Recently added articles from The Kiplinger Letter:
Dear Client.
Sep 19, 2008 ... Dear Client: It's historic. It's dramatic. It will avert a threatened financial meltdown. The government's plan to take over banks' bad debt will pour lubricant into a credit market that's seizing. Will it keep the economy out of recession? Probably. It ...
Dear client.
Sep 12, 2008; ... Struggling Wall St. banks make headlines. But what's happening on Main St. is key to the financial well-being of most U.S. businesses. And there's plenty of trouble brewing there. Hundreds of banks will fail by 2010 or so. BANKING OUTLOOK ...
Dear client.
Sep 05, 2008 ... While other economic sectors flounder ... U.S. agriculture continues to flourish, pumping cash into small towns and big cities alike. It will add over $140 billion to the economy this year ... net income earned from crops, livestock and ...
Farmers are scoring another winning year.(FARM ECONOMY)
Sep 05, 2008 ... Farmers are scoring another winning year: Record net cash income of over $100 billion, buoyed by abundant crops and elevated prices for corn, soybeans, wheat and more as well as by strong sales of livestock ...
For 2009, income should be about the same.(FARM ECONOMY)
Sep 05, 2008 ... For 2009, income should be about the same. Crop and livestock sales will both hum. Favorable weather this summer ...continued into fall ... will spell plentiful crops again, while demand should keep prices running strong. In fact, receipts from both crops and livestock products will grow ...
All this prosperity means land values are riding high ...(FARM ECONOMY)
Sep 05, 2008 ... All this prosperity means land values are riding high ... a sharp contrast to urban and suburban properties. Next year ... an additional 10% increase for cropland and pasture, nationwide. That will follow a jump of 15%-20% likely this year. But gains aren't ...
High farm prices will continue to seep into retail stores.(FARM ECONOMY)
Sep 05, 2008 ... High farm prices will continue to seep into retail stores. But lower energy costs will play a ...
A vicious cycle is developing in the job market and in the economy.(U.S. ECONOMY)
Sep 05, 2008 ... A vicious cycle is developing in the job market and in the economy: Consumers are slashing spending, forcing firms to lay off more employees. In turn, the contraction in jobs slows income growth and deprives consumers of cash to fuel spending, making firms more cautious and preventing ...
Clearly, the kettle is off the boil on oil prices.(ENERGY)
Sep 05, 2008 ... Clearly, the kettle is off the boil on oil prices. Once the threat of disruption by Gustav dissipated, prices tumbled, reflecting a growing recognition that supplies are building and demand, ebbing in the face of slower world economies. Plus speculators who piled on as markets heated up ...
Meanwhile, lawmakers will coax more production from small domestic wells.(ENERGY)
Sep 05, 2008 ... Meanwhile, lawmakers will coax more production from small domestic wells. New tax incentives, including a higher depletion allowance, are likely to get the nod from Congress sometime next year. The tax goodies will be limited to wells that pump no more than 15 barrels a day and should help ...
Fueling fleets with hydrogen is gaining a small foothold.(ENERGY)
Sep 05, 2008 ... Fueling fleets with hydrogen is gaining a small foothold. A blend of hydrogen and natural gas, called Hythane and made on-site by breaking down the natural gas, powers municipal buses in Syracuse and Hempstead, N.Y., and airport shuttle buses in San Francisco. The L.A. airport will follow ....
Is there a windmill in your future? For $3000, you can install a small one with a capacity of one to two kilowatts.(ENERGY)
Sep 05, 2008 ... Is there a windmill in your future? For $3000, you can install a small one with a capacity of one to two kilowatts ... enough to cut average power purchases of a typical small business or home by about 10%. $25,000-$30,000 buys a turbine that generates five kW, roughly half what a typical ...
Look for Congress to lend Detroit a big helping hand next year.(INDUSTRY OUTLOOK)
Sep 05, 2008 ... Look for Congress to lend Detroit a big helping hand next year. The outlook for U.S. automakers and their suppliers will remain so bleak that lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle will see no alternative to federal aid. In the works: A $50-billion, low-interest, ...
Add creaky icebreakers to the already long list of U.S. infrastructure woes.(INDUSTRY OUTLOOK)
Sep 05, 2008 ... Add creaky icebreakers to the already long list of U.S. infrastructure woes. Just one heavy-duty ice ripping vessel remains to clear Great Lakes shipping paths. It's supplemented by about two dozen smaller vessels, all roughly 30-40 years old and headed for the scrap heap soon. Inadequate ...
Not enough of your employees taking advantage of company paid flu shots? Bribe 'em.(HUMAN RESOURCES)
Sep 05, 2008 ... Not enough of your employees taking advantage of company paid flu shots? Bribe 'em. Firms whose employees get shots can reduce lost workdays by up to 45% and slash physician and hospital visits ...
If you want to make sure you can legally monitor employee e-mail.(HUMAN RESOURCES)
Sep 05, 2008 ... If you want to make sure you can legally monitor employee e-mail ... You may need to do more than establish a policy, enforcing it as well. A recent federal court decision suggests that an employee may sue for invasion of privacy if an employer unexpectedly ...
IRS may owe millions to taxpayers following a long-awaited court decision.(TAXES)
Sep 05, 2008 ... IRS may owe millions to taxpayers following a long-awaited court decision. Life insurance policyholders overpaid taxes when insurers "demutualized," becoming a stock company owned by shareholders. IRS says that policyholders have no tax basis in stock they are given, so owe taxes on the ...
The Taliban are getting bolder.(9/11-7 YEARS LATER)
Sep 05, 2008 ... The Taliban are getting bolder, attacking in larger numbers and in areas that they've previously avoided. The upsurge is partly due to the approach of cold weather, which will curb raids on U.S. and coalition forces. But ... It's Russia's doing as well. Taliban leaders figure ...
In the aftermath of two tumultuous weeks in the presidential campaign ...(POLITICS)
Sep 05, 2008 ... In the aftermath of two tumultuous weeks in the presidential campaign ... We still expect a close race, with the result hinging on working-class voters in several Midwest states and rural whites in a few southern and western states. John McCain used the Republican ...
McCain and Democrat Barack Obama promise altogether different visions.(POLITICS)
Sep 05, 2008 ... Obama would raise taxes on high-incomers and probably on corporations. He'd impose more regulation, which likely would also increase business costs. He'd cut income taxes on low- and middle-income workers to redistribute more wealth. Obama wouldn't push for drilling offshore, ...