Friday, June 28, 2013

Birthday People June 28-29,2013

June 28
Country singer Kellie Pickler is 27.
June 29
Pop singer Nicole Scherzinger,35
Her boyfriend is race car driver Lewis Hamilton.

US-Saudi Talks Focus on Syria

US Secretary of State John Kerry continues his journey to the Middle East and Asia this weekend.The trip began June 21 and extends through July 2.On Tuesday 25 June,Mr.Kerry held talks with Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister,Prince Saud al-Faisal,in Jeddah,Saudi Arabia.
In remarks following their meeting,His Royal Highness described the talks with John Kerry as having been a fruitful,constructive discussion,transparent and open-minded.At the top of their agenda was the crisis in Syria.
Perhaps the most ominous development is the involvement of foreign forces,Prince Saud noted,foremost of which is the motions of Hezbollah with support from Iran's national guard in the mass murder of Syrians,with unlimited military support from Russia.This critical turn of events cannot be overlooked.
Over and above the regime's genocide against its own people,this adds an even deadlier element in the form of an all-out foreign invasion that breaks every international law,protocol and principle.This violates the Syrian land and turns it into a battleground for global and regional conflicts and puts it under the mercy of sectarian struggles.
Syria can only be considered an occupied land.This requires a firm stand and speedy action from the international community.
I would like to commend the US decision to send military aid to the Free Syrian Army,and express my relief for what I heard today from the US Secretary of State concerning both changing the balance of forces on the ground and maintaining the legitimacy of the Syrian National Coalition as the sole representative of the Syrian people,Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud said.
Mr.Kerry is currently meeting in Amman,Jordan and Jerusalem with Jordanian,Israeli and Palestinian officials on advancing the Middle East peace process.From there,he will travel to Brunei for ASEAN meetings.

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Birthday People June 26,2013

Baseball player Derek Jeter is 39.
Actress Eleanor Parker is 91.
Support your online news outlets.

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Birthday People June 25,2013

Actress Busy Phillipps is 34.
Actress June Lockhart is 88.
The east coast is feeling its first heat wave of summer.

Ranting and Raving:Stocks Down,Bond Yields Up

Stocks continued their downward momentum on Monday.I see a lot of companies whose stocks seem to be in the wrong place.They want to come down,cautions CNBC's Jim Cramer.
The Fed has lost control of the bond market.Everybody has to readjust.What if the ten year Treasury goes to three?A 3% Clorox is not as good as a 3% ten year.It's one of the bond market equivalents that don't work.It's just breathtaking to watch the TNX,the Treasury Yield Index,when you don't have a bond terminal.
There's a couple of higher yielding stocks and MLPs,master limited partnerships.I'm watching Brazil and the riots.Are they still gonna stage the Olympics?You can't even make money if you bet against the Olympics.
Who is gonna say the magic word that Fed fund rates are gonna go higher?That's something we don't want to hear.I feel Fed Chairman Bernanke is boxed in the corner.He has become the world's largest bond trader.
Copper under three scares me.China does worry me.I went to see a meerkat exhibition.They were all huddled together,clearly worried about the bond market.
Whirlpool has a giant Brazilian market.This is one of those "let them eat cake" situations.They're building the Olympics and forgetting the people.I rented out one of my homes for July.I need the income because of the Brazilian market.
I want the highest quality here.The earnings coming out this week will be a good tell,the popular expert investor Jim Cramer said.
The TNX-10 Year Notes closed at 25.48 on Monday,up 0.34,or 1.35%.
Whirlpool(WHR),Clorox(CLX)

Monday, June 24, 2013

Did Nik Wallenda Really Cross the Grand Canyon

Sunday evening,Nik Wallenda crossed a quarter mile gorge in Northwestern Arizona on a wire.Yet a question has arisen as to whether he actually crossed the Grand Canyon.In a word,no.He walked across something else on the wire:the Little Colorado River Gorge.The Little Colorado River flows into the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon.So he really crossed an offshoot or outlier of the Grand Canyon,which was indeed a spectacular achievement-just not exactly as billed by the Discovery channel.
It's surprising that co-host Natalie Morales and her employer NBC News went along with the innacuracy,possibly damaging their credibility.Grand Canyon National Park said it wouldn't allow such a stunt on its land because it constitutes a disturbance to the environment and visitor experience.The Navajo Nation did allow it on their land  for the fees and publicity the stunt generated,to the benefit of the tribe,in their judgement.
During his crossing without a harness or netting to break a fall,Wallenda,34 and the married father of three,complained of dust on the cable and strong wind gusts,at times kneeling to wait out the swaying,as well as expressing his Christian faith in brief utterances.It was a much tenser experience for him and his viewers alike than his crossing of the Niagara River Gorge,when he was required to wear a harness.
It was confusing,totally an optical illusion,Wallenda said.It took every bit of me to stay focused.There was a huge rhythm in the cable.My contacts are filled with dust and my mouth is very dry,like crossing the desert.
My ancestors are a great inspiration to me.It's such an honour to carry on the legacy.
The crossing took 22 minutes,54 seconds.There were 700,000 tweets about the event,up to 40,000 tweets a minute,and the Discovery channel's website got 1.5 million hits.
In the end,Wallenda stood alone looking out over the gorge,wiping tears from his eyes.
Discovery Communications(DISCA)




Friday, June 21, 2013

Birthday People June 21-22,2013

June 21
Prince William is 31.
June 22
Actress Meryl Streep,64.
Have a great weekend.

John Kerry Departs for Middle East,Asia

Secretary of State John Kerry is departing for an eleven day trip to the Middle East and Asia later today,June 21.He will visit Doha,New Delhi,Jeddah,Kuwait City,Amman,Jerusalem and Bandar Seri Begawan,according to Spokesperson Jen Psaki.
In Doha,Qatar,Kerry will meet with senior Qatari officials to discuss bilateral and regional matters.He will also meet with the London 11 foreign ministers to discuss the Syrian conflict,including support for the opposition and the search for a political settlement.
While in New Delhi,the Secretary will chair the interagency delegation to the fourth annual US-India Strategic Dialogue.It will cover the full spectrum of bilateral and regional concerns,from economic engagement to security and defence,as well as climate change and space cooperation.
In Jeddah and Kuwait City,Mr.Kerry will discuss a number of bilateral and regional issues with Saudi and Kuwaiti officials.
In Amman and Jerusalem,he will meet with Jordanian,Israeli and Palestinian officials on advancing the Middle East peace process.
Finally,the Secretary will participate in ASEAN regional meetings and the 3rd East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers Meeting in Bandar Seri Begawan,Brunei,as well as hold bilateral talks with the Sultan of Brunei and other Brunei officials.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Birthday People June 19,2013

Actress Zoe Saldana is 35.
Actress Phylicia Rashad is 65.
The Battle of Gettysburg's 150th anniversay will be July 1-3.

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Birthday People June 18,2013

Country music star Blake Shelton is 37.
Beatle Sir Paul McCartney is 71.
Only you can prevent wildfires.

Hewlett-Packard:Head in the Cloud

Our cloud strategy is,the cloud that the enterprise can rely on,said Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman.I had said eBay was my last CEO job.I have met over 500 customers in the past 18 months or so,and every one wants HP to win,and that's why I took the job:because it matters.
When you put the right HP people in the room,no one does it better.It's about time to market,the innovation you're going to bring.It's a very competitive world.You're gonna win some,you're gonna lose some.
We will reduce headcount by about 24,000 over three years.We're about halfway through.The way tech is bought,consumed and payed for is changing fast.It's cloud,it's mobility-the new style of IT.The enterprise has to get from where they are to where they want to be.IT has to drive revenue.
We have to outwit,outsmart and and outcompete our competitors,and that's what we aim to do.We did increase R and D,but we also narrowed the scope of it.It is so much fun to watch our R and D engineers.That sroke of genius we're known for is still very much alive today,Ms.Whitman indicated.
HP stock closed at 25.16 on Monday,up 1.69%.
Hewlett-Packard(HPQ)

Monday, June 17, 2013

Asia This Day:Last Chance to Ditch Gillard;Infosys Reboots

Indonesia raised interest rates last week,flying in the face of the long-standing global trend of cutting them.
BNP Paribas is recommending purchasing Chinese oil major CNOOC shares on rising production and a projected return on equity of 17% next year.
The Federal Reserve has to communicate a complex message that seems to be getting lost in translation,said John Woods,chief Asia Pacific strategist at Citi Private Bank.The market has to understand that the tapering of bond purchases the Fed is suggesting is not the same as tightening monetary policy.
Stock market losses in recent days are more a correction than a reversal.Once summer is past,we expect the underlying fundamentals to reassert themselves,with a slightly positive outlook into the end of the year.
The Australian parliament is convening today for a final two week session before the September 14 election.A poll shows the opposition coalition leading the Labour government of Prime Minister Julia Gillard by 57 to 43%,which translates to a 30 seat advantage.It is the last opportunity for Labour to replace her,yet former Labour leader Kevin Rudd is unpopular within the party and said he isn't interested in returning to the post.
Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy has been recalled to the executive chairmanship of the software services firm,having left the CEO post 11 years ago.He said recovery at the company will take 36 months,but they will do whatever it takes to stabilise earnings.Sales have reached a four-year low recently.
It will be painful in the short term,but Infosys will revitalise the sales force with incentives and offer flexible pricing on large contracts.
The MSCI Asia Pacific index was up 0.85% as of mid-day Monday.
Infosys Ltd(INFY),CNOOC Ltd(CEO)

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Birthday People June 11-12

6-11 TV host Dr.Mehmet Oz is 53.
6-12  Baseball player Hideki Matsui,39.
         President George H.W. Bush,89

Should You Invest in Microsoft

I think Microsoft will move the office and server business to the cloud,said Rick Sherlund,Managing Director and Director of Technology Research at Nomura Securities,to align internally and focus their business model around the cloud.Their primary competitor in the cloud is Amazon.
It's gonna be important that they deliver higher end software,not just infrastructure.A lot of enterprises run Microsoft,so hopefully you can draw above average margins.
Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates and CEO Steve Ballmer own a little less than 9% of the stock.The stock rallies on restructuring reports.On fundamentals,the stock is pretty uninteresting right now.A lot of it is gonna have to come from increasing shareholder value.
Microsoft owns 10% of privately held Israeli  navigation and traffic report app Waze Ltd,which Google will reportedly purchase for 1.1 billion dollars.Microsoft would receive 100 million for its stake in the app.
Neither Google nor Waze will comment on the prospective deal.
In Monday trading,Microsoft stock closed at 35.47,down 0.56%.
Microsoft(MSFT),Google(GOOG),Amazon(AMZN)

Monday, June 10, 2013

Militant Attack on Kabul Airport Squelched

Afghan security forces successfully dealt with a pre-dawn raid by Taliban militants on Kabul International Airport.The attack was carried out by a team of seven militants,two of whom exploded themselves with suicide vests during the assault.A firefight ensued that lasted several hours.
In the end,all seven of the Islamist fighters were killed,Afghan police said.There were no reports of security force or civilian casualties.A NATO headquarters is located in the military section of the airport that was the scene of this morning's battle.
The militants had attacked a building that was under construction,seizing it for a bunker from which to engage security forces-a tactic they have employed in the past.The airport was sealed off and flights were grounded during the ruckus.
A Taliban spokesman contacted the media to claim responsibility for the attack.
Most NATO troops are to be withdrawn from Afghanistan by the end of next year.Around 60,000 US forces are presently serving in the country along with lesser numbers of their British and other allies,mainly in an advise and assist capacity with the Afghan security forces.

Friday, June 7, 2013

NFL Great Jim Kelly To Have Cancer Surgery

Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly,53,will undergo cancer surgery today,June 7,to remove part of his upper right jaw.He has a squamous cell carcinoma,a type of skin cancer that can form in the jaw bone.Surgery is typically indicated when the cancer is discovered at an early stage.
More than 90% of oral cancers are squamous cell carcinomas.Squamous cells are the lining of the throat and mouth.Some of them may become abnormal,or cancerous.
About 80% of oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancers are linked to heavy alcohol use;70% are linked to tobacco use,either smoking or chewing tobacco;25% are linked to human papilloma virus,which also causes cervical cancer.Heredity may also be a factor.
Following removal of the tumor,surgical reconstruction of the oral cavity and implanting of a prosthetic device may be required to assist with speaking,chewing and smiling.
Oral cancer screening is painless and may be performed by a dentist as part of a regular dental exam.
Jim Kelly said he is doing his best to keep his spirits up in the face of his diagnosis.So far,there is no evidence the tumour has spread.
Kelly led the Buffalo Bills to four straight Super Bowls from 1991-94,and was a four-time Pro Bowl all star.He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2002,as soon as he was eligible.Today he runs a football camp for children and hosts a charity golf tournament every year,which he intends to do this year even with his health condition.
Update:Jim Kelly is recovering comfortably following surgery at Erie County Medical Center,his doctors said in a statement.He underwent a partial maxillectomy,or removal of the jaw bone,to remove a squamous cell carcinoma of the upper gingival caused by chronic irritation at the gum site.He underwent reconstruction with a dental obturator,or prosthetic plate.
The surgery went very well.We are hopeful for and anticipate a speedy recovery and successful outcome,his doctors concluded.

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Birthday People-June 6,2013

Broadcast journalist Natalie Morales is 41.
Children's rights advocate/attorney/author Marian Wright Edelman is 74.
D-Day anniversary(1944).

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Birthday People-June 5,2013

Actor Mark Wahlberg is 42.
Broadcast journalist Bill Moyers is 79.
Only you can prevent wildfires.

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Birthday People-June 4,2013

June 4:
Actress/director Angelina Jolie is 38.
Actor Parker Stevenson is 61.
Have you clicked an ad today?Support your news outlets.

Thriving on Main Street:Goldman Sachs Grows in Salt Lake City

Wall Street powerhouse Goldman Sachs continues to recruit staff for its Salt Lake City office at 222 Main Street.It occupies seven floors in the new building,having moved from an industrial park in the outskirts of town.A large component of the office is Utah-raised people.
Goldman expects significant growth at this Rocky Mountains location over the next 2-4 years.It has surged from 300 to more than 1400 so far.It is their second largest office in the Americas.The regional office gives more responsibility early on,Goldman says,offering more exposure to all the firm's businesses.Positions at the office include Investment Management;Operations;Services and Technology;and Investment Research.
Goldman praised the excellent talent and resources it has been able to tap into through the Utah education system and general labour market.Utah lends tremendous value to its global businesses.Many employees continue their careers in other offices in the Americas,Europe and Asia.In a recent survey,employees rated their experience at this office 3.7 out of 5 stars.
Goldman has been moving people out of New York to such non-traditional hubs largely to cut costs.It is following a trend by financial services companies to open offices in high quality of life/low cost areas such as Salt Lake City and North Carolina.
Goldman's Salt Lake office has been recognised for the diversity of its staff.Some of them never expected to work for the financial services titan.
In addition,the Goldman program 10,000 Small Businesses is recruiting students for its academy at Salt Lake Community College.Participants have expressed high regard for the program that brings Goldman's expertise to bear on small business issues.They are attributing double digit revenue and jobs growth based on the knowledge and networking offered through the program.
Goldman Sachs(GS)

Monday, June 3, 2013

China Southern's First 787 Flight;LPGA Shop Rite Classic

Beautifully painted blue and white with a red tail logo,China Southern Airlines' first Boeing 787 Dreamliner took off from Paine Field in Mukilteo,Washington on Saturday,its swept-up wings lifting the plane above the snow-capped peaks in the background.It was the latest milestone in a phased restart process following the aircraft's three-month grounding due to battery problems.
Since April,commercial airlines have been reintegrating the revolutionary plastic composite jet into their fleets,including Ethiopian Airlines;United;Air India;and Qatar Air.Only JAL had a hiccup when an employee failed to remove the tape from a battery,causing a 787 to be swapped out for another model.
The China Southern Dreamliner arrived at the airline's base of Guangzhou in twelve and a half hours.It was met with a red carpet and greeters bearing rose bouquets.The captain said after five and a half years of waiting,the flight was a dream come true.
Following a three-month shakedown period of domestic flights only,China Southern will launch its Guangzhou to Paris and Sydney routes.
The MSCI Asia Pacific index was down 0.55% in early Monday trading on fears the Federal Reserve will end stimulus measures.
It was an Asian sweep of the top three spots on the leader board at the LPGA Shop Rite Classic Presented by Acer in Galloway,New Jersey on Sunday.World Golf Hall of Fame member Karrie Webb of Australia ,38,shot a four under par 68 for the win, followed by China's Shanshan Feng and South Korea's Hee Young Park.It was Webb's 39th career victory,the most of any active female in professional golf.
Boeing(BA),China Southern Airlines(ZNH)