Cramer. She has also been a futures and options broker, where for over a decade she has had a front row seat to the victories and defeats the commodity markets deal to traders.

In its quest to guide traders through the process of commodity market analysis, strategy development, risk management, Higher Probability Commodity Trading discusses several alternative market concepts and unconventional views such as option selling tactics, hedging futures positions with options, and combining the practice of fundamental, technical, seasonal, and sentiment analysis to gauge market price changes.

Garner has a knack for portraying complex commodity trading concepts, in an easy-to-read and entertaining format. Readers of Higher Probability Commodity Trading are sure to walk away with a better understanding of the futures and options market, but more importantly with the benefit of years of market lessons learned without the expensive lessons.

Hot Commodities:
How Anyone Can Invest Profitably in the World’s Best Market

by Jim Rogers

Synopsis:

This is a limited supply copy of the hardcover book personally autographed by the author. Get your copy of this collectible item, autographed by the legendary Jim Rogers himself!According to Jim Rogers, "commodities get no respect." Here are a few reasons why he thinks they should: they are easier to comprehend and study than stocks and behave more rationally since they are subject to the basic laws of supply and demand; they have outperformed many other investment options in recent years; it is foolish to ignore an entire sector of the marketplace; and a bull market is currently under way in commodities--a trend that Rogers expects to last for a least a decade longer. Further, Rogers believes that you cannot be a successful investor in stocks, bonds, or currencies without an understanding of commodities. Hot Commodities: How Anyone Can Invest Profitably in the World's Best Market is designed to introduce the novice to the basics of investing in commodities as well as explain what they are and why they are important. In doing so, he shatters some myths about the relative risks of commodities, explains the relationship between the stock and commodities markets, and provides a succinct analysis and history of the global oil, gold, lead, sugar, and coffee markets. Rogers also offers practical advice and information for beginners, including the best resources, how to read the commodities reports in the newspaper or on television, the various ways to open an account, information on index funds (such as Rogers' own index fund that he started in 1998), mechanisms, terminology, and other vital details people must know before investing. Clearly written and entertaining, Hot Commodities offers a solid introduction to investments that many people, including financial advisors, fail to give the proper respect. --Shawn Carkonen

The Little Book of Commodity Investing

by John Stephenson (no photo)

Synopsis:

The world has changed and so too has investing. The market is shell shocked and yesterday's momentum stocks are today's slow-motion stocks. But in the new reality of low-growth investing, commodities are hot and getting hotter. A rapidly industrializing and urbanizing Asia will be demanding lots more copper, zinc, iron ore, coal, fertilizers, gold and oil to transform their societies. Commodities are it and that's great news for investors who want to profit from the next great bull market in commodities. In fact, commodities may be about the only asset class that is likely to outperform the broad market in the future. Although they are without a doubt important to the global economy, commodities are among the most misunderstood of all asset classes. Stocks, bonds and real estate all have legions of followers and plenty of experts agree on their importance within an investment portfolio, but venture into the world of commodities and you are into an area that's intimidating to the average investor, where suspicions run deep and understanding is limited. As a result, commodities get short-shrift in most investment accounts and investors miss out on some important opportunities.

Diary of a Professional Commodity Trader: Lessons from 21 Weeks of Real Trading

by Peter L. Brandt (no photo)

Synopsis:

Trading is generally far more difficult in practice than in theory. The reality is that no trade set up or individual trader or system can identify profitable trades in advance with complete certainty. In A Year of Trading, long-time trader Peter Brandt reveals the anxieties and uncertainties of trading in a diary of his 2009 trades. He explains his thought process as he searches for trading opportunities and executes them. Each trade includes charts, an analysis of the trade, and a play-by-play account of how the trade unfolds

Technical Analysis of the Financial Markets

by John J. Murphy (no photo)

Synopsis:

John J. Murphy has updated his landmark bestseller Technical Analysis of the Futures Markets, to include all of the financial markets.This outstanding reference has already taught thousands of traders the concepts of technical analysis and their application in the futures and stock markets. Covering the latest developments in computer technology, technical tools, and indicators, the second edition features new material on candlestick charting, intermarket relationships, stocks and stock rotation, plus state-of-the-art examples and figures. From how to read charts to understanding indicators and the crucial role technical analysis plays in investing, readers gain a thorough and accessible overview of the field of technical analysis, with a special emphasis on futures markets. Revised and expanded for the demands of today's financial world, this book is essential reading for anyone interested in tracking and analyzing market behavior.

Wheel of Fortune: The Battle for Oil and Power in Russia

by Thane Gustafson (no photo)

Synopsis:

The Russian oil industry which vies with Saudi Arabia as the world s largest producer and exporter of oil, providing nearly 12 percent of the global supply is facing mounting problems that could send shock waves through the Russian economy and worldwide. "Wheel of Fortune" provides an authoritative account of this vital industry from the last years of communism to its uncertain future. Tracking the interdependence among Russia s oil industry, politics, and economy, Thane Gustafson shows how the stakes extend beyond international energy security to include the potential threat of a destabilized Russia.

Gustafson, a leading consultant and analyst of the politics of energy in the former Soviet Union, draws on interviews with key players over the course of two decades to provide a detailed history of the oil industry s evolution since the breakup of the Soviet Union. At its center is the complex and fraught relationship between the oil industry and the state, which loosened its grip under Yeltsin only to tighten it again under Putin. As oil becomes harder to find and more expensive to produce and deliver, Gustafson warns, Russia s growing dependence on revenue from oil exports, along with its inefficient and often-corrupt management of the industry, is unsustainable.

A rich but troubled Soviet legacy, the conflicting ambitions of politicians and industry oligarchs, and the excesses of capitalism Russian-style threaten to lead Russia to an impasse. Involving the oil industry in the country s modernization agenda and remaking its relationship to the state, Gustafson argues, is Russia s best path toward a stable economy and a safer world." (less)

Douglass thank you for the add.

Russian Oil Supply: Performance and Prospects

by John D. Grace (no photo)

Synopsis:

Russian Oil Supply traces the development of the Russian oil industry from its inception in the 1870s through the present. The fundamental geology of the two main producing basins (Volga-Ural and West Siberia) is presented along with a review of key production technologies. The technical, economic, and policy aspects of achieving the 1987-88 peak production are described as well as the mechanics of the production collapse that followed and, since 1999, the recovery of Russian output. The performance of Russia's major oil companies, independents and joint ventures is analyzed and conclusions drawn on the future course of production and exports.

Thank you for the add Douglass.

Politics of Energy Dependency: Ukraine, Belarus, and Lithuania Between Domestic Oligarchs and Russian Pressure

by Margarita M. Balmaceda (no photo)

Synopsis:

Energy has been an important element in Moscow s quest to exert power and influence in its surrounding areas both before and after the collapse of the USSR. With their political independence in 1991, Ukraine, Belarus, and Lithuania also became, virtually overnight, separate energy-poor entities heavily dependent on Russia. This increasingly costly dependency and elites scrambling over associated profits came to crucially affect not only relations with Russia, but the very nature of post-independence state building.

The Politics of Energy Dependency explores why these states were unable to move towards energy diversification. Through extensive field research using previously untapped local-language sources, Margarita M. Balmaceda reveals a complex picture of local elites dealing with the complications of energy dependency and, in the process, affecting the energy security of Europe as a whole.

A must-read for anyone interested in Eastern Europe, Russia, and the politics of natural resources, this book reveals the insights gained by looking at post-Soviet development and international relations issues not only from a Moscow-centered perspective, but from that of individual actors in other states."

Minerals, Critical Minerals, and the U.S. Economy

by National Research Council (no photo)

Synopsis:

Minerals are part of virtually every product we use. Common examples include copper used in electrical wiring and titanium used to make airplane frames and paint pigments. The Information Age has ushered in a number of new mineral uses in a number of products including cell phones (e.g., tantalum) and liquid crystal displays (e.g., indium). For some minerals, such as the platinum group metals used to make cataytic converters in cars, there is no substitute. If the supply of any given mineral were to become restricted, consumers and sectors of the U.S. economy could be significantly affected. Risks to minerals supplies can include a sudden increase in demand or the possibility that natural ores can be exhausted or become too difficult to extract. Minerals are more vulnerable to supply restrictions if they come from a limited number of mines, mining companies, or nations. Baseline information on minerals is currently collected at the federal level, but no established methodology has existed to identify potentially critical minerals. This book develops such a methodology and suggests an enhanced federal initiative to collect and analyze the additional data needed to support this type of tool.

A of this book is available from .