The US Dept of Energy (DoE) pulled out of the FutureGen clean coal project in Illinois, citing ballooning costs. The $1.8 billion test coal plant would GENERATE POWER FROM COAL, THEN PERMANENTLY STORE CARBON DIOXIDE and other emissions underground. Read More

Real estate investments continue to languish with no clear end in sight for the trouble afflicting the US housing market. But that just means we can pick up prime properties on the cheap. Read More

In late January, China was hit by its worst snowstorm in more than 50 years. One of the most serious effects: a disruption in coal shipments that caused widespread power blackouts in some of the nation’s most populous regions. Read More

Activist investor--and perhaps the only guy who can light a fire under the posteriors of the stifling upper management at Motorola--Carl Icahn is going to start a blog on his Web site The Icahn Report.   Read More

After trading down early in the session today, the three major indexes turned higher intraday--following Federal Reserve Chief Ben Bernanke’s hint at another interest rate cut to help the ailing US economy--before paring back to settle in a mix. Read More

Following a slow start to the trading session today on surging inflation and waning consumer confidence, US stocks rallied intraday after IBM Corp boosted its outlook and announced a plan to buy back $15 billion of its stock. Read More

Woe is us. It’s time to gnash our teeth, change our dress to torn sackcloth and settle in for a new dark age. Read More

The three major indexes posted significant gains today following Standard & Poor’s affirmation regarding MBIA’s and Ambac Financial Group’s triple-A ratings.  Read More

After trading deep in the red for much of the day, US stocks battled back to close in positive territory. Read More

There have been reports in the media today that closed-end funds have been experiencing “failed” auctions on short-term, cash-like securities, which has led to some investors not being able to pull cash out of the funds. That sounds like horrible news, but there are some distinctions here that the mainstream media hasn’t done a very good job of pointing out. Read More