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Apple To Buy Up To 30% Of The World’s Annual Gold Production?
Technology giant Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) may soon buy up one third of the world’s gold in order to meet the demands of its highly anticipated Apple Watch, according to reports.
Interest in the high-end model, featuring 18-karat gold casing, is picking up and the firm is already taking the necessary steps to have enough of them in stock. According to WSJ.com, Apple plans to start producing more than one million units per month in the second quarter of the year, anticipating high demand from Asian markets, mainly China.
Josh Centers, from TidBits, estimates that each gold watch will contain 2 troy ounces (62.2 grams) of gold. So, based on the estimated sales figure, he concludes that Apple will need 746 tons of gold a year, or about 30% of the world’s annual production.
His estimations — admittedly based on the Wall Street Journal predictions, not official figures — would…
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Thieves smash stolen SUV into San Francisco museum for gold
Wow, that is getting pretty crazy.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Thieves rammed a stolen SUV into a downtown San Francisco museum early Tuesday and swiped historic gold nuggets in the latest smash-and-grab theft in the area in recent months
Three masked men jumped from a Chevrolet Suburban after it rammed through a revolving door at the Wells Fargo History Museum in the financial district and held a security guard at gunpoint while taking gold nuggets from a display case.
The three men escaped in a four-door sedan driven by an accomplice. The security guard was unharmed.
The tactic mirrored three other smash-and-grab thefts involving vehicles in the San Francisco Bay Area since May. Police said they are investigating whether there’s a connection.
Last week thieves backed a U-Haul van through the front of a Patagonia store near San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf, loaded it with high-end outdoor clothing and gear and sped off.
On Nov. 26, two…
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Survey: Gen X seriously short on life insurance
Jeff Reeves, Special for USA TODAY7:42 a.m. EDT September 12, 2013
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In the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, middle-aged Americans are increasingly overlooking life insurance due to shaky personal finances.
A New York Life survey released Thursday shows Americans born from 1965 through 1976, commonly known as Generation X, reported life insurance needs almost $449,000 greater than what their current coverage provides.
And that’s just the typical gap. According to New York Life, 20% of Gen Xers reported zero life insurance coverage. That’s up from just 5% with no coverage in a similar 2008 survey.
“When you’re hurting for every discretionary dollar, this is one thing people can justify (cutting),” said Chris Blunt, president of the insurance group at New York Life.
A survey of 1,000 Americans ages 37 to 48 reported median coverage of just $260,000 vs. a self-reported need of $708,996 — a difference of $448,996. That gap is up about 24% from a similar study in 2008 that showed a self-reported shortfall of about $363,000.
Blunt noted that it’s not just a decline in policies that helped the gap grow so much in just five years. People have fewer resources, in general, to fall back on, which naturally leaves them more exposed should the unexpected happen.
“During the Great Recession, people’s homes got creamed, the stock market got hammered,” he said. “If your financial assets are down, almost by definition your insurance gap has gone up because that’s part of the calculation.”
Taking a big risk
Blunt said that while a shortfall is typical between self-reported needs and self-reported coverage, the size of the gap New York Life uncovered was alarming.
“As a rule, most of us weren’t as focused on life insurance when we were younger. That’s natural, normal psychology,” he said. But, he said, it’s very risky to fall so short of your family’s true life insurance needs.
Ted Bovard, managing director at Fort Pitt Capital Group, a wealth management firm in Pittsburgh with $1.4 billion in assets under management, says it’s “universally true” that families underestimate what they need in insurance. And he adds that the median coverage of $260,000 reported in the New York Life survey isn’t even close to adequate for most families.
“You have a mortgage for you and your wife; you have your own college loans that still exist because you can’t seem to get out of school now without some serious college loans; and on top of that you’ve got two small kids,” Bovard said. “It adds up in a hurry.”
But most people don’t bother to do the math, Bovard said, because it’s uncomfortable to dwell on issues like mortality or bad financial decisions, such as credit card debt or an underwater mortgage.
Beyond the bills, it’s also important to look at lost income. Larry Rosenthal, president of Rosenthal Wealth Management Group outside of Washington, D.C., and a financial adviser with two decades of experience, says the right coverage can easily top $1 million for a middle-class family.
This is especially true for Generation Xers, who are in their peak earning years.
“As a rule of thumb, at a minimum you need to have five to 10 times your income in life insurance for most Americans out there,” Rosenthal said. So, if you and your spouse collectively make in excess of $100,000 a year as a pair, he notes, a million-dollar policy may not even be enough.
Getting the right policy for you
If your ideal coverage plan is out of reach because times are tight, there are still options. The bottom line is that some kind of life insurance is always better than nothing.
“Do whatever you can do; do whatever you can afford,” said Blunt of New York Life.
It pays to start looking sooner rather than later, he adds. Rates are lower the younger and healthier you are, so it can save you big money to lock in a long-term policy in your 30s.
“It’s ironic that when the most you need (life insurance), the least psychologically attuned you are to getting it,” Blunt said.
One place to start is through a group plan at your workplace, because these plans can be very affordable. The downside is that frequently benefits are small, and policies are only good for as long as you work for that specific employer.
That’s why Bovard of Fort Pitt Capital advocates starting with basic term life insurance — that is, a locked-in monthly payment that gives your family a fixed benefit across a fixed time frame should you die. It’s easy to understand, Bovard said, and is cheap for Generation Xers in good health.
“Younger people, particularly if they are married and have children, simply need to have insurance,” Bovard said. “And about 90% of the time, that should be term insurance.”
If you’re looking for insurance that will retain some value even if you have the good fortune to live a long and healthy life, Rosenthal said, there are some good alternatives to term life that can be very attractive.
“When you look at whole life or universal life or variable life, the advantage there is forced savings that builds up equity inside it and grows up tax-deferred and you can take out a loan if need be tax free as long as the policy stays in force,” Rosenthal said.
While he admitted these can sometimes be a bit more expensive or complicated, Rosenthal said that if you do your homework or talk with an adviser you can easily ensure your policy doesn’t get loaded with hidden fees or interest. And the bottom line is that if you don’t really understand life insurance or what your family needs, the best policy is to sit down with a financial planner to hash things out.
“For people trying to do this on their own, there’s a lot of nuance,” Blunt said. “If you simplify it to something someone can do in 12 minutes on a website, something gets lost.”
Jeff Reeves is the editor of InvestorPlace.com and the author of The Frugal Investor’s Guide to Finding Great Stocks.
Social media giant tweets it has submitted “confidential” filing to securities regulators.
Matt Krantz and Alistair Barr, USA TODAY7:43 a.m. EDT September 13, 2013
Social media giant tweets it has submitted “confidential” filing to securities regulators.
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Twitter said Thursday that it filed for an initial public offering, setting the stage for the most high-profile technology stock market debut since Facebook’s troubled share sale last year.
Twitter announced the filing on its own social media messaging service, saying: “We’ve confidentially submitted an S-1 to the SEC for a planned IPO. This Tweet does not constitute an offer of any securities for sale.”
First Take: Is the tech hype back with Twitter’s IPO?
The company followed that up with a second tweet, saying “back to work” and attached a photo of employees at Twitter headquarters in San Francisco.
The tweets were swiftly re-tweeted thousands of times and set off viral chatter across Silicon Valley, where many of the venture capitalists who backed Twitter are based.
George Zachary of Charles River Ventures thanked Twitter founders Jack Dorsey, Evan Williams and Biz Stone and CEO Dick Costolo.
“Still hold every single share from our first-round investment,” Zachary tweeted.
“My over/under for Twitter at end of first day of trading: $25B,” tweeted David Sacks, a former PayPal executive and founder of start-up Yammer, which Microsoft bought for $1.2 billion last year.
“This is one of those exciting moments in the Valley,” said Kevin Hartz, CEO of start-up Eventbrite, who has invested in several other successful start-ups including PayPal, Pinterest and Airbnb. “It’s just a financing event for Twitter, but it does demonstrate the next step in the life of what is an emerging Internet giant.”
Twitter, created in 2006, has turned into a new form of communication used by presidents, corporate chieftains and smartphone-wielding kids alike. The company has only recently started to generate serious revenue by showing ads in the stream of other tweets users see. But these initiatives have gained traction: Twitter will haul in $583 million in advertising revenue for 2013 and hit $1 billion in 2014, according to eMarketer.
“It makes sense that they are doing an IPO with those numbers. It’s a great time for them to raise money,” says Gartner analyst Brian Blau.
The filing is also timed as the fourth quarter approaches — a traditionally strong period for social media activity and related advertising, according to Sam Schwerin of Millennium Technology Value Partners, which owns a small stake in Twitter.
10 Ways to Use Your Smartphone to Save $1,000+ in 2013 – eHow
10 Ways to Use Your Smartphone to Save $1,000+ in 2013
By Jacqui Lane, eHow
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At first glance, your smartphone — with its upfront cost and monthly data plan requirement — may not seem like the most frugal device. With the right apps, however, your phone can earn its keep by helping you find bargains and cut costs in other areas of your life. Check out these 10 apps that can help you save money in the coming year.
How to not outlive your money: Don’t wing it on your 401(k) – CNBC
How to not outlive your money: Don’t wing it on your 401(k)
By: Sharon Epperson | CNBC Senior Commodities Correspondent and Personal Finance Correspondent
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Without a plan for retirement, many people say they just plan to “wing it.” Surveys show many workers feel overwhelmed by day-to-day financial pressures, worried about paying monthly expenses and job security.
While they may participate in their company’s 401(k) plan or another workplace retirement plan, many workers don’t know what to invest in or how much to save. As a result, they’re not saving enough.
A new analysis released Tuesday by Fidelity, the nation’s largest retirement plan provider, found the average 401(k) balance was $80,600 at the end of June, up nearly 11 percent from the same quarter a year ago. For steady savers who were continuously employed in a workplace plan for the past decade, the average balance rose to $211,800, nearly 19 percent higher than a year ago.
But for many, that’s still not enough money to ensure a secure retirement. Not when, according to Fidelity, the average 65-year-old couple retiring today will spend about $220,000 on health-care costs alone.
Just last week, Fidelity Investments noted that families are also saving more for college, but it’s still not enough to cover the likely costs.
(Read more: Financial Q&A: Your 401(k) and how to catch up)
Reality is setting in with American workers. A poll conducted earlier this summer by JPMorgan Asset Management found that while half say they would like to retire before the age of 65, only 20 percent believe they will realistically be able to do so. This leaves two options: working longer or saving more.
But how much more should you save?
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‘Winging’ retirement is trending
When it comes to retirement, many people just want to “wing it.” CNBC’s Sharon Epperson reports.
Figuring out how much money you may need in retirement income is an important factor in determining how much you need to save now. Assume you want to retire at age 67 and may live until your 93rd birthday.
(Read more: Boomers find second acts pursuing encore careers)
Fidelity took a look at how much 401(k) investors at various ages would need to save for every $1,000 they’ll need to generate in retirement income to make their money last, assuming a 5.5 percent annual return and not taking taxes into account. Here’s what Fidelity’s analysis showed:
- A 25-year-old just starting to save would only need put away about $160 each month to generate $1,000 in monthly retirement income.
- Start saving at age 35 and you’ll need to contribute almost $270 a month to generate the same income.
- For every $1,000 in monthly income, a 45-year-old just beginning to save for retirement would have to put away nearly $500 every month.
- A 55-year-old just starting to build a nest egg would have to make monthly contributions of $1,154 for every $1,000 in monthly retirement income—that’s double the amount of a 45-year-old and more than seven times the sum that a 25-year-old would need to stash away.
“The rule of thumb is that you should save anywhere from 10 to 15 percent of your income towards retirement,” said Beth McHugh, vice president of market insights at Fidelity. Yet, most workers are only putting away 6 to 7 percent of the annual income into a 401(k) or workplace retirement plan, the firm has found. Some who have delayed retirement savings may have to put away 20 to 25 percent of their income.
Smaller increases can also help. “Even incremental changes—a 1 percent change today—can make a big difference and create hundreds of dollars in potential income in retirement,” McHugh said.
(Read more: Retirement alchemy: Less becomes more)
Mike Alfred, CEO and co-founder of Brightscope, a company that analyzes and rates 401(k) plans, agrees that the amount of savings is the most important factor when it comes to retirement savings.
“Most people aren’t saving enough money. In the absence of saving an adequate amount there is no other magic bullet,” he said. “You can choose the best investments in the world but if your only putting $500 a year into your IRA or your 401(k) plan you’re just not going to get there.”
—By CNBC’s Sharon Epperson. Follow her on Twitter @ sharon_epperson
How Money Worries Can Scramble Your Thinking – NPR
How Money Worries Can Scramble Your Thinking
by MICHAELEEN DOUCLEFF
August 29, 2013 2:41 PM
Worrying about finances can tax the brain just as much as staying up all night.
Illustration by Katherine Streeter for NPR
There’s no question that dealing with mortgages, car payments and other bills takes up time and energy. But having a tight budget may also zap our ability to think clearly, scientists report Thursday in the journal Science.
In a series of clever experiments involving farmers in India and shoppers in New Jersey, scientists found that people are worse at solving puzzles — similar to those on the IQ test — when they’re first reminded of money problems.
“Financial constraints capture a lot of your attention,” says Eldar Shafir, a psychologist at Princeton University, who helped lead the study. “Then there’s less bandwidth left to solve problems. Your cognitive ability starts to slow down, just like a computer.”
And the effect is big. After a quick reminder about money issues, people’s performance on the puzzles drops down by at least a quarter — or approximately the same mental hit a person takes after staying up all night.
In the study, Shafir and his colleagues approached people at a shopping mall in Lawrenceville, N.J., and asked them how much money they earn. “We had a pretty good selection of middle-to-low income Americans,” Shafir tells Shots. The lowest salaries were about $20,000 and the average was about $70,000.
Before the participants started the puzzles, they answered a question about money: “A person’s car breaks down, and they need X dollars to fix it. Tell me what are the options they have available?”
People with lower incomes did just as well on the tests as those with higher salaries when the amount of money required to fix the car was low, like $100. But when the scientists raised the amount to $1,500, the less affluent participants performed worse on the puzzles.
“The money question tickles that part of the brain that has to do with your own finances,” says Sendhil Mullainathan, an economist at Harvard University who also led the study. “Then you start thinking, ‘Gee, how I am going to pay rent this month?’ ” And that interferes with your ability to think through a problem, he says.
The team found a similar trend with farmers in southern India, who get paid only once per year. Right before the sugarcane harvest, the farmers are financially strained. Immediately afterward, they’re flush again. It turns out that just before harvest, the farmers performed worse on the IQ puzzles than they did after receiving their money.
“If you just look on paper at their income, these people [in New Jersey and India] aren’t in poverty,” Mullainathan says. “But they’re financially stretched. The mechanism that we’re looking at is more about being financially stretched than in poverty.”
About half of Americans fall into this category, Mullainathan says. People are worried each month about getting all the bills paid.
Just realizing the effect exists could help people to counter it, he says. “If you’re making a decision that actually requires you to sit down and think, you should probably wait until your mind isn’t taxed by financial problems,” he says.
Mullainathan and Safir say the study’s findings could have broader implications. “There’s an ongoing, heavy debate about why it’s difficult for the poor to get out of poverty,” Safir says. “We’re giving a new perspective to that question.”
In many instances, it’s not that the poor aren’t as smart or capable of planning compared as richer people, he says. Rather, being poor takes up more mental capacity. “When the poor focus on something, they manage their dollar better than the rich do, ” Shafir says. “But while they’re doing that very well, they have less attention to focus on other things.”
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