Welcome to my video presentation for today. The article below provides more details.

I find it invaluable to occasionally take a step back from the daily noise and reflect on the long view. The questions and comments that I receive via email help me in this regard. Through your feedback, I’m able to keep my editorial coverage relevant to your actual needs. Let’s see what’s on your minds these days. My answers should prove useful for investors of all types and experience.

The right allocations…

“I appreciate your unbiased view on investing in Mind Over Markets. I love your references to classic rock music (Woodstock) etc. I would like to know what your current allocations are for stocks, hedges, bonds and cash, since you are more bullish on the stock market heading into 2021.” — Ricky K.

Ricky, I’m glad you enjoy my cultural references, which tend to reflect my Baby Boomer status. As for recommended allocations, you’re right to be concerned about this topic.

According to financial industry studies, up to 75% of portfolio performance is related to asset allocation. Our flagship publication, Personal Finance, recommends the following portfolio allocations under current conditions (see pie chart).

These allocations are a general rule of thumb and should be tweaked according to your risk tolerance. Stage of life is an important factor as well.

In your stock sleeve, make sure you have exposure to safe havens such as the utilities sector. This low-beta sector tends to be stable during crises. For the best utility stocks now, click here for our report.

As for bonds, remain wary of long-term bonds, where you’d be locking in today’s low rates for extended periods of time. However, short-term or intermediate-term bonds and bond funds, with lower yields than long-term bonds, reduce the risk of losses.

About 5%-10% of your hedges sleeve should include precious metals, such as gold. The price of gold has soared in recent months, but I think it has further to run. The yellow metal is a classic hedge during uncertainty. Our investment team has pinpointed a small-cap gold miner that’s poised to skyrocket. Click here for details.

Gold should pay off handsomely in the coming months. But there’s another crisis hedge that many investment advisors tend to ignore: agricultural commodities.

The next great geopolitical struggle could be over food. Many experts predict that there won’t be enough food to feed growing populations. Indeed, the pandemic is causing food shortages around the world.

If you’re risk averse and seek safer and easier plays on agriculture, consider exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Agricultural ETF portfolios invest in grain and feed products, oilseeds, cotton, corn, wheat, soybeans, cocoa, coffee, sugar, dairy, livestock, poultry, and/or horticultural products. These funds can invest directly in physical assets, the equities of major agri-businesses, or commodity linked futures contracts.

As 2020 draws to a close, now’s a good time to pocket at least partial gains from your biggest winners; overvalued large-cap tech stocks are good candidates. We’re in the midst of sector rotation, whereby the market leaders are becoming the laggards. With faster economic growth in the cards for 2021, cyclical stocks are increasingly appealing.

Santa, baby…

“Do you foresee a ‘Santa Claus rally’ this month?” — Jerry B.

It’s entirely likely. Bolstering the bull case are robust holiday sales so far. This year’s Thanksgiving weekend smashed online shopping records. According to Adobe Digital Insights, total e-commerce sales over the entire Thanksgiving weekend reached $34.4 billion, with Cyber Monday alone comprising $10.8 billion of the total. This year’s Cyber Monday was the biggest online shopping day in U.S. history.

Read This Story: Should You Believe in a Santa Rally?

Much depends on fiscal stimulus. If we get coronavirus relief legislation, stocks should soar. Other factors in place for a Santa rally include low interest rates, loose monetary policy, the emergence of vaccines, and pent-up consumer demand. However, if Congress remains gridlocked, millions of Americans will find themselves destitute and the high-flying stock market could fall.

The waning days of pot prohibition…

“The U.S. House passed a major marijuana bill last week. How significant is the legislation for investors?” — Robert J.

Extremely important. In a landmark move, the U.S. House last week passed with overwhelming bipartisan support the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act. The legislation (H.R. 3884) would remove cannabis from the federal Controlled Substances Act, expunge past marijuana-related convictions and require certain criminal cases to be resentenced.

Read This Story: Marijuana: The Final Days of Prohibition

The Democratic-controlled House is marijuana friendly, but the same can’t be said for the GOP-controlled Senate. MORE faces a tougher road in the Senate, but if the Democrats gain control of the chamber after the January 5 Georgia run-off elections, passage of MORE will be assured.

The legalization of marijuana on the federal level would open new markets for marijuana companies and pave the way for massive investment profits.

You should invest in the booming marijuana sector before the lifting of the federal ban on weed. Our investment team has found an outstanding pot stock that deserves a place in your portfolio. It’s a small-cap drugmaker that has developed a non-addictive “marijuana pain pill.” The pill is a cannabis-based, non-opiate pain remedy that could be the blockbuster pharmaceutical of the future.

Now’s the time to invest in this medical marijuana company, while it’s still flying under the radar. Click here for details.

John Persinos is the editorial director of Investing Daily. He also writes the twice-weekly publication, Marijuana Investing Daily. You can reach him at: mailbag@investingdaily.com. To subscribe to John’s video channel, follow this link.