DEAR ABBY: My daughters are attractive young women, both doing well in their professional careers. "Melanie," who is 27, is married to "Sam," an extremely attractive and successful man.My 30-year-old daughter, "Alicia," has been divorced for a year. Her marriage failed two years ago because she and her husband had an appetite for sex outside their marriage. While I was disturbed about that, I was horrified to learn that Melanie allows her sister to occasionally have sex with Sam.Melanie's argument is that Sam is less likely to cheat given this situation. ...
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Showing posts with label World. Show all posts
Showing posts with label World. Show all posts
Wall Street up modestly, extends recent rally
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose modestly on Wednesday, putting the S&P near its highest intraday level in more than five years as the market's recent streak of slight gains on low volume continued.
Equities have been strong performers of late, buoyed largely by healthy growth in corporate earnings, with the S&P 500 gaining 6.5 percent so far this year. The Dow is about 1 percent from an all-time intraday high, reached in October 2007.
Those gains could leave the market vulnerable to a pullback as investors take profit amid a dearth of new trading catalysts. While analysts continue to see an upward bias in markets, recent daily moves have been small and trading volumes have been light, with the S&P near its highest since November 2007.
"There is a general upward bias, but right now we're at the top of the range we've been in, so we could struggle to advance further," said Paul Nolte, managing director at Dearborn Partners in Chicago.
The S&P 500 was well over its 50-day moving average of 1,460.92, a sign the market could be overbought.
Comcast Corp
Deere & Co
According to the latest Thomson Reuters data, of the 353 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported results, 70.3 percent have exceeded analysts' expectations, above a 62 percent average since 1994 and 65 percent over the past four quarters.
Fourth-quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies are estimated to have risen 5.3 percent, according to the data, above a 1.9 percent forecast at the start of the earnings season.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> was down 16.44 points, or 0.12 percent, at 14,002.26. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was up 1.12 points, or 0.07 percent, at 1,520.55. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was up 4.32 points, or 0.14 percent, at 3,190.81.
The S&P was mere points away from 1,523.57, which would represent the index's highest intraday level since November 1, 2007.
Industrial and construction shares will be in focus following President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Tuesday, during which he called for a $50 billion spending plan to create jobs by rebuilding degraded roads and bridges. He also backed higher taxes on the wealthy.
Yahoo Inc
Retail sales rose 0.1 percent in January, as expected, as tax increases and higher gasoline prices restrained spending. Equities were little impacted by the data.
(Editing by Bernadette Baum and Nick Zieminski)
Netflix, DreamWorks Partner for Original Kids Series
Label: WorldDays after launching “House of Cards,” Netflix is applying the same approach to children’s content. It’s teaming with DreamWorks Animation (DWA) (DWA) to create Netflix’s first original series for kids.
The series, “Turbo: F.A.S.T.,” is based on DWA’s movie “Turbo,” which is scheduled to open in theaters this summer. “Turbo: F.A.S.T.” will debut exclusively on Netflix in the U.S. and 40 other countries.
Netflix and DWA are not revealing the financial terms of the deal. But it doesn’t just include this new series. New movies from the studio will be available to U.S. subscribers starting with its 2013 films.
Like “House of Cards,” which was released as a full series on Feb. 1 for binge viewers, this is a big deal for Netflix: (Read More: Netflix’s ‘House of Cards’ Binge Strategy.)
Netflix is doubling down on kids content, investing to make itself a can’t-miss subscription for families. DreamWorks Animation content must be pricey — the studio spends years and well over $ 100 million to produce its feature films. But Netflix is building on its area of strength — it has a massive kids audience, streaming more than 2 billion hours of children’s content last year. Parents like Netflix’s easy way to find family friendly movies and shows on-demand and ad-free.
(Read More: Netflix Delivers Surprise Profit, Outlook; Shares Jump)
For DreamWorks Animation, it’s a much-needed new revenue stream.DWA shares have plummeted on reports that the animation studio could lay off as much as 20 percent of its staff. (Read More: DreamWorks Shares Fall After Movie Delay)
The company has struggled with incredibly volatile stock performance, which reflects the fact that it releases just a few films a year. The reports of layoffs come as the studio delayed release of “Mr. Peabody & Sherman” from November 2013 to March 2014. DWA has been working on more TV shows, but the nature of its premium digital animation means a long lead-time. The Netflix deal is yet another move to diversity revenue away from reliance on the box office just twice a year, and the resulting home video revenue.
For other tech news, see:
_ Spy Movie Staple, Apple Smart Watches May Arrive Soon
_ Models on Twitter: Tech Hits the Catwalk
_ Samsung Looks to Rival Apple’s Cool
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Wall Street opens flat with Obama speech on deck
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks were little changed on Tuesday, hovering near multi-year highs as traders awaited President Barack Obama's State of the Union address.
The economy will be one of the main topics of Obama's speech at 9 p.m. (0200 GMT Wednesday). Investors will listen for any clues on a deal with Republicans in Congress to avert automatic spending cuts due to take effect March 1.
The S&P 500 has risen in the past six weeks and is up more than 6 percent so far this year. Despite a dip in volume Monday and the sideways move this week the market is showing technical strength as it digests the recent gains.
"It's positive we haven't seen an urge to take profits after the run-up we had recently," said Peter Jankovskis, co-chief investment officer at OakBrook Investments in Lisle, Illinois.
He said it was natural for the market to be pausing amid a lack of major economic data points and with earnings season winding down, and markets will be attentively watching Obama's speech in Washington.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> rose 7.6 points or 0.05 percent, to 13,978.84, the S&P 500 <.spx> lost 0.27 points or 0.02 percent, to 1,516.74 and the Nasdaq Composite <.ixic> dropped 1.41 points or 0.04 percent, to 3,190.59.
Coca-Cola Co
Avon Products shares jumped 13.4 percent to $19.59 after the beauty products company reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit.
Goodyear Tire & Rubber
Michael Kors Holdings
(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Kenneth Barry and Nick Zieminski)
Wall Street opens lower as market takes a breather
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks opened slightly lower as the market took a breather with the S&P 500 index near a record high, while low volume could make trading volatile and exaggerate moves.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> was down 23.46 points, or 0.17 percent, at 13,969.51. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was down 1.99 points, or 0.13 percent, at 1,515.94. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was down 1.86 points, or 0.06 percent, at 3,192.01.
(Reporting By Angela Moon; Editing by Kenneth Barry)
Stocks end higher for sixth straight week, tech leads
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - The Nasdaq composite stock index closed at a 12-year high and the S&P 500 index at a five-year high, boosted by gains in technology shares and stronger overseas trade figures.
The S&P 500 also posted a sixth straight week of gains for the first time since August.
The technology sector led the day's gains, with the S&P 500 technology index <.splrct> up 1.0 percent. Gains in professional network platform LinkedIn Corp
Shares of LinkedIn jumped 21.3 percent to $150.48 after the social networking site announced strong quarterly profits and gave a bullish forecast for the year.
AOL Inc shares rose 7.4 percent to $33.72 after the online company reported higher quarterly profit, boosted by a 13 percent rise in advertising sales.
Data showed Chinese exports grew more than expected, a positive sign for the global economy. The U.S. trade deficit narrowed in December, suggesting the U.S. economy likely grew in the fourth quarter instead of contracting slightly as originally reported by the U.S. government.
"That may have sent a ray of optimism," said Fred Dickson, chief market strategist at D.A. Davidson & Co in Lake Oswego, Oregon.
Trading volume on Friday was below average for the week as a blizzard swept into the northeastern United States.
The U.S. stock market has posted strong gains since the start of the year, with the S&P 500 up 6.4 percent since December 31. The advance has slowed in recent days, with fourth-quarter earnings winding down and few incentives to continue the rally on the horizon.
"I think we're in the middle of a trading range and I'd put plus or minus 5.0 percent around it. Fundamental factors are best described as neutral," Dickson said.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> ended up 48.92 points, or 0.35 percent, at 13,992.97. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was up 8.54 points, or 0.57 percent, at 1,517.93. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was up 28.74 points, or 0.91 percent, at 3,193.87, its highest closing level since November 2000.
For the week, the Dow was down 0.1 percent, the S&P 500 was up 0.3 percent and the Nasdaq up 0.5 percent.
Shares of Dell
Dell's largest independent shareholder, Southeastern Asset Management, said it plans to oppose the buyout of the personal computer maker, setting up a battle for founder Michael Dell.
Signs of economic strength overseas buoyed sentiment on Wall Street. Chinese exports grew more than expected in January, while imports climbed 28.8 percent, highlighting robust domestic demand. German data showed a 2012 surplus that was the nation's second highest in more than 60 years, an indication of the underlying strength of Europe's biggest economy.
Separately, U.S. economic data showed the trade deficit shrank in December to $38.5 billion, its narrowest in nearly three years, indicating the economy did much better in the fourth quarter than initially estimated.
Earnings have mostly come in stronger than expected since the start of the reporting period. Fourth-quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies now are estimated up 5.2 percent versus a year ago, according to Thomson Reuters data. That contrasts with a 1.9 percent growth forecast at the start of the earnings season.
Molina Healthcare Inc
The CBOE Volatility index <.vix>, Wall Street's so-called fear gauge, was down 3.6 percent at 13.02. The gauge, a key measure of market expectations of short-term volatility, generally moves inversely to the S&P 500.
"I'm watching the 14 level closely" on the CBOE Volatility index, said Bryan Sapp, senior trading analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research. "The break below it at the beginning of the year signaled the sharp rally in January, and a rally back above it could be a sign to exercise some caution."
Volume was roughly 5.6 billion shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and the NYSE MKT, compared with the 2012 average daily closing volume of about 6.45 billion.
Advancers outpaced decliners on the NYSE by nearly 2 to 1 and on the Nasdaq by almost 5 to 3.
(Additional reporting by Angela Moon; Editing by Bernadette Baum, Nick Zieminski, Kenneth Barry and Andrew Hay)
Wall Street opens modestly higher after data
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks opened slightly higher on Friday after a trio of positive economic data points, and further gains were expected to be modest with the benchmark S&P index near five-year highs.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> was up 18.97 points, or 0.14 percent, at 13,963.02. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was up 3.05 points, or 0.20 percent, at 1,512.44. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was up 13.59 points, or 0.43 percent, at 3,178.72.
(Reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
Wall Street opens flat after claims, sales data
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks opened flat on Thursday after a trend gauge in weekly jobless claims signaled modest economic improvement and retailers posted mixed monthly sales.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> was down 11.06 points, or 0.08 percent, at 13,975.46. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was down 0.67 point, or 0.04 percent, at 1,511.45. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was down 1.68 points, or 0.05 percent, at 3,166.80.
(Reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by Kenneth Barry)
Wall Street to open lower after Tuesday rally, results eyed
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks were poised to open lower Wednesday, indicating the S&P 500 may retreat as it faces resistance to further gains beyond five-year highs in the wake of a 1-percent rally on Tuesday.
A 6-percent advance this year so far has lifted the S&P 500 index to its highest since December 2007, while the Dow <.dji> briefly climbed above 14,000, making it a challenge for investors to continue pushing the equity market upward amid a dearth of fresh trading incentives.
Walt Disney Co
"You knew a correction was coming; the question was whether they were going to tease you and get it close and then start selling it off or get it up to 14,000 and then start to make a move to the sell side," said Gordon Charlop, managing director at Rosenblatt Securities in New York.
"We got a quick move and it's really just not healthy for markets to go one way, so the idea that a little bit of a correction is due isn't troublesome to me at all."
According to Thomson Reuters data through Tuesday morning, of 278 companies in the S&P 500 <.spx> that have reported earnings, 68.7 percent have exceeded analysts' expectations, above a 62 percent average since 1994 and 65 percent over the past four quarters. In terms of revenue, 66 percent of companies have topped forecasts.
In another positive sign for profits, fourth-quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies are now expected to grow 4.5 percent, according to the data, above a 1.9 percent forecast at the start of the earnings season.
S&P 500 futures fell 6 points and were below fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures lost 51 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures declined 9.75 points.
The benchmark S&P index rose 1.04 percent Tuesday, its biggest percentage gain since a 2.5-percent advance on January 2, when legislators sidestepped a "fiscal cliff" of spending cuts and tax hikes that could have hurt a fragile U.S. economic recovery.
Visa
Ralph Lauren Corp
Time Warner Inc
(Editing by Bernadette Baum)
Wall Street rebounds from steep decline
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday, rebounding from their worst daily loss since November in the prior session.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> was up 84.21 points, or 0.61 percent, at 13,964.29. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was up 9.12 points, or 0.61 percent, at 1,504.83. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was up 10.31 points, or 0.33 percent, at 3,141.48.
(Reporting By Angela Moon; Editing by Kenneth Barry)
School turnarounds prompt community backlash
Label: WorldLOS ANGELES (AP) — The federal government’s push for drastic reforms at chronically low achieving schools has led to takeovers by charter operators, overhauls of staff and curriculum, and even school shutdowns across the country.
It’s also generated a growing backlash among the mostly low-income, minority communities where some see the reforms as not only disruptive in struggling neighborhoods, but also as civil rights violations since turnaround efforts primarily affect black and Latino students.
“Our concern is that these reforms have further destabilized our communities,” said Jitu Brown, education organizer of Chicago’s Kenwood-Oakwood Community Organization. “It’s clear there’s a different set of rules for African-American and Latino children than for their white counterparts.”
The U.S. Department of Education’s civil rights office has opened investigations into 33 complaints from parents and community members, representing 29 school districts ranging from big city systems such as Chicago, Detroit and Washington D.C. to smaller cities including Wichita and Ambler, Penn., said spokesman Daren Briscoe. Two additional complaints are under evaluation, and more cities, including Los Angeles, are preparing their filings.
Last week, Secretary Arne Duncan fielded complaints at a public forum in Washington. The forum was attended by some 250 people who boarded buses, vans and planes from around the country to demand a moratorium on school closings and present a reform model that calls for more community input, among other items.
The recurrent theme is that communities are fed up with substandard education, but want solutions that will not create upheaval at the schools, which are often seen as pillars of stability in neighborhoods where social fabric is fragile.
Instead of focusing on dramatically changing the structure of a school, officials should invest in improving teaching, learning, equipment, and community engagement, which happens more often at schools in white, affluent neighborhoods, Brown said.
“But the response of the school district is to throw a grenade into our schools,” Brown said.
Reformers say civil rights complaints are misguided because school failure disproportionately impacts minorities in the first place. Turnarounds are efforts to improve that, said Michael Petrilli, executive vice president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, an education think tank.
However, he noted that turnarounds are often a “Band-Aid solution. Most of the turnarounds aren’t going to succeed because the school continues to exist in a dysfunctional school system. Radical change at the district may be what’s needed.”
Federal officials said they are open to working with communities to lessen the impact of turnarounds.
“On the ground, these policies can have an impact we don’t see,” Briscoe said. “But there’s no promise that we’ll be able to satisfy all people.”
Overhauling the nation’s 5,000 lowest-performing schools is a cornerstone of the Obama administration’s education policy. To do that, the federal government revamped the existing School Improvement Grant program, boosting it from a $ 125 million annual initiative in 2007 to $ 535 million for the current school year.
Under the renewed program, which launched in 2010 with a onetime $ 3.5 billion infusion, districts receive grants to institute one of four school jumpstart models. They can turn the school over to a charter or other operator, replace at least half of the staff and principal, transform the school with a new principal and learning strategy, or simply close the school. Improvement schools can receive up to $ 2 million annually for three years.
Results have been mixed.
In Chicago, where the nation’s third largest school system has undertaken one of the more extensive turnaround programs, a study of 36 schools by the University of Chicago found some improvement in academic achievement in elementary and middle schools but not until the second or third year of either a principal or staff replacement or a charter conversion.
“They’re closing the gap but it’s taking some time to do so,” said Marisa de la Torre, who directed the study.
With high schools, researchers did not have academic data to parse, so instead looked at attendance rates, which are often a good indicator of performance, de la Torre said. Attendance rates improved in the first year of a turnaround, but then reverted to pre-turnaround rates. “We can’t really say if the glass is half full or half empty,” de la Torre said.
A study released last May found graduation rates and college-prep course participation increased dramatically at a Los Angeles high school in the Watts section taken over by charter Green Dot Public Schools in 2008. The National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards and Student Testing called the new Locke High School “an impressive success story in many ways,” but noted overall achievement remains low.
To boost academic performance, Green Dot now plans to revamp its ninth-grade curriculum to offer more remedial help and open a middle school to better prepare kids for high school.
With no guarantee that turnarounds produce solid results quickly, some question whether drastic reform is worth the disruption, and whether less radical changes could work as well given adequate time and funding.
“We take issue with experimental reforms such as these when it is only children of color who are the subject of the experiment and especially when the experiment has already failed,” wrote Jonathan Stith of Empower DC in his federal complaint about Washington D.C. schools.
Staff replacements have proven especially problematic at schools where teachers have to reapply for their jobs. Many don’t reapply out of resentment and it’s hard to find experienced teachers who want to work in an urban classroom.
A study by the National Education Policy Center found that in turnaround schools in Louisville, Ken., 40 percent of teachers were fresh out of college. Other reformed schools have had to start off with substitutes.
“Teachers are like their surrogate parents,” said Christina Lewis, a special education teacher at Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles, where teachers will have to reapply for jobs in the fall when the school is converted to a magnet. “I’m so afraid that teachers who have put their hearts and souls into their jobs won’t return next year. We just need stability and resources.”
Experts also note that impoverished children often rely on schools for meals, positive role models, and mentors for personal issues, as well as education. Trust built with familiar faces in the school community gets severed by drastic reforms, said John Rogers, director at the University of California Los Angeles’ Institute for Democracy, Education and Access.
Several students at Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles, where teachers must reapply for their jobs when the school is converted to a magnet program next fall, said it was disconcerting not to know who or what to expect.
“We have a lot of kids in foster care. Their lives are changing all the time,” said Crenshaw student Anita Parker. “We have teachers who ask me if I need to talk. We have teachers who care about us.”
The prospect of a civil rights complaint does not faze Los Angeles Unified Superintendent John Deasy, who has several high schools on his turnaround list. For Deasy, the real civil rights issue is that these schools have been allowed to fail for so long.
Crenshaw High School, the turnaround that is spurring community advocates to file the complaint, is the lowest performing school in the nation’s second-largest system, a fact that Deasy called “immoral” at a recent school board meeting.
Just three percent of students are proficient in math and 17 percent in reading. Just 37 percent of students attend school 96 percent of the time. Just half of the class of 2012 graduated.
“Students aren’t learning. Students aren’t graduating,” he said. “The purpose of this decision is to make sure Crenshaw gets dramatically and fundamentally better.”
School board member Marguerite P. LaMotte, the board’s only black member who represents the Crenshaw area, said she was angry that every effort to reform Crenshaw had gone nowhere and civil rights was about improving the school: “We have got to change something at Crenshaw for the better.”
______
Contact the reporter at http://twitter.com/ChristinaHoag.
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Wall Street opens lower after recent gains
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks opened lower on Monday, dipping after a recent rally that took the S&P 500 to a five-year high and the Dow to 14,000 for the first time since October 2007.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> was down 58.67 points, or 0.42 percent, at 13,951.12. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was down 6.84 points, or 0.45 percent, at 1,506.33. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was down 18.33 points, or 0.58 percent, at 3,160.77.
(Reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by Kenneth Barry)
Report: German check bust man is ex-Iran bank head
Label: WorldBERLIN (AP) — The German newspaper Bild am Sonntag reports that a man caught last month trying to enter Germany with a check worth about $ 70 million was Iran’s former central bank chief.
The weekly reports that customs officials at Duesseldorf airport found the check in Tahmasb Mazaheri’s luggage Jan. 21 upon his arrival from Turkey.
German customs had issued a statement Friday saying a check for 300 million Venezuelan Bolivars issued by the Bank of Venezuela was found on an unnamed 59-year-old man.
Neither customs officials nor Iran’s embassy could be reached for comment late Saturday.
Mazaheri was the governor of the Central Bank of Iran until 2008.
Bild am Sonntag reported in its Sunday edition that German police and customs are investigating possible money laundering.
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"Great Rotation"- A Wall Street fairy tale?
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street's current jubilant narrative is that a rush into stocks by small investors has sparked a "great rotation" out of bonds and into equities that will power the bull market to new heights.
That sounds good, but there's a snag: The evidence for this is a few weeks of bullish fund flows that are hardly unusual for January.
Late-stage bull markets are typically marked by an influx of small investors coming late to the party - such as when your waiter starts giving you stock tips. For that to happen you need a good story. The "great rotation," with its monumental tone, is the perfect narrative to make you feel like you're missing out.
Even if something approaching a "great rotation" has begun, it is not necessarily bullish for markets. Those who think they are coming early to the party may actually be arriving late.
Investors pumped $20.7 billion into stocks in the first four weeks of the year, the strongest four-week run since April 2000, according to Lipper. But that pales in comparison with the $410 billion yanked from those funds since the start of 2008.
"I'm not sure you want to take a couple of weeks and extrapolate it into whatever trend you want," said Tobias Levkovich, chief U.S. equity strategist at Citigroup. "We have had instances where equity flows have picked up in the last two, three, four years when markets have picked up. They've generally not been signals of a continuation of that trend."
The S&P 500 rose 5 percent in January, its best month since October 2011 and its best January since 1997, driving speculation that retail investors were flooding back into the stock market.
Heading into another busy week of earnings, the equity market is knocking on the door of all-time highs due to positive sentiment in stocks, and that can't be ignored entirely. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> ended the week about 4 percent from an all-time high touched in October 2007.
Next week will bring results from insurers Allstate and The Hartford
But a comparison of flows in January, a seasonal strong month for the stock market, shows that this January, while strong, is not that unusual. In January 2011 investors moved $23.9 billion into stock funds and $28.6 billion in 2006, but neither foreshadowed massive inflows the rest of that year. Furthermore, in 2006 the market gained more than 13 percent while in 2011 it was flat.
Strong inflows in January can happen for a number of reasons. There were a lot of special dividends issued in December that need reinvesting, and some of the funds raised in December tax-selling also find their way back into the market.
During the height of the tech bubble in 2000, when retail investors were really embracing stocks, a staggering $42.7 billion flowed into equities in January of that year, double the amount that flowed in this January. That didn't end well, as stocks peaked in March of that year before dropping over the next two-plus years.
MOM AND POP STILL WARY
Arguing against a 'great rotation' is not necessarily a bearish argument against stocks. The stock market has done well since the crisis. Despite the huge outflows, the S&P 500 has risen more than 120 percent since March 2009 on a slowly improving economy and corporate earnings.
This earnings season, a majority of S&P 500 companies are beating earnings forecast. That's also the case for revenue, which is a departure from the previous two reporting periods where less than 50 percent of companies beat revenue expectations, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Meanwhile, those on the front lines say mom and pop investors are still wary of equities after the financial crisis.
"A lot of people I talk to are very reluctant to make an emotional commitment to the stock market and regardless of income activity in January, I think that's still the case," said David Joy, chief market strategist at Columbia Management Advisors in Boston, where he helps oversee $571 billion.
Joy, speaking from a conference in Phoenix, says most of the people asking him about the "great rotation" are fund management industry insiders who are interested in the extra business a flood of stock investors would bring.
He also pointed out that flows into bond funds were positive in the month of January, hardly an indication of a rotation.
Citi's Levkovich also argues that bond investors are unlikely to give up a 30-year rally in bonds so quickly. He said stocks only began to see consistent outflows 26 months after the tech bubble burst in March 2000. By that reading it could be another year before a serious rotation begins.
On top of that, substantial flows continue to make their way into bonds, even if it isn't low-yielding government debt. January 2013 was the second best January on record for the issuance of U.S. high-grade debt, with $111.725 billion issued during the month, according to International Finance Review.
Bill Gross, who runs the $285 billion Pimco Total Return Fund, the world's largest bond fund, commented on Twitter on Thursday that "January flows at Pimco show few signs of bond/stock rotation," adding that cash and money markets may be the source of inflows into stocks.
Indeed, the evidence suggests some of the money that went into stock funds in January came from money markets after a period in December when investors, worried about the budget uncertainty in Washington, started parking money in late 2012.
Data from iMoneyNet shows investors placed $123 billion in money market funds in the last two months of the year. In two weeks in January investors withdrew $31.45 billion of that, the most since March 2012. But later in the month money actually started flowing back.
(Additional reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Kenneth Barry)
BMO Study: Two in Five Canadians Open to Being Their Own Boss in Retirement
Label: WorldTORONTO, ONTARIO–(Marketwire – Feb 2, 2013) – According to a study released today by BMO Financial Group, many Canadians envision becoming entrepreneurs during their retirement years; 39 per cent say that it is likely they will start their own business after they reach retirement age (65 years old). More generally, 81 per cent plan on working in some capacity during their retirement.
The top reasons identified by Canadians for starting their own business in retirement are:
- The need for additional income (75 per cent)
- A desire to stay sharp/mentally focused (62 per cent)
- It would be an enjoyable hobby (53 per cent)
“It”s clear that many Canadians are looking to generate additional income during their retirement years,” said Marlena Pospiech, Senior Manager, BMO Wealth Planning Group, BMO Financial Group. “People are living longer than ever before so, for an increasing number of Canadians, retirement savings may need to last more than 25 years. Additionally, with the decline in employer-sponsored defined registered pension plans and reforms to government pension plans, there”s now a greater need for people to supplement their income during retirement to compensate for that income gap. This is particularly true for those who haven”t been saving aggressively for retirement through retirement savings vehicles such as RRSPs and TFSAs.”
Other key study findings:
- Men are more likely than women to start their own business in retirement (46 per cent vs. 33 per cent).
- Those in Alberta are the most likely in Canada to start their own business in retirement (53 per cent); Quebecers are the least likely (25 per cent).
Ms. Pospiech added that Canadians are getting creative in how they picture their retirement; many view a gradual transition from work to full-time retirement as the optimal choice. She noted that not only does working longer benefit your bank account by generating additional income, it also helps keep retirees mentally active, involved in the community and contributing to the larger economy.
Funding a small business in retirement
The study also found that, when asked about how they plan to fund their business, almost half (47 per cent) of Canadians responded that they would use a portion of their retirement savings. Other funding sources pre-retirees said they would consider include:
- A separate savings account earmarked for a business (43 per cent)
- A loan from a bank or another source (34 per cent)
- Their inheritance (21 per cent)
- Family/friends (14 per cent)
“While it may be tempting to draw on retirement savings to fund your post-retirement business, there are other options available,” said Steve Murphy, Head of Commercial Banking for BMO Bank of Montreal. “It”s important that those looking to start a business have personal retirement savings, as well as savings set aside to fund their retirement business along with a business plan. A financial professional can help you develop a strategy that incorporates saving for retirement, as well as a post-retirement business.”
For those who are considering starting a business when they retire, BMO offers the following tips:
- Do your research: Take advantage of the resources and networks you have built over the years and learn all you need to know to set up your company. Look to replicate successful business models, gain industry insight and learn about the marketplace.
- Develop a plan: Draft a business plan that takes into consideration your competition, the products and services you will offer, potential customers, sales targets and what you will need to cover your costs.
- Consider the pros and cons: Think carefully about how you envision your ideal retirement lifestyle and consider consulting your spouse, family and friends on their opinions. Determine why you want to start your own business and how this will impact your retirement income and lifestyle.
- Alternative sources of income: For retirees simply looking for additional cash flow, determine if starting a business from scratch is right for you. Look at alternative options that are not as time-consuming such as part-time jobs or contract work.
- Seek outside advice: Speak to an accountant and a small business banker – financial specialists who can provide insight into setting up your company, market competition and personal and business capital needs. Also speak with your financial planner/advisor who can help determine the right financial plan for you and your business.
For more information on starting a small business, please visit: http://www.bmo.com/home/small-business.
Get the latest BMO press releases via Twitter by following @BMOmedia
The results cited in this release are from a Pollara survey with a sample of 1,000 Canadians 18 years of age and over, fielded online between January 17th and January 22nd, 2013. A probability sample of this size would yield results accurate to ± 3.1 per cent, 19 times out of 20.
Marketwire News Archive – Yahoo! Finance
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"Great Rotation"- A Wall Street fairy tale?
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street's current jubilant narrative is that a rush into stocks by small investors has sparked a "great rotation" out of bonds and into equities that will power the bull market to new heights.
That sounds good, but there's a snag: The evidence for this is a few weeks of bullish fund flows that are hardly unusual for January.
Late-stage bull markets are typically marked by an influx of small investors coming late to the party - such as when your waiter starts giving you stock tips. For that to happen you need a good story. The "great rotation," with its monumental tone, is the perfect narrative to make you feel like you're missing out.
Even if something approaching a "great rotation" has begun, it is not necessarily bullish for markets. Those who think they are coming early to the party may actually be arriving late.
Investors pumped $20.7 billion into stocks in the first four weeks of the year, the strongest four-week run since April 2000, according to Lipper. But that pales in comparison with the $410 billion yanked from those funds since the start of 2008.
"I'm not sure you want to take a couple of weeks and extrapolate it into whatever trend you want," said Tobias Levkovich, chief U.S. equity strategist at Citigroup. "We have had instances where equity flows have picked up in the last two, three, four years when markets have picked up. They've generally not been signals of a continuation of that trend."
The S&P 500 rose 5 percent in January, its best month since October 2011 and its best January since 1997, driving speculation that retail investors were flooding back into the stock market.
Heading into another busy week of earnings, the equity market is knocking on the door of all-time highs due to positive sentiment in stocks, and that can't be ignored entirely. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> ended the week about 4 percent from an all-time high touched in October 2007.
Next week will bring results from insurers Allstate and The Hartford
But a comparison of flows in January, a seasonal strong month for the stock market, shows that this January, while strong, is not that unusual. In January 2011 investors moved $23.9 billion into stock funds and $28.6 billion in 2006, but neither foreshadowed massive inflows the rest of that year. Furthermore, in 2006 the market gained more than 13 percent while in 2011 it was flat.
Strong inflows in January can happen for a number of reasons. There were a lot of special dividends issued in December that need reinvesting, and some of the funds raised in December tax-selling also find their way back into the market.
During the height of the tech bubble in 2000, when retail investors were really embracing stocks, a staggering $42.7 billion flowed into equities in January of that year, double the amount that flowed in this January. That didn't end well, as stocks peaked in March of that year before dropping over the next two-plus years.
MOM AND POP STILL WARY
Arguing against a 'great rotation' is not necessarily a bearish argument against stocks. The stock market has done well since the crisis. Despite the huge outflows, the S&P 500 has risen more than 120 percent since March 2009 on a slowly improving economy and corporate earnings.
This earnings season, a majority of S&P 500 companies are beating earnings forecast. That's also the case for revenue, which is a departure from the previous two reporting periods where less than 50 percent of companies beat revenue expectations, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Meanwhile, those on the front lines say mom and pop investors are still wary of equities after the financial crisis.
"A lot of people I talk to are very reluctant to make an emotional commitment to the stock market and regardless of income activity in January, I think that's still the case," said David Joy, chief market strategist at Columbia Management Advisors in Boston, where he helps oversee $571 billion.
Joy, speaking from a conference in Phoenix, says most of the people asking him about the "great rotation" are fund management industry insiders who are interested in the extra business a flood of stock investors would bring.
He also pointed out that flows into bond funds were positive in the month of January, hardly an indication of a rotation.
Citi's Levkovich also argues that bond investors are unlikely to give up a 30-year rally in bonds so quickly. He said stocks only began to see consistent outflows 26 months after the tech bubble burst in March 2000. By that reading it could be another year before a serious rotation begins.
On top of that, substantial flows continue to make their way into bonds, even if it isn't low-yielding government debt. January 2013 was the second best January on record for the issuance of U.S. high-grade debt, with $111.725 billion issued during the month, according to International Finance Review.
Bill Gross, who runs the $285 billion Pimco Total Return Fund, the world's largest bond fund, commented on Twitter on Thursday that "January flows at Pimco show few signs of bond/stock rotation," adding that cash and money markets may be the source of inflows into stocks.
Indeed, the evidence suggests some of the money that went into stock funds in January came from money markets after a period in December when investors, worried about the budget uncertainty in Washington, started parking money in late 2012.
Data from iMoneyNet shows investors placed $123 billion in money market funds in the last two months of the year. In two weeks in January investors withdrew $31.45 billion of that, the most since March 2012. But later in the month money actually started flowing back.
(Additional reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Kenneth Barry)
Templeton Global Income Fund (“GIM”) Announces Dividend
Label: WorldFORT LAUDERDALE, FL–(Marketwire – Feb 1, 2013) – Templeton Global Income Fund ( NYSE : GIM ) today announced its regular monthly dividend from net investment income of $ 0.035 per share, payable on February 28, 2013, to shareholders of record on February 13, 2013 (Ex-Dividend Date: February 11, 2013).
The Fund’s investment manager, Franklin Advisers, Inc., is a wholly owned subsidiary of Franklin Resources, Inc. ( NYSE : BEN ), a global investment management organization operating as Franklin Templeton Investments. Franklin Templeton Investments provides global and domestic investment management solutions managed by its Franklin, Templeton, Mutual Series, Fiduciary Trust, Darby and Bissett investment teams. The San Mateo, CA-based company has more than 60 years of investment experience and over $ 781 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2012. For more information, please call 1-800/DIAL BEN® or visit franklintempleton.com.
Marketwire News Archive – Yahoo! Finance
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Wall Street opens higher after payrolls data
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks opened higher on Friday as strong upward revisions to job creation estimates for December and November offset a slight disappointment in the January payroll report.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> rose 98.56 points or 0.71 percent, to 13,959.14, the S&P 500 <.spx> gained 8.98 points or 0.6 percent, to 1,507.09 and the Nasdaq Composite <.ixic> added 21.41 points or 0.68 percent, to 3,163.54.
(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
Auto loan rates for Jan. 31, 2013
Label: World- 4.12% (60-month, new car)
- 4.71% (36-month, used car)
Auto loan rates fell to record lows in Bankrate’s weekly survey.
The average rates for 48-month new-car and 60-month new-car loans each slid 1 basis point to 4.04 percent and 4.12 percent, respectively, the lowest they’ve been since Bankrate began surveying auto loan rates in 1985. A basis point is one-hundredth of 1 percentage point.
Used-car rates also set an all-time low, with the average rate for a 36-month used-car loan lopping off 3 basis points to 4.71 percent.
Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is stepping down after four years, according to a report by The Washington Post. LaHood, a former Republican congressman from Illinois, waged a national campaign against distracted driving, negotiated to create a 54.5 mpg fuel-economy standard and dealt with a massive recall at Toyota over unintended acceleration. LaHood will remain in the office until a successor is confirmed, according to the report.
Yahoo! Finance – Personal Finance | Loans
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Wall Street opens flat after mixed data
Label: WorldNEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks opened flat on Thursday as economic data continued to paint a mixed picture of the economy and as investors sifted through a host of corporate earnings reports.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> was down 16.05 points, or 0.12 percent, at 13,894.37. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was down 1.81 points, or 0.12 percent, at 1,500.15. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was down 0.55 points, or 0.02 percent, at 3,141.75.
(Reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
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