The Bluejay Mining share price (LSE: JAY) jumped today following news of a joint venture agreement with fellow exploration firm KoBold Metals. While a positive announcement in itself, it’s who is behind the deal that’s getting the market excited. 

Big backers

KoBold “uses machine learning to guide exploration for new deposits rich in the critical materials for electric vehicles“. Among its backers is a climate and technology fund called Breakthrough Energy Ventures. This fund is overseen by none other than Microsoft founder (and now committed philanthropist) Bill Gates. 

But Gates isn’t the only name that will be familiar to Foolish readers. Investors in his fund include former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Alibaba‘s Jack Ma, and legendary money manager Ray Dalio. Michael Bloomberg and Norweigian energy giant Equinor are also on board. As rosters go, I’m not sure they get much better. 

So, what’s the deal?

The agreement will see Bluejay and KoBold develop the former’s Disko-Nuussuaq project in Central West Greenland. Once up and running, this “world-class battery deposit” will hopefully produce nickel, copper, and cobalt. We already know the electric vehicle revolution will place huge demand on miners to generate sufficient quantities of metals. Since this should push prices up, it’s fair to say this has the potential to be a highly lucrative investment for those involved. 

For its trouble, KoBold will be entitled to 51% of Bluejay’s licence for the area under a “two-stage earn-in” agreement. The remainder stays with the AIM-listed stock who will also manage field operations over this period. 

Unsurprisingly, Bluejay CEO Bo Stensgaard described today’s agreement as “transformative” for the company. So, where might the JAY share price go from here?

Where next for the JAY share price?

Today’s big uplift will naturally be welcomed by those already invested. However, it’s important to put this rise in perspective.

I last looked at Bluejay almost four years ago. Back then, the stock was available for a little over 18p a pop. Since then the JAY share price has been as high as 26p. This huge volatility tends to be the norm with junior miners, however promising they might be. Even so, it’s sobering that those who took positions back then will still be underwater.  

Of course, those that picked up the stock for around 3.5p as the first UK lockdown kicked in will have done very well indeed. So, the fact that JAY’s share price has been all over the shop doesn’t mean it hasn’t generated great returns for some investors already. Whether the announcement of a new partner means it now follows in the footsteps of Greatland Gold and multi-bags from here remains to be seen. 

Cautiously optimistic

It’s hard to look at today’s announcement and be anything but optimistic. Having some of the world’s best business minds on board certainly won’t do the JAY share price any harm either. 

As with other investment themes, however, a truckload of patience will be required. Drilling using KoBold’s tech will take time and a slowdown in global growth could be a catalyst for yet more volatility. For this reason, I’d need to make sure I was properly diversified elsewhere before taking a stake.

Bluejay could prove very rewarding in a few years’ time but one should never overlook the potential perils of penny stock investing.

The post Here’s why the JAY share price is rocketing 25% today! appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Teresa Kersten, an employee of LinkedIn, a Microsoft subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Paul Summers has no position in any of the shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK owns shares of and has recommended Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Amazon, and Microsoft. The Motley Fool UK has recommended the following options: long January 2022 $1,920 calls on Amazon and short January 2022 $1,940 calls on Amazon. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

Unfortunately, for UK investors it’s hard to profit from Amazon’s meteoric rise. Shares in the company only trade in the US in dollars, which opens investors up to foreign exchange risks as well as higher costs from having to deal in a different country, in a different currency and hold non-sterling denominated shares. 

However, there is one investment trust that has made its reputation by investing overseas and has been a fan of Amazon for many years. To complement its Amazon holdings, the trust also owns the likes of Facebook, Google’s parent company Alphabet and Chinese internet giants Alibaba and Baidu. Put simply, this trust is a play on all things internet and offers exposure to assets UK investors would not usually be able to access without opening a US dollar investment account.

International diversification 

The investment trust in question is the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust (LSE: SMT). With a market value of £5.5bn, Scottish Mortgage has recently been promoted to the FTSE 100. Year-to-date, shares in the trust are up around 23.4% as it has profited from the US tech sector’s continued positive performance. 

Over the longer term, returns are even more impressive with the trust adding 51% during the past two years excluding dividends. Over the previous five years, it returned 207%, compared to the FTSE 100’s return of 30%.

The divergence in returns between Scottish Mortgage and the FTSE 100 shows how important it is to diversify outside the UK to profit from global investment themes. At the end of the first quarter, the trust’s largest holding was Amazon with a weighting of 9%. This position was closely followed by Tesla with a weighting of 7.7%. China’s Tencent Holdings accounts for 6.1% of assets under management. 

Key themes

These holdings provide exposure to some of the largest investment themes in the world today. That is, the rise of China as a global superpower with over one billion consumers, the shift away from polluting hydrocarbon powered vehicles towards cleaner electric vehicles, and the dominance of online shopping. 

There are few companies listed in the UK that are direct plays on these themes, and those that are, do not compare in terms of size and scale.  This is why Scottish Mortgage would make a great addition to any portfolio. The trust offers exposure to the fast-growing US tech space and China’s economy through a well-diversified portfolio that would be difficult to replicate for most investors. With a total expense ratio of 0.45%, the trust is also relatively cheap. And a dividend yield of 0.76% is on offer for income investors although, considering the holdings, Scottish Mortgage is mainly geared towards capital growth.

The post Is this best way to profit from Amazon.com, Inc’s world domination? appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Rupert Hargreaves has no position in any shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

I thought it was a great concept at the time, but perhaps it was a little overhyped. What seemed like a brilliant, multi-billion dollar idea was quietly forgotten about as share prices crashed, and the Credit Crunch laid the global economy low.

Alibaba is the leading B2B platform in the world

Today, Alibaba Holding (NYSE: BABA.US) is the leading B2B platform in the world. It has a market capitalisation of $193 billion. In 2015 it made a net profit of $24.2 billion — more even than Walmart. This is now the profitable retailer in the world. And, not surprisingly, it’s Chinese.

Everyone knows now that China is the workshop of the world. And just about any product that shops around the world sell is sourced from China. And Alibaba is the company that brings these manufacturers, and these shops, together. So it’s no surprise it makes quite a lot of money.

What’s more, Alibaba owns Taobao, which is the Chinese equivalent of Amazon and eBay. And Alipay, the firm’s online payments system, now accounts for half of all online transactions within China.

And it has companies like Tesco and Amazon in its sights

Contrast this with Tesco (LSE: TSCO). This is still, by far, Britain’s leading supermarket. It also sells more items online than any other business in Britain. I shop at Tesco every week, and I think it is still Britain’s best retailer. Yet, the problem is, it is making much less money than it used to. In 2016, analysts predict that this firm will make just 4.78p profit per share, putting in on a P/E ratio of 35.75.

Tesco is no longer the screaming buy it once was, and for many reasons. The supermarket sector in the UK is now overcrowded. In this low-cost, deflationary world, it is companies like Aldi, Lidl and B&M which are growing.

The pace at which the world is changing is a little frightening. Clearly, the centre of gravity of the world is moving inexorably east. If Tesco is to have a better future, it must move with it. That’s why I was a little surprised that it has sold many of its operations in countries such as Thailand and South Korea. To remain one of the world’s leading retailers, it needs a foothold in emerging markets, following the example of businesses such as Unilever and GlaxoSmithKline.

And investors interested in this sector should also look east. Currently Amazon.com has the highest market capitalisation of any retailer. But, even now, it makes far less money than Alibaba.

I think it is only a matter of time before the market capitalisation of Alibaba overtakes Amazon. Investing, by its nature, is about looking to the future, not to the past. If you are thinking of dipping your toe into Far Eastern stocks, I would make Alibaba one of your picks. Because if any company can be called the future of retail, it is Alibaba.

The post Tesco plc, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd And The Future Of Retail appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Prabhat Sakya has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK owns shares in eBay and Unilever, and has recommended GSK. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.