Wall Street retreats, Nasdaq and S&P 500 off 1 percent






NEW YORK (Reuters) – Stocks declined on Monday after a disappointing report on factory orders, retreating from gains in the prior session that left the S&P 500 at a five-year high and the Dow above 14,000.


Investors also grew wary on political uncertainty in the euro zone, leading to a sharp rise in Spanish government bond yields.






Chevron and Wal-Mart were among the biggest drags on the Dow after analyst downgrades.


“S&P technicals are at overbought levels, and risk off harbingers, such as Spanish 10-year yields, which are much more difficult for central bankers to tame, have bounced off recent lows,” said Peter Cecchini, managing director at New York-based Cantor Fitzgerald & Co.


Spanish and Italian bond yields rose, renewing worries about the euro zone’s sovereign debt crisis. Spain’s prime minister faced calls to resign over a corruption scandal, while a probe of alleged misconduct involving an Italian bank were expected to widen three weeks before a national election.


The benchmark S&P 500 rose on Friday, leaving it roughly 60 points away from its all-time intraday high of 1,576.09, while the Dow’s march above 14,000 was the highest for the index since October 2007.


The S&P index <.spx> is up 5.5 percent for the year, with nearly half of the gains coming after U.S. legislators sidestepped temporarily the “fiscal cliff” of automatic tax increases and spending cuts.</.spx>


Data from the Commerce Department showed overall factory orders rose 1.8 percent during the month, below economists’ expectations. The report said capital goods orders outside of the defense and aircraft industries, edged 0.3 percent lower in December. The category is seen as a gauge of U.S. business investment plans.


Economic data has pointed to a modest U.S. recovery, but the data has not been strong enough to upset investor expectations the Federal Reserve will continue its stimulus policy that has buoyed stocks.


The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> dropped 134.39 points, or 0.96 percent, to 13,875.40. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index <.spx> lost 15.16 points, or 1.00 percent, to 1,498.01. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> fell 39.32 points, or 1.24 percent, to 3,139.77.</.ixic></.spx></.dji>


Chevron Corp dipped 1.1 percent to $ 115.23 after UBS cut its rating to neutral, while Wal-Mart Stores Inc shed 1.7 percent to $ 69.26 after JP Morgan lowered its rating on the world’s largest retailer and reduced its price target.


Oracle Corp lost 3 percent to $ 35.09 after the company agreed to buy network gear maker Acme Packet Inc for about $ 1.9 billion. Acme Packet shares surged 22.2 percent to $ 29.24.


Shares of household products company Clorox rose 1.8 percent to $ 80.53 after the company’s quarterly profit beat analysts’ estimates as a severe flu season boosted sales of disinfecting wipes.


Earnings are due from Anadarko Petroleum Corp and Yum! Brands Inc , owner of fast-food chains, after the closing bell.


According to Thomson Reuters data, of the 256 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported earnings through Monday morning, 68.4 percent have reported earnings above analyst expectations compared with the 62 percent average since 1994 and the 65 percent average over the past four quarters.


S&P 500 fourth-quarter earnings are expected to rise 4.4 percent, according to the data. That estimate is above the 1.9 percent forecast at the start of earnings season, but well below the 9.9 percent fourth-quarter earnings forecast on October 1.


Herbalife Ltd slumped 4.5 percent to $ 33.46 after The New York Post reported the seller of weight loss products is facing a probe by the Federal Trade Commission.


(Reporting By Angela Moon; Editing by Kenneth Barry)


Business News Headlines – Yahoo! News





Title Post: Wall Street retreats, Nasdaq and S&P 500 off 1 percent
Url Post: http://www.news.fluser.com/wall-street-retreats-nasdaq-and-sp-500-off-1-percent/
Link To Post : Wall Street retreats, Nasdaq and S&P 500 off 1 percent
Rating:
100%

based on 99998 ratings.
5 user reviews.
Author: Fluser SeoLink
Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment




Read More..

How Newlyweds Paid Off $52,000 in Debt in 18 Months






When Deacon Hayes and his wife Kim sat down to discuss their finances, the newlyweds discovered they had $ 52,000 in debt, including $ 18,000 in car loans, $ 27,000 in students loans, and $ 7,000 in outstanding credit card balances. That jarring realization prompted the Phoenix couple to spend the next 18 months paying it off through a combination of cutting back their spending, selling their belongings online, and taking on a second job.


Based on what he learned from his experience with debt, Hayes started the blog WellKeptWallet.com to help people manage their finances by keeping expenses low, finding successful people to emulate, and developing creative ways to earn extra money. He also teaches an eight-week class for Arizonians who want to learn personal finance basics. U.S. News recently spoke with Hayes about his journey out of debt and his tips for couples who want to organize their finances. Excerpts:






[See 10 Ways to Start Earning Extra Money Now.]


Four years ago, you were $ 52,000 in debt. What was the catalyst for you to turn things around?


When my wife Kim and I got married, we decided to combine our finances and we created what I call a financial “game plan,” a very simple version of it where we put all of our financial data on one page. It was the most eye-opening experience because I was able to see how bad our situation really was. Before having all of our data in one place, we had no idea [how bad things were]. We knew we had a car loan over here and she had student loans and I had student loans and we had credit card debt. [But] once we put all of our data in one place, it was apparent to us that we needed to make a change.


What strategies did you use to recover your finances?


Tracking your finances is key–doing it on a weekly, biweekly, or a monthly basis. We were comfortable with doing it once a month. The second thing that we implemented was the debt snowball that was made famous by Dave Ramsey, where you list your debt smallest to largest, regardless of the interest rate. And the reason why that was so impactful for us was it gave us a strategy to build momentum. Once we paid off a small debt of, say, $ 200, we felt like we were getting somewhere. It was a psychological thing. Once we organized all of our debt smallest to largest, we were able to [gain momentum.]


Did you focus on cutting your spending, boosting your income, or both?


Both. I was actually in a 100-percent commission-based job, where I was able to work harder and get paid more. But on top of working full-time, I decided I would also get a part-time job delivering pizzas to give us more cash flow to pay down our debt.


What adjustments did you make on the spending side?


We went through our financial game plan and we went line by line and we said, “How can we make this line smaller?” By giving that focus to each area that we spend our money, we were able to reduce almost every service that we had, whether it was our cable, our cell phone, our insurance. I cancelled my gym membership. We decided we were going to go out to eat less, and when we went out to eat, we wouldn’t order drinks. So we really tried to scale back our lifestyle dramatically to be able to have extra cash to pay down our debt.


Did you ever feel overwhelmed with the process?


We did feel overwhelmed. All at once, we went from being single, living in our own places, to combining two households and her starting her career and me starting a new job. So there was a lot of stuff going on that was causing stress and anxiety. Not having the finances in order just added an extra level of stress and really was the catalyst to say, “We need to do something about this.”


How did you and your wife get on the same page financially?


One of the best things that we did was take a class called Financial Peace University by Dave Ramsey. There are other classes out there, but for us, this was an amazing class because it was 13 weeks where we sat down together, listened to information about managing money, and then we discussed it as a couple and it really brought us together and put us on the same page.


[Read: Should You Save or Pay Off Debt?]


How does the blog fit into all of this? Did that serve as an accountability tool for you?


I started it during the process of getting out of debt, but towards the end. I had some success and some experience to be able to add value to people who are trying to get out of debt. It was definitely an accountability system as well because we have people out there now that know our goals, our ambitions, and we don’t want to let them down. We didn’t want to let ourselves down, but we didn’t want to let other people down that we’re trying to encourage and inspire to do the same.


Is there anything that you would have done differently?


I believe that all of the experiences that we have happen for a reason and that those experiences can make us better. Whether they are challenges or whether they are positive experiences, I don’t think I would do anything differently in the sense that what we did got us where we are today. Now I am able to help other people get from where they are to where they want to be because of those challenging times that I went through.


What are your financial goals now?


Our financial goals are to be completely debt-free in the next five years. We paid off $ 52,000 in 18 months. That was consumer debt, so that consisted of car loans, credit cards, student loans, etc. We do have a mortgage still, so our goal is to be in our mid-thirties and be completely debt-free.


[See 50 Smart Money Moves.]


Do you have any tips for readers on getting and staying out of debt?


The first thing I would do is stop borrowing money. I think that’s what gets people into these situations. The second thing is to create a financial game plan. I have a form on my website people can use to be able to do what we did and put all their finances in one place.


[People also should] sell what they don’t need. I can’t tell you how much stuff we sold on Craigslist, eBay, and Amazon. There’s a bunch of stuff in your cabinets–in your closets–that you can just sell that will give you cash to really give you some momentum. And lastly, be “all in.” I think there’s people that have one foot in the ‘I want to get out of debt” boat and the other foot in the “I want to buy whatever I want” boat. You’ve just got to get into the “hey, I want to get out of debt” boat and start sailing.


More From US News & World Report


Yahoo! Finance – Personal Finance | Loans





Title Post: How Newlyweds Paid Off $52,000 in Debt in 18 Months
Url Post: http://www.news.fluser.com/how-newlyweds-paid-off-52000-in-debt-in-18-months/
Link To Post : How Newlyweds Paid Off $52,000 in Debt in 18 Months
Rating:
100%

based on 99998 ratings.
5 user reviews.
Author: Fluser SeoLink
Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment




Read More..

Wall Street retreats, Nasdaq and S&P 500 off 1 percent

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks declined on Monday after a disappointing report on factory orders, retreating from gains in the prior session that left the S&P 500 at a five-year high and the Dow above 14,000.


Investors also grew wary on political uncertainty in the euro zone, leading to a sharp rise in Spanish government bond yields.


Chevron and Wal-Mart were among the biggest drags on the Dow after analyst downgrades.


"S&P technicals are at overbought levels, and risk off harbingers, such as Spanish 10-year yields, which are much more difficult for central bankers to tame, have bounced off recent lows," said Peter Cecchini, managing director at New York-based Cantor Fitzgerald & Co.


Spanish and Italian bond yields rose, renewing worries about the euro zone's sovereign debt crisis. Spain's prime minister faced calls to resign over a corruption scandal, while a probe of alleged misconduct involving an Italian bank were expected to widen three weeks before a national election.


The benchmark S&P 500 rose on Friday, leaving it roughly 60 points away from its all-time intraday high of 1,576.09, while the Dow's march above 14,000 was the highest for the index since October 2007.


The S&P index <.spx> is up 5.5 percent for the year, with nearly half of the gains coming after U.S. legislators sidestepped temporarily the "fiscal cliff" of automatic tax increases and spending cuts.


Data from the Commerce Department showed overall factory orders rose 1.8 percent during the month, below economists' expectations. The report said capital goods orders outside of the defense and aircraft industries, edged 0.3 percent lower in December. The category is seen as a gauge of U.S. business investment plans.


Economic data has pointed to a modest U.S. recovery, but the data has not been strong enough to upset investor expectations the Federal Reserve will continue its stimulus policy that has buoyed stocks.


The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> dropped 134.39 points, or 0.96 percent, to 13,875.40. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> lost 15.16 points, or 1.00 percent, to 1,498.01. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> fell 39.32 points, or 1.24 percent, to 3,139.77.


Chevron Corp dipped 1.1 percent to $115.23 after UBS cut its rating to neutral, while Wal-Mart Stores Inc shed 1.7 percent to $69.26 after JP Morgan lowered its rating on the world's largest retailer and reduced its price target.


Oracle Corp lost 3 percent to $35.09 after the company agreed to buy network gear maker Acme Packet Inc for about $1.9 billion. Acme Packet shares surged 22.2 percent to $29.24.


Shares of household products company Clorox rose 1.8 percent to $80.53 after the company's quarterly profit beat analysts' estimates as a severe flu season boosted sales of disinfecting wipes.


Earnings are due from Anadarko Petroleum Corp and Yum! Brands Inc , owner of fast-food chains, after the closing bell.


According to Thomson Reuters data, of the 256 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported earnings through Monday morning, 68.4 percent have reported earnings above analyst expectations compared with the 62 percent average since 1994 and the 65 percent average over the past four quarters.


S&P 500 fourth-quarter earnings are expected to rise 4.4 percent, according to the data. That estimate is above the 1.9 percent forecast at the start of earnings season, but well below the 9.9 percent fourth-quarter earnings forecast on October 1.


Herbalife Ltd slumped 4.5 percent to $33.46 after The New York Post reported the seller of weight loss products is facing a probe by the Federal Trade Commission.


(Reporting By Angela Moon; Editing by Kenneth Barry)



Read More..

Goodell: New Orleans 'terrific,' despite blackout


NEW ORLEANS (AP) — NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell says New Orleans was a "terrific" Super Bowl host and that the Superdome power outage that delayed the game for 34 minutes will have no effect on the city's future bids to host the league's championship.


Goodell says, "The most important thing is to make sure people understand it was a fantastic week," and that it "will be remembered as one of the great Super Bowl weeks."


New Orleans has now hosted 10 Super Bowls. Officials have said they will bid to host an 11th in 2018 to coincide with the 300th anniversary of the city's founding.


Goodell says the outage is not of great concern going forward because it is "fixable," and the league will look forward to evaluating New Orleans' next Super Bowl bid.


Read More..

Following Super Bowl, Beyonce announces world tour






NEW YORK (AP) — Beyonce was just warming up at the Super Bowl: The singer has announced a world tour.


“The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour” will kick off April 15 in Belgrade, Serbia. The European leg of the tour will wrap up May 29 in Stockholm, Sweden.






The tour’s North American stint starts June 28 in Los Angeles and ends Aug. 3 in Brooklyn, N.Y., at the Barclays Center.


It was also announced Monday that a second wave of the tour is planned for Latin America, Australia and Asia later this year.


Beyonce was the halftime performer at Sunday night’s Super Bowl, where the Baltimore Ravens defeated the San Francisco 49ers. She performed a 13-minute set that included hits “Crazy in Love,” ”Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” and a Destiny’s Child reunion.


___


Online:


http://www.beyonceonline.com/us/home


Entertainment News Headlines – Yahoo! News





Title Post: Following Super Bowl, Beyonce announces world tour
Url Post: http://www.news.fluser.com/following-super-bowl-beyonce-announces-world-tour/
Link To Post : Following Super Bowl, Beyonce announces world tour
Rating:
100%

based on 99998 ratings.
5 user reviews.
Author: Fluser SeoLink
Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment




Read More..

Analysis: Higher U.S. bond yields could impede economic recovery






NEW YORK (Reuters) – A rough couple of months in the U.S. bond market has lifted interest rates off record lows and now could impede a slow economic recovery heavily dependent on cheap money to keep going.


While stocks have surged to near-record levels from five years ago, an accompanying rally in the $ 11.6 trillion U.S. Treasury debt market appears to have run out of steam and bond prices have dropped steadily since early December. That has pushed up bond yields, which move in the opposite direction to prices and they are now at the highest levels since last spring.






Some of what’s behind the sell-off can be seen as positive – greater investor confidence in riskier assets such as stocks, signs the European debt crisis is abating and a spate of U.S. economic indicators that point to more growth.


As bonds fall out of favor, however, credit-sensitive corners of the economy could start to feel the pinch. The housing market, car sales and business and public sector investment will be vulnerable as the cost of borrowing rises because all credit costs are ultimately tied to the Treasury market.


“I do fall into the camp of people who worry what will happen when rates go up,” said Tom Nelson, chief investment officer at New York-based Reich & Tang, a firm with nearly half of its $ 28 billion in assets under supervision in money market mutual funds.


Of course, the demise of the three-decade bond-market rally has been forecast repeatedly in recent years. Just last March, Bill Gross, manager of the world’s largest bond fund, the PIMCO Total Return fund, sharply cut his exposure to U.S. Treasuries. Bonds proceeded to rally through November, driving the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note to well below 2 percent.


The threat of a major sell-off remains distant in many investors’ minds because the market enjoys one big source of demand – the U.S. Federal Reserve. As part of its latest effort to prop up the economy by flooding the banking system with cash, the Fed has been buying $ 85 billion of Treasuries and mortgage bonds from banks each month since September and has no plans to ease up anytime soon.


RISING RATES


Still, investors have grown more hungry for higher yields, driving investment fund flows into equities and away from bonds in the past couple of months. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index has delivered a total return in excess of 6 percent since the end of November, while the return on Treasuries has been a negative 1.3 percent, according to Bank of America/Merrill Lynch Fixed Income Index data.


As a result, the 10-year yield last week rose to more than 2 percent for the first time in nine months. Expectations are for yields to move higher, at least modestly.


“This is the biggest risk for bond investors,” Hans Mikkelsen, a bond strategist with Bank of America Merrill Lynch in New York. “I’m surprised we have gotten to 2 percent already.”


In October, Mikkelsen forecast a “Great Rotation” from bonds into stocks in early 2013. Also, a survey last week by J.P. Morgan showed that one in four investors own fewer Treasuries than their portfolio benchmarks, the most in almost 19 months.


And ultimately, analysts agree the Fed’s highly accommodative monetary policy must come to an end.


Nelson from Reich & Tang recalled 1994, when the Fed raised its benchmark federal funds rate six times, to 5.50 percent from 3 percent.


“When the Fed starts to raise rates, they’re not going to go to 35 basis points,” Nelson said. “There’s a high probability that they will move faster than they did in 1994 because just getting back to neutral will mean a sharp rise in rates.”


BANANA PEEL FOR HOUSING?


The spike in Treasury yields, from which most U.S. mortgage interest rates are derived, comes at a sensitive moment for a housing market that has just started gaining traction. Rising mortgage costs could slow investments in real estate, which contributed to economic growth in 2012 for the first time since the housing bubble burst five years ago.


The average interest rate on 30-year mortgages, the most widely held type of U.S. home loan, has increased by 0.15 percentage point to 3.67 percent, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. That rate would probably have to rise to about 4 percent to hurt housing by discouraging investors from pouring more cash into the sector, analysts said.


Rapidly rising yields would also squeeze businesses and local governments looking to borrow to spend on building plants and roads or hire workers. Like mortgage rates, public and private borrowing costs are linked to Treasury yields.


Berkshire Hathaway Inc , run by billionaire investor Warren Buffett, sold $ 2.6 billion of debt last week. The timing was seen as a response to a recent rise in U.S. Treasury rates and Buffett has a reputation for spotting turning points.


DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN


Still, the bond market has seen this before. In the last two years, bond yields rose in the first quarter, only to fade by spring as growth slowed and Europe’s debt crisis flared up.


“Each year we’ve had waves of optimism and pessimism. Right now, investors are on the optimistic foot,” said Robert Tipp, chief investment strategist at Prudential Fixed Income in Newark, New Jersey.


Even if yields rise modestly, it is not bad for everyone. Banks would see profit margins improve as their short-term borrowing costs will likely remain near zero because the Fed is expected to stick to ultra loose monetary policy into 2015.


For savers who have seen their incomes dwindle, a pickup in interest on bank accounts and money mutual funds should be a relief and perhaps encourage them to spend a bit more.


Overall, economists do not think the ingredients are in place for more than a modest rise in rates in 2013. The economic growth trend is still spotty. Even an aggressive forecast would still not bet on Fed raising rates until somewhere in 2014.


“It’s not the final bell for the bond market just yet, though it’s getting closer,” said Daniel Heckman, senior fixed income strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management in Minneapolis.


(Reporting by Richard Leong and Ellen Freilich; Editing by David Gaffen and Andre Grenon)


Economy News Headlines – Yahoo! News





Title Post: Analysis: Higher U.S. bond yields could impede economic recovery
Url Post: http://www.news.fluser.com/analysis-higher-u-s-bond-yields-could-impede-economic-recovery/
Link To Post : Analysis: Higher U.S. bond yields could impede economic recovery
Rating:
100%

based on 99998 ratings.
5 user reviews.
Author: Fluser SeoLink
Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment




Read More..

"Great Rotation"- A Wall Street fairy tale?

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street's current jubilant narrative is that a rush into stocks by small investors has sparked a "great rotation" out of bonds and into equities that will power the bull market to new heights.


That sounds good, but there's a snag: The evidence for this is a few weeks of bullish fund flows that are hardly unusual for January.


Late-stage bull markets are typically marked by an influx of small investors coming late to the party - such as when your waiter starts giving you stock tips. For that to happen you need a good story. The "great rotation," with its monumental tone, is the perfect narrative to make you feel like you're missing out.


Even if something approaching a "great rotation" has begun, it is not necessarily bullish for markets. Those who think they are coming early to the party may actually be arriving late.


Investors pumped $20.7 billion into stocks in the first four weeks of the year, the strongest four-week run since April 2000, according to Lipper. But that pales in comparison with the $410 billion yanked from those funds since the start of 2008.


"I'm not sure you want to take a couple of weeks and extrapolate it into whatever trend you want," said Tobias Levkovich, chief U.S. equity strategist at Citigroup. "We have had instances where equity flows have picked up in the last two, three, four years when markets have picked up. They've generally not been signals of a continuation of that trend."


The S&P 500 rose 5 percent in January, its best month since October 2011 and its best January since 1997, driving speculation that retail investors were flooding back into the stock market.


Heading into another busy week of earnings, the equity market is knocking on the door of all-time highs due to positive sentiment in stocks, and that can't be ignored entirely. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> ended the week about 4 percent from an all-time high touched in October 2007.


Next week will bring results from insurers Allstate and The Hartford , as well as from Walt Disney , Coca-Cola Enterprises and Visa .


But a comparison of flows in January, a seasonal strong month for the stock market, shows that this January, while strong, is not that unusual. In January 2011 investors moved $23.9 billion into stock funds and $28.6 billion in 2006, but neither foreshadowed massive inflows the rest of that year. Furthermore, in 2006 the market gained more than 13 percent while in 2011 it was flat.


Strong inflows in January can happen for a number of reasons. There were a lot of special dividends issued in December that need reinvesting, and some of the funds raised in December tax-selling also find their way back into the market.


During the height of the tech bubble in 2000, when retail investors were really embracing stocks, a staggering $42.7 billion flowed into equities in January of that year, double the amount that flowed in this January. That didn't end well, as stocks peaked in March of that year before dropping over the next two-plus years.


MOM AND POP STILL WARY


Arguing against a 'great rotation' is not necessarily a bearish argument against stocks. The stock market has done well since the crisis. Despite the huge outflows, the S&P 500 has risen more than 120 percent since March 2009 on a slowly improving economy and corporate earnings.


This earnings season, a majority of S&P 500 companies are beating earnings forecast. That's also the case for revenue, which is a departure from the previous two reporting periods where less than 50 percent of companies beat revenue expectations, according to Thomson Reuters data.


Meanwhile, those on the front lines say mom and pop investors are still wary of equities after the financial crisis.


"A lot of people I talk to are very reluctant to make an emotional commitment to the stock market and regardless of income activity in January, I think that's still the case," said David Joy, chief market strategist at Columbia Management Advisors in Boston, where he helps oversee $571 billion.


Joy, speaking from a conference in Phoenix, says most of the people asking him about the "great rotation" are fund management industry insiders who are interested in the extra business a flood of stock investors would bring.


He also pointed out that flows into bond funds were positive in the month of January, hardly an indication of a rotation.


Citi's Levkovich also argues that bond investors are unlikely to give up a 30-year rally in bonds so quickly. He said stocks only began to see consistent outflows 26 months after the tech bubble burst in March 2000. By that reading it could be another year before a serious rotation begins.


On top of that, substantial flows continue to make their way into bonds, even if it isn't low-yielding government debt. January 2013 was the second best January on record for the issuance of U.S. high-grade debt, with $111.725 billion issued during the month, according to International Finance Review.


Bill Gross, who runs the $285 billion Pimco Total Return Fund, the world's largest bond fund, commented on Twitter on Thursday that "January flows at Pimco show few signs of bond/stock rotation," adding that cash and money markets may be the source of inflows into stocks.


Indeed, the evidence suggests some of the money that went into stock funds in January came from money markets after a period in December when investors, worried about the budget uncertainty in Washington, started parking money in late 2012.


Data from iMoneyNet shows investors placed $123 billion in money market funds in the last two months of the year. In two weeks in January investors withdrew $31.45 billion of that, the most since March 2012. But later in the month money actually started flowing back.


(Additional reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Kenneth Barry)



Read More..

What comes now for NFL after tumultuous season?


NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The Super Bowl closes a tumultuous year for the NFL.


Suicides by former NFL players. Thousands of others filing concussion lawsuits. New studies linking football to brain disease. Still no testing for human growth hormone. The specter of other purported performance-enhancing products — deer-antler spray, anyone? — being peddled to players.


A pay-for-pain bounty scandal. A lockout of officials resolved only after a ludicrous game-ending call. Zero minority hires for 15 coach or general manager openings.


And yet the league is as popular as ever.


Advertisers paid nearly $4 million per 30-second television commercial for the right to reach the 100 million or so Americans expected to tune in to Sunday's Super Bowl between the AFC champion Baltimore Ravens and NFC champion San Francisco 49ers. Eleven of the 12 most-watched TV programs during the last 2½ years were NFL postseason games, according to the league.


Uncertain, though, is what the future holds for an NFL still coming to grips with the dangers of a brutal sport that makes it tremendously wealthy.


"The game has changed and keeps changing. ... It is such a violent game, and such a collision game, that careers are going to be kind of like not long at all. Because you take those licks — you've only got so many in your body, and at some point that's going to wear it out," said Ravens running backs coach Wilbert Montgomery, who played that position for the Philadelphia Eagles and Detroit Lions from 1977-85.


Montgomery said he got six concussions in one season alone, and others along the way, including one that knocked him out cold a few days before playing for the Eagles in the NFC title game at the end of the 1980 season.


"I know one thing: Back then, it didn't make any difference. They gave you smelling salts and then, after that, you went back in," Montgomery said. "I have headaches all the time. That's why I say my wife is always messing with me when I have outbursts, saying, 'You've been hit too many times upside the head.'"


Montgomery laughed for a moment. Then he rubbed his forehead and continued talking, mentioning former teammate and friend Andre Waters and opponent Dave Duerson. Both committed suicide; researchers studied their brain tissue and found signs of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a degenerative disease also found in boxers and often linked with repeated blows to the head. Former star linebacker Junior Seau, who shot himself in May, also was found to have CTE. Baltimore's starting center on Sunday, Matt Birk, has pledged to donate his brain for study when he dies.


"It's a serious thing," Montgomery said. "It's scary."


When the President of the United States refers to fans perhaps having a guilty conscience when watching a game and parents thinking twice before allowing a child to play — as Barack Obama did in a recent interview with The New Republic — it sends a strong signal about what confronts the NFL today.


"If I was worried about my health," 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick said, "I wouldn't be playing football."


So the league must figure out how to deal with "walking a fine line," as 49ers CEO Jed York described it: The two-sided task of making the game safer, which Commissioner Roger Goodell acknowledges is imperative, while not making it "too safe," thereby diminishing the popularity of an enterprise that is violent by its very nature.


"There's no question that that is a bit of a conundrum. But to me, we've got to place more weight on player safety," New York Giants co-owner John Mara said. "The rules changes that we've implemented over the past five or six years have not made the game any less exciting. If anything, the game is as exciting as ever, and I strongly believe that we can make additional improvements in the rules and we're not going to lose anything in terms of excitement on the field."


Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti is convinced the NFL will strike the proper balance.


"What did they do for boxing when they made them go from 6-ounce, to 8-ounce to 12-ounce gloves or whatever? Did it change boxing? Not really," Bisciotti said. "I believe that with every change, there will be a correction. ... And I believe that we as a league and the (players' union) will agree on things that don't take football out of football."


In a series of moves that began shortly after Goodell was grilled at a congressional hearing, the league has changed concussion return-to-play guidelines, adjusted rules for kickoffs — and floated the idea of eliminating them altogether — stepped up punishment of illegal hits, and stopped arguing against the players' wish for independent neurology specialists on the sidelines during games.


Even if there are some players who in one breath worry about whether their health is imperiled, and in the next say, "We're basically going to be playing two-hand touch in a while" — Baltimore nose tackle Terrence Cody's words this week — the head of their union points out that prudence and popularity do not have to be mutually exclusive.


"The reality of it is, 'football as we know it' has evolved over decades. ... Our job is to have an unqualified commitment to the health and safety of the people who play the game, and then to make those changes where we see necessary," NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith said.


"I don't think there is this thing of 'football as we know it.' What we have is football that has constantly developed," Smith said. "And even with all of the (recent) rule changes ... my guess is this Super Bowl will be the highest-rated of all time."


Indeed, while the concussion lawsuits mount — a U.S. District Court judge in Philadelphia will hear oral arguments in April on the NFL's effort to dismiss a group of cases — and questions arise about what insurers will charge the league moving forward, the money does keep rolling in. Revenues already topped $9 billion at the time of the last labor deal in 2011, and new TV contracts will only help increase it.


"At $10-to-$12 billion? It ain't going nowhere," said Warren Sapp, a retired defensive tackle elected Saturday to the Pro Football Hall of Fame and who now works for the NFL Network, another piece of the league's marketing machine. "We play a beautiful game. We hit each other. (Players) have to take care of each other better. Then it will be fine."


Meantime, the NFL continues to look for new ways to increase its cash flow.


During his state of the league address two days before the Super Bowl, Goodell did not rule out increasing the regular season from 16 to 18 games, and he reiterated the possibility of expanding the postseason, too. He announced that two 2013 games in London already are sold out, and there could be three in future seasons — down a path that, eventually, could lead to a franchise based in Britain.


"For you to be adding games to the season, are you looking out for player safety? Or are you trying to generate more player revenue?" 49ers receiver Randy Moss said. "If you're trying to look and protect the players, and keep it healthier and better every year, I don't think it's a good idea."


Several players in this year's Super Bowl were incredulous that the league would even consider more games. A handful voiced concern over a disconnect between players and owners.


The president of the NFLPA, former Ravens cornerback Domonique Foxworth, said he wonders how truthful Goodell and other NFL officials are being when they say — as they often do — that players' well-being is a priority.


"The league, their No. 1 focus — at least they say their No. 1 focus — is health and safety. And we say our No. 1 focus is health and safety. How come we have such a hard time moving the ball on some health and safety issues?" Foxworth said. "I believe health and safety is on their list of top five things, but it comes in well behind increasing the bottom line."


___


Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich


Read More..

Hillary: Secretary of empowerment




Girls hug U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during a 2010 tour of a shelter run for sex trafficking victims in Cambodia.




STORY HIGHLIGHTS


  • Donna Brazile: Clinton stepping down as Secretary of State. Maybe she'll run for president

  • She says as secretary she expanded foreign policy to include effect on regular people

  • She says she was first secretary of state to focus on empowering women and girls

  • Brazile: Clinton has fought for education and inclusion in politics for women and girls




Editor's note: Donna Brazile, a CNN contributor and a Democratic strategist, is vice chairwoman for voter registration and participation at the Democratic National Committee. She is a nationally syndicated columnist, an adjunct professor at Georgetown University and author of "Cooking with Grease." She was manager for the Gore-Lieberman presidential campaign in 2000.


(CNN) -- As Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton steps down from her job Friday, many are assuming she will run for president. And she may. In fact, five of the first eight presidents first served their predecessors as secretary of state.


It hasn't happened in more than a century, though that may change should Clinton decide to run. After all, she has been a game changer her entire life.


But before we look ahead, I think we should appreciate what she's done as secretary of state; it's a high profile, high pressure job. You have to deal with the routine as if it is critical and with crisis as if it's routine. You have to manage egos, protocols, customs and Congress. You have to be rhetorical and blunt, diplomatic and direct.



CNN Contributor Donna Brazile

CNN Contributor Donna Brazile



As secretary of state you are dealing with heads of state and with we the people. And the president of the United States has to trust you -- implicitly.


On the road with Hillary Clinton


Of all Clinton's accomplishments -- and I will mention just a few -- this may be the most underappreciated. During the election, pundits were puzzled and amazed not only at how much energy former President Bill Clinton poured into Obama's campaign, but even more at how genuine and close the friendship was.


Obama was given a lot of well-deserved credit for reaching out to the Clintons by appointing then-Sen. Hillary Clinton as his secretary of state in the first place. But trust is a two-way street and has to be earned. We should not underestimate or forget how much Clinton did and how hard she worked. She deserved that trust, as she deserved to be in the war room when Osama bin Laden was killed.


By the way, is there any other leader in the last 50 years whom we routinely refer to by a first name, and do so more out of respect than familiarity? The last person I can think of was Ike -- the elder family member who we revere with affection. Hillary is Hillary.


It's not surprising that we feel we know her. She has been part of our public life for more than 20 years. She's been a model of dignity, diplomacy, empathy and toughness. She also has done something no other secretary of state has done -- including the two women who preceded her in the Cabinet post.


Rothkopf: President Hillary Clinton? If she wants it



Hillary has transformed our understanding -- no, our definition -- of foreign affairs. Diplomacy is no longer just the skill of managing relations with other countries. The big issues -- war and peace, terror, economic stability, etc. -- remain, and she has handled them with firmness and authority, with poise and confidence, and with good will, when appropriate.


But it is not the praise of diplomats or dictators that will be her legacy. She dealt with plenipotentiaries, but her focus was on people. Foreign affairs isn't just about treaties, she taught us, it's about the suffering and aspirations of those affected by the treaties, made or unmade.








Most of all, diplomacy should refocus attention on the powerless.


Of course, Hillary wasn't the first secretary of state to advocate for human rights or use the post to raise awareness of abuses or negotiate humanitarian relief or pressure oppressors. But she was the first to focus on empowerment, particularly of women and girls.


She created the first Office of Global Women's Issues. That office fought to highlight the plight of women around the world. Rape of women has been a weapon of war for centuries. Though civilized countries condemn it, the fight against it has in a sense only really begun.


Ghitis: Hillary Clinton's global legacy on gay rights


The office has worked to hold governments accountable for the systematic oppression of girls and women and fought for their education in emerging countries. As Hillary said when the office was established: "When the Security Council passed Resolution 1325, we tried to make a very clear statement, that women are still largely shut out of the negotiations that seek to end conflicts, even though women and children are the primary victims of 21st century conflict."


Hillary also included the United States in the Trafficking in Person report. Human Trafficking, a form of modern, mainly sexual, slavery, victimizes mostly women and girls. The annual report reviews the state of global efforts to eliminate the practice. "We believe it is important to keep the spotlight on ourselves," she said. "Human trafficking is not someone else's problem. Involuntary servitude is not something we can ignore or hope doesn't exist in our own communities."


She also created the office of Global Partnerships. And there is much more.


She has held her own in palaces and held the hands of hungry children in mud-hut villages, pursuing an agenda that empowers women, children, the poor and helpless.


We shouldn't have been surprised. Her book "It Takes a Village" focused on the impact that those outside the family have, for better or worse, on a child's well-being.


As secretary of state, she did all she could to make sure our impact as a nation would be for the better.


Follow us on Twitter @CNNOpinion


Join us on Facebook/CNNOpinion


The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Donna Brazile.






Read More..

Stevie Wonder headlines pre-Super Bowl concert






NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Applause and approval greeted Stevie Wonder as thousands stood for hours to hear his pre-Super Bowl concert that also featured guitarist Gary Clark Jr.


Escorted on stage late Saturday by his daughter and backup singer Aisha Morris, Wonder performed several of his hits, including his opening song, “How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You).”






That was followed by “Master Blaster,” Michael Jackson‘s “The Way You Make Me Feel,” and Wonder‘s own “Higher Ground.”


The 62-year-old Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member headlined the event outdoor event held near the Wyndham Riverfront Hotel on the eve of Sunday’s game between the Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49ers.


Thousands packed a tent set up on a parking lot across the street from the hotel to hear Wonder, Clark, R&B artist Janelle Monae and DJ Martin Solveig.


Entertainment News Headlines – Yahoo! News





Title Post: Stevie Wonder headlines pre-Super Bowl concert
Url Post: http://www.news.fluser.com/stevie-wonder-headlines-pre-super-bowl-concert/
Link To Post : Stevie Wonder headlines pre-Super Bowl concert
Rating:
100%

based on 99998 ratings.
5 user reviews.
Author: Fluser SeoLink
Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment




Read More..