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Strategy Room: 10:30-12:00
I'll be back in the Strategy Room at FoxNews.com this morning from 10:30-12:00, with Heather Nauert (or possibly a sub, if Heather's on vacation). Click here to stream the show live. Click here to email the show.
Our Strategy Room viewer forum will also be live throughout the day.
Likely topics this morning:
- Blagojevich's indescribable gall in appointing Roland Burris to the U.S. Senate
- Israel hitting the tunnels
- Bailouts, bailouts, bailouts
And if there's time, then maybe...
- Caroline
- Bernie
- Dmitry
Update: Terrific panel today, with Alisyn Camerota doing a splendid job filling in as host.
I'll be back on Monday at 10:30.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 31, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge - Wednesday, Week 7
[Scroll to the bottom for answers to today's Bonus Bucks trivia questions.]
Happy new year's eve, all. Remember that today (which is a full trading session) is effectively the last day of trading for Week 7, since the market is closed tomorrow and today's trades will be the last ones to affect your portfolio on Friday.
The week-to-date leaderboard is offline at the moment, so let us know if you've got any particularly strong portfolios (this week, anything managing double-digits by the end of Tuesday's session should be in decent shape).
Update: The leaderboard has been restored. Anyone with better than 14.42% week-to-date earned a spot.
Update: For today's final reallocation of Week 7, we're using the same two ETF baskets, but allocating by birth month. Jan-Jun: Ultrabulls; Jul-Dec: Ultrabears.
- Jan-Jun: URE, UWM, UYG, RFL (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabull)
- Jul-Dec: SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabear)
Happy new year and best wishes for health, wealth, and prosperous trading in 2009!
Consider all of the above to be for entertainment purposes and not meant to be used as real-world investment recommendations. The goals and strategies of the Portfolio Challenge are not to be confused with those of sensible investing.
See all related posts in the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive.
Week 7: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday
Week 6: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 5: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 4: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 3: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Pre-game: CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge Is Back, Strategy Primer
Extra Stuff: The Biggest Loser, Interview With Bradford Pine
To receive additional updates by e-mail, drop a line here with the word "Subscribe" in the subject header.
Wednesday December 31st
Throughout the contest, each day's answers will be at the top of the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive as soon as the questions are published, so bookmark accordingly.
Daily Trivia:
Squawk Box: Question: Market rally predictor Jack Hough jokes that he should have written what kind of book?
Answer: "doom-and-gloom"
Squawk On the Street: Question: In his Guest Blog post "My Top 10 Investment Themes for '09", why does Tony Crescenzi praise the art market?
Answer: all of the above
The Call: Question: Just how bad were holiday retail sales this year?
Answer: Worst since 1970, at least
Power Lunch: Question: In our new slideshow entitled The Year in Slideshows, what story will you find bullet-pointed on the Miami Fashion page?
Answer: "Bikinis and Business News?"
Street Signs: Question: In the edition of Pros Say concerning a "Recession-Depression Hybrid" what does George Ball say we must do?
Answer: "learn to undo" our financial behavior
Closing Bell: Question: In the "Fast Money" episode "Famous Last Words of 2008," which FM trader chose his/her own words to mock?
Answer: Joe Terranova
Weekly Quiz:
Question: NYSE tick indicator represents number of stocks with
Answer: last trade executed on uptick vs downtick
Handcrafted by Flip on December 31, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (15) | TrackBack
Strategy Room: Smornin From 9:00-10:30
I'll be appearing on Strategy Room at FoxNews.com this morning from 9:00-10:30, with (I believe) Harris Faulkner. Click here to stream the show live. Click here to email the show.
Our Strategy Room viewer forum will also be live throughout the day.
Update: In case you missed it (or you caught it but didn't get your fill), I'll be on again tomorrow from 10:30-12:00.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 30, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
2008 Weblog Awards Finalists Announced
The finalists for the 2008 Weblog Awards were published today and this blog is humbled to find itself among the contenders for "Best Business Blog".
The competition:
Best Business Blog
Silicon Alley InsiderEconbrowserA Fistful of EurosClean TechiesSeth's BlogAsk a ManagerThe Simple DollarA Smart BearDeep CaptureSuitably Flip
Voting will begin on January 5th.
Last year, as a finalist in the "Best Individual Blogger" category, I suffered the hideous injustice of losing out to some guy named Glenn Reynolds. So this year, we're counting on you, dear readers, to help propel us to a devastating victory. Once voting begins, you'll find an embedded voting booth here on the front page of the blog.
Thanks to all of you who voted for this blog during the nomination phase and particularly to the loyal readers who continue to lend scant validity to the hours we collectively squander within these pages.
Since all proper campaigns need theme songs, and in keeping with the spirit of the category, we're hereby adopting Flight Of the Conchords' "Business Time" as our theme.
(Mild content warning for cartoonishly suggestive lyrics.)
Handcrafted by Flip on December 30, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (13) | TrackBack
CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge - Tuesday, Week 7
[Scroll to the bottom for answers to today's Bonus Bucks trivia questions.]
How are we doing so far? Anyone make the week-to-date leaderboard last night? It took a relatively meager 8% to make the board.
Of course Monday was a relatively non-volatile day, so even our leveraged sector ETFs probably didn't make the grade, unless you were using your own tweak. Let's hope for a bit more frenzy in today's session...
Check back this afternoon for today's reallocations.
Update: Turns out I'm going to be on the road for most of the afternoon. But today it's the typical drill for our participating portfolios. Banking on a little year-end volatility tomorrow, we're reshuffling among our two leveraged ETF baskets. Let's go by birth year: evens in the ultrabulls, odds in the ultrabears.
- Even: URE, UWM, UYG, RFL (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabull)
- Odd: SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabear)
Consider all of the above to be for entertainment purposes and not meant to be used as real-world investment recommendations. The goals and strategies of the Portfolio Challenge are not to be confused with those of sensible investing.
See all related posts in the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive.
Week 7: Monday, Tuesday
Week 6: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 5: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 4: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 3: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Pre-game: CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge Is Back, Strategy Primer
Extra Stuff: The Biggest Loser, Interview With Bradford Pine
To receive additional updates by e-mail, drop a line here with the word "Subscribe" in the subject header.
Tuesday December 30th
Throughout the contest, each day's answers will be at the top of the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive as soon as the questions are published, so bookmark accordingly.
Daily Trivia:
Squawk Box: Question: In Jon Najarian's Monday Stock Blog, which independent oil & gas company did he cite?
Answer: Linn Energy
Squawk On the Street: Question: In her introduction to "On the Money Thrival Guide for 2009", Carmen Wong Ulrich uses what euphemism for complications?
Answer: thrown a big monkey wrench
The Call: Question: On Dec. 29, Marc "Dr. Doom" Faber recommended which trio of "hard assets" to investors?
Answer: gold, silver, platinum
Power Lunch: Question: According to our guide to international market holidays, whose markets were closed on Dec. 25?
Answer: All of the above
Street Signs: Question: In Bob Pisani's blog post from yesterday afternoon, what did he call the "real X-factor for stocks"?
Answer: the coming stimulus package
Closing Bell: Question: According to the article "Best and Worst Ads: A Year the News Eclipsed..." whose ads reeked of "cultural imperialism"?
Answer: Burger King
Weekly Quiz:
Question: NYSE tick indicator represents number of stocks with
Answer: last trade executed on uptick vs downtick
Handcrafted by Flip on December 30, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (7) | TrackBack
The Top 10 Top 10 Lists of Top 10 Lists of 2008
Earlier today, I gave you my Top 10 List of Top 10 Lists for 2008. Now, I find myself soundly out-meta'd by The Chief, who has unveiled his Top 10 "Top Ten 'Top 10' Lists" of 2008.
Superbly done, Chief. You've created the turducken of Top 10 lists.
And I'm delighted to see my list list on the list list list.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 29, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Madoff Issues Mass Apology, Mounts Comeback
Just caught this clip on Special Report With Without Brit Hume. Chuckleworthy.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 29, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
FoxNews.com Strategy Room - Viewer Forum
After a long holiday weekend, Strategy Room is back, as is our Strategy Room live viewer forum.
Click here to stream the show via FoxNews.com from 9-5. Click here to email the show.
Enter the live viewer forum by clicking here.
I'll be returning to the show tomorrow at 9 am.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 29, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack
CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge - Monday, Week 7
[Scroll to the bottom for answers to today's Bonus Bucks trivia questions.]
Welcome to Week 7, another holiday shortened week that offers another chance to win tickets to the 2009 Pro Bowl in Hawaii. For what it's worth, this week's Pro Bowl package is significantly more valuable than last week's ($3,700 more, according to the official approximate retail prize values), given the different (and presumably swanker) accommodations.
Of course that means a heftier tax bill awaits this week's winner, despite the very similar prize (both packages are billed as the "Ultimate Hawaii Vacation" after all). But don't sweat it - next week's prize is yet another "ultimate" Pro Bowl package sporting the lower ARV.
It goes without saying that, while these vacation packages are surely quite lovely, we're not terribly interested in the weekly prizes themselves, but rather the accompanying bids to the final round of the Portfolio Challenge.
Last Friday, our group strategy participants split evenly between our ultrabull and ultrabear ETF baskets.
- Odd: URE, UWM, UYG, RFL (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabull)
- Even: SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabear)
Check back this afternoon for today's reallocations.
Update: For some reason, the daily trivia page is only showing slots for the first three questions today (as if it were another early market closing day, which it isn't). Possibly just a glitch, but I'll keep you posted.
Update: The 12:00 question suddenly appeared (answer below), albeit somewhat late. Still no slots for the 2:00 or 3:00 questions, but perhaps they'll pop up too.
Update: Yep - glitch resolved, apparently.
Consider all of the above to be for entertainment purposes and not meant to be used as real-world investment recommendations. The goals and strategies of the Portfolio Challenge are not to be confused with those of sensible investing.
See all related posts in the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive.
Week 7: Monday
Week 6: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 5: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 4: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 3: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Pre-game: CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge Is Back, Strategy Primer
Extra Stuff: The Biggest Loser, Interview With Bradford Pine
To receive additional updates by e-mail, drop a line here with the word "Subscribe" in the subject header.
Monday December 29th
Throughout the contest, each day's answers will be at the top of the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive as soon as the questions are published, so bookmark accordingly.
Daily Trivia:
Squawk Box: Question: According to Jon Najarian's Dec. 26 Stock Blog post, where did YRC Worldwide shares end in Wednesday trading?
Answer: both of the above
Squawk On the Street:
Question: In Larry Kudlow's blog post "We Need Rich People," what
natural calamity does he use to describe government spending?
Answer: avalanche
The Call: Question: According to the "Timeless and Time-Tested Warren Buffett Watch Predictions" what lesson do we "learn from history"?
Answer: that people dont learn from history
Power Lunch: Question: In her article "So You Think You Can Trade?" whom does Janice Dorn quote?
Answer: all of the above
Street Signs: Question: Who officially "arrived at the decision" to cancel Kuwait's $17 billion deal with Dow Chemical?
Answer: Supreme Petroleum Council
Closing Bell: Question: In the Dec. 26 "Fast Money" blog post entitled "So Bad It's Good?", how does Jeff Macke recommend playing Toyota?
Answer: long with a stop at $57
Weekly Quiz:
Question: NYSE tick indicator represents number of stocks with
Answer: last trade executed on uptick vs downtick
Handcrafted by Flip on December 29, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
"The New Republic" Suddenly Super Sleuthy About Fabulism
If Bernie Madoff were to form a financial fraud investigation firm, would you hire him?
The irony of the famously hoodwinkable and thrice-disgraced New Republic patting themselves on the back for digging up this literary hoax is no less palpable.
Previously: The New Republic box set
Handcrafted by Flip on December 29, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
The Top 10 Top 10 Lists of 2008
As a member of the web-browsing public, you've undoubtedly tripped over a handful of year-end top 10 lists by now. If you're like me, your attention span has begun to feel conflicted... on the one hand, you enjoy having information neatly encapsulated into short, ranked lists for painless mental spoon feeding. On the other hand, the sheer number of such lists vying for your finite powers of absorption has cluttered matters up to the point that you now summarily bypass all top 10s, inevitably missing out on occasionally tolerable content.
That's where we come in. With you and your beleaguered attentiveness in mind, we've compiled the only top 10 list you truly need to peruse as you reflect misty-eyed on the year that was.
The Top 10 Top 10 Lists of 2008:
10: Top 10 Least Popular Holiday Songs: Late Show With David Letterman
9: Top 10 Political Upsets: Politico
8: Top 10 Scientific Breakthroughs: Science Magazine
7: Top 10 Weird News Stories: Time
6: 10 Worst Cities In America: Men's Health
5: Top 10 Performing Stocks: Google Finance
4: Top 10 Outrageous Pork Spending Projects: Time
3: Top 10 Things That Global Warming Allegedly Caused: Fox News
2: Top 10 Companies That Won't Survive 2009: 24/7 Wall Street
1: Top 10 Media Blunders: Politico
Handcrafted by Flip on December 29, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Try Your Hand At Financial Punditry, Win Lunch On Barron's
Barron's has posted the questions for its 8th annual forecasting challenge, a 16-question multiple choice survey about the performance of financial markets in 2009.
A few rules: Only one answer per question is allowed, though for several questions, more than one answer may prove correct in 2009. No one from News Corp., our parent, is eligible to participate. The winner gets a one-year subscription to Barron's, and either lunch in Manhattan with me [Andrew Bary] or $100.
The questions (and my haphazard guesses) are available after the jump.
Email your answers to editors@barrons.com by December 31st.
My answers are in blue. Bary's own answers are underlined.
1.) What total return will the Dow industrials generate in 2009?
A.) Negative
B.) Zero to 10%
C.) 10.1% to 24.9%
D.) 25% or more
2.) Which battered emerging market's equities will perform best in 2009?
A.) Russia
B.) China (Shenzhen)
C.) Brazil
D.) India
3.) Which S&P 500 sector will do best next year?
A.) Health care
B.) Consumer staples
C.) Energy
D.) Technology
E.) Financials
F.) Basic materials
4.) The biggest financial surprise of 2009 will be:
A.) The S&P 500 drops more than 10%
B.) Emerging stock markets soar more than 30%
C.) Gold closes above $1,200 an ounce
D.) The dollar falls more than 15% versus the euro
E.) Treasury 10-year note yields less than 2% at year end
F.) None of the above
5.) Which battered industry group will perform best in 2009?
A.) Casinos Tickers: (MGM, LVS, WYNN)
B.) Newspapers (GCI, NYT, WPO)
C.) Oil drillers (RIG, DO, NBR)
D.) Retailers (M, JCP, SHLD)
E.) Auto parts (JCI, MGA, BWA)
6.) Which CEO will no longer be at the helm at the end of 2009?
A.) AmEx's Ken Chenault
B.) Apple's Steve Jobs
C.) Citigroup's Vikram Pandit
E.) Bank of America's Ken Lewis
F.) Ford's Alan Mulally
G.) All will still be on the job
7.) Which winning stock from 2008 will do worst in 2009?
A.) Wal-Mart
B.) Amgen
C.) Family Dollar
D.) McDonald's
E.) General Mills
8.) Which of these companies will agree to be taken over in 2009?
A.) EchoStar
B.) Yahoo!
C.) Elect. Arts
D.) Alcoa
E.) Morgan Stanley
F.) Bristol-Myers
G.) None of the above
9.) Which depressed financial stock will fare best in 2009?
A.) Citigroup
B.) Morgan Stanley
C.) Legg Mason
D.) American Express
E.) Blackstone Group
10.) Name the top-performing stock in the Dow industrials in 2008 (including dividends).
Worth 2 points.
Citigroup
Alcoa
11.) Name the worst-performing Dow stock for 2009 (including dividends).
Worth 2 points.
General Motors
Home Depot
12.) Which asset class will do best in 2009?
A.) U.S. stocks (S&P 500)
B.) Junk bonds
C.) U.S. Treasuries
D.) Commodities (AIG/DJ index)
E.) Municipal bonds
13.) What will happen to the U.S. auto industry?
A.) GM is forced to file for bankruptcy.
B.) Ford files for bankruptcy.
C.) Chrysler merges with GM or goes bankrupt.
D.) All three auto companies file for bankruptcy.
E.) None of the above
14.) What will happen in Washington?
A.) Obama pushes through a tax increase on wealthiest Americans.
B.) Obama's honeymoon ends as his popularity plunges by year end.
C.) The estate-tax situation is resolved as Congress, Obama OK new law.
D.) Obama brings down U.S. troop levels in Iraq by 50%.
E.) Hillary Clinton no longer is secretary of state at year end.
F.) None of the above
15.) What will be the top-performing commodity in 2009?
A.) Gold
B.) Oil
C.) Corn
D.) Natural gas
E.) Soybeans
16.) Where will the 30-year T-bond end 2009? (It now yields 2.55%.)
A.) Under 2%
B.) 2% to 2.5%
C.) 2.5% to 3%
D.) 3% to 4%
E.) Above 4%
17.) Tie-breaker: At what level will the Dow industrials end 2009?
11,4xx
12,001
Handcrafted by Flip on December 27, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Quote Of the Day
Her Highness, yesterday:
Dominic Carter: Might you have any interests higher than the US Senate? I mean, might we see a Caroline Kennedy on the ticket someday?
Caroline Kennedy: (Laughs) Now, well, can we just, you know, get through this, like, you know, right here now? I mean, you know.
She may not be ready for the U.S. American Senate, but her lingual prowess does suggest she's qualified to wear another crown...
(HT: Allah)
Handcrafted by Flip on December 27, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge - Friday, Week 6
[Scroll to the bottom for answers to today's Bonus Bucks trivia questions.]
Happy Boxing Day, everyone, and welcome back from the 1.5 day midweek market holiday. As things currently stand, we've still got our dear reader and last year's 3rd prize winner Bradford Pine in the top 15 overall (and behind only one member of the seemingly infinitely large Lewis family). I'm happy to report many more of you continue to write in with details of your own rarefied rankings hovering just beneath the leaderboard.
If you're one of those nearly-top-tier performers or you've been on a particular tear lately and plan to start burning up the leaderboard shortly, drop us a line and let us get a look at you.
We're into the final day of this abbreviated Week 6, which means that today marks the first allocation for Week 7. Traders with participating portfolios can return here this afternoon between 2:00 and 3:00 for that first set of allocations.
Update: For group strategy participants, let's split up between the ultrabull and ultrabear ETF baskets going into Monday of Week 7, according to ZIP code. If yours ends in an odd number, use the ultrabulls. For evens, use the ultrabears.
- Odd: URE, UWM, UYG, RFL (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabull)
- Even: SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabear)
If you're using more than one portfolio, divide them evenly among ultrabulls and ultrabears, with any remainder allocated according to ZIP.
Have a great weekend!
Consider all of the above to be for entertainment purposes and not meant to be used as real-world investment recommendations. The goals and strategies of the Portfolio Challenge are not to be confused with those of sensible investing.
See all related posts in the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive.
Week 6: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 5: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 4: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 3: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Pre-game: CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge Is Back, Strategy Primer
Extra Stuff: The Biggest Loser, Interview With Bradford Pine
To receive additional updates by e-mail, drop a line here with the word "Subscribe" in the subject header.
Friday December 26th
Throughout the contest, each day's answers will be at the top of the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive as soon as the questions are published, so bookmark accordingly.
Daily Trivia:
Squawk Box: Question: In our slideshow, The $54,000 Bottle of Whiskey, what other types of spirits did Christie's put up for auction?
Answer: all of the above
Squawk On the Street: Question: Darren Rovell reports that the NY Yankees' $423.5 million new-player expense could have bought 23% of:
Answer: General Motors
The Call: Question: In the Two-Way Street blog post entitled, Banks, Beat Reporters and Not Being Cozy, which news service is mentioned?
Answer: AP
Power Lunch: Question: In our blog post called "How to Tell the Madoffs From the Buffetts", which horrific Shakespeare work does a reader reference?
Answer: Macbeth
Street Signs: Question: In his article, Banks Sitting on $1 Trillion Cash, what abbreviation does Tony Crescenzi literally use?
Answer: ZIRP
Closing Bell: Question: This week, Michael Kovacocy praised which telecom stock(s) for making "great strides" in India?
Answer: Vodafone
Weekly Quiz:
Question: ETF's are based on
Answer: An Index or sector of stocks
Handcrafted by Flip on December 26, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
A Guilt-Stricken Environmentalist And His Money Are Soon Parted
This is such a fantastic scam, it should probably be illegal under some kind of "eco-usury" suckers' protection statute.
Somewhere, P.T. Barnum is smiling.
San Francisco’s Airport Commission has authorized the program, which will involve a $163,000 investment from SFO, but is still working out the details with 3Degrees. Because of that, McDougal said, he can’t yet discuss specifics, such as the cost to purchase carbon offsets and what programs would benefit from travelers’ purchases.
But the general idea, officials said, is that a traveler would approach a kiosk resembling the self-service check-in stations used by airlines, then punch in his or her destination. The computer would calculate the carbon footprint and the cost of an investment to offset the damage. The traveler could then swipe a credit card to help save the planet. Travelers would receive a printed receipt listing the projects benefiting from their environmental largesse.
(HT: Michelle Malkin)
Handcrafted by Flip on December 26, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack
SEC Probing Several Other Potential Madoff-Style Scams
That's according to the obligatory person familiar with the situation.
The Securities and Exchange Commission is casting a wide net as it investigates the apparent $50 billion fraud allegedly committed by Bernard Madoff, and it continues to look into whether Mr. Madoff's family had any connection to wrongdoing, according to a person familiar with the probe.
...
The publicity surrounding the Madoff scandal has sparked a half-dozen SEC investigations into other alleged Ponzi schemes, the person familiar with the probe said. Investors are taking closer note of red flags such as promised returns that seem too good to be true, and some are bringing their concerns to the SEC, this person said.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 26, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
"Enhanced" Interrogation Techniques
Viva Viagra...
American intel operations have scored some successes in Afghanistan by helping tribal leaders score some as well. What do you get for the tribal leader that has everything, including multiple wives? A bit of youth in a little blue pill apparently works wonders for friendship — and cooperation:
The Afghan chieftain looked older than his 60-odd years, and his bearded face bore the creases of a man burdened with duties as tribal patriarch and husband to four younger women. His visitor, a CIA officer, saw an opportunity, and reached into his bag for a small gift.
Four blue pills. Viagra.
“Take one of these. You’ll love it,” the officer said. Compliments of Uncle Sam.
The enticement worked. The officer, who described the encounter, returned four days later to an enthusiastic reception. The grinning chief offered up a bonanza of information about Taliban movements and supply routes — followed by a request for more pills.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 26, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Obama To Buy 3 Million Jobs That Will Be Created Anyway At $250,000 Each
Former Treasury Secretary, born again Bush critic, and celebrated right fielder Paul O'Neill runs down the cringe-worthy numbers.
The Obama administration’s goal of creating 3 million new jobs by January 2011 will run smack into “the natural demographic flow, which will add 3.2 million people to the workforce” in the same time period, O’Neill said. In effect, “we are going to spend $750 billion, the number of unemployed will rise and the (unemployment) rate will go down slightly.”
O’Neill did the math so you don’t have to. Each job “will cost $250,000, which doesn’t suggest much labor intensity for the dollars spent,” he said. “It makes me wonder if any of the planners or commentators are good at arithmetic.”
They’re not good at arithmetic. And one wonders about their facility with economics.
I don't wonder.
If putting people to work is the goal, we could get rid of all the heavy earth-moving equipment and go back to digging ditches with shovels.
Why stop there? If it takes one man two days to dig a trench three feet deep and 30 feet long with a shovel, how long would it take 100 men using spoons?
You get the point. We can always create jobs by replacing capital with labor, by going backward. The entire history of civilization has been characterized by an effort to move in the opposite direction and become more productive, which is another way of saying produce more with less.
As O'Neill notes, this isn't socialism's most efficient implementation.
“If we write a check for $75,000 to each of the unemployed, we won’t have anyone ‘unemployed'...”
That does sound like a relative bargain.
(HT: American Thinker)
Handcrafted by Flip on December 26, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
The Bernie Madoff Home Game
Yes, now you too can flush your money down the toilet and become part of the Madoff debacle. How? By bidding on one of the several bits of Madoff Investment Securities swag suddenly popping up on eBay.
Starting bids range as high as $250 for the authentic MADF backpack, but the most interesting item up for sale is actually the cheapest.
It's the Bernard L. Madoff "Disaster Recovery" kit, a post-9/11 survival bag for urban refugees that takes on new relevance in the post-Madoff era.
If you're going to throw your money away, you may as well get an ironic conversation piece out of it. A bargain at $9.99:
My friend's husband received this Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities Employee Emergency kit as an employee of the firm. Now the real emergency is upon them after Bernie was found to be perpetrating the biggest Ponzi Scheme in history!
This kit includes a really nice pouch, purified water, MTA transit map, a safety lightstick, a whistle (did Mark and Andy use one like this when they blew the whistle on dear old dad?), rubber gloves, mask, and an unopened pack with tweezers, bandages, advil, etc.
The logo on the pouch reads MADF Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC Employee Disaster Recovery Hotline
Handcrafted by Flip on December 26, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Aussies See Holiday Spending Boom
Low interest rates + cheap oil + consumer stimulus = nearly double-digit increase over 2007?
Retailers have reported a sudden surge in recent weeks, with electronics retailer Harvey Norman reporting its sales were up nearly 9 per cent on the same time last year.
And it seems the big saviour was the Federal Government's $10.4 billion economic stimulus package. Payments of up to $1400 were meted out to millions of low-earners at the beginning of December, helping boost spending at the shops and helping kick-start the flagging economy.
Coupled with interest rate cuts and cheaper fuel, experts say it is equivalent to an increase in our spending power of around $13 billion compared to six months ago.
Bear in mind, Australia (which has a higher per capita GDP than all G8 countries other than Canada and the U.S.) has not been hit as hard by the global economic slowdown, whether thanks to its relative geographic isolation or its ability to maintain above-normal growth rates as a smaller, still somewhat emerging economy. Thus far, the country has avoided recession entirely, with GDP growth managing to keep its head above water at 0.1% in the most recent quarter (compared with our negative 0.5%).
In other words, while the apparent surge in holiday spending levels is surely welcome news down under, it may not constitute a happy harbinger of anything in particular up here.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 25, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
I Smell a Reality Show
Think Punk'd meets The Running Man.
President George W. Bush took the very rare step Wednesday of revoking a pardon he had granted only a day before, after learning of political contributions to Republicans by the man's father and other information.
Bush pardoned 19 people on Tuesday, including Isaac Robert Toussie of Brooklyn, N.Y., who had been convicted of making false statements to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and of mail fraud. On Wednesday, the White House issued an extraordinary statement saying the president was reversing his decision in Toussie's case.
White House press secretary Dana Perino said the new decision was "based on information that has subsequently come to light," including on the extent and nature of Toussie's prior criminal offenses. She also said that neither the White House counsel's office nor the president had been aware of a political contribution by Toussie's father that "might create an appearance of impropriety."
Asked to comment on his successor's decision to reverse a pardon due to the possible appearance of impropriety or quid pro quo, Bill Clinton's head exploded.
The title of the pilot, I assume, will be "Worst Christmas Ever". And with another 4 weeks in office, there's time to film at least a season's worth of episodes. Production costs would be minimal - it's just Bush phoning various felons and congratulating them on their pardons and commutations, followed by a montage of happy commutee footage over the following few days (collecting personal effects from the prison's outtake office, making plans with loved ones to make up for lost time, the inevitable "Things will be different now" speeches, etc.), then the devastating follow-up call. If the deluded kids who don't get the yellow slip on American Idol are glorious train wrecks, just imagine the ratings potential of those "reveal" scenes at the end of each episode. And since they're all criminals, you don't need to feel guilty about delighting in the spectacle.
(HT: JWF)
Handcrafted by Flip on December 25, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Evidence Of Caroline's Political Philosophy Unearthed, Hurriedly Re-earthed
And you thought her only qualifications were familial entitlement and sympathy. Turns out she's a deep political thinker, after all.
"Um, well, you know, I don't think this book will work a similar...transformation," Caroline said [in a 2002 radio interview about her father's book Profiles In Courage]. "But I really am interested in the issues and I think it's wonderful for people to get involved, people who are in politics find it so rewarding and I think it's a wonderful thing to do. I think everyone should participate as best they can. There are many ways to serve and make things better."
QED, haters.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 24, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
PETA vs. Palin
Long-time readers know there are few things I enjoy more than dumping on PETA - particularly during the holidays, as it's the holidays (Thanksgiving, Fourth of July, et al) when PETA typically tries to spoil the good time for we non-enlightened meat eaters.
True to form, the group recently posted a profoundly boring holiday game in which kids can throw snowballs at famous transgressors who deign to feed and clothe themselves with animal flesh. One of the villains is a bikini-and-fur-clad Sarah Palin, a casting choice that ultimately led to an entertaining flurry of emails between the Governor's office and Ingrid Newkirk (Queen of the malnourished malcontents, who we've featured in these pages in the past).
There's some debate over the lead-up to this email exchange, but suffice it to say that PETA claims that someone called PETA's office claiming to represent Governor Palin and threatened to sue over the game. PETA failed to obtain any identifiable information about the caller, but went ahead and published word of the threatened lawsuit on their website, crediting Palin's office with the threat, without bothering to verify any of the details with her office.
Via Politico (as reported to them by PETA), the following exchange ensued.
From: McAllister, William D (GOV)
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2008 11:26 AM
To: christined@peta.org
Subject: The PETA FilesYour website claims we have threatened to sue you. What do you base this on? Be specific.
Bill McAllister
Director of Communications/Press Secretary
Office of Governor Sarah PalinFrom: Ingrid Newkirk [mailto:ingridn@peta.org]
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2008 11:52 AM
To: McAllister, William D (GOV)
Subject: To answer your enquiry:
Importance: High
Dear Mr. McAllister,
We base this on a phone call. Why don’t you ask in your office and be specific as to on what grounds you can sue us? We know that we can use the game as it’s pure parody. I thought people in Alaska had a sense of humor? Ingrid NewkirkFrom: McAllister, William D (GOV) [mailto:bill.mcallister@alaska.gov]
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2008 3:54 PM
To: Ingrid Newkirk
Subject: RE: To answer your enquiry:
That’s not very specific. Who called? Name and title given? Did you even attempt to verify it was genuine? Or are facts just cumbersome?From: Ingrid Newkirk [mailto:ingridn@peta.org]
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2008 11:56 AM
To: McAllister, William D (GOV)
Subject: RE: To answer your enquiry:Do they train you to be rude?
From: McAllister, William D (GOV) [mailto:bill.mcallister@alaska.gov]
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2008 3:58 PM
To: Ingrid Newkirk
Subject: RE: To answer your enquiry:OK, so the bottom line is, you have attitude, but no facts. Sounds about right.
From: Ingrid Newkirk [mailto:ingridn@peta.org]
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2008 12:21 PM
To: McAllister, William D (GOV)
Subject: So, are you backing down up there?No, YOU have attitude, and it’s a bad one, and so did your legal emissary who must have gone to the same charm school.
From: McAllister, William D (GOV) [mailto:bill.mcallister@alaska.gov]
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2008 5:03 PM
To: Ingrid Newkirk
Subject: RE: So, are you backing down up there?Our still unnamed legal emissary, huh? Whether or not I’m charming in your eyes, at least I’m accountable.
From: Ingrid Newkirk [mailto:ingridn@peta.org]
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2008 1:59 PM
To: McAllister, William D (GOV)
Subject: sorry?You will be when you die, don’t you think? Did someone put Red Bull in your water cooler? Are you now saying that no one called from your office, that’s my question, or did the person who called overplay his hand, or what, not that I really care any more?
From: McAllister, William D (GOV) [mailto:bill.mcallister@alaska.gov]
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2008 6:09 PM
To: Ingrid Newkirk
Subject: RE: sorry?To answer the question in your subject line, yes, you are sorry.
I wouldn’t know if the person who (allegedly) called overplayed his (a man, then? – still waiting for more details) hand. No one here knows what you’re talking about.
Oh, you used to care? Which decade was that?
Politico adds:
McAllister says he is miffed about the alleged call Newkirk received. "This allegation about a lawsuit is just too much," he said. "No one in our office knew anything about it. And PETA has refused to say who called."
I know I get testy when I'm hungry. Poor Ms. Newkirk has been hungry her whole life. If she could only manage to get over her cibophobia once and for all and chow down on a nice, protein-rich Christmas ham this year, I suspect she'd have a much happier holiday season.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 24, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Lies, Damn Lies, and Unemployment Claims at a 26-Year High
If you've opened a newspaper or a web browser today (and I suspect you have), you've doubtless run across a breathless statistic about the weekly unemployment report published today by the Labor Department, namely that initial claims (at 586,000) have hit a 26... year... high.
Yes, this is true, but what these 4,000 or so media outlets fail to point out is the fact that the U.S. population is at an all... time... high.
Indeed, if you control for population growth (i.e. if you look at initial unemployment claims as a percentage of the total population), today's data point clocks in at a much less impressive 16-year high. At the peak of post-Carter malaise in 1982 (the year against which this dark economic parallel is being drawn), initial claims hit nearly 700,000, which represented 0.30% of the U.S. population.
The current level of 586,000 (while still ugly and trending the wrong way) constitutes a comparatively piddly 0.19% of the current population.
Aren't most of us vaguely aware of the phenomenon of population growth at this point? Can't we at least assume that our intellectual betters in the elite media have picked up on the trend?
We all obligingly look past the annual stories about a "Record number of people traveling this Thanksgiving!" and "Summer box office sales hit unprecedented levels!" because they're unvarnished tripe and they don't pretend to be anything more.
But ostensible economic news ought to try delving into the weeds a bit to tease out these subtle underlying trends.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 24, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Today, We Are All Stan Smith
(HT: Hot Air)
Previously: You Know Damn Well I Like Brit Hume!
Handcrafted by Flip on December 24, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge - Wednesday, Week 6
[Scroll to the bottom for answers to today's Bonus Bucks trivia questions.]
For those of you still experiencing irregularities related to yesterday's ETF distributions (see here for background), we understand that portfolios have begun being adjusted upward. If you're still seeing losses due to Tuesday's distribution activity, let us know. We're also trying to get a more comprehensive read on how the system affected everyone's end-of-day reallocations. Based on anecdotal reports, it sounds as though portfolios that have been upwardly adjusted were not retroactively granted larger positions of the stocks/ETFs they were allocating into by Tuesday's close (i.e. their buying power still suffered due to the special distributions).
If you were holding one of the affected ETFs (including the 52 ProShares funds listed here), please let us know if you're able to tell whether or not your upward adjustment was invested in the positions you'd established by Tuesday's close.
I'll continue to update these posts with the latest details and any further clarification that comes from CNBC.
Check back this afternoon for today's reallocations.
Update: Remember to submit all trades by 1 pm, as the market closes early today.
For those participating in the group strategy, divide into the following ETF baskets, according to birth year - odd years in the ultrabulls and even years in the ultrabears.
- Odd years: URE, UWM, UYG, RFL (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabull)
- Even years: SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabear)
Consider all of the above to be for entertainment purposes and not meant to be used as real-world investment recommendations. The goals and strategies of the Portfolio Challenge are not to be confused with those of sensible investing.
See all related posts in the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive.
Week 6: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday
Week 5: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 4: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 3: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Pre-game: CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge Is Back, Strategy Primer
Extra Stuff: The Biggest Loser, Interview With Bradford Pine
To receive additional updates by e-mail, drop a line here with the word "Subscribe" in the subject header.
Wednesday December 24th
Throughout the contest, each day's answers will be at the top of the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive as soon as the questions are published, so bookmark accordingly.
Daily Trivia:
Squawk Box: Question: According to a Dec. 23 Stock Blog post by Jon Najarian, options traders saw more upside in which medical tech firm's shares?
Answer: SYK
Squawk On the Street: Question: This week, the world's biggest casino announced 500 job cuts. Which company owns the gaming house?
Answer: Las Vegas Sands
The Call: Question: Why does Darren Rovell say the NY Yankees are able to sign top players "like Mark, C.C., And A.J."?
Answer:
Steinbrenners' only business: the team
Power Lunch: In the article, Palm Beach Pawnshop's Business Up Thanks to Madoff, what were the "movies" priced to sell at?
Answer: two for $10
Weekly Quiz:
Question: ETF's are based on
Answer: An Index or sector of stocks
Handcrafted by Flip on December 24, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Madoff Investor Commits Suicide
Authorities found Rene-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet at 7:50 a.m. with no pulse at his office of Access International Advisors, located on Madison Avenue a couple of blocks from Rockefeller Center.
A French newspaper is reporting that the 65-year-old de la Villehuchet committed suicide. The New York medical examiner spokeswoman says it has not determined the cause of death yet.
Madoff is accused of running a $50 billion Ponzi scheme that wiped out investors around the world, with big funds like de la Villehuchet's being especially hard hit.
His $1.4 billion fund specializes in managing hedged and structured investment portfolios.
Seeing a significant portion of your $1.4 billion fund evaporate and contemplating the repercussions from your own investors would be sufficient to inspire a certain amount of dismay, but (without knowing anything about de la Villehuchet's fund vis a vis Madoff's), it's also possible that authorities had come knocking on the doors of Madoff's large institutional investors to suss out whether any outside parties were in any way complicit in (rather than sloppily blind to) the fraud. If so, a whole different level of dismay may have befallen de la Villehuchet in recent days.
French business paper La Tribune obtained some relevant quotes, but it's unclear (to me, anyway) whether these are characterizations made by the police to the paper or excerpts from a note or statements made by de la Villehuchet himself, as recounted to the paper by police.
Mr. de La Villehuchet, 65, the founding partner and chief executive at Access International Advisors LLC of New York, was "unable to resist the pressures that followed the eruption of the scandal," according to the report.
He had tried "night and day" to recover funds that Access International raised in Europe through its $1.4 billion Luxalpha fund and had begun legal action in the United States against U.S. authorities, according to the report.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 23, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Authorities Put the Screws To Madoff Accountants
A few more names you may be hearing from time to time in coming weeks and months.
Authorities are trying to determine who helped Mr. Madoff carry out what they say appears to be at least a 30-year scheme that may have caused at least $50 billion in losses. They are seeking information from the accounting firm that handled Mr. Madoff's audits for decades and are examining the role of Frank DiPascali, who dealt with client accounts and worked at Mr. Madoff's firm for more than 30 years, said a person familiar with the matter.
"If you wanted anything, a new account, money in, money out, you called Frank," said one Madoff investor. "Nothing moved in that office without him, operationally," this person said.
"Frank DiPascali would like to see investors get back whatever they can," said Marc Mukasey, a lawyer for Mr. DiPascali. He declined to comment further.
After Mr. Madoff's arrest on Dec. 11, investigators from the Securities and Exchange Commission showed up at the Madoff firm's headquarters in Manhattan and questioned Mr. DiPascali. He told the SEC he didn't know who was responsible for clearing and settling trades in the investment-advisory side of the firm, according to an SEC memorandum reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. He "responded evasively," the SEC memo said.
...
Investigators issued a subpoena to Frank DiPascali a New City, N.Y., accountant who audited the Madoff firm's financial statements, and are seeking documents related to the Madoff firm going back to Jan. 1, 2000, said a person familiar with the matter. He has until Dec. 29 to fulfill the request. Andrew Lankler, a lawyer for Mr. Friehling, declined to comment on his client's knowledge of the Madoff investment-advisory business.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 23, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge - Tuesday, Week 6
[Scroll to the bottom for answers to today's Bonus Bucks trivia questions.]
Come back this afternoon for today's reallocation for surviving portfolios. For reference, the surviving subset of our participating portfolios will be those that were invested in the ultrabear basket on Monday and whichever of the following turns out to be the high scorer today (which were allocated yesterday according to birth month):
- Jan-Mar: URE, UWM, UYG, RFL (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabull)
- Apr-Jun: SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabear)
- Jul-Sep: GM, F, NAV, TM (Long only - beaten up autos)
- Oct-Dec: CBI, LEN, SGR, PWR (Long only - beaten up homebuilders/construction services)
Update: Many of you have noticed odd activity among certain ETFs today. (TWM down 27%, SMN down 40%.) The majority of the ProShares ETFs (including 6 of the 8 ETFs in the above baskets) went ex-dividend today, meaning those who are holding these funds in real life are entitled to a large distribution of the funds' assets. Accordingly, the per share price of these funds are negatively impacted, in some cases drastically.
This happened to us with RFN a few weeks ago. It took a day or so, but affected portfolios were eventually adjusted upward to offset the effect of the distribution. I've made sure CNBC is aware of the current situation and will update this post with any relevant updates. Those of you holding affected ETFs (the full list of 52 funds is available here), please let us know once the adjustments to your portfolios have been made.
Update: CNBC's response:
Thanks Flip. We are addressing and will post an update on milliondollar.cnbc.com this afternoon.
Update: For today's reallocation, the surviving group is a little harder to pin down, given the temporary ETF dislocations. The winning subgroup will be either the Ultrabears (SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN) or the homebuilders/construction (CBI, LEN, SGR, PWR). The Ultrabears look ugly right now (mostly thanks to the intraday impact of TWM's distribution), but that will be corrected shortly
Therefore, portfolios that were in the Ultrabears on Monday and either of these two baskets today should consider themselves surviving portfolios and proceed with the next reallocation, according to birth date (day of month):
- 1-10: URE, UWM, UYG, RFL (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabull)
- 11-20: SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabear)
- 21-31: GM, F, NAV, TM (Long only - beaten up autos)
Consider all of the above to be for entertainment purposes and not meant to be used as real-world investment recommendations. The goals and strategies of the Portfolio Challenge are not to be confused with those of sensible investing.
See all related posts in the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive.
Week 6: Monday, Tuesday
Week 5: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 4: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 3: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Pre-game: CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge Is Back, Strategy Primer
Extra Stuff: The Biggest Loser, Interview With Bradford Pine
To receive additional updates by e-mail, drop a line here with the word "Subscribe" in the subject header.
Tuesday December 23rd
Throughout the contest, each day's answers will be at the top of the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive as soon as the questions are published, so bookmark accordingly.
Daily Trivia:
Squawk Box: Question: In her article, How to Tell If Your Financial Advisor Is a Scam Artist, Carmen Wong Ulrich refers to what type of fund?
Answer: health care
Squawk On the Street: Question: According to the CNBC Stock Blog, why did Jeff Mortimer praise "some" corporate debt on Monday?
Answer: lower risk option than Treasurys
The Call: Question: In our Green Gift Guide slideshow, what brand of beer bottle is shown (as a recycled tumbler)?
Answer: Rolling Rock
Power Lunch: Question: According to Darren Rovell's blog post on booming championship ring sales, what is the most sought team item?
Answer: "anything" from the NY Yankees
Answer: "monstrous" homebuilder gain
Closing Bell: Question: In the article entitled "Calif. Construction Firm Defies Odds..." what major project(s) does William Dorey allude to?
Answer: Lower Manhattan reconstruction
Weekly Quiz:
Question: ETF's are based on
Answer: An Index or sector of stocks
Handcrafted by Flip on December 23, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBack
Caroline Kennedy Has Been Approved By Your Cultural Betters
So quite poking your nose where it doesn't belong, you filthy commoners.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 22, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge - Monday, Week 6
[Scroll to the bottom for answers to today's Bonus Bucks trivia questions.]
Welcome to Week 6 - home of the NFL Pro Bowl Hawaii extravaganza.
As I noted on Friday, at the halfway point of regular season trading, our reader Bradford Pine remains high on the overall leaderboard and many of you are enjoying top 100 rankings (out of more than half a million active portfolios).
Remember that, while we've started Week 6 with a single pair of leveraged ETF baskets, we're moving to a more intricate set of daily allocations in our endeavor to grab some of those weekly top spots (and the accompanying bids in the final round), so be sure to come back this afternoon for today's reallocations.
For reference, today our participating portfolios are split evenly between the following two ETF baskets:
- Ultrabull (RE/2xFin/Russell 2k): URE, UWM, UYG, RFL (25% each)
- Ultrabear (RE/2xFin/Russell 2k): SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN (25% each)
Update: As promised, we've got a fuller menu of reallocation baskets to choose from today. For any group strategy participants with surviving portfolios (as of 2:15 pm, that appears to be the ultrabear group, but that's certainly not in the bag), select from these baskets according to birth month:
- Jan-Mar: URE, UWM, UYG, RFL (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabull)
- Apr-Jun: SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN (Financial/Real Estate Ultrabear)
- Jul-Sep: GM, F, NAV, TM (Long only - beaten up autos)
- Oct-Dec: CBI, LEN, SGR, PWR (Long only - beaten up homebuilders/construction services)
If you've got multiple surviving portfolios, allocate first according to birth month, then according to the next down the list, until you're out of portfolios.
Remember to rebalance all positions to 25%, even if you're not changing the constituent stocks/ETFs.
Consider all of the above to be for entertainment purposes and not meant to be used as real-world investment recommendations. The goals and strategies of the Portfolio Challenge are not to be confused with those of sensible investing.
See all related posts in the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive.
Week 6: Monday
Week 5: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 4: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 3: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Pre-game: CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge Is Back, Strategy Primer
Extra Stuff: The Biggest Loser, Interview With Bradford Pine
To receive additional updates by e-mail, drop a line here with the word "Subscribe" in the subject header.
Monday December 22nd
Throughout the contest, each day's answers will be at the top of the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive as soon as the questions are published, so bookmark accordingly.
Daily Trivia:
Squawk Box: Question: On Friday, options expert Rebecca Darst said which bank's downside had "far outpaced the decline" in the financials?
Answer: HSBC
Squawk On the Street: Question: According to the article "Numbers Cruncher Says Madoff Math Didn't Add Up" who voiced suspicions to the SEC in 1999?
Answer: Harry Markopolos
The Call: Question: According to "Cramer's Call on Chemicals" (on Dec. 18), which stock would Jim Cramer prefer?
Answer: PPG
Power Lunch: Question: In the "Market Tips" feature entitled "Hold Three Things - Bonds, Gold, Silver" which expert(s) recommended bonds?
Answer: Robert Kessler
Street Signs: Question: Web video hunt: In Rebecca Jarvis' Dec. 18 report, "Four Charged with Insider Trading", where did the "husband" work?
Answer: Lehman Bros.
Closing Bell: Question: According to Darren Rovell's blog, how many fewer paper holiday greeting cards did he receive in 2008 vs. 2007?
Answer: 93
Weekly Quiz:
Question: ETF's are based on
Answer: An Index or sector of stocks
Handcrafted by Flip on December 22, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack
The Romney Plan
- Lower corporate tax rates
- Eliminate capital gains and dividend income taxes (at least for some income brackets)
- Focus stimulus spending on "shovel-ready" and genuinely necessary military projects
- Fund energy research, including nuclear
- Slash state governments (reduce headcount, eliminate duplicate and wasteful agencies)
- GOP blocks en masse any pork-infused spending bills
- Avoid knee-jerk over-regulation of financial services
- Don't grant unions any more power than they already have
I'll be pleasantly dumbfounded if more than one of these proposals - as paraphrased by me - comes to pass. (The last four are pure fantasy.) The country's just in too much of a collectivist, protectionist, Keynesian funk these days. We've got an inbound administration whose rhetoric in the face of economic turmoil is equal parts Roosevelt, Hoover, and Carter; and the public by and large is signing on as if we hadn't been to this rodeo before.
Spoiler alert: it ends poorly.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 21, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
FOIA Request Confirms Obama's Taxpayer-Sponsored Fundraising Site "Change.gov" Violates All Kinds Of Rules
Michelle Malkin's got the whole story (including scans of the primary documents tracking Team Obama's initially thwarted efforts to register the domain), but suffice it to say the General Services Administration was against it before it was for it.
The FOIA documents sent to Lance O., which he forwarded to me, reveal that the GSA initially rejected Obama’s application for “Change.gov.” On Oct. 21, Peter Alterman, Deputy Associate Administrator of Technology Strategy at the GSA, denied the Obama campaign’s request for a government domain because:
1) It would be a a violation of the government’s naming conventions (too generic); and
2) using ‘change’ in the domain name would be political, since it was the trademark slogan of the Obama campaign.
The day after the election, on Nov. 5, GSA Chief Information Officer Casey Coleman overruled Alterman after apparently receiving a waiver from Chris Lu, Executive Director of Obama’s Transition Project. As reader Lance discovered through his FOIA request, Ms. Coleman did not elaborate on the granting of this waiver except to say that she had “determined that it is in the best interest of the Federal Government to register the subject domain name.”
As another GSA official who facilitated the convenient change in policy regarding change.gov exulted to the Obama campaign after the domain was granted, “Rock and roll!”
"Turn and face the strain..."
Handcrafted by Flip on December 21, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Best Technological Convergence Of the Millennium To-Date Finally Debuts
SlingBerry (Finally) Coming
Way back at CES 2008 in January, Sling Media showed off its TV service for Research In Motion’s BlackBerry, saying it would be available “sometime” in 2008. The EchoStar-owned company has finally set the release date: Dec. 30.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 19, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
That Was Fast
It's now Franken by 280? That's a 14,000% reversal of Coleman's lead just this morning.
If this clown manages to pull it off, we're just a single Maine RINO away from a filibuster-proof Senate.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 19, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBack
Strategy Room - Today at 1:00 pm
I'll be in the Strategy Room this afternoon from 1:00-2:00 at FoxNews.com with Brian Kilmeade.
Click here to stream it live. Click here to email the show.
You can also interact with fellow viewers, hosts and guests in our Strategy Rooom viewer forum.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 19, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge - Friday, Week 5
[Scroll to the bottom for answers to today's Bonus Bucks trivia questions.]
Here we are at the halfway point of regular season trading. Reader Bradford Pine remains in the top ten and many of you have written in with details of your top 100 standings. Not bad with roughly 510,000 active portfolios.
We've yet to snag any of the weekly bids to the final round, but with many of you having successfully drained your currency allocations, we've got a nice big group of leaner, meaner portfolios with which to ply our group strategy going into the second half of the contest. We'll also be returning to a somewhat more intricate set of daily allocations (as distinct from the single pair we've used in the last couple weeks). It's a bit more legwork, but it should give us a better shot of taking down at least a couple of these weekly prizes.
That said, the first of the Week 6 allocations will use just the single pair of leveraged ETF baskets, so things start off simply enough.
Allocate according to ZIP code - if it ends in an odd number, use the ultrabulls; even, use the ultrabears.
Remember to go through the reallocation process even if the portfolio in question is already in the same basket - it's important to rebalance each name to 25% of your allocation.
- Ultrabull (RE/2xFin/Russell 2k): URE, UWM, UYG, RFL (25% each)
- Ultrabear (RE/2xFin/Russell 2k): SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN (25% each)
Consider all of the above to be for entertainment purposes and not meant to be used as real-world investment recommendations. The goals and strategies of the Portfolio Challenge are not to be confused with those of sensible investing.
See all related posts in the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive.
Week 5: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 4: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 3: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Pre-game: CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge Is Back, Strategy Primer
Extra Stuff: The Biggest Loser, Interview With Bradford Pine
To receive additional updates by e-mail, drop a line here with the word "Subscribe" in the subject header.
Friday December 19th
Throughout the contest, each day's answers will be at the top of the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive as soon as the questions are published, so bookmark accordingly.
Daily Trivia:
Squawk Box: Question: On Dec. 18, Juerg Zingg offered CNBC his commodity picks for "brave" investors. His refinery stocks included:
Answer: Valero
Squawk On the Street: Question: In Phil LeBeau's blog post "Chrysler On Life Support..." what multitude of animals does he mention?
Answer: herd of cattle
The Call:
Question: In the article "Avon, Tupperware Thrive in Economic Downturn", which
retailer's famous nickname did Larry Nusbaum use?
Answer: Bloomingdale's
Power Lunch: Question: On Dec. 16, whom did Jim Cramer give his "Plaxy" (Plaxico Burress) Good Judgment Award to?
Answer: SEC boss Christopher Cox
Street Signs: Question: In the Fast Money blog post, "Fed Trying To Smoke You Out?", what investment does Pete Najarian suggest?
Answer: Siemens stock
Closing Bell: Question: According to our slideshow "Bernie Madoff & the $50 Billion Heist" whose charitable trust had 10% tied up w/ Madoff?
Answer: Mortimer Zuckerman
Weekly Quiz:
Question: A sell stop is placed?
Answer: Below the stock price
Handcrafted by Flip on December 19, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBack
Franken within 2 (Or Possibly 5)
Either way... cripes.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 19, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBack
Strategy Room - Today at 10:30 am
I'll be in the Strategy Room this morning from 10:30-12:00 at FoxNews.com with Heather Nauert.
Click here to stream it live. Click here to email the show.
You can also interact with fellow viewers, hosts and guests in our Strategy Rooom viewer forum.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 18, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge - Thursday, Week 5
[Scroll to the bottom for answers to today's Bonus Bucks trivia questions.]
With one more reallocation to go in Week 5, our readers are hanging in there. Dave Dur remains on the weekly leaderboard with a gain of gain of 32.1%. Bradford Pine edged up to #5 on the overall leaderboard with $3.869 million.
Check back this afternoon for today's reallocations.
Consider all of the above to be for entertainment purposes and not meant to be used as real-world investment recommendations. The goals and strategies of the Portfolio Challenge are not to be confused with those of sensible investing.
See all related posts in the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive.
Week 5: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
Week 4: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 3: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Pre-game: CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge Is Back, Strategy Primer
Extra Stuff: The Biggest Loser, Interview With Bradford Pine
To receive additional updates by e-mail, drop a line here with the word "Subscribe" in the subject header.
Thursday December 18th
Throughout the contest, each day's answers will be at the top of the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive as soon as the questions are published, so bookmark accordingly.
Daily Trivia:
Squawk Box: Question: In his Dec. 17 Stock Blog, Jon Najarian said there was heavy activity in which type of option?
Answer: Answer: Gold Tracking ETF
Squawk On the Street: Question: As of Dec. 17, what does stock picker Ron Kiddoo like for "recession sectors"?
Answer: industrial
The Call: Question: According to the article "Inside Madoffs Empire" what was Andrew Cohen teaching when he got bad financial news?
Answer: Yoga
Power Lunch: Question: BlackRock's Bob Doll says investors should "buy more risk." What was one of his "low-quality" picks?
Answer: Valero
Street Signs: Question: In our Rogues Gallery slideshow, what color suit is Hunt brother Nelson wearing?
Answer: not shown in photograph
Closing Bell: Question: According to the article, No Growth in China and other Outrageous Prophecies, which nation may drop the euro in 2009?
Answer: Italy
Weekly Quiz:
Question: A sell stop is placed?
Answer: Below the stock price
Handcrafted by Flip on December 18, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBack
Client #9 Emerges
Tonight at 6:00 pm Three months from now, former Governor Eliot Spitzer will make his first public appearance since resigning in disgrace in March. Spitzer will participate in a debate at Rockefeller University, arguing against the proposition that we should "Blame Washington more than Wall Street for the financial crisis."
His bio seems somewhat incomplete...
Eliot Spitzer was governor of the state of New York from 2007 to 2008, and attorney general from 1999 to 2006. While attorney general, Time magazine named him "Crusader of the Year" for his landmark settlement with ten of the nation's largest securities firms over charges of misleading investors. As a prosecutor in the Rackets Bureau of the Manhattan district attorney's office, Spitzer served as lead attorney in a case that broke the Gambino family's stranglehold on New York's garment industry. He currently writes a biweekly column on finance and the economy for Slate.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 18, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Strategy Room - Today at 3 pm
I'll be in the Strategy Room at FoxNews.com today from 3-4, the "A.D.D. Hour" with Eric Bolling, alongside Tom Ruskin, Alison Rosen, and a couple others.
Click here to stream it live. Click here to email the show.
You can also interact with fellow viewers, hosts and guests in our Strategy Rooom viewer forum.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 17, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
It's Obama's Nation Of Hope. We Just Live In It.
Time and God's Most Precious Creation need to get a room. They're beginning to make the rest of us uncomfortable.
If the magazine's Person of the Year article isn't cloyingly adulating enough to make you feel like the third wheel at a media-Messiah make-out party, peruse the accompanying slideshow "Obama's Nation of Hope". That ought to do the trick.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 17, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge - Wednesday, Week 5
[Scroll to the bottom for answers to today's Bonus Bucks trivia questions.]
With volatility creeping back into the market, we're enjoying a strong Week 5 so far. Not 1, but 2 of our dear readers find themselves in the Top 5 week-to-date: Dave Dur in 3rd with a gain of 28.7% and CT in 5th with a gain of 28.4%.
Meanwhile, Bradford Pine remains in good shape on the overall leaderboard at #6 with $3.817 million.
Check back this afternoon for today's reallocations.
Consider all of the above to be for entertainment purposes and not meant to be used as real-world investment recommendations. The goals and strategies of the Portfolio Challenge are not to be confused with those of sensible investing.
See all related posts in the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive.
Week 5: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday
Week 4: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 3: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Pre-game: CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge Is Back, Strategy Primer
Extra Stuff: The Biggest Loser, Interview With Bradford Pine
To receive additional updates by e-mail, drop a line here with the word "Subscribe" in the subject header.
Wednesday December 17th
Throughout the contest, each day's answers will be at the top of the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive as soon as the questions are published, so bookmark accordingly.
Daily Trivia:
Squawk Box: Question: In Carmen Wong Ulrich's article on what the rate cut means for consumers, what piece of advice does she give?
Answer: lock in high-interest CDs now
Squawk On the Street: Question: According to Bob Pisani's blog, "Goldman Sachs: A Sigh Of Relief On Street" what company did Credit Suisse criticize?
Answer: Potash
The Call: Question: What geographic reference appears in the Holiday Central blog post "Airline Baggage Fees Deliver Boost to UPS"?
Answer: over the river and through the woods
Power Lunch: Question: In the CNBC Web video, "Kitty Caskets," what species of deceased pet does casket maker Jeanne Hoegh mention?
Answer: all of the above
Street Signs: Question: In the Pros Say feature, "H1 Will be Horrific", which "pro" talked about corporate bonds?
Answer: Sean Egan
Closing Bell: Question: In his Tuesday Stock Blog, Jon Najarian said options traders seemed bullish on which aerospace company?
Answer: Boeing
Weekly Quiz:
Question: A sell stop is placed?
Answer: Below the stock price
Handcrafted by Flip on December 17, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (9) | TrackBack
Paterson To Rob New Yorkers Blind
See what I did there? It's a pun. At his expense. It's okay - he's a good sport about these things.
Plus, he's earned a bit of rebuke with this one.
Trying to close a $15.4 billion budget gap, Paterson called for 88 new fees and a host of other taxes, including an "iPod tax" that taxes the sale of downloaded music and other "digitally delivered entertainment services."
"We're going to have to take some extreme measures," Paterson said Tuesday after unveiling the slash-and-burn budget.
The proposal, which needs legislative approval, did not include broad-based income tax increases, but relied on smaller ones to raise $4.1 billion from cash-strapped New Yorkers.
Movie tickets, taxi rides, soda, beer, wine, cigars and massages would be taxed under Paterson's proposal. It also extends sales taxes to cable and satellite TV services and removes the tax exemption for clothes costing less than $110.
Paterson managed to peeve folks on both sides of the aisle with this move - Republicans because it serves to further bloat the hideously bloated state government, and Democrats because sales and usage taxes tend to be less "progressive" (read: fairer) than steeply graduated income taxes.
Observe:
Assembly Speaker [Democrat] Sheldon Silver, who supports a so-called millionaire tax, has said he'd "rather have a broad-based tax than nickel-and-dime" people.
...
Republican lawmakers expressed concern with the tax and fee increases."Instead of raising taxes, we need to be reducing them," said Assembly Minority Leader James Tedisco (R-Schenectady).
Rather than slashing the budget during such tight times (or even holding the line), Paterson has managed only to slow the rate of growth.
Paterson's 2009-10 budget proposal represents only a 1% increase in total spending from this year's budget - the smallest increase in a dozen years.
As bad as all this is, I do have to credit Paterson with a comprehension of the behavioral impact of "progressive" taxation that tends to elude most others in his party.
Paterson did not rule out income tax increases but said spending reductions are the priority. He also defended the fee and sales tax increases, saying they would be less harmful to the state's economy.
"If you start taxing at times when [revenues are] receding, you'll drive job creators out of the state," Paterson said.
Update: Jammie Wearing Fool makes an apt cinematic comparison.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 16, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge - Tuesday, Week 5
[Scroll to the bottom for answers to today's Bonus Bucks trivia questions.]
Check back this afternoon for today's reallocations.
Update: Thanks, Uncle Ben!
For the surviving members of our participating portfolios (those in the ultrabears Monday and the ultrabulls today), use the same two ETF baskets, according to ZIP code. For odd numbers, go with the ultrabull basket; for even numbers, use the ultrabears.
- Ultrabull (RE/2xFin/Russell 2k): URE, UWM, UYG, RFL (25% each)
- Ultrabear (RE/2xFin/Russell 2k): SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN (25% each)
Remember to perform the reallocation to 25% apiece even if you've got a surviving portfolio that's staying in the same basket, as the contents may have shifted during flight.
Consider all of the above to be for entertainment purposes and not meant to be used as real-world investment recommendations. The goals and strategies of the Portfolio Challenge are not to be confused with those of sensible investing.
See all related posts in the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive.
Week 5: Monday, Tuesday
Week 4: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 3: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Pre-game: CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge Is Back, Strategy Primer
Extra Stuff: The Biggest Loser, Interview With Bradford Pine
To receive additional updates by e-mail, drop a line here with the word "Subscribe" in the subject header.
Tuesday December 16th
Throughout the contest, each day's answers will be at the top of the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive as soon as the questions are published, so bookmark accordingly.
Daily Trivia:
Squawk Box: Question: What verb phrase does Carmen Wong Ulrich use in her Monday article on Ponzi scheme protection?
Answer: take a hike
Squawk On the Street: Question: According to a Dec. 15 CNBC Stock Blog post, what firm is rumored to be wooing AK Steel?
Answer: Sumitomo Metals
The Call: Question: CNBC.com video quiz: On Dec. 15, Jim Glickenhaus' energy picks included:
Answer: all of the above
Power Lunch: Question: In the "Stupid or Cool?" feature on gift ideas, what horror-movie staple is mentioned in the robot lawnmower review?
Answer: slasher music
Street Signs: Question: In Monday's "Stop Trading" segment, Jim Cramer dealt with Goldman Sachs' downgrade of which company?
Answer: AT&T
Closing Bell: Question: According to the article, "Faith, Doubt, and Warren Buffett," how much did Berkshire Hathaway's Q3 net earnings fall?
Answer: 77%
Weekly Quiz:
Question: A sell stop is placed?
Answer: Below the stock price
Handcrafted by Flip on December 16, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (10) | TrackBack
George P. Bush For Senate
With Caroline Kennedy now confirming that she would very much like to be hand-picked to replace Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate, I feel compelled to advance another candidate: George Prescott Bush, son of former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, nephew of the President, and grandson of Bush 41.
It's true that "P." doesn't currently live in New York, but as Hillary aptly carpetbagged demonstrated in 2000, one doesn't need to establish residency in New York (until the day of election/appointment) to become one of its Senators.
It's also true that Bush has not demonstrated any particular political ambition or experience, beyond campaigning for family members. Of course, the same can be said for Caroline...
So far as I can tell, Bush and Kennedy's qualifications are remarkably well-matched: both are at least 30 years old and both count several family members who have held high office. If the latter represents Kennedy's primary qualification, I'd say Bush likely edges her out with his doubly Presidential family resume.
Yes, the American people carry a certain nostalgia for the image of young Caroline romping around the Oval Office in the 1960s (and I don't mean to diminish the relevance thereof as relates to Senatorial qualifications). But let's not forget George P.'s adorable leading of the Pledge of Allegiance at age 12 at the 1988 Republican National Convention.
Finally, while I'd hesitate to play this card under normal circumstances, here it's worth pointing out that P. is of Hispanic descent. And New York Governor David Paterson - upon whose shoulders falls the terrible burden of picking Clinton's replacement - has explicitly stated that he wants to pick "a woman or an Hispanic candidate."
Thus vanishes any advantage Caroline might have over George. If we're going to incorporate familial considerations into Senate appointments, we may as well be orderly about it. There's been a George Bush or a Prescott Bush in Congress, a Governor's mansion and/or the White House for 42 of the last 57 years (20 of the last 28 as part of a Presidential administration).
This one's a George Bush and a Prescott Bush. And he's a member of the largest and fastest-growing minority in the country. It's as if he were bred in a lab to be the ultimate American politician. I can see it being debatable if Caroline's middle name were Teddy or Bobby, but that incongruous first name and gender tend to muddy the dynastic symmetry.
Update: The incomparable S.E. Cupp has an op-ed in the New York Daily News questioning why Paterson ought to feel compelled to fill Cilnton's seat with another woman.
Handcrafted by Flip on December 15, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (7) | TrackBack
CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge - Monday, Week 5
[Scroll to the bottom for answers to today's Bonus Bucks trivia questions.]
Welcome to Week 5, gang. Happily, last week's thorny technical issues have been resolved (mine, not CNBC's) and we're back to full-featured contest blogging.
Going into today, portfolios participating in our group strategy (many of which have now depleted their currency portfolios through one or more of the strategies detailed in these pages in recent weeks) are divided between these two leveraged sector ETFs:
- Ultrabull (RE/2xFin/Russell 2k): URE, UWM, UYG, RFL (25% each)
- Ultrabear (RE/2xFin/Russell 2k): SRS, TWM, SKF, RFN (25% each)
Market volatility's actually been on the decline over the last couple of weeks. Hopefully we'll see a resurgence today.
For those of you who were seeing unexpected results in their currency portfolios, have they since returned to normal? The most recent email update from CNBC stated:
Please note, that the currency markets were closed as of last night but have now re-opened. Any trades placed between 12/11/08 2:48p ET and the market re-open will be rolled back and all open orders/positions will be reprocessed against the price movements.
And the latest update on the site reads:
Trading closed on 12/11 at 2:48pm ET and re-opened on 12/12 at 9:45am ET. The roll back of the trades for the margin calls was completed. Any waiting orders which should have been processed were processed at the start of trading Friday (12/12/08) morning.
I don't know about you, but I'm not certain what that means. If you're able to suss out when and at what price your late Thursday trades were processed (and whether it conforms to what you were expecting), let us know in the comments.
And ongoing congratulations to reader Brad Pine for maintaining his top 5 overall ranking going into Week 5.
Update: For today's reallocations, use the same two ETFs above, according to birth year. For odd years, go with the ultrabull basket; for even years, use the ultrabears.
Consider all of the above to be for entertainment purposes and not meant to be used as real-world investment recommendations. The goals and strategies of the Portfolio Challenge are not to be confused with those of sensible investing.
See all related posts in the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive.
Week 5: Monday
Week 4: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 3: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Pre-game: CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge Is Back, Strategy Primer
Extra Stuff: The Biggest Loser, Interview With Bradford Pine
To receive additional updates by e-mail, drop a line here with the word "Subscribe" in the subject header.
Monday December 15th
Throughout the contest, each day's answers will be at the top of the CNBC Portfolio Challenge archive as soon as the questions are published, so bookmark accordingly.
Daily Trivia:
Squawk Box: Question: In the Two-Way Street blog post, "Trump Magic: Why I Like The Donald", why does the author like the Donald?
Answer: Trump's name drives Web traffic
Squawk On the Street: Question: In Friday's edition of Stop Trading, what gambling metaphor did Jim Cramer use for GM common stock?
Answer: buying a lottery ticket
The Call: Question: In a Sports Biz blog post, what term does reader Simeon Lipman use for Billy Ripken "obscenity bat card" traders?
Answer: all of the above
Power Lunch: Question: In his Friday CNBC Stock Blog post, Jon Najarian said options traders were bearish on which financial firm?
Answer: State Street
Street Signs: Question: In our Top Destinations 2009 slideshow, which once-divided city is shown in picture Number 10?
Answer: Berlin, Germany
Closing Bell: Question: In the article "They're Back: Day Traders Thrive in Volatile Market" what violent image did Andrew Wilkinson use?
Answer: scalp the market
Weekly Quiz:
Question: A sell stop is placed?
Answer: Below the stock price
Handcrafted by Flip on December 15, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBack
FoxNews.com Strategy Room - Companion Reader
Welcome, Strategy Room fans. If aren't already streaming it, you can access the show live from 9-5 here.
Throughout the broadcast, you can interact here with fellow viewers, hosts, and panelists in a variety of ways, including live chat, following hosts and guests on Twitter, Facebook, etc., viewer polls, and video of archived segments.
To participate in the live chat, you may need to sign up for a free Ustream account, which you can do by clicking the link in the chat window below.
I'll be on the show today from 3-4 during the "A.D.D. Hour" with Eric Bolling.
Hosts/Staff:
Guests:
- Flip Pidot (blog)
- Tom Ruskin
- Howard Lindzon (blog)
- Natali Del Conte (blog)
- S.E. Cupp (blog)
- K.T. McFarland (website)
Strategy Room Hashtag:
(Leave addresses for others in the comments and I'll add them to the list.)
Live Twitter Updates
Mike Straka Eric Bolling
Flip Pidot Tom Ruskin
- "Strategy Room Fans" group
- Fox News
Contact
Handcrafted by Flip on December 15, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Meet the New Nanny, Same As the Old Nanny
Remember the refreshingly unmerciful ribbing we were pleasantly shocked to see SNL deliver to New York Governor David Paterson? Apparently Paterson, despite being a man who - per his communications director - "engages in humor all the time," didn't find it so refreshing.
The governor’s communications director, Risa B. Heller, said on Sunday that the skit amounted to nothing more than cheap ridicule — a surprisingly strong reaction considering that the governor is well known for making light of his vision problems.
“The governor engages in humor all the time, and he can certainly take a joke,” Ms. Heller said in a statement. “However, this particular ‘Saturday Night Live’ skit unfortunately chose to ridicule people with physical disabilities and imply that disabled people are incapable of having jobs with serious responsibilities.
Meanwhile, Governor Paterson, being the fun-loving good time guy that he is, is challenging Mike Bloomberg's previously undisputed title as New York's nanny-in-chief.
Outlaw trans fats? C'mon, Mike. That's small [deep-fried] potatoes. How about a tax on sugar itself?
A can of Coke could soon cost New Yorkers more than just calories.
Gov. Paterson, as part of a $121 billion budget to be unveiled Tuesday, will propose an "obesity tax" of about 15% on nondiet drinks.
Let's just skip the next few chapters and move straight to the government-approved, gluten-free, non-dairy nutrient paste.
Previously: SNL Finds a Black Politician It Can Full Throatedly Mock
Handcrafted by Flip on December 15, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
