Microsoft won't unveil new Xbox at March show - Jan. 31, 2005

Microsoft won't unveil new Xbox at March show - Jan. 31, 2005: "A Microsoft spokeswoman confirmed McNealy's report that the new Xbox would not be shown off at GDC.
As opposed to E3, which takes in publishers, marketers and retailers, GDC is aimed more narrowly at game developers. It was at GDC five years ago that Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates unveiled the original Xbox. "

MetLife to Buy Travelers for $11.5 Bln

MetLife to Buy Travelers for $11.5 Bln: "The transaction will make MetLife's already dominant position in the U.S. individual life insurance market even larger and make it No. 2 in the annuities market behind Hartford Life Insurance Co.
For Citigroup, it is another step back from the concept of one-stop financial shopping -- combining insurance, brokerage and banking under one roof -- which it pioneered in the 1990s."

The Best Offense

The Best Offense: "As a group, the big defense contractors look pretty reasonably priced if, for whatever reason, the cost-cutting rumblings from Washington prove unfounded. But really, how often does the government spend more than it says it will?"

Return of The Kings

Return of The Kings: "The money raised by Internet stock offerings was astounding: $3.2 billion in 2004, up from $278 million two years ago. The fire-sale private mergers of yore have been extinguished, too. According to Thomson Venture Economics and the National Venture Capital Association, the average Internet company that was bought went for $132 million last year, nearly five times as high as in 2002. In May Symantec paid $370 million for spam-catcher Brightmail. Amonth later Time Warner's AOL division paid $435 million for Advertising.com."

Learn About Investment Clubs

Learn About Investment Clubs: "Understand, too, that you don't even have to invest your money together. If your club has enough discipline, you can just meet regularly to learn and/or study companies, and then go home and make investment decisions on your own."

MSN Money - CNBC TV: Investing

MSN Money - CNBC TV: Investing: "A weaker dollar is supposed to be a boon for American exporters, whose goods and services will be more affordable.

Exports will surge in 2005, said Hugh Johnson, chief investment officer at First Albany Capital. The trend presents an opportunity for investors in big-cap companies with substantial markets overseas, he said."

Greenspan against faster rate hikes - BusinessWeek - Jan. 21, 2005

Greenspan against faster rate hikes - BusinessWeek - Jan. 21, 2005: "The report noted that with the Fed's Feb 1-2 policy meeting fast approaching, investors were fretting that Greenspan and his central bank colleagues might want to junk their go-slow strategy of bite-size interest rate hikes in favor of something more aggressive. "

MSN Money - Social Security cuts: a tax hike for the young

MSN Money - Social Security cuts: a tax hike for the young: "Social Security benefits are calculated by a formula that attempts to adjust for both inflation and productivity growth. It does this to try to deliver the same 'replacement rate' over time so that workers of different generations can rely on Social Security for the same portion of their retirement income. For the average worker, that figure has been about 42% of pre-retirement wages. Lower-income workers get more. Higher-income workers get less.

Today, 66% of all retirees get at least half of their cash income from Social Security. This makes Social Security the difference between dignity and poverty for most retirees -- while literally saving some from starvation. There is no reason to believe this dependence will be less in the future."

ArticleCity.com - A Debt Checklist

ArticleCity.com - A Debt Checklist: "A Debt Checklist is a plan you can use to get a grip on your finances, and will allow you to understand in black and white, where savings can be made, and how debt can be tackled most effectively. "

MSN Money - 5 safe growth stocks - Jubak's Journal

MSN Money - 5 safe growth stocks - Jubak's Journal: "Stocks in two sectors that offer almost guaranteed growth even if the economy hits unexpected rough spots this year have fallen the most in the profit-taking that's dominated this month. That means that safe growth is on sale."

The Bull Case Keeps Changing

The Bull Case Keeps Changing: "You should always listen to reasonable opinions that differ from yours. When I say 'reasonable,' I don't mean the all-caps gobbledygook that you find on most message boards. 'Your stupid and smell and who pays you to write this!!!' isn't keen insight into a corporation or its prospects and valuation."

Five Energy Stocks to Keep on Your Radar Screen

Five Energy Stocks to Keep on Your Radar Screen: "Naturally, our energy stock valuations are highly contingent upon the oil and natural-gas prices that we assume companies will realize in coming periods. "

Yahoo! looks to diversify even as core ad business soars - Jan. 18, 2005

Yahoo! looks to diversify even as core ad business soars - Jan. 18, 2005: "Online ads are now the fastest-growing advertising category, followed next by cable television and magazines. Myers expects Web ads to grow, at 30 percent in 2005 -- a rate that is expected to outpace all other advertising mediums. "

IBM Profit Rises, Aided by Dollar

IBM Profit Rises, Aided by Dollar: Shares rose slightly as IBM posted broad-based sales gains across all its major product lines, regional markets and target customer segments. But more than half of the growth was due to favorable currency effects instead of operating performance."

Three Trends for 2005

Three Trends for 2005: "China likely will surpass the U.S. this year in the number of Web surfers, a development few saw in 1995. "

WSJ.com - Finding an Affordable Home Gets Harder

WSJ.com - Finding an Affordable Home Gets Harder: "Home prices have become so high in nearly 30 metropolitan areas nationwide that someone earning the median income can't afford a median-price home, based on traditional lending standards, according to a study by forecasting and consulting firm Economy.com that ranked 325 metropolitan areas by their affordability."

MSN Money - 7 steps for finding great dividend stocks - Find hot stocks

MSN Money - 7 steps for finding great dividend stocks - Find hot stocks: "Just think: The only way you make money on regular stocks is by selling them to someone else at a higher price. The beauty of dividend stocks is that, because they pay you to own them, you don�t have to depend solely on the stock's gains or a strong market to make money."

MSN Money - Pick stocks like the Super Value Gurus

MSN Money - Pick stocks like the Super Value Gurus: "Most investors I know, especially beginners, are growth investors. They are looking for the next hot stock. A company with new products that will capture the market by storm, sending sales and earnings, as well as the share price, to the moon"

10 or more years to go until retirement - Oct. 11, 2004

10 or more years to go until retirement - Oct. 11, 2004: "The biggest key to success will be saving as much as you can. Having the world's best-performing investments won't amount to a hill of beans, if you don't put away enough money to compound over time. "

Mutual Funds 2005: Picking the Money 50 Best Funds - Jan. 10, 2005

Mutual Funds 2005: Picking the Money 50 Best Funds - Jan. 10, 2005: "When you focus on what really counts in fund investing, the class acts stand out quickly. "

MSN Money - How small cuts become huge savings

MSN Money - How small cuts become huge savings: "There is no one road to wealth, and all of the above have created wealth for a few notable individuals. But you can put the odds of creating wealth on your side by following a few simple precepts."

MSN Money - 3 steps to slaying your money demons

MSN Money - 3 steps to slaying your money demons: "Ever feel like you�re stuck in a money rut? You vow to do things better -- no more late payments! No more impulsive spending! And it works. For 36 hours. Then you find yourself making the same mistakes over and over again, as if you were possessed by . . . A DEMON."

MSN Money - What to do if you're 55 and haven't saved a dime - Playing catch-up

MSN Money - What to do if you're 55 and haven't saved a dime - Playing catch-up:
You're 10 years from retirement and have barely a penny to show for it. Time's a-wastin', so take these quick steps to get you started on a stronger retirement track."

MSN Money - 3 strategies to beat the market in 2005 - Jubak's Journal

MSN Money - 3 strategies to beat the market in 2005 - Jubak's Journal: "As we begin 2005, the Wall Street consensus is that the year ahead will be OK. Not great like 2003, when the Standard & Poor's 500 ($INX) stock index was up 26%. And not terrible like 2002, when the S&P 500 was down 23%. But OK like 2004, when the index climbed 9.1%. "

Planabudget - Budget planning basics

Planabudget - Budget planning basics: "A budget is simply a tool that is used to plan spending and savings. You can think of it as a roadmap to navigating your finances."

ArticleCity.com - How to Avoid Credit Card Late Fees

ArticleCity.com - How to Avoid Credit Card Late Fees: "Move your due date. Are your credit card bills due at a time of the month when you're running low on cash? Many people have trouble saving money, so when it comes time to paying their credit card bills, they don�t have any cash to do so. One particular solution is to move your due date. Many credit card issuers will allow you to set your own due date to meet your specific needs. If you have trouble saving money, move your due date to a time when you do have money, like as soon as you get your paycheck. If you time your credit card bill to come the same day you get paid, you will always have cash to pay the bill. "

ArticleCity.com - The Great Stock Market Secret

ArticleCity.com - The Great Stock Market Secret: "You must learn to sell - for two reasons. First to protect your equity after your initial purchase and second to keep from giving back profits you have made as the equity advances. "

Finance: the Deal on Home Equity Lines

Finance: the Deal on Home Equity Lines: "Many homeowners are now being offered home equity lines as a convenience from their primary mortgage lender. But that's not necessarily the best deal. And some lenders don't offer the same services that others do."

Smartmoney.com: Stock Screen: The Year's Top 10

Smartmoney.com: Stock Screen: The Year's Top 10: "The top 10 companies in terms of year-to-date stock performance are on our list. "

Bush Calls for Streamlining Tax Code

Bush Calls for Streamlining Tax Code: "'A simple code will make it easier on the taxpayers,' Bush said. 'But it's an important task in order to make sure the economic growth we are seeing in the United States continues forward. ... It seems like to me the tax code today discourages economic vitality and growth when you spend billions of hours filling out the forms.'"

ArticleCity.com - Building The Foundation For Wealth

ArticleCity.com - Building The Foundation For Wealth: "There are steps you can take to make sure that you are maximizing and protecting your gains at the same time. Without these steps, you are destined to experience the gain-loss cycle which, in the end, is like spinning your wheels in the mud. "

ArticleCity.com - When It Comes To Investing, Leave Your Emotions Out Of It

ArticleCity.com - When It Comes To Investing, Leave Your Emotions Out Of It: "Most investors are driven by two main emotions, namely fear and greed. And, as has been proven time and again, using fear and greed to guide your investment decisions will usually lead you to lose money. "

ArticleCity.com - Handling Debt in 2005

ArticleCity.com - Handling Debt in 2005: "Are you caught in debt yourself? Fortunately, there are steps that you can take to get yourself out of debt. "

Two Ways to Profit

Two Ways to Profit: "Beginning investors may wonder how, exactly, they can profit by owning stocks. Read on, ye beginning investors. There are two main ways: dividends and price appreciation."

10 Crucial Money Moves for 2005: Yahoo! Finance - Money Matters

10 Crucial Money Moves for 2005: Yahoo! Finance - Money MattersThese 10 tips are great ways to get such a plan up and running in 2005:

Bloomberg.com: U.S.

Bloomberg.com: U.S.: "This year's advance in stocks follows a 2003 rally that was paced by the Nasdaq's 50 percent climb. The S&P 500 gained 26 percent last year and the Dow average jumped 25 percent. "

Bloomberg.com: U.S.

Bloomberg.com: U.S.: "This year's advance in stocks follows a 2003 rally that was paced by the Nasdaq's 50 percent climb. The S&P 500 gained 26 percent last year and the Dow average jumped 25 percent. "

The single best retirement strategy - Dec. 17, 2004

The single best retirement strategy - Dec. 17, 2004: "The odds of a retirement portfolio lasting 30 years rise dramatically as costs fall. With expensive funds, there's a 31 percent chance the hypothetical portfolio won't last. Investing in ultra-low-expense funds cuts the probability to 13 percent. "