A look at economic developments around the globe (AP)

A look at economic developments and activity in major stock markets around the world Thursday:

___

FRANKFURT, Germany ? A raft of downbeat indicators stoked fears that Europe is on the edge of recession as it grapples with a crippling debt crisis.

The European Commission's index of consumer optimism from the European Commission fell to a two-year low of minus 18.5 in September in the 17 countries that use the euro. Meanwhile industrial orders ? key for Europe's manufacturing driven economy ? slid 2.1 percent in July, according to Eurostat, the EU's statistics office.

___

LONDON ? Mounting evidence that the world economy is slowing down sharply sent global stock markets spiraling down as investors brushed off the U.S. Federal Reserve's efforts to spur growth and focused instead on the central bank's gloomy outlook.

France's CAC-40 was down a hefty 5.3 percent while Germany's DAX slid 5 percent. The FTSE index of Britain's leading shares ended down 4.7 percent.

___

TOKYO ? In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 dropped 2.1 percent. South Korea's Kospi slid 2.9 percent. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was 2.6 percent down.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng saw the biggest fall, diving over 900 points, or 4.9 percent.

In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite Index closed down 2.8 percent.

___

FRANKFURT, Germany ? The departing chief economist of the European Central Bank warned that heavy government debts threatened the existence of the euro currency, and urged the EU to take much tougher steps to force overspending governments back into line.

___

ATHENS, Greece ? Austerity-weary Greeks lashed out against more tax hikes and pension cuts with a new round of strikes, with public transport workers, taxi drivers, teachers and air traffic controllers walking off the job.

___

MADRID ? Spain's Parliament restored a deficit-reducing wealth tax in its final session before dissolving to make way for an election that opposition conservatives are favored to win.

___

TAIPEI, Taiwan ? Taiwan and Japan signed an arrangement to bolster mutual investment despite their lack of formal diplomatic ties.

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BRASILIA ? Brazil's government statistics agency says the unemployment rate in Latin America's biggest economy was 6 percent in August. That's unchanged from the previous month, but the lowest figure for a month of August since 2002.

___

DUBLIN ? Ireland's economy has grown 1.6 percent in the second quarter, more than expected, and appears on course to exit a three-year recession.

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PARIS ? The top tier of luxury consumers curbed their spending on high-end clothes, accessories and jewelry in the first half of 2011, while regular consumers picked up the slack for the first time since the 2008 financial crisis, a study by American Express' consulting unit said.

___

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/stocks/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110922/ap_on_bi_ge/us_economy_countries_glance

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Greek PM, opposition reach power-sharing deal

Elena Becatoros and Demetris Nellas, Associated Press, On Sunday November 6, 2011, 6:48 pm EST

ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- Greece's embattled prime minister and main opposition leader agreed Sunday to form an interim government to ensure the country's new European debt deal, capping a week of political turmoil that saw Greece face a catastrophic default that threatened its euro membership and roiled international markets.

As part of the deal, Prime Minister George Papandreou agreed to step down halfway through his four-year term. He and conservative opposition head Antonis Samaras are to meet Monday to discuss who will become prime minister and the makeup of the Cabinet.

The new unity government's main task will be to pass the European rescue package, reached after marathon negotiations between European leaders barely a week ago -- a move considered crucial to shoring up the euro. The interim government will then lead the country into early elections, expected early next year.

Officials had been anxious to reach some form of agreement before a meeting of eurozone finance ministers in Brussels on Monday.

"Of course it's a breakthrough," government spokesman Elias Mossialos said. "It is a historical day for Greece, we will have a coalition government very soon, early next week. The prime minister and the leader of the opposition will discuss tomorrow the name of the new prime minister and the names of ministers."

Papandreou sparked the latest crisis by announcing last week that he was taking the hard-fought debt agreement to a referendum. That outraged European leaders, who said such a vote could raise the specter of Athens leaving the common currency -- setting off an unpredictable chain reaction that could drag down other European countries.

They also warned a vote would jeopardize the disbursement of a vital $11 billion (euro8 billion) installment of Greece's existing $152 billion (euro110 billion) bailout, which the country desperately needs to avoid the potential of a catastrophic default within weeks.

In the ensuing market turmoil, Italy -- which also faces severe financial difficulties, but is considered too big to bail out -- saw its borrowing costs spiral, sparking fears it could be dragged into the fray.

Papandreou withdrew the referendum plan Thursday in the wake of European anger and after it sparked a rebellion among his own Socialist lawmakers, many of whom called for him to resign. The turmoil also pushed the conservative opposition party to publicly declare it would back the debt agreement.

Any interim government that is formed with the support of both major parties will be almost guaranteed to push the European rescue package through parliament, even if it has to be approved by a reinforced majority of 180 of the legislature's 300 lawmakers.

The new European deal would give Greece an additional $179 billion (euro130 billion) in rescue loans and bank support. It would also see banks and private investors write off 50 percent of their Greek debt holdings, worth some $138 billion (euro100 billion). The goal is to reduce Greece's debts to the point where the country is able to handle its finances without relying on constant bailouts.

Greece's lawmakers must now approve the package, putting intense pressure on the country's leaders to swiftly end the political crisis so parliament can convene and put it to a vote.

A planned meeting with the leaders of all political parties in parliament, which was to take place Monday evening, was canceled after two leftist parties refused to attend, the president's office said.

Sunday's agreement came after a late-night meeting between Papandreou and Samaras called by President Karolos Papoulias at Papandreou's request to end a two-day deadlock. Direct talks had failed to get off the ground because Papandreou had said an agreement had to be reached on a new government before he stepped aside, while Samaras insisted Papandrepou resign before the start of negotiations and demanded quick elections.

An opposition conservative party official said Samaras' New Democracy party was "absolutely satisfied" with the outcome of the talks and that party officials were to hold meetings late Sunday night with Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos and his advisers to discuss how long it would take to finalize the new debt deal and when elections could be held.

"Our two targets, for Mr. Papandreou to resign and for elections to be held, have been met," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the process.

The Finance Ministry said a late-night meeting between Venizelos and opposition party members determined the "most suitable" date for elections was Feb. 19.

Two turbulent years after coming to power in a landslide election victory, Papandreou has seen his popularity plummet as his government has been forced to severely cut spending while hiking taxes to tackle a runaway deficit and debt that led Greece to become the first eurozone country to seek an international bailout.

Ireland and Portugal have since followed suit, but European leaders have been desperate to ensure other countries with larger economies are not also dragged down.

Associated Press writer Nicholas Paphitis in Athens contributed to this report.

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Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/finance/news/rss/story/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/finance/news/topfinstories/*http%3A//biz.yahoo.com/ap/111106/eu_greece_financial_crisis.html

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The 9 Top Value-Creating Pharmaceutical Companies

"I think I've been in the top 5% of my age cohort all my life in understanding the power of incentives, and all my life I've underestimated it," Warren Buffett's business partner, Charlie Munger, once said. "And never a year passes but I get some surprise that pushes my limit a little farther."

For corporate boards, using bad incentives for management pay can be disastrous. (Think Lehman Brothers.) Incentives based on singular metrics such as revenue growth, EBITDA, return on equity, or earnings per share are easily manipulated and gamed. Fortunately, EVA momentum provides a better alternative.

Creator Bennett Stewart of EVA Dimensions, who also co-created EVA (Economic Value Added), calls EVA momentum "the only percent metric where more is always better than less. It always increases when managers do things that make economic sense."

So what does this mean for investors? A positive reading on EVA momentum means a company has created value by increasing its EVA, and a negative EVA momentum means EVA has decreased and less value is being created. EVA momentum is one of the few performance measurements, if not the only one, with such a clear dividing line between good and bad performance.

The best companies, then, create value in excess of their cost of capital, as reflected by positive EVA momentum. The higher the EVA momentum, the faster management is creating value.

Let's look at the pharmaceutical industry and see the most effective producers of value as measured by EVA momentum over the past quarter and year, as well as the three-year trend. The companies are ranked by percentile versus the Russell 3000. The limitations I've set are that the company must have more than a $500 million market cap and be traded on a major U.S. exchange.

�	Company	Russell 3000 Percentile	3-Year Trend	Past Year	Past Quarter
1	Akorn (Nasdaq: AKRX��)	100	12.2%	39.5%	64.6%
2	Jazz Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: JAZZ��)	99	12.6%	12.6%	17.9%
3	Questcor Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: QCOR��)	97	11.9%	131.5%	162.4%
4	Salix Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: SLXP��)	96	2.9%	13.4%	12.6%
5	ViroPharma (Nasdaq: VPHM��)	95	6.1%	6.3%	2.6%
6	Novo Nordisk (NYSE: NVO��)	93	2.4%	8.7%	11.5%
7	Optimer Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: OPTR��)	90	6.5%	30.0%	(33.2%)
8	Dr. Reddy's Laboratories (NYSE: RDY��)	88	2.4%	3.3%	2.8%
9	Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY��)	88	3.3%	2.9%	5.1%

Source: EVA Dimensions LLC.

Akorn leads the industry with a 39.5% EVA momentum in the past year, as well as with its three-year trend of 12.2%, placing the company in the top 1% of the Russell 3000.

Businesses with high EVA momentum are effectively creating value. It will be interesting to see how useful this extremely new metric proves to be for companies and investors. If it lives up to its promise, it will be an essential tool in investors' arsenals.

Another tool for better investing
Most investors don't keep tabs on their companies' fundamental value. That's a mistake. If you take the time to read past the headlines and crack a filing now and then, you're in a much better position to spot potential trouble early. Better yet, you'll improve your odds of finding the underappreciated home-run stocks that provide the market's best returns.

If you're interested in continuing your research on a stock mentioned here, add it to My Watchlist to stay abreast of all of our Foolish analysis.

Source: http://feeds.fool.com/~r/usmf/foolwatch/~3/mfNVkUlkOuA/the-9-top-value-creating-pharmaceutical-companies.aspx

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Employment, Businesses Expand More Than Forecast: Economy

November 30, 2011, 2:38 PM EST

By Shobhana Chandra and Bob Willis

(Updates with Fed Beige Book in seventh, eighth paragraphs.)

Nov. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Companies boosted payrolls in November by the most this year and U.S. businesses expanded at the fastest pace in seven months, giving the economy a lift as 2011 draws to a close.

Private employment, which excludes government jobs, climbed 206,000 this month, according to data today from Roseland, New Jersey-based ADP Employer Services. The Institute for Supply Management-Chicago Inc.?s business barometer increased to 62.6 in November from 58.4 the prior month as orders and production strengthened.

?Things are shifting in the right direction for a faster pace of growth next year,? said Carl Riccadonna, a senior U.S. economist at Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. in New York. ?New orders are rising, production is increasing and employment will likely improve.? In addition, ?central banks are taking the right steps,? he said.

Stocks soared as six central banks including the Federal Reserve acted to make more funds available to lenders to preserve the global expansion in the wake of Europe?s sovereign debt crisis. Another report showed the biggest gain in home- purchase contract signings in a year, adding to evidence the world?s largest economy is withstanding the European slowdown.

The Standard & Poor?s 500 Index climbed 3.2 percent to 1,233.9 at 2:14 p.m. in New York. The yield on the benchmark 10- year Treasury note rose to 2.07 percent from 1.99 percent late yesterday.

Jobs Report

Economists project the Labor Department to report in two days that private employment rose 150,000 in November, according to the median projection in a Bloomberg News survey.

The Fed today said the economy expanded at a ?moderate? pace in 11 of its 12 districts, led by gains in manufacturing and consumer spending.

The report reinforces the central bank?s view that the economy, while strong enough to skirt a recession, remains too weak to bring down an unemployment rate stuck near 9 percent or higher for more than two years. At their last meeting Nov. 1-2, some Fed policy makers said the central bank should consider easing policy further, according to minutes of the meeting.

Last month?s initial ADP figures showed a 110,000 gain, while the Labor Department?s data showed an increase of 104,000 in private payrolls for October. Today, ADP revised the October figure to a gain of 130,000.

German Unemployment

German unemployment dropped more than forecast in November as companies? resilience to the euro area?s debt woes showed no sign of cracking. The number of people out of work fell a seasonally adjusted 20,000 to 2.91 million, the Nuremberg-based Federal Labor Agency said today. The adjusted jobless rate dropped to 6.9 percent.

Companies in Europe?s largest economy are adding workers even as the region?s worsening fiscal crisis clouds growth prospects. While Jim O?Neill, chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, said today the euro-area economy may already be in a recession, German business confidence rose in November and consumers also became more optimistic.

Stronger job growth in the U.S. will make it easier to sustain the recent gain in consumer spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of the economy.

?Things are getting better for the economy,? said Robert Brusca, chief economist at Fact & Opinion Economics in New York, who projected an ADP payroll gain of 160,000. ?It means the news we have on Christmas shopping and on an increase in consumer confidence may have some validity.?

Holiday Sales

Online sales increased more than 20 percent on Cyber Monday from a year earlier as consumers flocked to the Internet to make holiday purchases, researchers found. Revenue jumped 33 percent, according to International Business Machines Corp., while ComScore Inc. put the increase at 22 percent.

Williams-Sonoma Inc., a retailer of high-end home goods, raised its annual profit forecast and will ?continue to look for a few key jobs? in online sales, Chief Executive Officer Laura Alber said in a Nov. 17 conference call with analysts.

A pickup in consumer spending and more business investment at a time when companies are holding fewer inventories may help set the stage for stronger production.

Readings above 50 in the Chicago purchasers? measure signal growth and this month?s figure exceeded the highest estimate in the Bloomberg survey. Economists forecast the gauge would rise to 58.5, according to the median of 56 estimates. Projections ranged from 56 to 60.7.

More Production, Orders

The Chicago group?s production gauge increased to a seven- month high and the gauge of new orders rose to the highest level since March. The employment measure eased.

Economists watch the Chicago index and other regional manufacturing reports for an early reading on the national outlook. The Chicago group says its membership includes both manufacturers and service providers with operations in the U.S. and abroad, making the gauge a measure of overall growth.

The ISM?s national factory index climbed in November to 51.8 from 50.8 the prior month, according to the median projection in a Bloomberg survey ahead of the group?s report tomorrow. Like the Chicago survey, a reading greater than 50 signals expansion.

Caterpillar Inc., the world?s largest construction and mining-equipment maker, last month announced higher-than- expected third-quarter profit and sales, reinforcing forecasts that exports and capital spending will help the U.S. maintain its economic expansion.

While the European debt crisis and the level of U.S. growth are concerns, they don?t ?signal the onset of recession,? Caterpillar said in a statement.

The housing market may be starting to thaw. The National Association of Realtors today said its index of pending home sales increased 10.4 percent, the most since November 2010, after falling 4.6 percent the previous months.

--With assistance from Chris Middleton in Washington. Editors: Vince Golle, Carlos Torres

To contact the reporter on this story: Bob Willis in Washington at bwillis@bloomberg.net; Shobhana Chandra in Washington at schandra1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Christopher Wellisz at cwellisz@bloomberg.net.

Source: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-11-30/employment-businesses-expand-more-than-forecast-economy.html

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Spanish lawmakers pass wealth tax to cut deficit (AP)

MADRID ? Spain's Parliament restored a deficit-reducing wealth tax Thursday in its final session before dissolving to make way for an election that opposition conservatives are favored to win.

Most opposition parties criticized the tax bill as a desperate electoral maneuver by the beleaguered ruling Socialists, who argue it is only fair to hit the rich harder in times of crisis, highlighted by Spain's 21 percent jobless rate.

Still, there were only two votes against the new tax for no party wanted to be seen as coddling the wealthy in an election year. The yes votes totaled 176 ? most from the Socialists ? while 166 deputies abstained.

The government says the tax will affect 160,000 people whose net worth is more than euro700,000 ($950,000). It will run for only two years ? 2011 and 2012 ? to bring in euro2 billion ($2.7 billion) just as Spain needs it the most as it works to cut its deficit from 9.2 percent of GDP last year to the EU limit of 3 percent in 2013.

The net worth threshold is roughly seven times the one in a law the the same government suspended in 2008. At the time, the economic crisis was just starting to bite hard and the government argued that the tax ? a levy on a person's assets minus their debts ? hit the middle class too hard.

Parliament will formally dissolve Monday to allow time for campaigning for Nov. 20 general election. Debate will be dominated by the staggering jobless rate, anemic growth and debt woes that prompt worries Spain might still need an international bailout.

The opposition Popular Party, which is favored to win the election, said the Socialists have left a major piece of business undone: a decree extending this year's budget numbers into 2012, since there will not be time to pass a new budget for 2012 by the Dec. 31 deadline.

The conservative party said this shows the Socialist government wants to avoid debating the public finances and acknowledging during an election campaign that its growth forecasts ? 1.3 percent GDP growth this year ? are too optimistic. The European Union, the International Monetary Fund and many private economists have issued lower forecasts.

"They do not want to acknowledge the inconsistency of their predictions," said Soraya Saenz de Santamaria, a Popular Party spokeswoman.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110922/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_spain_financial_crisis

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Regulators blast AT&T for lies about T-Mobile

AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson won't have an easy time getting the proposed T-Mobile merger through the FCC.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday blasted AT&T, accusing the telecom giant of lying about the benefits of its proposed merger with T-Mobile.

In its 109-page report on the proposal, the regulator states that AT&T's $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile would not be in the public's interest, because the merger would "substantially lessen competition," limit consumers' choice in wireless providers and raise prices for mobile customers.

The report also found that AT&T was saying one thing publicly but telling a different story internally around its claims that the deal would create jobs and is necessary for AT&T to deploy next-generation wireless technology.

In the document, the FCC said its staff "identifie[d] internal AT&T documents and consistent historical practices that contradict AT&T's claim that merging with T-Mobile is essential for AT&T to build out its LTE network to 97% of Americans."

That's one of AT&T's central arguments in favor of its proposal.

The agency also found AT&T's claims that the deal would create U.S. jobs "to be inconsistent with AT&T's internal analyses."

In other words, the FCC thinks AT&T was lying to the public about the benefits of the merger.

The FCC released the report even though, in a surprise move, AT&T (T, Fortune 500) said on Thanksgiving that it is no longer seeking the regulator's approval for the merger. Many analysts say they believe that AT&T's withdrawal was in part an attempt to prevent the FCC from going public with its reasons for opposing the deal.

AT&T submitted its request to withdraw its application following the FCC's announcement last week that it would not approve the deal outright. Instead, it planned hold a public hearing -- a rare move signaling its disapproval.

The FCC said Tuesday that it has approved AT&T's withdrawal of its application to merge with rival T-Mobile. But FCC officials said the agency had been drafting a critical report for several months in anticipation of a hearing -- and they decided to release it.

It was a bold move from an agency that could have quietly backed away from a brawl over AT&T's proposed deal.

AT&T called the FCC's decision to release the report both "troubling" and "improper."

"This report is not an order of the FCC and has never been voted on," said Jim Cicconi, AT&T's head of external affairs, in an e-mailed statement. "It is simply a staff draft that raises questions of fact that were to be addressed in an administrative hearing, a hearing which will not now take place. It has no force or effect under law, which raises questions as to why the FCC would choose to release it."

AT&T has reason to be disgruntled: The FCC's move will further complicate its already troubled merger plan.

The FCC said it would submit an un-redacted version of its report to the U.S. Department of Justice, which sued AT&T for antitrust violations related to the proposed merger. A court trial is expected to begin in February.

AT&T also complained that the draft report had not been made available to the company prior to Tuesday, depriving it of the chance to prepare a response.

FCC officials countered by saying that substantial time, effort and money was spent on researching and drafting the report, and the agency didn't want to be seen as suppressing information.

The Commission also noted that AT&T should view the report as a kind of roadmap for what sort of deal could attain approval if AT&T seeks a different version of the merger in the future.

Though AT&T is still pursuing the merger, the FCC's harsh statements suggest that approval won't be easy. AT&T set aside $4 billion last week to cover the break-up fee it will owe Deutsche Telekom, T-Mobile's parent company, should the deal not go through.

But the FCC stopped short of telling AT&T that it would not approve the merger. The regulator had the option of allowing for the withdrawal of the merger application "with prejudice." That would have sent a clear message to AT&T: Don't come back in the future with any deal that resembles this one.

Instead, FCC officials said they will consider the proposal if AT&T returns with it.

But to get that far, AT&T will first have to vanquish the DOJ in court and prevail in the upcoming antitrust case. �

Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/money_topstories/~3/CbMf09x_Wfg/index.htm

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The danger from France

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- In what would be another blow to Europe's beleaguered rescue fund, there is growing speculation that France will eventually lose its top-tier credit rating.

Standard & Poor's could change its outlook for France's AAA credit rating within 10 days, according to a widely circulated report Tuesday in La Tribune, a French financial daily newspaper. If true, analysts say the move could lead to an official downgrade of the nation's rating within months.

S&P declined to comment on the report.

"It wouldn't surprise me if France got downgraded," said Kathy Jones, fixed-income strategist at Charles Schwab, noting that several other European governments have recently faced their own downgrades.

But a downgrade of France's credit rating would have serious repercussions for the European Financial Stability Facility, which European Union leaders have billed as a "firewall" against the debt crisis spreading across the eurozone.

France is the second-largest backer of the EFSF, after Germany. Paris stands behind over ?158 billion worth of loan guarantees under the latest iteration of the rescue fund.

"If France gets downgraded, the stability fund gets downgraded too," said Jones. "That's the real concern."

All told, the fund boasts some ?780 billion worth of "capital." But analysts say the actual amount is much smaller, given all of the fund's existing commitments.

In the event of a downgrade, investors would likely favor bonds issued by other AAA rated nations at the expense of the stability fund.

"People would go into German Bunds and shun EFSF bonds," said Tobias Blattner, economist at Daiwa Capital Markets in London.

That would make it harder for the stability fund to raise the money it needs to continue supporting troubled euro area nations, such as Ireland and Portugal, which already depend on the fund for bailout money. Not to mention a planned second ?110 billion bailout for Greece.

In addition, a downgrade would raise questions about a plan to leverage the fund by using it to insure new issuance of government bonds.

EU finance ministers are expected to unveil details of the insurance scheme later Tuesday after meeting in Brussels.

The loss of AAA status would also hinder an already faltering effort to use EFSF funds to back a special investment vehicle designed to attract capital from non-European governments and private sector investors.

On the bright side, if there is one, a downgrade would not necessarily drive up borrowing costs for the French government, according to Blattner.

"Investors are already pricing in the downgrade," he said.

The yield on French 10-year notes rose above 3.7% last week amid a broad flight from European bond markets. On Tuesday, yields were hovering near 3.5%, sharply higher than the 2.5% seen in early September.

As part of a series of auctions this week, France will offer up to ?7 billion worth of 6-, 10-, 15- and 30-year debt on Thursday.

Blattner expects France to be downgraded sometime early next year. He said a combination of the nation's EFSF liabilities, the exposure of French banks to troubled sovereign debt and the government's massive budget deficits make a downgrade all but certain.

In an interview with France Info radio, French Finance Minister Francois Baroin stressed that France is not the only country implicated in the intensifying debt crisis.

"Everyone is concerned, it's not just France," he said, adding that French policy makers are "lucid" and recognize the seriousness of the crisis.

But he ruled out additional austerity measures, saying the French government has a "margin" of ?6 billion in reserve.

Tuesday's La Tribune report, based on unnamed government sources, comes weeks after S&P mistakenly sent a message to subscribers indicating that France had been downgraded.

Moody's and Fitch, the other main credit rating agencies, both warned recently that France's credit rating would be at risk if the debt crisis in the eurozone continues to deteriorate.�

First Published: November 29, 2011: 2:22 PM ET

Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/money_topstories/~3/Pq7u5k6HuH4/index.htm

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The 9 Craziest Celebrity Insurance Policies

Almost all of us have some assets worth insuring -- our homes, our cars, our health. But the insurance business goes far beyond the basics. If your possessions are worth a bit more, you might have separate policies for your jewelry or art. Businesses take out insurance to protect their executives against lawsuits. And when they consider certain employees to be vital to their bottom lines, they may even take out life insurance policies on them.

Celebrities are no different. They take out insurance to protect their most important assets -- themselves.

If your living depends on a specific body part, be it your hands, legs or smile, you can't take chances. You can take out a policy.

This unusual segment of the business has been around for quite some time. Movie stars Betty Grable and Fred Astaire both had insurance policies on their legs in the first half of the 20th century. Astaire's $150,000 insurance coverage wasn't much compared to Grable's cool $1 million policy. These days celebrity insurance regularly covers much more than that.

So who's doing it today? 24/7 Wall St. has compiled a list of nine of the largest and most interesting insurance policies taken by or on behalf of celebrities.

Source: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2011/11/28/the-9-craziest-celebrity-insurance-policies/

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Consumer Confusion: Sales Up But Confidence Down ? Here?s Why It Makes Sense

[unable to retrieve full-text content]A strange economic trend appears to be emerging with American consumers. Retail sales have been trending higher while consumer confidence is at a 30-year low. Retail sales grew 1.1% in September, the fastest pace since February, we learned on Friday. Even excluding strong auto purchases, the figures were better than expected. Data for earlier in [...]

Source: http:/blogs/daily-ticker/consumer-confusion-sales-confidence-down-why-makes-sense-131707985.html

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Late Pepe strike earns Juve 3-3 draw at Napoli

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Late Pepe strike earns Juve 3-3 draw at Napoli

Late Pepe strike earns Juve 3-3 draw at Napoli

ROME (Reuters) - Leaders Juventus fought back from two goals down to draw 3-3 away to Napoli in a thrilling game at the San Paolo stadium on Tuesday with Pepe grabbing a late equaliser as they extended their unbeaten start to the Serie A campaign.

Goran Pandev struck twice for the hosts but Pepe popped up with the goal that salvaged a point after a barnstorming run as Juve piled on the pressure to stretch their lead over AC Milan to two points after 12 games with Napoli up to sixth on 17.

Marek Hamsik, having missed an early penalty, headed the home side in front midway through the first half before Pandev doubled their lead just before the break.

Alessandro Matri pulled a goal back for Juve just after the interval but Pandev struck again to put Napoli 3-1 ahead.

The visitors then staged a fightback with Marcelo Estigarribia poking the ball home after 73 minutes before Simone Pepe completed the comeback 11 minutes from time.

Juventus, without the suspended Claudio Marchisio from the side that won 1-0 at Lazio on Saturday, started well with Mirko Vucinic finding space inside the penalaty area before pulling his shot wide after seven minutes.

But it was the home side, backed by loud support from another full house in the capital of Italy's south, who were gifted the chance to break the deadlock seven minutes later when Andrea Pirlo brought down Ezequiel Lavezzi inside the box.

Hamsik fired the perfect penalty into the corner but after wild celebrations he was ordered to retake it after encroachment and the Slovakian blasted his second kick over the bar.

DIVING HEADER

The controversial moment appeared to fire Napoli up and they took the lead after 22 minutes when Lavezzi's free kick fell to Hamsik on the edge of the six-yard box and the midfielder made no mistake with a diving header.

Pandev, starting in place of the injured Edinson Cavani, had two fine chances to double the lead in as many minutes.

Juve keeper Gianluigi Buffon had to be at full stretch to save the Macedonian's low skidding shot from the edge of the box after 26 minutes before the striker shanked his near-post effort wide after superb approach play from Lavezzi.

Five minutes before halftime the dangerous Pandev got his reward, latching onto a another ricochet inside the area before applying a low finish across Buffon's to put Napoli 2-0 ahead.

Juventus were handed a lifeline three minutes into the second period when Chilean midfielder Arturo Vidal was allowed acres of space to pick out Matri inside the box and the in-form Italy striker calmly slotted home.

But Napoli restored their two-goal lead after 68 minutes when Pandev controlled Christian Maggio's difficult cross before swivelling to brilliantly volley the ball in off the post.

Five minutes later, though, Maggio went missing in defence allowing Estigarribia plenty of time to control Matri's cross and poke the ball under the diving Morgan De Sanctis for the Paraguayan's first goal in Italian football.

With the bit between their teeth, the Bianconeri poured forward and Pepe took advantage of a lucky break after a powerful run to sidefoot home a deserved equaliser after 79 minutes for his third goal in as many matches.

(Writing by Richard Allen; Editing by Ken Ferris; To comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

Source: http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/wire-news/late-pepe-strike-earns-juve-3-3-draw-at-napoli_626606.html

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Analysis: Emerging markets face capital exodus again (Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) ? A sell-off precipitated by global recession fears and the deepening euro zone debt crisis has resurrected the specter of capital flight, a threat that still haunts emerging markets for all their vaunted strengths.

Three years after the collapse of Wall Street giant Lehman Bros sparked a stampede out of higher risk assets and sent emerging economies reliant on foreign funding into shock, such fears have resurfaced in recent days amid heavy emerging equity and bond losses accompanied by sharp currency weakness.

Persistent hopes that developing economies can defy a Western downturn are set to be dashed the second time in four years, once again threatening to wrong foot investors who have bet big on the resilience of these markets.

"The process has just begun as real money investors haven't yet exited....All the ingredients are in place for a similar crisis to occur. The question is what magnitude," said Benoit Anne, head global emerging markets strategy at Societe Generale.

Since Aug 1, emerging stocks (.MSCIEF) have tumbled 22 percent to underperform world markets (.MIWO00000PUS), down 15 percent. Sovereign hard-currency bonds are at their weakest in over two years while local-currency debt (.JGEGDCM) year-to-date returns have turned negative in dollar terms.

Evoking memories of 2008 when investors offloaded emerging assets for more liquid securities such as U.S. Treasuries, this latest wave of foreign-led selling has been especially punishing on recent market darlings Indonesia, South Korea and Russia.

In the last seven weeks, the Korean won has skidded 12 percent lower while Russia's rouble has dropped 13 percent versus its dollar-euro basket. Brazil has lost 14 percent of its value against the dollar this month, chalking up its biggest one-day falls since October 2008.

This sudden exchange-rate weakness has unnerved investors, who have until now regarded currency appreciation as an added sweetener to returns generated by emerging stock and bond bets.

Record allocations to emerging debt in the last 21 months have mostly been unhedged as investors confident of currency appreciation shorted the dollar and euro to buy bonds in rand or reais. But the latest flight to the dollar has shattered the assumption that emerging-currency appreciation would be steady.

"It's become expensive to hedge currency exposure now and many investors are exiting unhedged local-currency positions, just as they had exited equity positions weeks earlier," said Murat Toprak, emerging markets strategist at HSBC.

NOT-SO-SAFE HAVENS?

Overall positioning in emerging assets is still heavy, suggesting prices may still have further to fall. Bank of America-Merrill Lynch's latest survey found a third of investors remain overweight emerging stocks this month.

"Institutional investors are keeping emerging markets as their last overweight but if they see more redemptions, they will be forced to sell to raise additional cash," said BA-ML global equities strategist Kate Moore.

Jitters are also growing over emerging debt, among the few asset classes along with gold and U.S. Treasuries that data from funds tracker EPFR shows attracting new money in the febrile markets of recent months.

"My sense is that the real money is still quite complacent about positioning. People are not well prepared for a huge cash outflow from emerging markets. So far we've only seen a speculative position washout," said Kieran Curtis, a debt portfolio manager at Aviva Investors.

Much of the new cash since the Lehman crash comes from so-called crossover investors such as pension funds who are only just beginning to venture into emerging markets -- their tolerance for volatility in these markets remains untested.

JPMorgan notes that the Brazilian real has been a major beneficiary of inflows from dedicated overlay funds sold to Japanese retail investors since 2009 and there is "significant uncertainty" how they will react to further market turbulence.

Foreign ownership of some local bond markets are at all-time highs, raising their sensitivity to global risk appetite.

"In some markets -- Indonesia, Hungary, Malaysia and Mexico, for instance -- foreign investor exposure has grown disproportionately quickly to the size of the market. Duration in these markets is thus most at risk from an unwind of global real money flows," UBS said in a note.

QUICKER RECOVERY?

But many argue that the longer term structural shift of portfolio allocations in favor of emerging markets will moderate the magnitude of the current selldown.

"When it comes to portfolio money, you have pension funds looking at two-percent returns on U.S. 10-year debt and no great likelihood of great equity performance," said Charles Robertson, global chief economist at Renaissance Capital.

Emerging local bonds offer yields of 5-12 percent.

Given the rude health of their public finances, these markets could rebound quickly when the global backdrop improves as evident following the Lehman bust. Net capital flows to emerging markets, for instance, jumped from $715 billion in 2009 to $1.1 trillion in 2010, data from the Institute of International Finance (IIF) show.

"If recovery is quicker and stronger, you don't want to sell out everything," said Renaissance's Robertson.

Since 2007, developing economies have cut external debt issuance by a third, IIF said. In the private sector, the stock of external debt owned by foreign private creditors has fallen 26 percent in the last three years.

Lower reliance on foreign cash may prevent a repeat of 2008 when capital flight sent countries such as Ukraine and Romania to the International Monetary Fund for emergency loans and necessitated recapitalisation of Russian and Kazakh banks.

But that may not be enough to stem near-term fears stalking the markets.

"My problem is not with the fundamentals but the fact that a lot of emerging assets are in the hands of people who will panic," said Alia Yousuf, portfolio manager at ACPI Investment.

"Are we really at the stage when people would rather hold Kazakhstan than the U.S.? I don't think so."

(Reporting by Sujata Rao and Sebastian Tong; editing by Ron Askew)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110922/bs_nm/us_emerging_capital_flight

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Capstone Turbine's Management Is Creating Value

"I think I've been in the top 5% of my age cohort all my life in understanding the power of incentives, and all my life I've underestimated it," Warren Buffett's business partner, Charlie Munger, once said. "And never a year passes but I get some surprise that pushes my limit a little farther."

For corporate boards, using bad incentives for management pay can be disastrous. (Think Lehman Brothers.) Incentives based on singular metrics such as revenue growth, EBITDA, return on equity, or earnings per share are easily manipulated and gamed. Fortunately, EVA momentum provides a better alternative.

Creator Bennett Stewart of EVA Dimensions, who also co-created EVA (Economic Value Added), calls EVA momentum "the only percent metric where more is always better than less. It always increases when managers do things that make economic sense."

So what does this mean for investors? A positive reading on EVA momentum means a company has created value by increasing its EVA, and a negative EVA momentum means EVA has decreased and less value is being created. EVA momentum is one of the few performance measurements, if not the only one, with such a clear dividing line between good and bad performance.

The best companies, then, create value in excess of their cost of capital, as reflected by positive EVA momentum. The higher the EVA momentum, the faster management is creating value.

Let's look at Capstone Turbine (Nasdaq: CPST��) and three of its peers to see how effectively they create value. Here are the trailing four quarters' worth of EVA momentum figures for each company over the past three years, and rankings by percentile versus the Russell 3000 for the past 12 months' EVA momentum.

Related Companies	2009 Q2 TFQ	2010 Q2 TFQ	2011 Q2 TFQ	Russell 3000 Percentile
Capstone Turbine	(21.8%)	(3.2%)	8.0%	85
Cummins (NYSE: CMI��)	(3.5%)	2.5%	5.2%	78
Briggs & Stratton (NYSE: BGG��)	0.6%	1.5%	0.4%	42
General Electric (NYSE: GE��)	(4.6%)	(2.6%)	3.9%	75

Source: EVA Dimensions LLC. TFQ = trailing four quarters.

With an EVA momentum of 8.0%, Capstone Turbine's economic value added increased year over year, placing it in the 85th percentile of all companies in the Russell 3000. All of the remaining companies had positive EVA momentum over the past 12 months. Remarkably, Briggs & Stratton has consistently increased its economic value each year over the past three years.

Businesses with high EVA momentum are effectively creating value. It will be interesting to see how useful this extremely new metric proves to be for companies and investors. If it lives up to its promise, it will be an essential tool in investors' arsenals.

Another tool for better investing
Most investors don't keep tabs on their companies' fundamental value. That's a mistake. If you take the time to read past the headlines and crack a filing now and then, you're in a much better position to spot potential trouble early. Better yet, you'll improve your odds of finding the underappreciated home-run stocks that provide the market's best returns.

We can help you keep tabs on your companies with My Watchlist, our free, personalized stock-tracking service.

Source: http://feeds.fool.com/~r/usmf/foolwatch/~3/yk3VXXNU0fI/capstone-turbines-management-is-creating-value.aspx

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Old Bangkok airport's future in doubt

Published: Nov. 26, 2011 at 2:39 PM

BANGKOK, Nov. 26 (UPI) -- As floodwaters recede at Bangkok's old airport, the Thai government is deciding whether to pay to restore it.

Don Mueang is the oldest continuously operating airport in an Asian capital. Suvarnabhumi Airport has replaced it as the city's and country's major gateway.

Airports of Thailand PLC, which operates Don Mueang, said the big question is whether the facility needs a permanent flood-control system, the Bangkok Post reported. Installing one would add millions of dollars to the cost of fixing up the terminals.

Most of the airport's business comes from two budget carriers that fly domestically.

Before the flood, Airports of Thailand had been planning to add new maintenance facilities and a new car showroom in an effort to bring more business to Don Mueang. A new terminal for private jets had been completed and has reportedly been heavily damaged by floodwaters.

Most of the airport was still flooded Friday, with jets sitting on tarmacs covered by almost 20 inches of water.

Source: http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2011/11/26/Old-Bangkok-airports-future-in-doubt/UPI-79971322336365/

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Consumer Confusion: Sales Up But Confidence Down ? Here?s Why It Makes Sense

[unable to retrieve full-text content]A strange economic trend appears to be emerging with American consumers. Retail sales have been trending higher while consumer confidence is at a 30-year low. Retail sales grew 1.1% in September, the fastest pace since February, we learned on Friday. Even excluding strong auto purchases, the figures were better than expected. Data for earlier in [...]

Source: http:/blogs/daily-ticker/consumer-confusion-sales-confidence-down-why-makes-sense-131707985.html

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Your Mobile Elves: 5 Shopping Apps to Make Black Friday Easier

This Black Friday, here are a few things to whet your bargain-hunting "app"-etite: 5 mobile apps designed to help you nab deals during the holiday weekend shopping bonanza.

1. Shopcade has launched what it calls a personalized, social shopping app within Facebook that allows users to discover, shop and share products from 20,000 brands from the U.S. and Great Britain -- from fashion and beauty products to tech goods -- while earning cash rewards.

Consumers can create their own "Shopcades" -- fluid lists of their favorite products -- which they share with Facebook friends. When one friend buys from another's Shopcade, both get rewarded with real cash. "There are two options for the cash reward: Consumers can either collect it via PayPal or donate to charity," a spokeswoman says.

2. Walgreens (WAG) is adding scannable coupons to its apps for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, offering exclusive discounts to its mobile device-wielding customers beginning Black Friday.

"Mobile couponing allows our customers to simply go to a store and save on select items without having to clip or print coupons," says Jim Cohn, media relations manager for Walgreens.

3. PriceGrabber.com, the price-comparison and online-shopping site, has updated its free iPhone, iPad and Android app for the holidays. In addition to hunting down the lowest price on millions of products from online merchants and sellers, the PriceGrabber app now also offers shoppers 100,000 coupons in their geographic area, says general manager Graham Jones.

The new DealGrabber iPhone app finds local daily deals in your area, "down to where you're standing," from group-buying sites like Groupon and Living Social, says a spokeswoman.

4. Bradsdeals.com has updated its Black Friday By BradsDeals iPhone app to include a feature that lets shoppers view pre-release Black Friday ads for major stores, handpicked Black Friday deals, and map out the stores and products they want to hit. "Essentially, it lets you take your Black Friday research with you," says Brad Wilson, CEO and editor-in-chief of BradsDeals.com.

5. Slice for the iPhone,while not a deal-hunting app, is designed to help you organize your shopping expeditions. The free app tracks your online shopping history and product shipments, automatically culling the information from electronic receipts in your email -- from product tracking numbers to shipping notifications. It then compiles the data for easy reference, putting all your past purchase information at your fingertips.

Get info on stocks mentioned in this article:

Source: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2011/11/25/your-mobile-elves-5-shopping-apps-to-make-black-friday-easier/

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Sachs: U.S. Can Come Back by Rediscovering Virtue

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Economists tend to speak in unemotional, non-judgmental terms. People and companies respond to incentives, or seek profits and efficiency. Economists tend to identify problems as issues having to do with the allocation or resources. But in his new book, The Price of Civilization: Reawakening American Virtue and Prosperity, economist Jeffrey Sachs discusses the plight of [...]

Source: http:/blogs/daily-ticker/sachs-u-come-back-rediscovering-virtue-182010568.html

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Jeno Paulucci, Duluth businessman, dies

Published: Nov. 26, 2011 at 2:57 PM

DULUTH, Minn., Nov. 26 (UPI) -- Volatile but extremely successful Duluth, Minn., businessman Jeno Paulucci died Thanksgiving Day at age 93, his family said.

The Duluth News Tribune said Paulucci was born Luigino Francesco Paolucci on July 7, 1918 in Aurora, Minn., to Italian immigrants.

His father was an iron miner who was injured and could not work during Paulucci's childhood, leading Paulucci to start work at age 12.

He picked up coal along the railroad tracks to help heat the family home, which included an illegal drinking establishment, the News Tribune said.

At 12, he worked at the Daylight Economy Market in Hibbing, Minn. He then sold groceries for C.A. Pearson Wholesale.

He graduated from high school in 1935, spent some time as a traveling salesman, then began his own line of canned Chinese food called Chun King.

He sold that business in 1966 to R.J. Reynolds Foods Inc. for $63 million. He sold the next business he built from scratch, a pizza roll and snack business called Jeno's Inc., to Pillsbury for $135 million. He then built up a real estate business in Florida, which he eventually sold for $50 million in 1992.

At that point, a non-compete clause in his contract had expired, so he went back into the food business and built up Luigino's Inc., which makes frozen snacks for microwave cooking. By 2004, that business was estimated to be worth $300 million.

Along the way, Paulucci established a reputation for being kind, generous and temperamental. He helped or initiated several community projects but "had a reputation as a very tough man," former Duluth Mayor Gary Doty said.

He took many adversaries to court, including, once, one of his daughters, fired employees on the spot and bought newspaper ads blasting people and policies he did not like, the newspaper said.

"I've never gone through life worrying about what people think of me," he said.

Friends saw two sides.

"If there were people in need, I could call Jeno, and he never turned it down," Doty said.

Paulucci died only four days after the death of his wife, Lois, with whom he was married for 64 years.

"Once my mother passed, my father was determined to be with her. That was his wish, to be with Lois," said a daughter, Cindy Paulucci Selton.

Source: http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2011/11/26/Jeno-Paulucci-Duluth-businessman-dies/UPI-28411322337463/

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Citi's $285 million SEC settlement rejected

Citigroup has been ordered to face trial over alleged securities fraud in July of next year.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- A judge rejected a proposed $285 million mortgage securities fraud settlement between Citigroup and the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday, saying the deal was "neither fair, nor reasonable, nor adequate, nor in the public interest."

Judge Jed Rakoff said that the settlement announced last month, under which Citi neither admitted nor denied the SEC's allegations, deprived the public "of ever knowing the truth in a matter of obvious public importance."

He instead ordered Citi to face trial over the allegations in July 2012.

"[I]n any case like this that touches on the transparency of financial markets whose gyrations have so depressed our economy and debilitated our lives, there is an overriding public interest in knowing the truth," Rakoff, a U.S. district judge in Manhattan, wrote in his decision.

The SEC's pattern of allowing big banks to reach settlements without admitting or denying wrongdoing, Rakoff added, has been "hallowed by history, but not by reason."

Robert Khuzami, director of the SEC's enforcement division, responded that the proposed settlement was "fair" and "reasonably reflects the scope of relief that would be obtained after a successful trial."

He added: "Refusing an otherwise advantageous settlement solely because of the absence of an admission [of wrongdoing] would divert resources away from the investigation of other frauds and the recovery of losses suffered by other investors not before the court."

Citi spokeswoman Danielle Romero-Apsilos said in an e-mail that the bank "respectfully disagree[s]" with the judge's ruling.

"In the event the case is tried, we would present substantial factual and legal defenses to the charges," she added.

The SEC has alleged that in 2007, Citi created and sold a mortgage-related collatarized debt obligation, or CDO, called Class V Funding III.

According to the SEC complaint, one CDO trader characterized the asset group in internal communications as "a collection of dogshit" and "possibly the best short EVER!"

In marketing materials, however, the assets were described as "attractive investments rigorously selected by an independent investment adviser," Rakoff's decision said.

After marketing the CDO, Citi (C, Fortune 500) then took a short position -- or bet against -- the security as the housing market deteriorated, bringing in a net profit of $160 million for the bank. Meanwhile, investors lost more than $700 million.

Litigation is also pending against Brian Stoker, the Citi employee alleged to be primarily responsible for structuring the CDO.

The SEC has settled a string of similar complaints in recent months, including agreements with Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500) and JPMorgan Chase (JPM, Fortune 500).

Rakoff, though, has been in a thorn in the agency's side in recent years, rejecting a proposed $33 million settlement in 2009 between the SEC and Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500) over allegations that BofA lied about bonuses for Merrill Lynch & Co. employees following the firms' merger. That settlement was later revised upward to $150 million, which Rakoff reluctantly approved, calling it "half-baked justice at its best."

Shares of Citi were up 6%, although the gains came before the judge's ruling.�

First Published: November 28, 2011: 12:51 PM ET

Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/money_topstories/~3/P9sq6Iuab3s/index.htm

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AT&T: It's all about the dividend - The Buzz

If the AT&T/T-Mobile deal collapses, it will be a blow for Ma Bell ... but not a complete disaster. AT&T is still a wireless giant.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Ma Bell's plan to buy T-Mobile may still technically be on life support. But make no mistake, AT&T's stock looks pretty dead.

That may not be a bad thing.

AT&T (T, Fortune 500) announced last week that it is temporarily pulling its application for merger approval before the Federal Communications Commission. That move comes as the FCC and Department of Justice have both raised questions about the deal.

Ma Bell also last week said it was prepared to take a $4 billion accounting charge in the fourth quarter to cover the required break-up fee payment to T-Mobile parent Deutsche Telekom if the merger falls apart.

If AT&T has to pull the plug on the deal -- leaving that pretty T-Mobile spokesgirl looking for another corporate gentleman caller (paging Sprint (S, Fortune 500)!) -- it may be tougher for Ma Bell to compete as effectively with its top rival Verizon (VZ, Fortune 500).

But analysts said that as long as AT&T keeps paying that big, fat dividend, investors may not care. AT&T's annual dividend is $1.72 a share. That works out to a yield of nearly 6.2%.

To put that in comparison, it's more than triple the puny 2% or so that you get from holding onto a 10-year Treasury bond. And despite all the problems facing Ma Bell -- slow growth, more competition, and a relative paucity of spectrum for its 4G network, to name a few -- it looks like AT&T is a safer bet than the U.S. government.

It costs AT&T about $10.2 billion to pay its annual dividend to all its shareholders. That's a lot of money. But consider that AT&T generated $12.4 billion in free cash flow in just the first nine months of the year.

So while not being able to buy T-Mobile would be a blow, it's not significant enough to cause any questions about the safety of the dividend.

"Recent events have to make you take a fresh look at things. This is another hurdle," said Joe Bonner, an analyst with Argus Research in New York. "But the dividend is very juicy and AT&T's cash flow is not in any danger right now. You'd have to extrapolate far in the future before that happens."

As long as AT&T has the dividend, it's easy to forgive some of its other shortcomings. No more Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) iPhone exclusivity? Look at the dividend. Landline business continues to wither away? Did you see that dividend?

Comcast (CMCSA, Fortune 500), DirecTV (DTV, Fortune 500) and other broadband video providers making life more difficult for the telecoms? Have I mentioned that Ma Bell pays a ginormous dividend?

For existing AT&T shareholders, it's no secret that the company is not an earnings momentum story. Analysts are forecasting annual profit growth of just 3% a year, on average, for the next few years.

But a stock that goes nowhere can still get you a 6% return thanks to the yield. That's not bad in any market, let alone one as rocky as this.

AT&T also trades at a discount to Verizon -- which admittedly has better growth prospects. Ma Bell is currently at about 11 times 2012 earnings estimates while Verizon is valued at 14 times next year's profit forecasts.

So there may be a (pardon the telecom pun) disconnect here -- especially since the T-Mobile purchase was not a make-or-break deal for the company. AT&T still has more than 100 million wireless subscribers.

"The valuation is pretty interesting," said Steve Clement, an analyst with Pacific Crest Securities in Portland, Ore.

"Without the T-Mobile assets, AT&T will still need to buy spectrum to accommodate continued traffic growth, but that's not a major issue for the near-term," he added. "AT&T still has a strong position in the wireless industry without T-Mobile."

That's why any long-term, "buy and hold" investors -- there's at least one still out there, right? -- don't need to panic.

This stock isn't likely to do well enough to vault you from the 99% to the 1%. But there is something comforting about that dividend.

"Investors generally assumed the T-Mobile deal was not going to go through for a couple of months now, and that clearly is a disappointment," said Christopher King, an analyst with Stifel Nicolaus in Baltimore. "But I have a buy rating on it and it's mostly because of the dividend."

Best of StockTwits ... and Belgian waffles. Monday's ferocious move up for stocks had people talking over on StockTwits. Unsurprisingly, some investors are skeptical.

gtotoy: Bear market rallies are the MOST vicious, most PROFITABLE and FASTEST rallies there are!

stevenplace: Friendly reminder that large % up days are characteristic of bear market rallies

Good point. Not sure if this is really a bear right now though. But investors have to be nimble.

StockSage1: Throw your preconceived notions out the window, anything can happen in this market - moves continue to be larger than most expect.

Agreed. "Volatility" is undoubtedly the investing word of the year for 2011.

Finally, noticing that the ETF of a certain Flemish-Dutch region (EWK) was up 5%, I asked Twitter followers to identify the following movie quote: "Uh, a big record just broke in Belgium."

My CNNMoney colleague Chris Isidore was first to correctly ID it as Matt Dillon in "Singles." We sit across from each other and often talk movies. So I feel badly that he "won" since he has a certain advantage.

But I feel even worse because I discovered after issuing the challenge that I already gave the same one almost exactly a year ago! That column was about RIMM. The headline? "The BlackBerry is dead! Or is it?"

I guess some things haven't changed over the past year. Except the quality of my memory.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Paul R. La Monica. Other than Time Warner, the parent of CNNMoney, and Abbott Laboratories, La Monica does not own positions in any individual stocks.�

Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/money_topstories/~3/1t8_pUI6PlM/index.htm

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Most of the unemployed no longer receive benefits

Christopher S. Rugaber, AP Economics Writer, On Saturday November 5, 2011, 11:13 am EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The jobs crisis has left so many people out of work for so long that most of America's unemployed are no longer receiving unemployment benefits.

Early last year, 75 percent were receiving checks. The figure is now 48 percent -- a shift that points to a growing crisis of long-term unemployment. Nearly one-third of America's 14 million unemployed have had no job for a year or more.

Congress is expected to decide by year's end whether to continue providing emergency unemployment benefits for up to 99 weeks in the hardest-hit states. If the emergency benefits expire, the proportion of the unemployed receiving aid would fall further.

The ranks of the poor would also rise. The Census Bureau says unemployment benefits kept 3.2 million people from slipping into poverty last year. It defines poverty as annual income below $22,314 for a family of four.

Yet for a growing share of the unemployed, a vote in Congress to extend the benefits to 99 weeks is irrelevant. They've had no job for more than 99 weeks. They're no longer eligible for benefits.

Their options include food stamps or other social programs. Nearly 46 million people received food stamps in August, a record total. That figure could grow as more people lose unemployment benefits.

So could the government's disability rolls. Applications for the disability insurance program have jumped about 50 percent since 2007.

"There's going to be increased hardship," said Wayne Vroman, an economist at the Urban Institute.

The number of unemployed has been roughly stable this year. Yet the number receiving benefits has plunged 30 percent.

Government unemployment benefits weren't designed to sustain people for long stretches without work. They usually don't have to. In the recoveries from the previous three recessions, the longest average duration of unemployment was 21 weeks, in July 1983.

By contrast, in the wake of the Great Recession, the figure reached 41 weeks in September. That's the longest on records dating to 1948. The figure is now 39 weeks.

"It was a good safety net for a shorter recession," said Carl Van Horn, an economist at Rutgers University. It assumes "the economy will experience short interruptions and then go back to normal."

Weekly unemployment checks average about $300 nationwide. If the extended benefits aren't renewed, growth could slow by up to a half-percentage point next year, economists say.

The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that each $1 spent on unemployment benefits generates up to $1.90 in economic growth. The CBO has found that the program is the most effective government policy for increasing growth among 11 options it's analyzed.

Jon Polis lives in East Greenwich, R.I., one of the 20 states where 99 weeks of benefits are available. He used them all up after losing his job as a warehouse worker in 2008. His benefits paid for groceries, car maintenance and health insurance.

Now, Polis, 55, receives disability insurance payments, food stamps and lives in government-subsidized housing. He's been unable to find work because employers in his field want computer skills he doesn't have.

"Employers are crying that they can't find qualified help," he said. But the ones he interviewed with "weren't willing to train anybody."

From late 2007, when the recession began, to early 2010, the number of people receiving unemployment benefits rose more than four-fold, to 11.5 million.

But the economy has remained so weak that an analysis of long-term unemployment data suggests that about 2 million people have used up 99 weeks of checks and still can't find work.

Contributing to the smaller share of the unemployed who are receiving benefits: Some of them are college graduates or others seeking jobs for the first time. They aren't eligible. Only those who have lost a job through no fault of their own qualify.

The proportion of the unemployed receiving benefits usually falls below 50 percent during an economic recovery. Many have either quit jobs or are new to the job market and don't qualify.

Today, the proportion is falling for a very different reason: Jobs remain scarce. So more of the unemployed are exhausting their benefits.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has noted that the long-term unemployed increasingly find it hard to find work as their skills and professional networks erode. In a speech last month, Bernanke called long-term unemployment a "national crisis" that should be a top priority for Congress.

Lawmakers will have to decide whether to continue the extended benefits by the end of this year. If the program ends, nearly 2.2 million people will be cut off by February.

Congress has extended the program nine times. But it might balk at the $45 billion cost. It will be the first time the Republican-led House will vote on the issue.

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Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/finance/news/rss/story/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/finance/news/topfinstories/*http%3A//biz.yahoo.com/ap/111105/us_jobless_without_benefits.html

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