"Unsung Heroes": A New Category For The BuyBack Kings

It's time to acknowledge companies with dedicated buyback programs. They have demonstrated a willingness to step up to the plate in good times and bad. They have bought shares practically every quarter, reducing market timing risk.

To be included in the "Unsung Heroes," companies must have purchased at least 20% of their shares during the last decade and bought back shares during the "Great Recession" (Hey, it's my category, so I get to make the rules).

By the way, Exxon Mobil (XOM) actually took down 10% of its shares smack in the middle of the recession when most companies halted their buyback programs. Incredibly, Wal-Mart, Exxon, Intel, and IBM all reduced share count significantly during the "Great Recession." That took a strong resolve. With the collapse of equity prices, those buybacks were well-timed.

Viral ad campaign hits #FirstWorldProblems

In the 60-second video, the group WATERisLife has impoverished residents in Haiti, the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, recite tweets from the popular hashtag #FirstWorldProblems. FULL STORY

David Copperfield's "museum of magic"

llusionist David Copperfield has become a dedicated guardian of the secrets of magicians going back more than a century.. FULL STORY

China In Talks To Buy Barrick’s Stake In Tanzania Miner

China National Gold Group Corp. is in talks about buying Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX)’s African unit as the world’s biggest commodity-consuming nation continues to snap up resources on the continent.

There’s no certainty that China National Gold will make an offer for Barrick’s 73.9 percent stake in African Barrick Gold Plc (ABG), Toronto-based Barrick said in a statement today. UBS AG is advising the Canadian company, according to the statement.

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Betting your hedges

The improbable must-have holding of 2012 is hedge funds. The typical fund has lost 4 percent this year through November..

Source: www.breakingviews.com

9 Fascinating Books About Steve Jobs And Apple

Even before Apple co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs passed away at the age of 56 on October 5 of last year, the whole world was fascinated not only with the man who helped transform Silicon Valley but also by the mystery surrounding the company he helmed...

Source:http://www.huffingtonpost.com

A decade of slow growth?

By Fareed Zakaria From: Cnn.com: Every year at Davos, people like me try to get a sense of the mood of the place, take the temperature of people in this frosty mountain resort. Obviously, I will give you a highly impressionistic and personal picture, but it’s one I find useful since Davos does bring together leaders in government, business, media – even the NGO community – from all corners of the world. It is genuinely global in a way that few conferences are... FULL STORY