| New ways to look at old wisdom
There used to be a TV commercial from an investment company whose motto was, "It's not what you make, it's what you keep." Its message about maximizing after-tax returns still holds true, but the best way to achieve that goal has changed over the years. Here are a few examples of situations where traditional advice may no longer make sense: Old wisdom: Put as much money as the IRS allows into your company's 401k plan. You will save immediate taxes on the amount of your contribution, the money will grow tax deferred, and when you withdraw it after retirement, you will be in a lower tax bracket. Considerations: Although no one can predict the future, there is a very real possibility that your tax bracket may actually be higher in retirement than it is now.
Six reasons why gold still looks good
The new century has brought great years for investors in gold, whose annual average price soared from $271 an ounce in 2001 to $604 in 2006.However, I think it's interesting that generally speaking they've done no better from getting into gold mining shares than if they simply bought into the metal – there was none of the gearing effect that one might have expected from improving margins. That was probably because equities generally suffered over much of the period. Where next for gold? As the accompanying chart shows, gold seems to have completed a period of consolidation after rising sharply at the beginning of last year, driven by dollar weakness and strong investor interest in commodities generally. If history repeats itself, we could within a few years see the gold price soar to more than $1,500 an ounce, compared to the $673 price when markets closed ahead of Easter.
Gateway's New End-to-End 1:1 Computing Solution to Engage Students ...
IRVINE, Calif., April 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Gateway, Inc. today announced a new 1:1 computing solution for the education market designed to improve academic performance while at the same time promoting student engagement and attendance. In addition to the numerous benefits this technology-based initiative holds for students, the Gateway solution also empowers teachers and includes valuable training and technology integration into the classroom. Gateway's 1:1 Computing Solution provides a comprehensive portfolio of products and services offering consulting, needs assessment, professional development, classroom management software, standard-based curriculum software, implementation, and ongoing support. Each solution is designed and scaled to the needs of the education customers and supported by the U.S.-based customer support.
New ILOG JRules 6.5 Enhances SOA Value Proposition With Automatic ...
PARIS and MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Feb. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- ILOG(R) (Nasdaq: ILOG; Euronext: ILO, ISIN: FR0004042364), today announced JRules(TM)6.5, a key offering in ILOG's business rule management system (BRMS) product line, featuring "push-button" creation and deployment of Transparent Decision Services (rule-based Web services) in service-oriented architecture (SOA) applications without additional programming. Another significant JRules 6.5 advance is an industry-first Semantic Query feature that extends business user empowerment and productivity by allowing business users to query the rule repository to determine the impact of a policy change without worrying how the rule might have been written. Previously, business users needed to know exactly what rules they were looking for to search the repository, meaning searches could take much longer or require an expert.
Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. Prices Offerings of 41 Million ...
NEW ORLEANS & PHOENIX--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (NYSE: FCX) announced that it has priced its public offering of 41 million shares of common stock at $61.25 per share. The underwriters have an option to purchase up to an additional 6.15 million common shares to cover overallotments, if any. FCX also announced today that it has concurrently priced its public offering of 25 million shares of 6¾% mandatory convertible preferred stock at $100.00 per share. The preferred stock will pay, when declared by the Board of Directors, dividends at a rate of 6.75 percent per annum, payable quarterly. The first dividend date will be August 1, 2007. The 6¾% mandatory convertible preferred stock will automatically convert on May 1, 2010, into between approximately 34 million and 41 million shares of FCX common stock.
The Ugly Truth About the Guest Worker Program Bush's Braceros
"It's true that there's a small window in which H-1B workers can seek another employer," said Rajah, himself a former H-1B worker. "But when the dot-com bubble exploded, there were 500 H-1B workers losing their jobs a week"--leaving them without the possibility of remaining legal residents and forcing most to return to their home countries. These days, Microsoft's Bill Gates is demanding a big expansion of H-1B visas, expected to total about 50,000 next year, according to the Web-based Immigration Daily News. While Gates wants white-collar workers and professionals for high-tech industries, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is pressing for an expansion of the blue-collar H-2A and H-2B visas into a millions-strong guest-worker system that would be the biggest expansion of unfree labor in the U.S.
Euro Climbs to Record High Versus Yen on Outlook for ECB Rates
April 10 (Bloomberg) -- The euro advanced to a record against the yen and a two-year high against the dollar as signs of faster economic growth in Europe prompted traders to boost bets on higher interest rates. The euro gained as investors added to wagers the European Central Bank will lift borrowing costs from 3.75 percent as soon as this week. Futures trading signaled increased anticipation of higher rates after economic data today showed German exports rose for the first time in four months and French industrial production was stronger than forecast. ``You have to buy euro,'' said Paresh Upadhyaya, who helps manage $29 billion in currency assets in Boston at Putnam Investments LLC. ``It is very difficult for the ECB to pause.'' The euro rose 0.59 percent to $1.3433 against the dollar at 4:10 p.m.
|
