The price of gold has soared in recent years, but experts warn that the bubble could burst all too easilyThe popularity of gold has rocketed in recent years, reflecting the investor..

Oil, banking, drugs … some investors are in for a shock when they see where ethical funds are putting their cashPensions company Zurich has a fund that it promises will invest in ..

• Prudential cheers investors with 5% rise in dividend• Insurance group says payouts are safe despite AIA debacleThe management of Prudential received a boost todaywhen the insurer..

Recent half-year profit announcements say more about the state of the economy 12 months ago than about any hope for the future, says Heather ConnonRecession, what recession? That could be..

Returns on investing in stamps – even the rarest – can be little or nothing, despite some dealers' claimsIn an office complex in Chiswick, west London, a group of stamp collectors are..

Bank admits failing to meet 'high standards' after customers faced losing thousandsHundreds of Barclays customers, who were advised to invest their life savings in risky funds that..

Coutts inquiry covers savings products sold to Jeremy Clarkson and Frank SkinnerRoyal Bank of Scotland's private banking arm, Coutts, which counts the Queen as a client, is being..

The GB30 Rarities Index, which tracks the price of classic British stamps, is up 7% this yearPhilately is back in fashion, according to stamp collecting and autographs group Stanley Gibbons..

Wine is more resilient than gold and often outperforms stock markets and hedge fundsInvestments should improve with age. But a Madrid-based fund has beaten stock markets and hedge funds..

Governments likely to turn to bondholders to share the pain of restructuring financial companies in future crisesBondholders will be forced to bail out banks when the next financial crash..

As NS&I pulls its index-linked certificates investors must look beyond cash investments to combat the effects of inflationShould we be worried about inflation? More than 580,000 National..

Parliamentary ombudsman Ann Abraham says Equitable Life proposals would 'not enable fair and transparent compensation'Proposals that victims of the Equitable Life scandal should share no..

As the world's population expands, China switches from rice to meat, and biofuel growth looks set to rocket, City experts think agriculture is the best place to make money in the next..

Equitable Life policyholders should be grateful, in a time of austerity, that they are getting anything from the taxpayerThe public finances are in their most lamentable state ever in..

Jason Shearer was curious when he read Guardian Money's article on free bets. Could you really beat the bookies at no risk? He followed our advice, made £770, and reckons it's even simpler..

A goverment report suggests a total payout of £400m to £500m will be made to Equitable victims next year, a fraction of the expected figureVictims of the Equitable Life scandal reacted..

Rics survey says 24% of dealers reported a rise in prices rather than a fall in the second quarter of the yearThe art and antiques market remains buoyant depite tough economic conditions,..

• Commodity speculators push cocoa to 33-year high • Bets 'risk the most vulnerable in the world starving'Financial speculators have come under renewed fire from anti-poverty..

Announcement this morning expected to say that pension investors will no longer be forced to buy an annuityThe government will announce a long awaited consultation on the scrapping of..

• Investors voice concern over executive pay• More than 16% of M&S shareholders fail to support remuneration report, but Sainsbuury's wins 98% support10.15am: Roll up, roll up. Take..

While you can't invest directly in water – yet – you can dip into the market through specialist funds and companies supplying water technologiesWater, as anyone living in the north-west..

The boards at Marks & Spencer, Burberry, British Land and Sainsbury's will face investor wrath over executive pay this weekShareholders large and small are expected to deliver a bloody nose..

Gold price may go beyond record high to top $2,000 an ounce as bullion sales rocket and central banks stock upGoldfinger, the villain of the eponymous James Bond film, hatched a plot to..

Many 'absolute return' funds are giving investors a false sense of security and are no safer than equities, experts warnAdverts talk about how "absolute return" funds deliver positive..

Giffgaff has rewarded its customers with their first payout – for acting as its sales and technical staffA new "community-run" mobile phone company, which is offering the chance to earn..

As the famously bearish Robert Prechter predicts a Dow Jones Index below 1,000, stock market analysts disagree over whether to favour equities or giltsA US stock market analyst is warning..

Well, should you invest money in Ocado, an online supermarket that's never made a profit but wants to float? Here are the answers to all your nagging questionsRemind me. What is Ocado?Ocado..

Imperial Consolidated director pleads guilty to fraud chargeTwo businessmen accused of operating one of Britain's largest Ponzi investment frauds walked free from court without any..

FSA report finds "significant weaknesses" in information on risk given to with-profits policyholdersA "significant number" of with-profits policyholders are being exposed to unacceptable..

Resolution Life about to take over Axa's UK life business – and investment performance could sufferMore than 6 million holders of pension, with-profits and other insurance policies issued..

The retired teachers from Ontario have invested their pension fund in several UK ventures - now they have bid for the high-speed railwayA retirement fund set up for state-school teachers in..

Think you can spot a stock market winner, but don't know how to invest? Then read our guide to share trading for beginnersI'm a complete beginner. Where do I start?The cheapest way is to..

Playing the stock market has always been a very male thing. Now a new wave of women working from home is changing all that. Madeline Thomas reportsRead more: Share trading for..

You get a 30% tax rebate and there is no capital gains to pay. Venture capital trusts are shedding their reputation as a high-risk alternative investmentThe centre of Brixton in south..

Investors are being offered the unusual opportunity to buy into two big-name businesses. But should they be tempted?Ocado is offering customers of its online grocery service the opportunity..

Ocado's share offer to its customers is a welcome change to the trend of small punters being squeezed out of flotationsIt looks as if the Ocado float is on. Islington's favourite internet..

A £20,000 bond linked to the stock market shocked by paying no interest after five yearsBack in 2003 my son and I inherited my late husband's estate including several fixed-rate savings..

Innovative charitable bond could improve lives and reduce crimeCommunity Links has been supporting local residents in east London for over 30 years to volunteer, shape and deliver community..

Exclusive: Collection estimated to be worth £8m-£15m, including signed copy of A Christmas Carol, will go under the hammer from OctoberIn terms of scale and quality, it is one of the..

Equity investors should look for income anywhere but in the UK with its sluggish economic growth. By contrast, most Asian economies – and even the US and Europe – are on the upWhere in..

Community interest companies are providing ethical investment opportunities in projects that give long-term benefits to communities and the environmentTired of watching the value of your..

Coalition government will set up an independent compensation scheme for victims of Equitable Life with a view to paying out 'as quickly as possible'Hopes were high today that victims of the..

A reader is turning their back on shares and is looking for a new type of investmentEvery week a Guardian Money reader submits a question, and it's up to you to help him or her out – a..

• Only five FTSE 100 pension schemes are in surplus• Nine firms have pension liabilities higher than market valueAlmost one in ten blue-chip FTSE-100 companies face pension scheme..

In the first of a new fortnightly investment column, Heather Connon looks at the high dividends offered by 'mega cap' companies – safe havens in times of economic uncertaintyOil giant BP..

Prudential is launching its record-breaking rights issue into a highly volatile market, with shares buffeted by uncertainty over Greece and the new coalition government in the UKPrudential..

We answer your questions about what the proposed Prudential rights deal means for ordinary investorsPrudential has announced plans for the biggest rights issue in UK history to raise £14..

Art deco-style 57SC Atlantic coupé, one of only three produced by Bugatti, becomes most expensive car in the worldA sleek, curved vintage Bugatti has become the most expensive car in the..

A rare glimpse of Octavian Vaults's Corsham Cellars, where 5m bottles of fine wine are stored beneath the Wiltshire countrysideYou walk in through an anonymous modern office building, past..

When someone makes money selling assets other than their main home, for example by selling a buy-to-let property or shares, he or she may be liable to pay capital gains tax (CGT)..

What does half a century of academic research into stock markets tell you? Economics guru Burton Malkiel says put your cash in index funds. Patrick Collinson finds out whyDoctor Burton..