Economy To Hold Steady

According to the National Association of Business Economists,the U.S. economy is expected to remain on an even keel in 2007.While personal spending is expected to rise slightly,Gross Domestic Product,the value of goods and services,will fall slightly.Corporate profits will drop sharply,but the Federal Reserve will hold interest rates steady until 2008,when it will make one .25 cut.Nonetheless,any of a number of wild cards,such as war with Iran or a bad hurricane season,could upset the equilibrium forseen by these economists.

Big Companies,Big Problems

A disturbing trend in corporate behavior has emerged.Several big companies have been veering over the tax line.As a result,the likes of KPMG,Glaxo-Smith Kline and General Electric have had to pay penalties recently.According to the Internal Revenue Service,they had been improperly sheltering assets.Their end runs have ended up at a dead end.

Knee-Jerk Investors

The instant CNBC's Jim Cramer mentions a stock-sometimes even if he doesn't like it-viewers start purchasing it after hours,according to the ticker scrolled during his Mad Money program.Jim hates this,but nothing he says does any good.These viewers worship him and exercise no judgement whatsoever.What will they do when Cramer retires? And Cramer can be wrong about stocks.These viewers can lose money right now. Is Cramer doing more harm than good? No one has done a study to this point.We can only pray that isn't the case,since Jim is the channel's most original host.

Honeywell Does Well

Based in Morristown,New Jersey,Honeywell International,Inc.(HON) has many frying pans in the fire.With seven operating divisions,this multinational competitor makes everything from fire alarms to antifreeze.Its global reach and diversity help HON to have something going for it most of the time.And as a defense contractor,Honeywell stands to profit from the hefty military spending in a time of war.

Ford Motor Resilient

Just one day after posting its worst ever loss of 12.7 billion dollars,Ford Motor Company(F) began attracting renewed support.The stock started back uphill despite the slide of the previous quarter.This was a vote of confidence in new CEO Alan Mulally,whose Boeing turnaround is much admired.In addition,it was a realization that GM had experienced a similar blow,but was now on the way back,and F should follow suit.It was also a statement of national pride.No American wants to see this storied company fail,for it would be a tragedy to lose a part of our past.

2006 Business Commercial of the Year

Emerson gets the WSW nod for 2006 Business Commercial of the Year.The company's employees are waiting for clients at various spectacular locations,such as the Chilean Andes.When the clients arrive,they are warmly greeted.This is the kind of service we all long for,yet seldom find in our era.

Del Monte Climbs Up

Del Monte Foods(DLM) has been upgraded to "outperform."The company has been quietly adding name brands to its portfolio-especially pet food.Milk Bone and Meow Mix are among its latest acquisitions,boosting its prospects significantly.We might deprive ourselves,but we will never deny our pets.As well,the concern over fresh food safety can't hurt their hallmark canned food business.One of mom's old brands is a real bargain today.