Sector roundup: Most Chinese Web companies rise, oil tankers mostly
CNBC - NEW YORK (AP) _ Chinese World wide web stocks mostly rose Monday, with Baidu.com Inc. gaining after a Pacific Crest analyst raised his rating for the stock to “Outperform” on expectations for good fourth-quarter results and sustainable growth. NEW YORK (AP

Doing Well by Doing Good: IBM Study Says Businesses Seeking Growth
MSN MoneyCentral - Companies believe that when they are more open with stakeholders and place social responsibility at the core of their business strategy they’ll be more competitive, attract and retain the best talent, and gain access to new business opportunities

Illegal net users to be cut off
MSN UK News - Some six million people are estimated to download files illegally each year in the UK, costing music and film companies billions in lost revenue. Major ISPs such as BT, Virgin and Tiscali have been in talks with the entertainment industry over

Gas row overshadows Moscow speaks
BBC News - On Monday, Gazprom and the Ukrainian state energy companies failed to resolve the gas debt dispute during several hours of speaks. Gazprom extended its deadline for slicing a quarter of gas supplies to Ukraine until 1500GMT on Tuesday, to allow Mr

Chocolate conspiracy suspected
Boston Globe - Authorities suspect that the companies may have colluded to raise prices. Authorities also seized documents at the headquarters of a local favorite, Ritter Sport. “They seem to think we’ve improperly exchanged information,” stated Petra Fix, a

RBA may cut interest rates next year
News.com.au - COMPANIES are getting more and more worried about the deterioration in financial markets with business confidence falling to its lowest level since 2001, but a fall in interest rates next year is likely, according to an economist. The National

AIG acknowledges record-keeping flaws and raises losses to $5 billion
International Herald Tribune - International Group significantly understated the insurance giant’s losses on complex financial instruments linked to mortgages and corporate debt, AIG stated Monday, raising new questioning about the deteriorating health of financial companies. The

Disney case highlights China supply pitfalls
International Herald Tribune - The circumstances surrounding the case Huang filed with four colleagues last year recommend that firms such as the Walt Disney Co that outsource production to licensees are more exposed to poor labour practices than companies with more direct control

London elections 2008
Guardian Unlimited - There has been a big increase in bus numbers on Livingstone’s watch, and the mayor has attempted to get to grips with the numerous private companies that run London’s largely-privatised transport system. The long-awaited Crossrail project, running

Hedge Funds Pressure N.Y. Times Co.
Washington Post - The Times Co., like many media companies, has a dual-class ownership structure that gives it access to public money while allowing the Ochs-Sulzberger family to retain control through super-voting Class B shares. Family members represent nine of the

Democrats in a Race for Edwards
Washington Post - Although Edwards did not win a Democratic caucus or primary, he developed a strong following among working-class white voters with his vow to close corporate tax loopholes that encourage companies to shift jobs overseas. As a campaign surrogate

Israeli exporters alarmed by soaring shekel
Financial Times - The Manufacturers Association of Israel predicts a surging shekel will wipe billions of dollars off companies’ profits, cause thousands of job losses and slow overall growth. Shraga Brosh, the association’s president, states if the currency remains

Microsoft’s Yahoo bid ‘too low’
News.com.au - While some long-term shareholders have since sold out to short-term investors betting on the outcome of the deal, the large funds with a stake in both companies are in a tough spot. On one hand, they do not want Microsoft to overpay for Yahoo, but they

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Filed under: Products and services, Consumer experience, Competitive strategy, FedEx Corp (FDX), United Parcel’B’ (UPS), UAL Corp (UAUA), Small business

With airline traffic steadily increasing, more and more of us are faced with the same question; How in the world am I going to fit all these things in our luggage? Maybe it is time to begin thinking outside of the box, and instead of packing all our things, maybe we should just start to consider sending our belongs ahead of time and stop worrying about packing all of our things?

As I read Joe Brancatelli’s (portfolio.com) article discussing airline baggage, I could not help think back to December when my girlfriend had her bags lost for over a week on a trip from Europe back to the says for Christmas. Inside this luggage we had all her clothes, as well as all of my family’s Christmas presents. Since she was flying into the states on Christmas Eve, and the airline lost her bags for a week, we’d no presents to give out on Christmas, and by the time they showed up, on New Years Eve, the Christmas magic was pretty much lost.

As we examined last week, airline delays last year were near an all time high, but as I mentioned in my article, the one thing that bothers me more than being late, is arriving without my luggage. While lost baggage rates stayed pretty steady last year, with 9 out of 1,000 passengers filing lost baggage claims, there are other reasons why we may should consider shipping instead of packing in the future.

For one, you have to worry about paying fees for having luggage in excess of airline guidelines. Returning to Europe after Christmas I felt the pain of that rule. I won’t mention the airline name, but let’s just state that they’d a 50 pound per bag rule, which I think is probably pretty uniform these days with major airlines. We’d 4 bags total, with two bags being over the limit. The result? $125 fee! I was definitely kicking myself for loading up on English books while I was home (which I still have yet to open)!

The point? For $125 I probably could have just shipped the extra baggage and had a much greater possibility of the articles actually making to my place on time. Not only will shipping your baggage ahead of time possibly save you money, it also has the added beauty of freeing you from having to lug all those heavy bags around with you as you travel.

On some airlines not only do you face the chance of extra fees for overweight bags, but you also have to deal with fees for taking more than two check-in bags. If you travel airlines that permit more than two check-ins, think about yourself lucky. Soon, passengers that are allowed two check-in bags may be part of the lucky crowd. Last week, United Airlines, UAL Corp (NASDAQ: UAUA) went so far as to lower the number of bags you are granted to check from two down to one. Now, if you want to check a second bag, be ready to add $25 onto the cost of your flight. I have to say, United is definitely in my “no fly” zone from now on.

OK, so enough about the reasons why we should considering shipping our luggage, what are our options?

There are the usual names, FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) and United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS), which offer inexpensive pricing and a solid reputation for their services. But if you want something a little more personal, Mr. Brancatelli also points out that there are lots of new companies that specialize just in shipping luggage. These include Luggage Forward, Sports Express, Luggage Concierge, and The Luggage Club.

While FedEx and UPS typically come with a smaller price tag, some traveler prefer to use the luggage specialists because they feel they’ve a more personal connection with someone from the company when they need assistance. Brancatelli cites the case of airline traveler Andy Abramson, who is a fan of Luggage Forward, and states that they make it very simple for him in the event of last minute itinerary changes.

I, personally, have never shipped my luggage. I have lost luggage several times, and definitely fell victim to fees for over packing my luggage, which I’ve usually just taken in stride, and promised myself that I would be more careful the next time i packed up my things. But, for sure, the next time I get ready to take a trip I know I will definitely be looking into all my options.

What about you, our readers? Are you a frequent flier? Have you had bad experiences with your luggage in the past, and will you begin to take into account shipping in lieu of lugging your bags on your upcoming flights?

~ Here’s another good article on traveling by Mr. Brancatelli, “What I Learned on the Road This Year” ~

Michael Fowlkes has worked as a stock trader for seven years and spent the last four years working as an analyst for the on the internet investment advisory service Investor’s Observer.

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As small business people and baby boomers, we’re all concerned about the future of healthcare (or rather, healthcare costs and insurance) in the U.S.

Miki Saxon has written a good post about this on her Leadership Turn blog. She is going to be posting comments from business people and people in the health industry.

My opinion: There are three groups of people in the US, in relation to health care. The first group is the people who have so much money they don’t need to worry about the cost of health care. The second group is the people who have insurance, and they don’t worry too much about the cost of health care. The third group is the people without insurance; they worry a lot about the cost of health care.

The US has the greatest healthcare system in the world, for those who can afford it. That is, those with enough money that they don’t need insurance, and those who have insurance. For those without insurance (a lot of people), the healthcare system doesn’t give them what they need - an chance to get the outstanding medical care that the other two groups get.

We all state that we don’t want the healthcare system in Canada, where you get in line for simple surgery and months later you’re still waiting. And we all state we want all the tests and procedures we have a “right” to get, but those things cost money.

Increasing taxes on businesses isn’t the answer.  Those businesses that already have insurance plans for employees are already paying the cost; why make them pay additional taxes? If you make small businesses either get insurance for employees or pay a tax, they will either (1) get rid of all their employees, (2) increase prices to pay the tax/insurance, or (3) go out of business.  They can’t afford to just pay the additional costs.

Do I know what the answer is?  Nope, but I’m sure it isn’t going to help to raise taxes.  The cost of health care for Americans is a very complex problem, and it isn’t going to be fixed with simplistic solutions.

What do you think?  Comment here or on Leadership Turn.

Tags: baby boomers, health insurance, healthcare costs, small business

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I was getting my haircut on Friday and the subject of successful people came up.  My guy cuts the hair for a number of financially successfully people and spouses around the area.  We both concurred that the common denominator with all these financially successful people was the amount of time they put into their work.  There was a certain level of intelligence, talent and good fortune that might be involved, but if the people involved weren’t putting in 60 or more hours a week they weren’t making it to the top.

Because time is the one resource you can’t purchase more of, you have to allocate it appropriately.  What you take into account appropriate in your situation is your decision.  I’ll tell you that how I spend my time now is very different than how I spent it thirty years ago.  My decision.

I’ve found it to be true that if you want to know what someone truly values watch were they spend their time.  So, the question to you dear boomer is how much time do you want to spend on a business at your age?

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Filed under: Estates

Today’s estate is a slice of American history. Pheasant Hill Farm is located in Carversville, Pennsylvania. The 47-acre property is actually two separate parcels. The main home is on 10 acres and the other 37 are given over to farmland and wooded areas. The main residence is a cluster of frame and stone buildings. It is one of the earliest settlements in the area wit h public record showing a dwelling as early as 1704. The stone home is a country home with four bedrooms and it takes Americana collections to its cluttered extreme. The house and other outbuildings are surrounded by gardens and lawns and there’s a massive celebration room on the second level of the stone barn. It is listed at $6 million which is a really high price for the area.

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Filed under: Estates

Green real estate heads to Phoenix, Arizona in the form of the Aura at Camelback. The project will be a sustainable luxury-living development of 36 three or four-story townhomes. Each home will have a private elevator and a two-car underground garage as well as air-conditioned underground storage and a rooftop garden. The project will be totally solar powered. The development will certified LEED Silver and the solar system will generate all the electricity needs for the unit. The Aura will feature six floor plans ranging from 2,469 to 3,147 square feet. Homes will start at $900,000 and be as costly as $1.3 million and construction is expected to start in May.

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Filed under: Estates

It seems that in Southern California saying a home was inspired by Richard Neutra is becoming the equivalent of saying a home is Frank Lloyd Wright influenced in other parts of the country. The LA Times Hot Property column brought my attention to this Bel-Air homed which was once owned by Irene Kassorla,”the psychologist and author once described by Merv Griffin as the ’shrink to the stars’” and is currently owned by another student of the mind, Dr. William Bondareff, a professor of psychiatry at USC’s Keck School of Medicine. Bondareff and his wife Rita are headed up the coast to Carmel so this Neutra-inspired three-bedroom home is on the market. The home has beautiful outdoor space including a custom pool with a “wall of stone and water” which helps create a tranquil garden setting. The home’s rich wood interior includes a study/library. I like that it has maintained its 1960s-1970s sensibilities and it seems a lot cozier than most Neutras I’ve seen. It is listed at $2.195 million.

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Filed under: Estates, Celebrity Shopping

From the NY Post’s Gimme Shelter:
–Heath Ledger’s rental apartment in SoHo is already being quietly shopped around. Ledger had been renting the three-bedroom apartment for $22,000 a month and it is apparently being offered now for around $25,000.
–Clothing magnate Leslie “Les” Wexner, who founded The Limited and owns Victoria’s Secret, Express and Henri Bendel has picked up a four-bedroom condo at 15 Central Park West for $13.1 million.He and his wife have a $50 million, 1,000-acre estate in Ohio.
–Heather Randall, the widow of Tony Randall, is also moving into a similarly sized four-bedroom apartment at 15 Central Park West.
–A $32 million sale at the elite 740 Park Ave. co-op building. The estate of Mosler Safe heiress Janet Coleman sold the 14-room duplex apartment to David Randall Winn and his wife, Tamara Sarah Winn.

From the NY Observer’s Manhattan Transfers:
–New York City has presented finalists for its contest to design emergency temporary housing. The ideas include inflatable apartments, putting housing atop the sidewalk scaffold sheds that fill the streets of Manhattan, and lugging in buildings on tugboats. Ten were given $10,000 to further develop their designs.
–A peek into the life of Steven Green who in 1990 was named one of the NYC’s 10 worst landlords, and spent nearly a month in jail after not providing Queens tenants with hot water.Green later moved to Florida, started a charter airline and early last year failed to get back a $780,000 divorce settlement from his partner, who cited cruelty. He was then sentenced to nearly three years in jail for fraud and tax charges. In May, a month before jail, he was leaving a West Side club when a hit-and-run put him in a coma. Green is recovering from brain damage, and won’t have to report to prison for another few months. His condo at the Essex House was sold off last month for $3 million. After using a a phony Social Security number to get a loan from Wells Fargo he was forced by a U.S. District Court to pay $4.11 million in restitution. So far he hasn’t paid anything but the Essex Home condo was highly mortgaged so likely the court won’t get much money from the sale.
–Seagram liquor heir Edgar Bronfman Jr. purchased his East 64th Street townhouse in 1994 for $4.375 million, and sold it to his Warner Music Group colleague Len Blavatnik, the oil magnate, for $50 million last October. Now he’s hoping for another flip in a much shorter time frame. On Jan. 18, he paid $19.5 million for an 11-room sprawl at 1040 Fifth Avenue. On Jan. 25, without having done any work, he listed the apartment for $24 million, $4.5 million above his buy one week earlier. Wow, if he gets it, that’s one heck of a payday. The listing is here.
–The chairman of the Metropolitan Art museum’s board, James R. Houghton, has sold his two-bedroom tower apartment in the Majestic on Central Park West last month for $4.9 million.
–Karen Assante, Armand Assante’s ex-wife, has sold her two-bedroom apartment at the 20’s-era co-op 118 Riverside Drive for $2.45 million.
–Listings for the Mark, the 1927 hotel at 25 East 77th Street, have hit the Internet. Corcoran shows 12 listings for the building including the $60 million penthouse, with 12 rooms, five bedrooms, eight baths, and a $35,477 monthly maintenance.

From the Nashville Post:
Singer/songwriter Michelle Branch bought a home in the Belle Meade area of Nashville, Tennessee, several months after selling her home in Calabasas, California. In 2006 she purchased a condo in Nashville’s Werthan Lofts.

From the Wall Street Journal’s Private Properties:
–The widow of author Sidney Sheldon has listed their Palm Springs compound for $7.9 million, plus a home across the street for $4 million. Sheldon and his wife, Alexandra, owned a total of four houses in the Old Las Palmas neighborhood. The Sheldons lived in a midcentury modernist seven-bedroom home and also owned a six-bedroom Mediterranean-style guest home. A four-bedroom home with a glass-enclosed indoor pool and a poolside kitchen is also for sale for $1.45 million. Brook Ashley, Scott Palermo and Jim Sanak, all of Prudential California Realty’s Estates division, have the listings (no pictures yet).
–Owners have cut the price of two apartments at New York’s Plaza condominium, the redesigned Plaza Hotel. Fred Farago, the president of a fruit-flavoring company, is now asking $5.9 million for a one-bedroom apartment there, around the same amount he paid for the unit in July and Italian-born architect Teresa Sapey has trimmed $200,000 off the initial $10 million price for her 13th-floor unit which she purchased for $6.9 million in July.
–At 15 Central Park West, Evan Cole, who co-founded ABC Carpet & Home, has agreed to sell his 15th-floor three-bedroom apartment there for over $9 million (he paid $4.83 million). In the same building,Michael Holtz, a travel-agency owner, recently signed an agreement to sell an identical apartment for more than his $8.5 million asking price.
–Actor Rupert Everett has listed his Miami Beach pied-

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Filed under: Estates

This home in the Middleton Plantation area of Charleston, South Carolina has a calm and secluded plot with plenty of gardens and greenery, two ponds and three decks. The home was built in 1982 and could appear dated but the the owners have really gone all out to modernize the interior with a rather stark contemporary palette. The home has four bedrooms and is approximately 6,000 square feet. It is listed at just $1.35 million.

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Filed under: Estates

This custom home is located in Chance Hope Farm, a small waterfront enclave that is part of St. Michaels, Maryland. Chance Hope Farm is a neighborhood of approximately 50 luxury single family homes that are all are on the water along the Miles River. This home has tranquil views of Eastern Bay and the Miles River. The 7,000 +/- sq. ft. custom built home has a beautiful sun-filled sitting room, a French country kitchen and my favorite feature, a two-story atrium library with a winding staircase. Outside there is a an inground pool, a pier and a detached three-car garage that has guest quarters. It is listed at $3.495 million.

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