Need information in Finance

Wall Street anxious about earnings

2007-07-11T11:28:00.006-07:00

Stocks took a break Tuesday from their recent runup following some troubling earnings announcements from Sears and D.R. Horton, as Wall Street awaited remarks by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

Liz Claiborne to sell 16 brands - report

2007-07-11T11:28:00.005-07:00

Apparel company Liz Claiborne is expected to announce Wednesday plans to sell 16 of its 36 apparel brands, the Wall Street Journal reported.

What is elite service worth?

2007-07-11T11:28:00.003-07:00

Dear FSB: I own one of the largest electrical companies in the state. Our uniformed workers respond to customers' homes within one hour of each call, with guaranteed service 24 hours a day. As a result our overhead is about 40% more than our competitors', and our prices are higher. How can we offer top-notch service and still stay profitable? - Bill Augustynski, Owner, August Electric Dudley, Mass. (augustelectric.com)

Stocks set to bounce back

2007-07-11T11:28:00.001-07:00

Stocks are pointing to a slight recovery Wednesday from the past session's sell off, which was sparked by renewed subprime fears.

Potty power: Electric toilet paper dispenser unveiled

2007-07-11T11:27:00.005-07:00

Kimberly-Clark Professional is unveiling an electronic toilet tissue dispenser in hopes of capturing more of the $1 billion away-from- home toilet paper market.

Text message + cable bill + etc.

2007-07-11T11:27:00.003-07:00

Here's another one of those tipping-point stories. It was the end of the month, when I run through the stack of household bills that pile up both on my desk and on the bill-paying page at my bank's Web site. (I'm old-fashioned. I like paper bills. I even check out the cubic zirconium comeons.) This time around, the Verizon bill for my family's four cell phones seemed a little higher than usual, so I went over the 38-page itemized bill. Like most college students, my two daughters live on their phones, but the bill had been pretty consistent. This month, however, there was a spike. Fernanda, it seems, had gotten into texting - and got hit with a $45.65 surcharge, nearly doubling her bill to $93.21.

Stocks set to bounce back

2007-07-11T11:27:00.001-07:00

Stocks are pointing to a slight recovery Wednesday from the past session's sell off, which was sparked by renewed subprime fears.

Click here for the upsell

2007-07-11T11:26:00.005-07:00

Online shopping recommendations are the Internet's answer to the old-fashioned upsell. "You like that red Prada hobo bag? You'll love this black canvas number from Dolce & Gabbana."

The spy goes to Wall Street

2007-07-11T11:26:00.003-07:00

Every Monday at 8:45 a.m., when the dozen top executives at Lehman Brothers gather in a 31st-floor conference room at their Manhattan headquarters, they hear from the oracle. This is the weekly capital markets meeting, where the investment bankers talk about the state of the world in which they put their billions. CEO Dick Fuld presides, but typically he is not the one kicking off the conversation. That job belongs to a Wall Street newcomer few businesspeople have heard of.

Stocks try to muster momentum

2007-07-11T11:26:00.001-07:00

Stocks edged higher Wednesday, just a day after major gauges tumbled over 1 percent, as investors struggled for direction.

Housing slump drags on and on...

2007-07-11T11:25:00.006-07:00

The slump in home sales and prices will be deeper and last longer than previously expected, according to the latest forecast Wednesday by the National Association of Realtors.

Senate vs. fund managers

2007-07-11T11:25:00.005-07:00

When you earn a lot of your living by investing others' money - is your take investment income or a regular paycheck?

Movies in a box, any box

2007-07-11T11:25:00.003-07:00

The battle for your living room is heating up. There are now numerous ways for lazy consumers to avoid having to go to their local Blockbuster (BBI), assuming it hasn't been closed, to get a new movie.

Sluggish economy sinks CEO confidence

2007-07-11T11:25:00.001-07:00

CEOs are less optimistic about the short-term economic outlook than they were last quarter, and confidence measures saw an especially dramatic drop when CEOs assessed their own companies' sectors, according to a survey by The Conference Board.

Wall Street finds some bounce

2007-07-11T11:24:00.000-07:00

Stocks built on early gains Wednesday just a session after renewed concerns about the subprime mortgage sector helped send major gauges tumbling over 1 percent.

S&P to slash subprime bond ratings

2007-07-10T20:36:00.000-07:00

Standard and Poor's Rating Services is downgrading 612 securities backed by subprime mortgage loans because of high delinquency and foreclosure rates.

Porsche revs up Volkswagen

2007-07-10T20:34:00.001-07:00

Is it possible that Wendelin Wiedeking radiates energy, optimism, and good cheer even when he sleeps? Awake, he is so buoyantly jovial he practically floats. On this particular day the Porsche CEO is joking about his office on the second floor of the company's headquarters in Zuffenhausen, a suburb of Stuttgart. "Welcome to my spacious office," he says, surveying the modest metal desk and small conference table that crowd the narrow room.

Wall Street: No solace in Bernanke

2007-07-10T20:33:00.001-07:00

The Dow fell over 100 points Tuesday afternoon as investors weighed a speech on inflation by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke while a handful of profit warnings added to general nervousness in an already jittery market.

New drug coming for 'growth failure' kids

2007-07-10T20:32:00.002-07:00

Tercica, a California-based biotechnology company, announced a deal with Genentech Tuesday to develop a combo drug for kids with so-called growth failure.

GM, Ford cars on the comeback trail

2007-07-10T20:32:00.001-07:00

The August issue of Consumer Reports magazine contains a rare, happy surprise for Detroit - a rave review of a General Motors SUV.

Stocks get smacked

2007-07-10T20:31:00.002-07:00

Stocks tumbled Tuesday on concerns about corporate earnings and the subprime mortgage sector while remarks by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke failed to sooth investors.

EA, Spielberg reveal video game details

2007-07-10T20:31:00.001-07:00

Electronic Arts Inc. Tuesday unveiled the first details of original video games in development in a collaborative project with Academy Award winning director and producer Steven Spielberg.

Wall Street gets smacked

2007-07-10T20:30:00.001-07:00

Troubling earnings forecasts from the retail sector, renewed concerns about the subprime mortgage sector and rising oil prices sent stocks tumbling Tuesday.

26 indicted on mortgage scheme

2007-07-10T20:29:00.000-07:00

The federal government announced Tuesday a bust in a multi-million dollar subprime mortgage lending scheme and indicted more than two dozen alleged co-conspirators.

When your debt feels like your arm

2007-07-10T20:27:00.000-07:00

“I’ve been in debt so long that it really doesn’t matter whether I pay it off in October vs. March.”

– A friend of mine who was talking about going on an international trip despite having $6,000+ in credit card debt. When I suggested NOT GOING BECAUSE THAT’S RIDICULOUS and putting the money towards the debt, my friend pointed out that it didn’t really matter when the debt was paid off since it had been around so long. I had never heard this perspective before and found it fascinating.

Affiliate Marketing is Still Full of Opportunity

2007-07-10T20:26:00.000-07:00

While at the Affiliate Summit, I interviewed online marketing veteran Jim Kukral to better understand the opportunities for affiliate marketers.

Jim was hosting the Blogger Room at Affiliate Summit. As has become the norm at conferences with a tech-savvy crowd, there is now a room with WiFi set up for bloggers who write posts from the events. It often serves as a congregating place for speakers, as well.

And since Jim is so well known in the affiliate marketing industry, the Blogger Room became a magnet for activity with movers and shakers roaming in and out.

According to Jim, “affiliate marketers tend to operate on the cutting-edge of marketing online. They include some very smart people. Often the most unassuming-looking marketers are the most successful. They do email marketing, they understand search engines, and they tend to be extra creative.”

Jim’s own background is an example of the diversity of affiliate marketers. He started working in the online world in 1995 as an HTML and Web designer. Gradually he diversified, moving first into online marketing. Later he moved into email marketing and search marketing.

In 2001 Jim started blogging. Around the same time he learned about affiliate marketing. Back then he was blogging and building a series of websites, and promoting others’ products on his sites. At one time he was up to 60 mini-affiliate sites. Each one was on a specific topic. For instance, one was to drive leads from prospective students to colleges. Since then he has whittled his sites down to five that he focuses on. That way he can give them more attention and drive more robust traffic.

I asked him how the industry has changed since 2001. He notes that in the mid-2000s, Google introduced Google AdSense. That meant bloggers and other site owners no longer had to rely on affiliate programs, but could monetize their sites with Google ads. Google ads are a godsend for site owners who want a low-maintenance return.

Still, a lot of site owners continue to use affiliate marketing. Affiliate marketing is bigger than ever, because the rewards can be greater for those who are willing to put the effort into promoting affiliate products to their communities.

What does Jim see in the future for affiliate marketing? For one thing, Web 2.0 sites with user-generated content are now places you can tap into for your affiliate programs. Set up a page using a site like Magnify.net, where you can add your own affiliate links. The affiliates of today and tomorrow are those who create content or aggregate content created by other users, often on a narrow niche topic. Video content in particular is a hot area.

Jim has some tips for entrepreneurs thinking of becoming Internet marketers:

eBay is still a great opportunity. You still have to find a source of great products to sell, but the opportunity is there.

To make money online as an affiliate marketer, you have to become an online publisher or aggregate content. Video is the new frontier of content. “It’s the Wild Wild West,” Jim says. Everybody is experimenting today, so “there are no mistakes.” Also, think about micro-chunking of content. The hot applications today, he notes, “allow you to create short blasts of content — a paragraph, a few sentences, even a phrase (as in Twitter). Readers want short bits of content.”

People come to the Internet to a) solve problems and b) have fun. You have to create sites that do one or the other.

Build a community. The most successful affiliate marketers build communities and promote products to their communities.

If someone says all the good ideas are gone, “That’s absolutely incorrect,” Jim observes. “At the very least you can do it better. Check out their competitors to see which affiliate programs they are promoting. Then figure out how to do it better.”

Jim’s final thoughts are: “The barriers to entry for affiliate marketing are low, and the costs of mistakes are also low. So do it today.”

Damn. Profiles are way harder than I thought (how you can help)

2007-07-09T10:33:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone, the profiles on female iwillteachyoutoberich readers that I’ve been working on are a lot harder than I thought. I’ve spoken to a bunch of young women on the phone in the last few days, collecting their stories and learning about what they have to say. But as I’m writing them up, I’m just not satisfied with how they’re turning out — especially in light of the many comments with different views about how I should approach this.

So these are taking a little longer than expected. I hope to start these profiles next week. If you have some time, here’s how you can help:

Help with the profiles. If you have experience writing profiles or interviews, help turn my raw interview notes into easy-to-read profiles
Research / statistics. Add a comment here with research on women and money. That way, it can be less about Ramit’s handwavy theories and more about actual real research on women and money (e.g., here)
Write a guest post with your thoughts! Leave a comment with your idea and if it’s good, I’ll get in touch

Thanks for being patient. I want to get this right, so I hope it’s ok that I’m taking a little longer than usual to get these profiles out.

Eleanor P., 25, talks about money, frustrations with her bank, independence, and indulgences

2007-07-09T10:32:00.000-07:00

Eleanor P.’s story is fascinating. It took a major event — being sent to collections for her student loan — to start managing her money. She has some family experiences that have made her want to be financially independent, and she keeps a close budget. At the same time, she doesn’t consciously budget for indulgences like clothes, and has few people her age who she talks to about money. Take a look at Eleanor’s profile below.

The stats
Name: Eleanor P., 25
Lives in: Seattle
Income: $40,000 / year (pre-tax)
Works at: Microsoft, as a writer

When did you get started managing your finances?
I decided I needed to be more proactive. I was at a point where I was doing nothing and realized I needed to do something. A lot of the stuff I had been doing had been a whole lot of nothing. And even destructive “head in the sand” nothing.

I had gotten an MA at the University of Toronto. I had taken out a bunch of loans from the government, but I didn’t have enough $ to pay for the entire year. So I got my student loan check for $20,000, paid 1/2 my tuition, and lived off the rest for the rest of the year. I didn’t pay the university with the rest, thinking I’d pay them. I moved home, I got a job, and then they started calling me: “So, about that $10,000 you still owe us…”

Then they sent me to collections.

That was the turning point?

Yeah. I finally called them up, saying no more of this pretending. I had just been sticking my head in the sand. It was at that point that I realized I’m not making a lot, but there’s no reason to be this way. I decided I was going to make some changes. I set up a payment plan, check for $250. They were kind enough to stop adding interest. I owe them about $5k now. I’m slowly paying that down slowly. When I ran the numbers, I had an extra $200 each month that I could set aside, that I could scrape together. I decided I was going to try to invest it.

I called some no-fee financial planners. They literally laughed in my face. “How much do you have in debt? Call us when you have something to invest.” One of my co-workers got invited to one of these lunch deals by Ameriprise. No one that I knew knew anything about investments or financial planning.

What are the financial pressures you face as a woman?
My mom was a single parent, so I grew up in a household talking about money. I heard everything about money, down to “I don’t know how we’re going to pay for groceries next month.” I think this is more me, but I feel like I have to be totally and entirely 100% independent. I think that’s pretty uncommon. I know that when I meet other young men, I come across as intimidating because I’m so fiercely independent. I’m terrified that I’m going to end up in the place that my mother is in. That is, at 50, she’s disabled and does not have any retirement money to speak of–none, absolutely none–and is unable to work. She is married, fortunately, to someone that we adore, and who is willing to take care of her. But I’m terrified that I will find myself in a position where I’ll be in a position like that. So I want to build a financial position where someone doesn’t have to take care of me.

Tell me about your frustration with your bank
I’m frustrated with Ameriprise. It feels like walking into a department store to get a pair of pants that are made to fit everybody. You need something that’s a little more flexible, and custom-fit for you. I need something to grow and stretch with me to help realize that I don’t know what I’m going to be doing for the next 3 years. I feel like i explained it, and he heard me, but the particular systems are set up to not be particularly flexible. For example, I don’t even know if I’m going to be in this country in 2 years.

The fee for the year for the service is $300. Still, that works out to $25 a month, not so bad considering I’ve no idea where to start or how much I should be aiming for or anything like that.

The guy at Ameriprise set me up with a money-market account that has a sub-account. The main account is where all of my paychecks go, and all of my bills get paid out of this. Every week, $150 gets forwarded from this account to my old Bank of America acct, and this is my gas/groceries/new shirt from banana republic money. This system mostly works out — if I get stuck (about once a month), I can cover the difference with a check drawn against my Ameriprise acct. The second Ameriprise acct — the sub-acct - is my “investment” acct, and has about $1300 in it now; about $275 gets automatically transferred into this every month. Joe, my Ameriprise dude, has started pestering me recently, because I’ve reached the $1000 threshold where I can start investing (according to their rules), but for a variety of reasons, and because I’m beginning to feel like I’m wanting to bail, I haven’t been calling him back, and have just been letting the cash accumulate.

Why?
For one thing, the website is TERRIBLE. It obfuscates how much you actually have versus how much you owe, and doesn’t give you streamlined access to moving things around. I think the worst part about the website being so bad is that I feel like I have less day-to-day control over where my cash is going than I did when I was just moving things back and forth between my checking and savings account at Bank of America. The Ameriprise bill-pay section of the website has its own separate login (totally unintuitive — long stretch of ones and zeros), and you can’t look at your bills AND your account info at the same time. Genius, eh?

For example, it can take up to 5 days to transfer money. You think you can plan for it, but that’s not how I am, and I’m getting fed up with it. I’m getting bank overdrafts, when all of last year I hadn’t had an entire one. It makes me think, ‘I’m working so hard, making more than I made last year, and this stuff shouldn’t be happening.’ And so it feels like the system is inflexible.

And I’m at a loss because it feels like there’s so much information, it’s hard to parse it all, and it’s so easy to get overwhelmed. I’m a smart girl, but I don’t know where to start.

What’s surprised you about your personal finances?
My mother and stepfather finally kicked my sister and me off the family cellphone plan, the very last vestige of family support. So I had to call up T-Mobile and take control of my cellphone. And after the whole fiasco of collections, I was convinced that my credit score was just going to be in the toilet. I was prepared for them to say, “We’re going to put you on the probationary plan,” and I’d be embarrassed. And then the rep said, “You have really good credit!” And I said, “Seriously?” (laughs). I guess that putting all your bills on automatic payment does wonders. That was really surprising! She said, you’re in one of our top tiers!

What’s your budget like?
I make $663/week after-taxes. $800/week pre-tax. (Her hourly rate is $20, making her income about $40,000 per year.)

$150 week: Goes into BofA account. This is my cash for spending: Gas, grocery, daily incidentals, going out.
$100 /month car insurance
$550 / month for rent
$50/month for utilities
$50/month for choir I sing in
$100/month for paying off dentist
$50/month cellphone
$320/month savings account at Ameriprise
$250/month to University of Toronto (no interest rate)
$226/month goes to Sallie Mae (4%)

Let’s talk about women and men and money. How do you think you differ from a guy your age when it comes to money?
I don’t drink much. I don’t play video games. So I don’t spend a lot on gadgets. …It’s probably easier to think that a lot of guys spend less emotionally than women do. It’s easier for me to buy myself a shirt as a pick-me-up. The process of buying new clothes is comforting. (I don’t do that very much, though.) I feel like guys probably spend more money on toys. And we spend more on clothes.

You mentioned buying as a pick-me-up, as a comfort. What is buying something comforting from?
It’s kind of exciting to get something new, you know? It makes me pretty, and I think that there’s something nice about rewarding yourself. And that having something — within reason — that you can put on…that makes you feel like you stand a little bit taller. Whether that’s to catch a certain guy’s eye, or to give you a different feeling in a job interview, those are all things that you need. If you earn an extra $50 and you’re having a crappy day…sometimes that’s $50 well spent.

What’s your philosophy on managing money?
Sometimes I think that managing your money is knowing when to spend your money, because it’s not worth it to be wealthy and miserable. You don’t want to be someone who has to buy love, or buy happiness and continue to spend money to feel good about yourself, of course. But sometimes that little extra indulgence can be the difference. A nice pair of earrings. It’s that little bit that can make the difference.

When was the last indulgence you had?
The last indulgence I had was 3 days ago. I bought a blouse from Anthropologie that’s made of summery cotton. It’s very pretty, quite flattering.

You know, before, I was working and didn’t make very much, so I got a part-time job at Ann Taylor, where I got a spectacular discount. I stayed at that job partially because I could build a wardrobe.

I noticed you didn’t put in an amount for shopping in your budget.
Yes…um…that’s sort of a bone of contention. If you run the numbers, there’s about $300-$400 each month. That’s sort of cushion money, or if I decide I really need a shirt from Anthropologie.

What’s the best financial move you’ve ever made?
Calling up the University of Toronto and setting up a payment plan. The woman I spoke to was so sweet, kind, so nonjudgmental. She said, “I’m so glad you called us up. We’ll work something out.”

How informed are your friends about money?
Not very. It’s kind of an uneasy topic. I find that I’m a lot more outspoken than my friends about it. There’s still this feeling that money isn’t something you talk about. Money, sex, religion…things you don’t talk about. I’m in a choir, and the women in their late 30s to 40s, are a little bit more willing to talk about it. But they still don’t speak in specifics. My younger friends are wide-eyed at all of it.

Heroines of Personal Finance and Entrepreneurship #1: Pamela Slim

2007-07-09T10:31:00.001-07:00

Interview contributed by Cody McKibben.

Pamela Slim is a tremendously friendly career and entrepreneurship expert who left corporate life in 1996. Her Mesa, Arizona-based company Ganas Consulting helps professionals and entrepreneurs find and do their best work. Some of her corporate clients include Hewlett-Packard, Cisco Systems, Charles Schwab, and Sun Microsystems. She also helps corporate prisoners become thriving entrepreneurs through her tremendously successful blog, Escape from Cubicle Nation, and the Escape from Cubicle Nation podcast. Ramit has featured Pam on Friday Entrepreneurs before, so check out that interview if you’d like to learn more about her. Today, our talk is a little bit more focused on women and entrepreneurship.

Before you went into self-employment, you were the manager of training and development at a $300 billion investment firm, Barclays Global Investors. What was the corporate experience like before you decided to escape?

Despite the name of my blog, I actually really loved my job. I had an absolutely exceptional team, manager and Vice President that taught me most everything I know about organizational and executive development. I was still in my twenties, so I had a lot to learn about business in general and my field in particular. I had great education benefits which I took advantage of by taking a bunch of training and development courses from UC Berkeley. We learned, we created, we had fun. Then, quite unexpectedly, the manager and VP left, since we went through an acquisition. A totally new management team came on board and *poof* from one day to the next, my “dream job” turned into a nightmare. It was then I realized that who I worked with and for was much more important than what I did. I quit shortly thereafter, and never looked back.

So what are you doing now?

I work with frustrated corporate employees who are ready to bust out and start their own business. My services including coaching individuals, teaching group classes on particular topics like 10 steps to starting a business or how to build platform, as well as doing some freelance projects like writing and recording podcasts or articles. My blog, Escape from Cubicle Nation, focuses on the particular period of transition between deciding you can’t stand another day at your corporate job and opening your doors for business. I try to balance informational “how-to” information with analytical “why do I feel so crazy” information that explains the emotional side of personal change in a way many people can understand. I also publish a bi-monthly podcast, and a weekly radio show, on VoiceAmerica Business. I am writing my first book, and working on an information product that I hope to launch right before my baby is born, at the end of September.

Congrats on the book deal, and especially on the new addition to your family! Your company, Ganas Consulting, helps coach clients through starting their own businesses. You’ve said that you often find your clients feel like prisoners in the corporate world — unable to express their creativity and so forth. From your experiences, do women in corporate life feel these effects in any unique ways that most men tend not to?

I think that we all experience the “imprisonment” feeling in different ways. I certainly hear lots and lots of men express their despair living in corporate dronehood. Their pain and discomfort often manifests as it does in women through the physical realm…muscle aches, tight necks, heart trouble, high blood pressure, etc. Where we might differ slightly, depending of course on the home situation, gender roles and if kids are involved, is the general added pressure some women feel to take care of business at work, at home and with the kids. The amount of responsibiity can feel uneven and crushing to some women, and they feel trapped in all roles, unable to get a free moment to speak their mind as a person, not as a mom, wife or employee. But given the natural juggling many women do in their daily lives, they often adapt to entrepreneurship easier than men.

Interesting. What about you personally? What challenges did you have to overcome in the process of setting up Ganas? Did you face any hardships you think most men in the consulting business might not face?

I actually had it pretty easy when I started my business since I got a nice, juicy client right off the bat (Hewlett Packard) and a six-month project that guaranteed I could pay my bills without worrying about hustling for new work. Since I was selling my brain and not a physical product, there were no big start-up costs or financing hurdles, which is sometimes where you hear stories of slightly increased challenges for women to get VC funding or bank loans.

My challenge in the early years had to do with pricing my services appropriately, since I tended to undervalue my services and felt uncomfortable asking for “too much.” I know that this is something that affects many new entrepreneurs, but in my 11+ years of self-employment experience, I would say that it affects women at a much higher ratio then men. It could be that there is a big conspiracy by the misogynistic male white corporate machine that starts to disempower us in kindergarten and stop us from all kinds of things like getting into math, finance and engineering careers. I discount nothing, as I was raised with a healthy dose of skepticism and a fondness for theories of oppression.

Another likely theory is that females are raised in many societies to be in a “helper” and “nurturer” role, and to downplay material gain. Fathers historically talk to sons more about business and finance than they do their daughters. Women are taught to compromise and broker peace, not to engage in hardball negotiations. Whatever the cause of my beliefs, I had to get over some ineffective mental blocks in order to charge what I was worth. I am always curious what other women (and men!) think about this topic, so please comment here.

You say you went through a phase of self-employment evangelism. What are some of the more effective methods you found to encourage others to go solo?

My best experience with encouragement is through my blog. I call it the Magical Mystery Tour, because ever since I began to write it, I have experienced a strange and wonderous connection with thousands of people I never would have had the chance to talk to. I never know which topic or post is going to make an impact…sometimes what I consider the most off-topic or “out there” subjects get the most heartfelt responses. Perhaps my favorite compliment ever came from a reader who told me that I represented “virtual hope.” How cool is that? I would like to stress that my goal is not to have everyone in the world quit their corporate job to start a business. Some are not ready, equipped or naturally suited to self-employment. What I do want to do is demystify the process so that more people feel comfortable exploring the option to see if it is right for them.

Ramit writes about personal finances for young people, but only about 20% of his readers are women. Suze Orman’s new book, Women & Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny, points out that most women are not as engaged with their finances as men. Do you agree? Why do you think this is?

I totally agree with Suze Orman’s assessment that women are not as engaged with their finances as men. I gave some of the reasons in an earlier response: socially, women are not encouraged to be money-focused, but rather family- and relationship-focused; statistically, parents don’t talk to their daughers as much as their sons about finance-related topics; women are often steered into more “helping” professions like HR, marketing and teaching rather than science, math or engineering where they would have more exposure to and application of statisics, numbers and analysis. I am sure there are some really smart academics that have published mountains of research on the question, I just don’t have access to it. I definitely think one big flaw is that basic, financial literacy is not taught as a core curriculum at every grammar, junior high and high school around the world…which is one more reason why Ramit should go on Oprah to shine some major media light on the issue and get people all riled up!

I agree! And he should take you and me with him! You have a good relationship with Dr. Martha Beck, author of Finding Your Own North Star. Tell me a little bit about Dr. Beck and what you’ve learned from her. Do you have any other favorite female role models in the business world?

I joke with Martha that if she didn’t agree to work with me, I would stalk her, so it was good she chose the path of least resistance, and not restraining orders. Martha is one of the smartest people I know. I love two things in particular about her: she is extremely practical in her approach to coaching, and has come up with some of the best tools I have ever seen to help people move from misery to what she calls their “right life.” She is also not afraid to tap into the intuitive, organic, some would say supernatural part of the human experience. In modern western life, we are so obsessed with left-brain activities that we forget that since the beginning of time, societies around the world have trusted their natural instincts, embraced signs, symbols and serendipity, viewed themselves as part of the entire natural system and placed as much value on feelings as thoughts. I kind of snicker when people write off all talk of intuition as “new age”…it is about as “old age” as you can get. Sure there are lots of hucksters and hustlers who peddle enlightenment and wealth via the number of times you view The Secret. But the true wise people I know like Martha see that in order for people to make significant life changes they have to engage all parts of themselves…mind, body and soul. I call it a “full-contact approach to life.”

Obviously Martha is a great example of someone who has built amazing platform, since she cavorts with Oprah and has her pick of high-profile media opportunities. The cool thing is that she is 100% genuine, and is as down to earth in person as she appears on TV. Plus she is incredibly funny, a vital quality in a role model!

I don’t really use gender as criteria for role models…it is more the connection I have with the person, and how I see them live their life. Recently, Bob Sutton and Guy Kawasaki have been very encouraging, as has Andrea Lee of Multiple Streams of Coaching Income.

Any last words of advice for young readers who are interested in following in your consulting footsteps?

Don’t spout bullshit. Focus on the business needs, not the short-sighted desires of management. Run from projects that you know are inane and doomed to failure, no matter how much they offer to pay you. When inevitable failure occurs, they will always blame the consultant.

There is a reason why many consultants have a reputation like “The Bobs” from Office Space (if you haven’t seen it, you must go out and rent it — required viewing for consultants in training). It is not that hard to jump like an eager puppy and complete a project that a swaggering CEO requests you complete. 25 deathly meetings, 322 PowerPoint slides and hundreds of victimized employees later, you may think that you have done your job by creating a new process or program, or whatever else they tell you to do.

The real art and value in consulting is in the initial scoping of the project. Question assumptions. Dig to get the “real story” behind the initiative. Very often, it is a political or lawsuit-saving move. Figure out if it is truly worth the effort to undertake, and propose
an alternative if you don’t think it is.

Pushing back to your powerful client will scare the crap out of you. But it is the only way that you will gain their respect and be able to look yourself in the mirror at the end of the day.

Thanks so much Pamela! It is always a delight learning from you. Tune in to Pam’s awesome blog and podcast at Escape From Cubicle Nation, and be on the lookout for her first book in 2008!

I should be a personal-finance carnie

2007-07-09T10:30:00.001-07:00

I was at a July 4th BBQ on Wednesday and my friend mentioned how she’s 100% billable right now. That means that every hour she works is billed to a client.

So, in the spirit of being overly competitive with small amounts of information, I decided to try to guess the difference between her income and the amount her firm bills her out at. For example, if her salary comes out to $25/hour and her firm bills her out at $100/hour, the answer would be 4x. (How to calculate your hourly wage from your annual salary.)

I guessed “10x” by assuming that she made $40/hour and her company billed out at $400/hour. Turns out I was off for a couple pieces of data, but I was almost exactly right about the other one. I did this while sitting barefoot and eating a huge piece of meat. I know, I know. How do I do it?

Can anyone guess the right answer?

Here’s a hint: The correct answer was 7x
Hint 2: She’s 25 years old and a senior consultant at a litigation-consulting firm

Heroines of Personal Finance and Entrepreneurship #2: Anya Kamenetz

2007-07-09T10:28:00.002-07:00

The second expert panelist for our women & money series is Anya Kamenetz, a respectable twentysomething author, columnist, and blogger from Manhattan. The daughter of a poet and a novelist, she graduated from Yale University in 2002. She has worked with the New York Times, the Washington Post, Salon, Slate, the Village Voice, and more, and in 2006 she released her first book, Generation Debt: How Our Future Was Sold Out for Student Loans, Bad Jobs, No Benefits, and Tax Cuts for Rich Geezers — And How to Fight Back. She talks with us today about being a freelance writer and about young people and money.

You were nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for the series “Generation Debt: The New Economics of Being Young” in 2004. What were your main findings?

The series ran in 2004; I also did a Generation Debt column for the Village Voice for all of 2005.

Student loans and student credit cards have multiplied very fast and under the radar so that large amounts of debt are now a rite of passage for a majority of young people. Two thirds of college graduates borrow loans to get through college, up from less than half as recently as 1993, and they graduate with an average of $20,000 in loans and almost $3000 in credit card debt. Combine that with a changing job market that offers fewer benefits, and a higher cost of living, especially housing, in many metropolises and you have a lot of middle-class, educated young people falling behind, to say nothing of the fate of McJob Nation; the two out of three kids with no college degree have seriously fallen behind in income and stability.

Since graduating in 2002 you’ve freelanced as a writer and editor for several publications. Ramit hosts lots of readers who want to be professional writers, but you seem to have done it successfully. What are some recommendations you can make for aspiring professional writers?

Think hard about it. I don’t know many “professional writers” as opposed to people who happen to be lucky enough to occasionally get paid to write. Boyce Rensberger, head of the Knight Science Journalism Fellowships at MIT, told the New York Times on June 10: ”I feel a little queasy encouraging young people into journalism. It’s such a precarious industry right now.”

I think if you want to write for a living you need to be pretty hardcore about your craft and your subject area or field. You can build up knowledge of your field by working a related job (in politics, the law, nonprofits, fashion, etc.) and you can build up your craft by writing, writing, writing, and being in a writers’ group, and taking classes or workshops, and working in media-related fields. I freelanced as a writer’s assistant, fact-checker, and copy editor before I started writing full time. If I were starting out now I would definitely blog too.

Good tip! *wink* And how did the Generation Debt column evolve into a book? What do you bring to this research on youth and personal finance that others don’t?

I think it’s just a case of being at the right place at the right time. My articles were clearly part of a larger wave and as a young person myself (I was 23 when I sold the book) I guess my agent and editor felt I brought a unique immediacy to the issue. Nowadays, three years later, I’ve built up a lot more credibility by knowing my subject pretty well and lecturing, writing, and commenting about it in various media.

iwillteachyoutoberich.com readers are young, so they understand the challenges of being young and dealing with money. Who did you write this book for, and what challenges have you faced in getting your audience to pay attention?

I wrote the book for a dual audience of young adults and their parents. Parents were occasionally skeptical and young people don’t really buy a lot of books! But I’ve gotten great feedback from people of all ages who felt like they related to the book’s message. I’ve tried hard to emphasize that endowing young people with the resources they need to succeed will ultimately benefit everyone in America.

So you focus on the huge rate of student loans and credit card debt among twentysomethings…do you think women in this age bracket tend to handle these challenges differently than males?

Young women are still earning less than young men, even recent college graduates. They are more likely to be living paycheck to paycheck and sometimes less confident about investing. But when they do start to take finances seriously they are often more tenacious and better decisionmakers, better at tracking expenses and sticking to a budget.

Stocks eye earnings boost

2007-07-09T10:28:00.001-07:00

Wall Street looked set for an upbeat opening Monday as traders geared up for the beginning of the earnings reporting period.

Lexmark lowers outlook, shares tumble

2007-07-09T10:26:00.002-07:00

Printing and imaging company Lexmark International, Inc. lowered its outlook Monday, saying it expects its second-quarter results to fall by 2 percent based on disappointing sales, high production costs, and declining hardware revenue.

Google buying Web security firm for $625 million

2007-07-09T10:26:00.001-07:00

Internet bellwether Google agreed to purchase Postini, a privately held provider of Web communications security, for $625 million in cash, the company announced Monday.

Carlyle to take Sequa private

2007-07-09T10:25:00.000-07:00

Private equity firm The Carlyle Group announced a $2.7 billion deal to buy diversified manufacturer Sequa Group early Monday, agreeing to pay a premium of 54 percent to Friday's closing price.

Enterprise pulls up at the airport

2007-07-09T10:24:00.000-07:00

The U.S. rental-car business has long had two rulers. Hertz, with 2006 revenues of $8.1 billion, has dominated the airport business ever since it started serving Chicago's Midway in 1932. Enterprise, with revenues of more than $9 billion, has virtually had a lock on the off-airport business, with a 55% market share.

How Microsoft conquered China

2007-07-09T10:22:00.000-07:00

Mr. Bill Gates! Mr. Bill Gates!" a young woman shrieks as the black car pulls up. A pallid student in a nylon windbreaker pushes his way through the security line and hands the world's richest man a small envelope with a floral design. "It's very important," he pants.

Stocks look at record turf

2007-07-09T10:21:00.000-07:00

Stocks gained early Monday, with the Dow and S&P 500 nearing all-time highs, as a smattering of positive corporate news set the tone for the start of what traders hope will be a healthy earnings reporting period.

"Markets dodge a bullet, this time

2007-06-27T23:23:00.000-07:00

"Markets dodge a bullet, this time
from MarketWatch.com - Top Stories
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Stocks bounce back, courtesy of one of those late-day rallies (again). Has the market dodged the bullet?"

Subprime lending: Abuse as usual

2007-06-27T23:21:00.003-07:00

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Subprime lending: Abuse as usual

via Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com on Jun 27, 2007

It would appear that subprime lenders have yet to learn from their mistakes. According to a consumer advocate group, abuses persist industry wide, despite the recent subprime mortgage meltdown.

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Biggest-ever study for cervical cancer vaccine

2007-06-27T23:21:00.001-07:00

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Biggest-ever study for cervical cancer vaccine

via Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com on Jun 27, 2007

GlaxoSmithKline announced the results of the biggest-ever study of a cancer vaccine Wednesday, in the hopes of bolstering the competitive strength of its Cervarix against Merck's Gardasil.

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Results due from Bed Bath & Beyond, Paychex, Red Hat

2007-06-27T13:14:00.002-07:00

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc., Red Hat Inc. and Paychex Inc. are on the docket for quarterly financial reports to be released Wednesday evening.

Treasury to study regulatory-system overhaul

2007-06-27T13:14:00.001-07:00

The Treasury Department is planning a sweeping review of regulations on financial-services providers and plans to release a set of reforms by early next year, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said Wednesday.

Nike shares surge on positive U.S., European outlook

2007-06-27T13:13:00.000-07:00

Nike Inc. shares surged Wednesday after the sneaker giant reported product orders rose at their fastest pace in at least four years, driven by better-than-expected gains in the U.S. and Europe.

Help me give away $2,000 in scholarships using P2P lending — by this Monday, 6/11

2007-06-27T13:12:00.002-07:00

[Update]: Please join these two Facebook groups *today* (Monday, 6/11) in order to help iwillteachyoutoberich readers win two $1,000 scholarships. Details below.

Summary of this post: Help me give away $2,000 in scholarships by joining two Facebook groups by this Monday, June 11th.

More detail: P2P lending lets you lend and borrow directly from people based on trust (e.g., Prosper.com and LendingClub) with insanely better interest rates. LendingClub is a new organization that I’m interested in. If we have the most people join the LendingClub Facebook group by this Monday, June 11, we’ll win $5,000.

If iwillteachyoutoberich readers help win by joining the most, I’ll give away a $1,000 scholarship to a college student who reads iwillteachyoutoberich, a $1,000 scholarship to a recent grad, and I’ll loan out $1,000 using LendingClub. (I’ll keep the other $2k to pay the taxes / save / go to Vegas.)

To help win…

That’s it!

More details, along with what I spoke to the LendingClub CEO about, below.

* * *

I just ran across something really interesting and I’m encouraging you to give it a try. Many of you have heard of Prosper.com, which lets you loan and borrow directly from other people. You get higher interest rates because you’re going direct and bypassing the bank marketing, security, and other infrastructure costs.

LendingClub lets you borrow and lend money directly to people in your own network. I spoke to Renaud Laplanche, the CEO, about his model. “We can provide a 3% better return by cutting out the middlemen activities that money banks spend on their supply chain: security, bank, real estate, marketing to get the deposit and then to spend the loan.”

In other words, because it’s direct, they can offer better returns. Check it out (my explanation below):

To lend money:

To borrow money:

Now I’ve written about teaser bank rates before. To be really clear, LendingClub is not a bank and they don’t offer FDIC insurance. If you lend, you could lose your money (although they do credit checks and report to credit bureaus). If you’re going to lend or borrow, I would start off with something modest like $100 and see how it goes. But I’m more excited about these innovative new models that cut out the middlemen and let us play around with small amounts of money. For me, it’s not really about the extra $20 or $200 I could make using these models, but playing around with a new model that seems interesting and promising. 5 or 10 years from now, maybe P2P lending will seem like a no-brainer.

I asked Renaud why anyone should use LendingClub. “Launching on Facebook was, for us, a way to make that point very clear,” he told me. “We want people to borrow and lend based on trust. You have networks, you have groups, and we can match people who are not only friends, but friends-of-friends or belong to the same network.” What kind of network, I asked? “Well, you have fellow alumni, people in the same geographical network, the same professional network…all of these things make you much more comfortable, that you’re not complete strangers.”

Renaud noted that if you lend a bank your money (i.e., put it in savings), the high-interest ones pay you about 5%. The crappy ones pay you 0.5%. But the banks then turn around and charge about 12% for personal loans, giving them a huge 7%-11.5% spread on your money. He added that the default rate for banks (or the amount of people that don’t pay back their loans) is less than 1%, “so why are they charging so much?”

What to do

A group on Facebook is running a promotion to get people interested in LendingClub. You don’t have to buy anything or even sign up (although I would encourage you to poke around). If we all join two groups on Facebook, we could win $5,000, of which I’ll give away $1,000 to a college-student iwillteachyoutoberich scholarship, $1,000 to a recent-grad iwillteachyoutoberich scholarship, and I’ll loan $1,000 on LendingClub and report back on how it went. I’ll keep the rest to pay taxes / save / travel.

Note: I’ve already set up an account through LendingClub and as soon as it’s verified, I’ll be loaning $500 through the site to test it out.

Here’s how can help iwillteachyoutoberich readers win $5,000:
1. First, join my facebook group, IWillTeachYouToBeRich P2P lending = reduce stupid bank fees
2. Then join the LendingClub facebook group

That’s it!

Note: You must join both! By joining both, they can see who sent the most people to the LendingClub facebook group.

The next hot overseas markets

2007-06-27T13:12:00.001-07:00

For years investors have piled into economies like China and India in search of outsize returns.

Wall Street worries about oil, manufacturing

2007-06-27T13:08:00.000-07:00

Concerns about the health of the manufacturing sector, higher oil prices and the Federal Reserve's stance on the economy left stocks largely directionless in Wednesday's trade.

Chrysler joins green group as Cerberus fights CAFE

2007-06-27T12:34:00.001-07:00

Chrysler Group said Wednesday it has joined a group of companies and environmental organizations pushing the federal government to enact laws aimed at curbing greenhouse gas emissions.

Tribune shares weaken as questions on deal swirl

2007-06-27T12:33:00.003-07:00

Shares of Tribune Co., which is slated to be taken private later this year, have been steadily weakening in recent weeks, falling well below the $34 deal price as analysts struggle to decipher the meaning of the drop.

Dollar falls further against yen after durable-goods data

2007-06-27T12:33:00.001-07:00

The dollar continued to lose ground against the yen Wednesday, falling to as low as 122.21 yen after reports that orders for durable goods were weaker-than-expected.

Playing emerging markets growth in developed countries

2007-06-27T12:32:00.002-07:00

Rather than investing directly in emerging markets, three global fund managers at Putnam Investments prefer to buy developed country stocks benefiting from the red-hot growth in developing countries.

Personal Finance Daily -- June 27

2007-06-27T12:32:00.001-07:00

For folks who toil in soulless offices under life-sucking fluorescent bulbs surrounded by sharks and donkeys alike, the prospect of working for yourself at home in a cozy den free from the turmoil of the communal water cooler and close to loved ones is alluring. If only the reality of that dream were anywhere near the truth.

Wells Fargo promotes John Stumpf to CEO's post

2007-06-27T12:31:00.000-07:00

Wells Fargo & Co., the San Francisco regional banking giant, said Wednesday that veteran executive John Stumpf's been promoted to CEO, replacing Dick Kovacevich.

Take advantage of these bargains in the biotech basement

2007-06-27T12:30:00.000-07:00

Five major indexes that we track to monitor the health of the overall market is still collectively flashing a "bull market" signal -- and the weakest of the group is pointing to strong bargains in the biotech sector.

Will corporate bonds succumb to subprime contagion?

2007-06-27T12:21:00.000-07:00

A new wariness in the bond market is raising questions about whether risk aversion could slow the corporate bond spree, which this year has driven junk bond issuance to heady levels to finance the private-equity leveraged buyout boom.

"Wednesday's Tech Winners & Losers

2007-06-27T10:11:00.000-07:00

from TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Mark Martinez)
CommScope's acquisition of telecom supplier Andrew helped prop up tech stocks."

Bears in control

2007-06-27T10:06:00.000-07:00

Bears in control
from Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com
A disappointing reading on durable goods orders and worries about the buyout boom sent stocks lower Wednesday as investors geared up for the Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting."

Well, we got 5th place

2007-06-27T08:42:00.000-07:00

We got 5th place and a $300 consolation prize in the LendingClub contest, taking me back to memories of competing in the flag-football Toilet Bowl in junior high (and losing). No, in all seriousness, I’m thrilled that we were able to get a Facebook group of 376 people together over the weekend. I’ll use the full $300 for an upcoming iwillteachyoutoberich scholarship.

Thanks, everyone.

[Edit]: Oh, also, Renaud (LendingClub CEO) asked me to check if any of my readers are interested in blogging for blog.lendingclub.com. If you’re interested, email me with your blog URL and a short introductory email, and I’ll introduce you to Renaud. The position is for 30% time (~13 hours/week) and is paid.

Testing posting

2007-06-27T07:41:00.000-07:00

Businesspundit: Deep Thinkers Need Not Apply: How To Get Ahead In the Modern Business World

(via Google Reader)

Tuesday's Financial Winners & Losers

2007-06-27T00:03:00.015-07:00

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Tuesday's Financial Winners & Losers

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Sarina Penn) on Jun 26, 2007

W Holding plunges on news of a loan impairment.

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Dell's Product Launch Ho-Hum

2007-06-27T00:03:00.013-07:00

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Dell's Product Launch Ho-Hum

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Alexei Oreskovic) on Jun 26, 2007

The PC maker's new products are more overdue than inspiring.

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Union Strife Bites Kroger

2007-06-27T00:03:00.011-07:00

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Union Strife Bites Kroger

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Rob Lenihan) on Jun 26, 2007

Shares slide after the grocer says a labor dispute hurt profits.

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Upgrade Sparks Parametric

2007-06-27T00:03:00.009-07:00

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Upgrade Sparks Parametric

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Ivy Lessner) on Jun 26, 2007

A Goldman analyst sees strong sales.

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Diabetes-Drug Makers Tout Two-Pronged Approach

2007-06-27T00:03:00.007-07:00

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Diabetes-Drug Makers Tout Two-Pronged Approach

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Robert Steyer) on Jun 26, 2007

Merck and others say DPP-4 inhibitors improve blood-sugar control when added to a standard treatment.

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Find Agflation-Friendly Stocks

2007-06-27T00:03:00.005-07:00

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Find Agflation-Friendly Stocks

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Simon Constable) on Jun 26, 2007

With coarse grain prices soaring, there's money to be made beyond the commodity pits.

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Ratings Metric Boosts TV Ad Buys

2007-06-27T00:03:00.003-07:00

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Ratings Metric Boosts TV Ad Buys

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Nat Worden) on Jun 26, 2007

The May 'upfront' season saw gains for networks, led by Disney's ABC.

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Save Darfur, Win Big

2007-06-27T00:03:00.001-07:00

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Save Darfur, Win Big

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Lawrence Carrel) on Jun 26, 2007

Someone was bound to find a way to make money off the Sudan conflict, and so can you.

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Blackstone Faces More Red

2007-06-27T00:02:00.007-07:00

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Blackstone Faces More Red

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Mark DeCambre) on Jun 26, 2007

The private-equity firm's shares skid for a second day.

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Tuesday's Small-Cap Winners & Losers

2007-06-27T00:02:00.005-07:00

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Tuesday's Small-Cap Winners & Losers

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Sarina Penn) on Jun 26, 2007

Steak n Shake moves higher on news of a big shareholder investment.

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Tuesday's Health Winners & Losers

2007-06-27T00:02:00.003-07:00

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Tuesday's Health Winners & Losers

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Elizabeth Trotta) on Jun 26, 2007

Encysive sinks on a spate of news.

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Oracle's License for Profit

2007-06-27T00:02:00.001-07:00

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Oracle's License for Profit

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Ivy Lessner) on Jun 26, 2007

The software company's fourth quarter shines on a rise in new software license revenue.

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SEC Fines U.K. Hedge Fund GLG

2007-06-27T00:01:00.011-07:00

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SEC Fines U.K. Hedge Fund GLG

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Mark DeCambre) on Jun 26, 2007

It will have to pay $3.2 million.

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Profits Jump at Nike

2007-06-27T00:01:00.009-07:00

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Profits Jump at Nike

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Pia Sarkar) on Jun 26, 2007

Earnings meet Wall Street's expectations.

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Credit Jitters, but No Panic

2007-06-27T00:01:00.007-07:00

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Credit Jitters, but No Panic

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Liz Rappaport) on Jun 26, 2007

Stocks suffer another late dip but losses are minor. Are worries about leveraged buyouts justified?

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Bear Reins In Bailout Package

2007-06-27T00:01:00.005-07:00

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Bear Reins In Bailout Package

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Mark DeCambre) on Jun 26, 2007

The bank said it needs only half the $3.2 billion it originally slated to save its two ailing hedge funds.

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Cramer's 'Mad Money' Recap: Spotting Tops and Bottoms

2007-06-27T00:01:00.003-07:00

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Cramer's 'Mad Money' Recap: Spotting Tops and Bottoms

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (TheStreet.com Staff) on Jun 26, 2007

Cramer explains how to read the signs of an impending bottom or top.

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Applied Adds Solar Power

2007-06-27T00:01:00.001-07:00

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Applied Adds Solar Power

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Alexei Oreskovic) on Jun 26, 2007

The chipmaker's $475 million buy gives it added momentum in the solar energy market.

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Tuesday's Late Winners & Losers

2007-06-27T00:00:00.003-07:00

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Tuesday's Late Winners & Losers

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (Sarina Penn) on Jun 27, 2007

Nike jumps on a surge in earnings.

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Report: SEC Probing Subprime Loans

2007-06-27T00:00:00.001-07:00

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Report: SEC Probing Subprime Loans

via TheStreet.com by twocents@thestreet.com (TSC Staff) on Jun 27, 2007

The commission is investigating issues involving CDOs related to the subprime-mortgage market, say reports.

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