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Market Wrap: 3rd Day for a Broad Decline on Wall Street

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Education Stocks Plunge As Apollo Withdraws Forecast
Joshua Lott/Bloomberg via Getty Images
By Chuck Mikolajczak

NEW YORK -- U.S. stocks dropped on Wednesday as a slump in technology and biotechs sent the Nasdaq to its biggest decline in nearly a year while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) fell through key support levels. Semiconductors and biotech stocks weighed heavily on the Nasdaq, suffering their third straight session of declines after strong gains in the prior week.

An index of biotechnology shares was down 4.1 percent for the session, its biggest fall since Dec. 23. The index finished below its 14-day average for the first time since Feb. 11 and its 50-day moving average for the first time since Oct. 17. The PHLX semiconductor index slumped 4.6 percent for its biggest percentage decline since Oct. 10 and also ended the session below both its 14-day and 50-day moving averages.

"We've got a little bit of a reprieve from a data standpoint, and harvesting some of the excesses in some of those stronger moves is what is taking place," said Eric Wiegand, senior portfolio manager at U.S. Bank Wealth Management in New York.

Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq All Decline

Losses on the S&P 500 accelerated around mid-session after the benchmark dropped below a support level near 2,085, and late selling pressure pushed the benchmark index below its 50-day moving average at around 2,067. An earlier government report showing a drop in durable goods orders pushed the dollar index lower, giving initial support to equities as it eases fears that the rally in the U.S. currency will hurt corporate earnings. However, with valuations stretched as stock indexes trade near record highs, strong data is needed to justify valuations.

The Dow Jones (^DJI) industrial average fell 292.6 points, or 1.62 percent, to 17,718.54, the S&P 500 lost 30.45 points, or 1.46 percent, to 2,061.05 and the Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) dropped 118.21 points, or 2.37 percent, to 4,876.52.

Companies in the Spotlight

Kraft Foods (KRFT) surged 35.6 percent to $83.17 after a merger agreement with H.J. Heinz, owned by 3G Capital and Berkshire Hathaway. Kraft Heinz will trade publicly and will be the third-largest food company in North America. Berkshire Class B (BRK-B) shares slipped 0.5 percent to $143.56.

Kofax (KFX) rallied 46 percent to $10.95 after Lexmark International (LXK), known for its printers, said it would buy Kofax in a deal of about $1 billion that would double the size of its enterprise software business. Lexmarkshares climbed 6.1 percent to $43.27.

Apollo Group (APOL) turned in a quarterly loss as enrollment fell at its for-profit University of Phoenix. The company's stock plunged 29 percent, putting it down 41 percent this year.

Volume was modest, with about 6.8 billion shares traded on U.S. exchanges, slightly above the 6.75 billion average so far this month, according to BATS Global Markets.

Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by 2,240 to 803, for a 2.79-to-1 ratio; on the Nasdaq, 2,242 issues fell and 509 advanced, for a 4.40-to-1 ratio. The S&P 500 posted 11 new 52-week highs and 2 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 62 new highs and 33 new lows.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

What to watch Thursday:
  • The Labor Department releases weekly jobless claims at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time.
  • Freddie Mac releases weekly mortgage rates at 10 a.m.
Earnings Season
These selected companies are scheduled to release quarterly financial results:
  • Accenture (ACN)
  • ConAgra Foods (CAG)
  • Signet Jewelers (SIG)
  • Lululemon Athletica (LULU)
  • Gamestop (GME)
  • Restoration Hardware Holdings (RHI)

 

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No Emergency Fund? Need Cash? You Have Some Lifelines

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Money in a life saver.
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By Gerri Detweiler

Everybody's heard it: You need to save three to six months' expenses in an emergency fund. Not as many of us have actually done it. In fact, a 2014 survey indicated that most of us couldn't cover even a $500 calamity. That means we are clearly under-saving -- it's hard to argue that having anything less than $1,000 will be adequate to keep an unexpected expense from knocking your finances way off course.

But three to six months' expenses? While that may be ideal, that can seem insurmountable, given how many of us don't have enough cash on hand to cover even an unexpected plumbing emergency. And yet it's hard, with so many other wants and needs emptying our wallets and so many "shoulds" filling our heads.

Saving enough for retirement? What about the kids' college? Oh, and shouldn't you try to pay off your mortgage before you retire? And summer's coming, time to start saving for vacation. It's easy to wonder if anything will be left to buy groceries or pay the electric bill, let alone to put in an emergency fund for the medical crisis, job loss or gigantic home repair you hope won't happen. It's also impossible to know how much you'd need in a worst-case scenario (picture all of the above, and now the car is making a funny noise).

Add that to rock-bottom interest rates that seem to penalize savers, and it's easy to understand why some people question the wisdom of having money that is accessible but not working very hard for you.

Try figuring out what you'd do if you had a financial emergency -- and you might discover that you already have some options. And the object of your emergency fund is to keep you from running out of options. It's not necessarily true that everyone needs an emergency fund, although we all do need a way to fund an emergency. But if you have enough set aside so you can sleep at night, you may have "enough." Here are a few options if you don't want or can't afford a traditional emergency fund.

1. Withdrawing From Your Roth IRA

If you can't afford to fund a Roth individual retirement account because you are instead trying to pad your emergency fund, you might want to think about that.

Your unused emergency funds can't be put into a Roth later if that amount would take you over the annual limit. However, if you need access to your Roth funds in an emergency, you could get to the amount you contributed without any penalty or fees. Earnings in the account, on the other hand, may be subject to penalties and/or taxes, depending on the timing and purpose of the withdrawal. And if the emergency didn't happen? The money would continue to grow in your retirement stash. A traditional IRA or 401(k) would not work that way -- you would owe taxes plus a possible penalty fee for early withdrawal.

2. Your Emergency Supplies

Money isn't the only thing you'll need in an emergency. Some of your emergency provisions may be in your pantry or other storage place. Don't underestimate the value of bottled water, canned tuna, peanut butter and crackers. If the emergency is a natural disaster, your stash will be valuable. So, yes, the grocery store's "stock up" sale may be an opportunity to be prepared.

3. Being Ready and Willing to Sell

You probably will not get top dollar if you have to sell in a hurry, but if you have made peace with parting with high-value items in order to fund a financial need, the baseball card collection you've had since childhood or the painting hanging in your living room could be your ticket out of a financial hole. However, you need to be aware of the value. Just thinking, "something in my parents' attic just has to be valuable!" isn't the same thing.

4. A Home Equity Line of Credit

Be aware that a home equity line of credit is a secured loan and your home is on the line. Still, if you have a great deal of home equity (rising home prices may have boosted your equity), you may be willing to use some of it to get through a crisis. You can consider having a line of credit approved now, and using it only in an emergency. A strategy like that would allow you, if you wanted, to try to pay your house off faster without worrying that perhaps you should be putting the funds in an emergency fund instead.

5. A Low-Interest Credit Card -- or a No-Interest Offer

Applying for a low-interest credit card -- or one with a no-interest introductory period -- can be enough to help you get through a crisis, particularly if your budget isn't already so strict that you can barely afford necessities. A little belt-tightening may allow you to pay off the debt in a few months. But beware - the time to check to be sure you have a relatively low-interest credit card is before you have an emergency - depending on the nature of your financial emergency, it may make a new card harder to qualify for. This is not a first option, and may be what you do as a last resort.

Unfortunately, financial emergencies don't have the decency to end when your money runs out or to wait until you've had a time to recover from the last one. Credit, used wisely, can help you minimize the cost of necessary borrowing. And even if you don't have to use it, it can give you the "sleep better" peace of mind that you would have access to funds if you needed them. Knowing where you stand credit-wise can help your comfort level even if you don't have to borrow a dime to cover your emergency. If you don't know, you can get two of your credit scores for free from Credit.com. And if your credit needs work, you can take time to rebuild it so that should you need credit, you will have better access to it.

But the point of any emergency fund is not a certain number - it's to allow you to focus on whatever the emergency is rather than worrying about financial ruin in its wake. So your number is really the one that helps you sleep at night, and it can depend partly on the assets you have now. What you're really looking for is a Plan B. And, like emergencies, those are not one-size-fits-all.

 

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Are Homeowners Better Drivers? Survey Finds Out

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Homeownership is often used as a factor in determining risk when setting auto insurance premiums. Even though the two aren't directly related, there is an assumption that homeownership implies a higher level of responsible actions (assuming you pay your mortgage on time) and therefore that you pose a lower risk in other endeavors -- including your driving habits.

Insurance.com undertook a survey to see if homeownership does indeed correlate to safer driving habits, as measured through the total number of claims filed. From 2012 to mid-2014, online questionnaires from 700,000 respondents were collected and analyzed by age group, home state, and homeownership status.

The results do show some correlation between homeownership and fewer filed claims, although the reasons are highly debatable. The survey does not attempt to address an underlying cause for these results, but it is worth noting that the age of the driver seems to play a consistent role. Perhaps the survey is picking up remnants of generally riskier behavior at younger ages.

As People Age, Effect Smoothes Out

When age is taken into account, the discrepancy between renters, homeowners, and those still at home with their parents is largest among 18- to 24-year-old drivers. Those who lived with their parents filed auto insurance claims at a 24.4 percent rate, compared to 19.7 percent of those who rented and 17.6 percent of those who owned homes. This does seem to make sense, since there should be far fewer homeowners at that earlier age, and those who do own homes that early in life likely had to exhibit highly responsible behavior to be able to afford them.

The effect smoothes out over time, but the same order remains up to retirement. For example, in the 45-54 age group, the numbers of claim-filers were 15.2 percent for those living with parents, 14.1 percent for renters and 13.4 percent for those owning homes. For ages 65-99, the numbers were equal for renters and homeowners at 14 percent. Only 11 percent of those aged 65-99 and living with their parents filed an auto insurance claim -- but how many of the 700,000 respondents could possibly fall into that category?

In general, renters filed more claims than homeowners did, and the five highest discrepancies were in diverse states (Nebraska, Oregon, Maryland, South Carolina, and Utah). Four states (Indiana, Oklahoma, Michigan, and Louisiana) found that homeowners filed more auto claims than renters did.

Understanding Correlation

The managing editor of Insurance.com, Des Toups, suggests that the related income and stability of homeowners may play a role, but adds, "we can't look at this data and claim that to be true." It would have been interesting to see the correlation using responsible homeownership and renting -- in other words, weeding out respondents with multiple missed payments, foreclosures, or other red flags in the housing history - but that was beyond the scope of this particular survey.

Given some evidence of a correlation, insurance companies are not likely to change their beliefs on homeownership and driving risk assessment anytime soon -- although they may make some minor adjustments based on localized data.

This could well be a spurious correlation that makes enough intuitive sense that nobody questions it, yet it could be like the infamous correlation between the number of people who drown annually by falling into swimming pools and the number of films that Nicolas Cage appears in during that same year.

Homeownership doesn't always imply responsible behavior in other areas of life ... and Nicolas Cage is not that bad of an actor.

 

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You May Never Buy Another PC or Tablet

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electronic scrap in trash can....
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This is shaping up to be another troublesome year for PC makers, but it's not as if tablet manufacturers can laugh at the gradual demise of the desktop and laptop industry. Market researcher IDC recently revised its industry forecasts for 2015, and they're not pretty for any of these devices.

It now sees PC shipments declining 5 percent to 293.1 million units this year, off from its earlier projection calling for a decline of 3.3 percent in 2015.

Sales of traditional computers have been sputtering in recent years, but things seemed to be stabilizing with the improving global economy. Industry tracker Gartner reported eight consecutive quarters of year-over-year declines before shipments managed a 0.1 percent uptick during the second quarter of last year. That was followed by a slight dip during the third quarter before bouncing back with a 1 percent year-over-year advance during the holiday quarter.

The prognosis isn't as cheery for the year ahead. Gartner joins IDC in calling for a slide in 2015 shipments of traditional PCs.

Take Two Tablets and Call Me in the Mourning

The fall of the PC isn't a surprise. We're several years deep into the mobile revolution, and that means that many folks are buying smartphones and tablets instead of buying or upgrading their desktops and laptops.

It was only a matter of time. Unless you happen to be into computer gaming or require the heavy-duty horsepower of a PC for desktop publishing, programming, or other intensive applications, you're probably fine with a smartphone or a tablet paired up with a Bluetooth keyboard. If all you're using your desktop or laptop for is to check email, surf the Web and run apps, the only tool you need to get connected may already be in your pocket.

Tablets were originally seen as the PC killer, but it's clear that the mobile revolution is largely a smartphone movement. The market initially noticed softness with tablets when Apple's (AAPL) trend-defining iPad began to show signs of weakness, but now even cheaper Android gadgetry is starting to feel the pinch.

IDC reported that just 76.1 million tablets shipped worldwide during the fourth quarter, the first time that the product posted a year-over-year decline. IDC is now forecasting 234.5 million in tablet shipments for 2015, translating into a meager uptick of 2.1 percent.

So it's not just the PC that seems obsolete these days. A lot of young consumers may never know what it's like to own a tablet, either.

Phoning It In

Declining PC sales and decelerating growth of tablet shipments may suggest that computing in general has stalled if not peaked. However, the picture gets substantially brighter once we factor in the continuing boom in smartphone sales.

Back in January, Gartner was forecasting mobile phone shipments worldwide to climb from 1.838 billion last year to 1.906 billion in 2015. That may be less than 4 percent, but the sheer volume of additional phones will be more than enough to offset the decline in PCs. That should come as welcome news to the dot-com leaders that are counting on the online population continuing to grow. The PC may be dying and the tablet may be sputtering, but thanks to the smartphone, we're as connected as ever these days.

Motley Fool contributor Rick Munarriz has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends and owns shares of Apple. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. Check out our free report on the Apple Watch to learn where the real money is to be made for early investors.

 

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This Popular Last-Minute Tax Move Might Be Wrong for You

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april 15 desktop calendar...
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As the April tax filing deadline approaches, many taxpayers look for last-minute tax deductions they can use to reduce the amount they owe the Internal Revenue Service. One of the best ways you can reduce your taxes is to make a contribution to a traditional individual retirement account, which you can do up until April 15 and still treat as a contribution for the 2014 tax year.

In some cases, though, grabbing that last-minute tax deduction with a traditional IRA isn't your best move. Instead, you might be able to get a much larger benefit down the road by using a different type of retirement account: the Roth IRA.

The Difference Between Roth IRAs and Traditional IRAs

Roth and traditional IRAs are both retirement accounts, but the way they get treated at tax time is much different. Only traditional IRAs can give you an up-front deduction to reduce your tax liability when you contribute. Roth IRA contributions are never deductible on your taxes.

Roth IRAs have an offsetting advantage down the road. In retirement, you have to pay taxes on your traditional IRA withdrawals. Roth IRA withdrawals are typically tax-free, potentially saving you a bigger tax bill in retirement.

When Waiting Can Make You Richer

In deciding whether to use a traditional IRA or a Roth IRA, the main question is whether what you give up in a current tax deduction is worth the future benefit of tax-free retirement income down the road. It's impossible to predict with absolute certainty what the future will bring, but there are some general situations in which you can be reasonably certain that one choice will be better than the other.

If you have relatively little income now, then the odds are good that you're in a low tax bracket, and therefore, the deduction you'd get from a traditional IRA contribution won't be worth very much. For instance, if you contribute $1,000 to a traditional IRA and you're in the 10 percent tax bracket, then your deduction will only save you $100 on your tax bill.

Meanwhile, by the time you reach retirement, you might well have enough income to be in a much higher tax bracket. In the above example, if you've climbed up to the 25 percent tax bracket in retirement, then when you withdraw that $1,000, you'll owe $250 in extra taxes. In addition, you'll also owe that higher rate on all the income that your original $1,000 investment generated over the course of your career.

In that situation, you probably would've been better off using a Roth IRA. You wouldn't have gotten that $100 in tax savings now. But you would save the $250 in future taxes, and all the earnings from your investment would also be free of tax.

When You Should Grab the Deduction and Run

On the other hand, many people who have higher incomes now anticipate that they could be in a lower tax bracket by the time they retire. After all, retirement means you won't be getting any money from work anymore, and that should lower your overall income and send you into a lower tax bracket.

To change the above example slightly, say that instead of being in the 10 percent bracket, your income is high enough that you'd pay taxes at a 35 percent rate right now. As a result, a $1,000 traditional IRA contribution would produce tax savings of $350 rather than $100.

In that case, whether a Roth is better than a traditional IRA is more complicated. The $350 you save now with a traditional IRA is worth more than the $250 in future taxes on your initial investment, but you don't know how much in future earnings you'll have. A lot depends on what you plan to do with your current $350 savings. If you reinvest it, then you'll usually be better off having done the traditional IRA. But if you just spend it, then you can end up better off with the Roth even with a lower rate in retirement, depending on how long you have until you retire and what returns you earn on your investments.

Grabbing a tax deduction can be attractive, and contributing to any type of IRA is always a smart move. But before you automatically go with a traditional IRA, be sure to check to see whether you might be better off with a Roth. In the long run, it might end up being a better choice.

Motley Fool contributor Dan Caplinger never met an IRA he didn't like. You can follow him on Twitter @DanCaplinger or on Google+. Check out our free report on one great stock to buy for 2015 and beyond.

 

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10 Strategies to Save for Retirement on a Low Income

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Young woman sales clerk and female customer in gift shop making credit card transaction, smiling
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By Emily Brandon

It's extremely difficult to save for retirement when you are only earning a small salary. The Senate Special Committee on Aging recently held a hearing about retirement preparedness, and witnesses shared ideas for encouraging saving. Try these strategies to boost your retirement savings:

1. Save by Default

It's important to make saving something you do automatically with each paycheck, rather than something you must take action to do each month. You can do this by setting up a direct deposit to a 401(k), IRA or other savings vehicle. "Automatic enrollment can be a powerful tool for increasing the number of Americans saving for retirement and other purposes," says Michal Grinstein-Weiss, an associate professor of social work at Washington University in St. Louis. "Defaulting to automation will ensure that Americans, particularly low income Americans, have a simple pathway to boost retirement savings."

2. Automatically Increase Your Savings Rate

If you start out saving a small amount, you will also need to increase your savings rate over time. "The default employee contribution rate should be set at a meaningful level and then increased until the combined employee contribution and employer match reach 12 percent of wages," says Alicia Munnell, director of the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College. "The default investment option should be a target date fund comprised of a portfolio of low-cost index funds." Some 401(k) plans offer a feature that will automatically increase your savings rate over time. But if your 401(k) plan doesn't offer automatic escalation, you will have to make an effort to save more yourself.

3. Don't Stick to Your Employer's Savings Rate

Many workers are automatically enrolled in their 401(k) plan, typically at 3 percent of pay, but you will likely need to save more than that to fund a financially secure retirement. "Although the average 401(k) deferral rate is 6 percent to 7 percent, the most common deferral rate is 3 percent because that's where most employers auto-enroll their populations. Too often, it never budges from that mark," says Jean Chatzky, a financial editor for NBC Today. "Increasing contributions each year by 1 to 2 percent until a participant maxes out can literally double the amount of money an employee has in retirement."

4. Open an IRA

If you don't have access to a 401(k) at work or there's a waiting period before you can begin contributing, you can get valuable retirement saving tax breaks by opening up an individual retirement account. "Most economists will tell you that it is far easier to get people to save money for retirement through a payroll deduction at work instead of requiring them to open up an IRA on their own," says Senator Claire McCaskill. "The problem is that many low income workers face real structural barriers to saving: they work seasonal jobs, or are in and out of the workforce before they can vest or they work for employers who have neither the time nor the resources to offer a retirement plan." The IRA contribution deadline is April 15, and contributing shortly before you file your taxes can help you realize nearly immediate savings on your tax bill.

5. Make Smart Decisions When Changing Jobs

You will likely need to sign up for a 401(k) plan and set up new direct deposits each time you change jobs. It's important to make appropriate retirement saving elections at this time and to stick to them. "When starting a new position, employees are often asked to make retirement savings decisions that have a major impact on their retirement preparedness later in life," Grinstein-Weiss says. "Because people have a bias toward the status quo, those early decisions about retirement contributions are critically important."

6. Save Part of Your Tax Refund

Consider putting part of your tax refund into a retirement account. "For many low- and moderate-income households, the federal income tax refund is the largest lump sum payment received during the year," Grinstein-Weiss says. "After a household receives its refund, it is possibly in its best balance sheet position for the entire year and perhaps more open to saving than at any other point." IRS Form 8888 allows you to directly deposit your tax refund into a combination of checking, savings, or individual retirement accounts or to purchase Series I savings bonds.

7. Set Aside Separate Emergency Savings

Try not to use your retirement savings for anything other than retirement. "Unexpected financial shocks can affect a household's financial stability as well as its ability to save for long-term needs like retirement," Grinstein-Weiss says. "Without liquid assets to cover these financial shocks, households may rely on expensive and potentially harmful strategies, including skipping payment on bills, taking out payday loans, using other alternative financial services and liquidating retirement savings." It's important to maintain a savings account separate from your 401(k) or IRA that can be used for emergencies so you don't need to raid your retirement accounts early.

8. Start Saving Early in Life

Financial planners typically advise that you start saving for retirement at your first job, but recent research suggests that it's a good idea to develop a savings habit even earlier. "Studies also show that having an account in one's name as a child is positively associated with financial outcomes later in life," Grinstein-Weiss says. "It may be because they have already entered the financial mainstream and are able to continue engaging with financial products and institutions as they grow older."

9. Don't Withdraw the Money Early

Withdrawals from traditional 401(k)s and IRAs before age 59½ trigger a 10 percent early withdrawal penalty and income tax on the amount withdrawn. "About 1.5 percent of assets each year leaks out of 401(k) plans when participants cash out as they change jobs, take hardship withdrawals, withdraw funds after age 59½ or default on loans," Munnell says. You can avoid the taxes and penalty when you change jobs by leaving the money in your old 401(k) plan, moving it into the 401(k) plan at your new job or rolling it over to an IRA.

10. Avoid High-Cost Investments

Similar types of investments often charge vastly different fees, and unnecessarily high costs can significantly reduce your retirement account balance. "Many individuals make investing missteps, such as putting their money in mutual funds with high fees, which can substantially shrink their assets over time," Munnell says. "For example, an additional 100 basis points in fees over a 40-year period reduces final assets by about one fifth." Pay close attention to the expense ratio and other fees charged by each investment option and choose low-cost options when they are available.

 

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The 5 Weirdest Fast-Food Items Introduced So Far This Year

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littlecaesars.com

By Brian Sozzi

Yum Brands' Taco Bell announced on Tuesday a new biscuit taco for breakfast, consisting of a biscuit shaped into the form of a taco and filled with sausage, eggs and cheese, or even a piece of fried chicken. As wacky as it sounds, it's not even the strangest product introduced recently by a Yum brand, let alone by the fast food industry in general.

KFC made headlines in February when it said it was testing an edible coffee cup made from wafers and white chocolate in select U.K. markets. Little Caesar's garnered plenty of attention that month when it decided its deep-dish pizza needed to be lined with 3½ feet of bacon. What all of these new items have in common, besides high calorie counts, is they have people talking about them on social media and maybe sending customers to their local restaurants to gawk at them and, the chains hope, purchase other less wacky items.

TheStreet looks at five of the industry's most creative (or disgusting, depending on your point of view) new menu items that have appeared so far in 2015. You can bet that you'll be hearing about plenty more of these unholy mashups in the months to come.

1. KFC Edible 'Scoff-ee' Coffee Cup

  • What it is: An edible cup consisting of a biscuit wrapped in sugar paper and lined with heat-resistant white chocolate.
  • Number of calories: Undisclosed.
  • When it will be available: Sometime later this year in the U.K.; no plans for a U.S. introduction yet

2. Little Caesar's Bacon-Wrapped Pizza

  • What it is: 3½ feet of bacon wrapped around a deep-dish pizza.
  • Number of calories: 450 per slice (also, 23 grams of fat, 830 milligrams of sodium and 40 milligrams of cholesterol).
  • When it will be available: The pizza first went on sale Feb. 23 and will be available for a limited time.

3. Krispy Kreme Bacon Hot Dog

  • What it is: A hot dog inside a traditional Krispy Kreme glazed donut "bun," with bacon and raspberry jelly drizzled on top.
  • Number of calories: Undisclosed, but glazed donut by itself has 190 calories.
  • When it will be available: The concoction will be available at upcoming games for Delaware's single-A baseball team, the Wilmington Blue Rocks. There are no plans to serve the product at Krispy Kreme retail stores.

4. KFC Double Down Dog

  • What it is: A hot dog inside a "bun" made of fried chicken, covered with cheese.
  • Number of calories: Undisclosed, but estimated at around 1,000.
  • When it will be available: Select restaurants in the Philippines sold these on Jan. 26 and Jan. 27. There are no plans to release the item in the U.S.

5. Taco Bell Biscuit Taco

  • What it is: A buttermilk biscuit, folded in the shape of a taco and filled with eggs, sausage and cheese or a slab of fried chicken.
  • Number of calories: Between 370 and 470 calories, depending on the fillings.
  • When it will be available: Starting March 26 at all Taco Bell locations. The Biscuit Taco will be replacing Taco Bell's Waffle Taco.

 

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Gov't Aims to Protect Low-Income Users of 'Payday' Loans

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States Hit Payday Loans With Aid From Above as Industry Digs In
Gary Tramontina/Bloomberg via Getty Images
By JOSH BOAK

WASHINGTON -- Each month, more than 200,000 needy U.S. households take out what's advertised as a brief loan.

Many have run out of money between paychecks. So they obtain a "payday" loan to tide them over. Problem is, such loans can often bury them in fees and debts. Their bank accounts can be closed, their cars repossessed.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposed rules Thursday to protect Americans from stumbling into what it calls a "debt trap." At the heart of the plan is a requirement that payday lenders verify borrowers' incomes before approving a loan.

But if you're making that profit by trapping hard-working Americans in a vicious cycle of debt, then you need to find a new way of doing business.

The government is seeking to set standards for a multibillion-dollar industry that has historically been regulated only at the state level.

"The idea is pretty common sense: If you lend out money, you should first make sure that the borrower can afford to pay it back," President Barack Obama said in remarks prepared for a speech in Birmingham, Alabama. "But if you're making that profit by trapping hard-working Americans in a vicious cycle of debt, then you need to find a new way of doing business."

The payday industry warns that if the rules are enacted, many impoverished Americans would lose access to any credit. The industry says the CFPB should further study the needs of borrowers before setting additional rules.

"The bureau is looking at things through the lens of one-size-fits-all," argued Dennis Shaul, chief executive of the Community Financial Services Association of America, a trade group for companies that offer small-dollar short-term loans or payday advances.

Payday Loan 'Nightmare'

But that lens also reveals some troubling pictures.

Wynette Pleas of Oakland, California, says she endured a nightmare after taking out a payday loan in late 2012. A 44-year-old mother of three, including a blind son, Pleas borrowed $255 to buy groceries and pay the electricity bill.

But as a part-time nursing assistant, she worked only limited hours. Pleas told her lender she'd be unable to meet the loan's two-week deadline. The lender then tried to withdraw the repayment straight from her bank account even though Pleas lacked the funds. The result: A $35 overdraft fee and a bounced check.

After the incident was repeated five more times, Pleas said the bank closed her account.

Collection agencies began phoning Pleas and her family. About six months ago, she learned that the $255 loan had ballooned to a debt of $8,400. At that point, she faced the possibility of jail.

"It's not even worth it," said Pleas, who is trying to rebuild her finances and her life.

Roughly 2.5 million households received a payday loan in 2013, according to an analysis of Census data by the Urban Institute, a Washington-based think tank. The number of households with such loans has surged 19 percent since 2011, even as the U.S. economy has healed from the Great Recession and hiring has steadily improved.

"These are predatory loan products," said Greg Mills, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute. "They rely on the inability of people to pay them off to generate fees and profits for the providers."

Greater Due Diligence

The rules would apply not only to payday loans but also to vehicle title loans -- in which a car is used as collateral -- and other forms of high-cost lending. Before extending a loan due within 45 days, lenders would have to ensure that borrowers could repay the entire debt on schedule. Incomes, borrowing history and other financial obligations would need to be checked to show that borrowers were unlikely to default or roll over the loan.

In general, there would be a 60-day "cooling off period" between loans. And lenders would have to provide "affordable repayment options." Loans couldn't exceed $500, impose multiple finance charges or require a car as collateral.

The CFPB also proposed similar rules to regulate longer-term, high-cost loans with payback terms ranging between 45 days and six months. The proposals would cap either interest rates or repayments as a share of income.

All the rules will be reviewed by a panel of small business representatives and other stakeholders before the bureau revises the proposals for public comments and then finalizes them.

The proposals follow a 2013 CFPB analysis of payday lending. For an average $392 loan that lasts slightly more than two weeks, borrowers were paying in fees the equivalent of a 339 percent annual interest rate, according to the report.

The median borrower earned under $23,000 -- beneath the poverty line for a family of four -- and 80 percent of the loans were rolled over or renewed, causing the fees to further build. Over 12 months, nearly half of payday borrowers had more than 10 transactions, meaning they either had rolled over existing loans or had borrowed again.

Trapping Consumers

"They end up trapping people in longer-term debt," said Gary Kalman, executive vice president at the nonprofit Center for Responsible Lending.

Several states have tried to curb payday lending. Washington and Delaware limit how many loans a borrower can take out each year, according to a report by the Center for Responsible Lending. Arizona and Montana have capped annual interest rates.

But other states have looser oversight. In Texas, payday companies filed 1,500 complaints against borrowers to collect money between 2012 and mid-2014, according to Texas Appleseed, a social justice nonprofit.

Industry representatives say states are better able to regulate the loans, ensuring that consumers can be protected while lenders can also experiment with new products.

"We believe the states are doing a good job regulating the industry," said Ed D'Alessio, executive director at the Financial Service Centers of America. "They come at it with a standard where the laws governing the industry have made it through the legislative process."

-Associated Press writer Nedra Pickler contributed to this report from Birmingham, Alabama.

 

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7 Dumb (and Expensive) Moves Homebuyers Make

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Dumb Moves Homebuyers Make

By Maryalene LaPonsie

Whether you're part of the 1 percent or the 99 percent, a house is likely the biggest single purchase you'll ever make.

Unfortunately, plenty of people make dumb mistakes when buying a house, mistakes that could cost tens of thousands of dollars in extra interest or, worse, saddle them with a home they can't afford and can't unload.

Here are seven dumb moves homebuyers make year after year.

Dumb Move No. 1: Ignoring your credit score

Your credit score can make or break your interest rate. You see, lenders save their best interest rates for those with the best credit scores. They know people with great scores will almost certainly pay off their loan in full.

Meanwhile, if your credit score is hovering somewhere in the 600s or below, lenders get nervous that you're going to bail or go bankrupt on them. Sure, they might still give you a loan, but they're going to jack up the interest rate so they can get as much interest as possible before your finances potentially go belly up.

At today's interest rates, FICO estimates a person with a credit score of 639 will pay $138 more a month for a $150,000 mortgage than an individual with the same mortgage and a credit score of 780. That translates to someone's crappy credit costing them nearly $50,000 more over the life of a 30-year, fixed-rate loan.

Don't make the mistake of ignoring your credit score before house shopping. If your number is stuck in the basement, use our tips to raise your score as quickly as possible.

Dumb Move No. 2: Not getting pre-approved for a loan

This isn't the same as being prequalified, although some people use the terms interchangeably.

Being pre-approved by a lender gives you a realistic number to use while house shopping. It can also give you an edge if multiple people are placing offers on the same property.

However, be realistic about what you can actually afford versus what the bank says you can afford. Borrowing up to the bank approved limit may stretch your finances and set you up for a major catastrophe in the event of a job loss or injury. My advice is to shave at least 10 percent off the bank-approved amount and use that as your maximum price while house hunting.

Dumb Move No. 3: Falling for an expensive loan

When you're talking to a lender, don't fall into the trap of signing on to a risky loan. Banks and brokers can sometimes use adjustable-rate or interest-only loans to persuade people to buy more house than they can afford.

These loans start out with low payments, usually for the first five years, and then the interest rate adjusts and takes your payment skyward. Some mortgage reps will try to convince you this is no big deal. They will say you can just refinance in five years or perhaps sell the home.

Well, that didn't work out so well for all the people who signed on for subprime mortgages before the Great Recession and then saw their home values disintegrate. Those people couldn't refinance their underwater loans or sell their home, and many ended up staring at foreclosure notices.

Resist the sales talk and keep your feet on the ground when looking at houses. A fixed-rate mortgage gives you security and peace of mind, which may not be as glamorous as the giant house of your dream, but it sure is smart.

Dumb Move No. 4: Going with an inferior (or no) agent

We live in a DIY age, but for most people, it's a mistake to go it alone through the home-buying process.

A good agent can direct you to hot properties entering the market, connect you to competent lenders and inspectors and generally smooth out any bumps that may arise. This isn't the time to be nice and use your brother's friend's uncle as a favor. You're making a major purchase, and you want a proven professional to walk with you through the process.

And if you really can't bear to pay a commission to an agent, at least get a real estate lawyer to help draw up your offer and look over paperwork before you sign on the dotted line.

Dumb Move No. 5: Buying based on emotion rather than reality

People see a house they love, and the planned budget goes out the window. Or, even if the house remains within their budgeted price, they don't think about all the extras that may come along with it. A pool needs to be maintained; a huge lawn must be mowed; and a homeowners association will not only demand annual fees, but also your undying loyalty to their bylaws.

Before buying a house, ask yourself these questions to make sure your purchase is a rational decision:
  • Can I comfortably afford this house?
  • Can I comfortably afford the taxes on this house?
  • Can I comfortably afford to maintain, heat and cool this house?
  • Can I pay for renovations if needed? Will my desired additions and improvements be allowed by the HOA or local zoning ordinance?
  • How long do I envision living in this house?
  • Is there anything outside my control that could negatively impact the resale value of this house?
  • Do the rooms and layout make sense for our family?
  • A [hot tub, outdoor kitchen, fill-in-the-blank] is a great feature, but realistically, will my family use it?
Dumb Move No. 6: Skipping an inspection

Part of the problem with buying on emotion is that it can lead you to make other dumb mistakes, like skipping a home inspection.

Regardless of whether you're buying new construction or a historic home, you need to have it inspected before finalizing the sale. Don't trust your own judgment. A professional will be able to point out possible code violations, safety threats and structural damage. To make the most of the inspection, try to walk through the house with the inspector so they can point out potential problems and you can ask questions.

An inspection can lengthen the home-buying process, but it's worth any inconvenience. The alternative may be finding out your house has a costly or dangerous problem after you move in.

Dumb Move No. 7: Forgetting to have a back-up plan

The last dumb move homebuyers make is not having a Plan B.

For example, what happens if the home inspection shows the beams in the basement are rotting? Do you pull out of the contract and lose your earnest money?

Hopefully, you've avoided mistake No. 4 and have a decent buying agent. That person should have entered a clause into your offer that ensures you get back your deposit in the event the inspection doesn't go well.

You'll also need to have a back-up plan for what happens if the house doesn't appraise as expected or if you were counting on funding through a particular loan program that doesn't materialize.

Does anyone want to fess up to making one of these mistakes? I'll admit to using the friend of a relative for our first home purchase. It wasn't a disastrous mistake, but I think we could have done better with someone more experienced.

How about you? Feel free to share in the comments below or on our Facebook page.

 

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Why Gas Could Plunge Below $2 a Gallon This Summer

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Gas Prices Michigan
David N. Goodman/APSome areas of the country have already seen gas prices fall below $2 a gallon, including Detroit in January.
The price of gasoline has plunged 30 percent in the past year to $2.45 a gallon nationwide, giving major relief to American consumers. Plunging oil prices have driven the drop and have given a reprieve to consumers who have been paying nearly $4 a gallon for gas for most of the past four years.

But the discount on gasoline may not be over. Just as the summer driving season approaches, drivers may get another reprieve. This time, the oil boom that is driving the U.S. toward energy independence could backfire and provide a massive discount on gas for consumers. Within a few months, we may be below $2 a gallon again.

Nowhere for All That Oil to Go

The latest problem for the oil industry is that there's nowhere for all of the country's oil to go. In 2014, the industry pumped 8.7 million barrels a day, and despite low oil prices the U.S. Energy Information Administration is expecting production to increase to 9.3 million barrels a day in 2015 and 9.6 million barrels in 2016.

Problem is, they're running out of places to put all that oil. Between February 2014 and February of this year, total oil storage capacity utilization has risen from 48 to 60 percent, and in the few weeks since the EIA's data came out, another 15 million barrels have flowed into U.S. storage tanks, causing inventory to reach an 80-year high.

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration
Take your own energy situation as an example. You might be willing to pay a premium for gasoline if your tank is near empty and there's not a gas station for miles, but if your tank is full and you're sitting at a gas station, what would you pay for a gallon of gas you can't fit in your car?

That's essentially the problem the U.S. oil industry could face as we head into summer. The coffers are full of oil and more is coming every day. Unless something changes soon, the price of oil could plunge further as a result.

How Low Could Oil Go?

The estimates on how low oil prices will get in the U.S. are getting crazy. Goldman Sachs President Gary Cohn told CNBC earlier this month that crude oil prices could fall to $30 a barrel. Raoul Pal of The Global Macro Investors newsletter told CNBC that same week that prices could fall to $20 a barrel based on economic weakness in China and Europe as well as increased supply in the U.S.

No one knows how low oil prices can go, but predictions are that it will fall significantly in the next few months. If $20 or $30 a barrel is where it settles, gasoline prices could easily fall to $1.50 a gallon, a level we haven't seen since the early 2000s.

Savings Pile Up for American Consumers

Late last year, I wrote about the EIA's prediction that falling gas prices could save the average consumer $550 in 2015. Back then, gasoline was $2.61 a gallon, so that estimate may have been low.

If gasoline prices fall below $2 a gallon and even toward $1.50 a gallon, the savings will pile up for American consumers. The U.S. consumes about 375 million gallons of gasoline every day, so just a penny's drop in the price of gasoline means $3.75 million could be spent somewhere else in the economy every single day.

As we approach summer, the savings at the gas tank could add up to billions of dollars for American consumers. That's a lot of spare change.

Travis Hoium is a Motley Fool contributor. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. Check out The Motley Fool's one great stock to buy for 2015 and beyond.

 

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Gamers Lose If Nintendo's Next Console Bombs

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Product Displays Inside The Nintendo Game Front Showroom
Akio Kon/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesNintendo's video-game character Mario stands at the Nintendo Game Front showroom in Tokyo.
Nintendo (NTDOY) isn't giving up in the realm of video game consoles, at least not yet. Earlier this month it announced that it's working on a new system -- code-named Nintendo NX -- that it promises will raise the bar.

There weren't a lot of details about the new dedicated console platform beyond Nintendo executives saying that it will surprise the market with its innovative ways. The buzz is starting to build. At least one retailer in Australia turned heads by starting to take preorders on the system months if not years before it hits the market.

There will be a lot riding on Nintendo's new system, and that also holds true for owners of rival consoles.

Three's a Crowd

The iconic gaming company is in a massive funk. It has posted five consecutive years of declining sales since peaking in fiscal 2009, and it's now generating less than a third of the revenue it did in its prime.

The once ridiculously profitable company has posted losses in two of the past three years, and it's easy to see how it got here. Nintendo's initial success with the Wii didn't carry over to the Wii U. It also remains dominant in the handheld category, but that market has shifted away from the Nintendo DS and 3DS in favor of mobile apps that folks can play on their smartphones.

There's little that Nintendo can do to combat the mobile revolution beyond its announcement earlier this month that it is teaming up with a developer to make its characters and games available for smartphones and tablets. It's a big fish in a shrinking pond when it comes to portable gaming devices. However, it's a different matter entirely when it comes to the Wii U in the realm of consoles.

Sony's (SNE) PlayStation 4 and Microsoft's (MSFT) Xbox One are thriving. Sony has sold more than 20 million PS4 systems since its launch just ahead of the 2013 holiday shopping season. Microsoft isn't faring as well, but at least it's holding up better than the Wii U, which seemingly had the advantage of hitting the market a year before pricier PS4 and Xbox One consoles hit the market.

That, in a nutshell, is Nintendo's problem: The market has historically only supported two major consoles. It was the PS3 on the outside looking in when the Xbox 360 and Wii were the hot systems, and for the past few years it's been Nintendo as the forgotten bronze medalist.

NX Marks the Spot

Consumers smitten by Sony and Microsoft boxes may not care about the fate of Nintendo at this point, but they will pay the price if Nintendo fails and ultimately follows Sega in bowing out of the hardware market.

Die-hard gamers will point to the superior specs of Sony and Microsoft systems, but they may not realize the important role that Nintendo has played in keeping prices honest. Sony's PS3 was initially a flop because it hit the market at $599, but that was largely because the head-turning Wii was available at $250 when it was introduced in 2006.

Microsoft and Sony initiated steep price cuts after a year on the market in response to Nintendo's hot-selling platform at a much lower price point. Wii's success kept pricing low, and it probably played a part in Sony's superior PS4 hitting the market two years ago at a price point that was $200 less than the original PS3. If the Nintendo NX flops, it will be just Sony and Microsoft duking it out for gamers, and that will make a price war less likely.

There doesn't seem to be an aggressive price cut for the PS4 on the horizon, and that's the case because the system is a hit and Nintendo's Wii U is on the brink of becoming obsolete. So, yes, even big PS4 and Xbox One fans had better cheer on a recovery for Nintendo when the next generation of gaming consoles rolls around. They can set aside bragging rights for the sake of cheaper systems, and at the end of the day that's how consumers win the game.

Motley Fool contributor Rick Munarriz has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. Check out our free report on one great stock to buy for 2015 and beyond.

 

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Feds Go After Crooked Car Deals in National Crackdown

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Car for sale
Tetra Images/Alamy
By ANNE FLAHERTY

WASHINGTON -- A nationwide crackdown on auto dealers has turned up widespread evidence of false ads, deceptive loans and fake odometer readings, the government said Thursday.

The investigation led by the Federal Trade Commission and law enforcement resulted in 252 enforcement actions and $2.6 million in consumer refunds and fees.

It was the second time that the FTC has gone after the car industry. Last year, the agency announced 10 cases of deceptive advertising and loans. Officials say the more recent investigation in U.S. and Canada involved the Justice Department and state prosecutors.

... law enforcement agencies are on the lookout for deceptive and illegal practices by auto dealers, and will take whatever action is necessary to protect consumers.

"The clear message is that across this country, and indeed internationally, law enforcement agencies are on the lookout for deceptive and illegal practices by auto dealers, and will take whatever action is necessary to protect consumers,," said Jessica Rich, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection.

In one case, a company called the National Payment Network Inc., in San Mateo, California, set up car buyers with an automated payment program that was pitched as a way to save money. But regulators said the fees associated with the program were so heavy they canceled out any savings. For example, a standard five-year auto loan would charge $775 in fees.

Matt Blatt dealerships, which have multiple locations in New Jersey, worked with National Payment Network to sell loans and received commission for the more than 1,000 consumers they enrolled, accord to the FTC.

As part of a settlement, National Payment Network will refund $1.5 million to consumers and waive $949,000 in fees to current customers. Matt Blatt Inc. and Glassboro Imports will pay $184,000.

Both companies Thursday denied any wrongdoing. Matt Blatt Inc. believed it had clearly explained the terms and benefits of the payment program in question but agreed to settle with the FTC to avoid "protracted and expensive litigation," according to a company statement released Thursday.

Likewise, National Payment Network said it "strongly disagrees" with the FTC and presented "considerable evidence, including consumer satisfaction surveys, training materials for dealership personnel and other documents that support its position and demonstrate the value" of the payment programs in question.

"NPN has decided, however, that a settlement is in the best interest of its customers and auto dealer channel partners," the company wrote in an emailed statement.

The FTC also accused three auto dealers of false advertising and violating truthful lending laws. According to the agency, Cory Fairbanks Mazda of Longwood, Florida, Jim Burke Nissan of Birmingham, Alabama, and Ross Nissan of El Monte, California, have agreed to settle charges that they advertised sales, as well as lease or finance options, without disclosing relevant terms, such as required down payments. In the end, the FTC said any value of the offer was canceled out by "fine-print disclaimers."

Telephone calls to each of the three dealerships were not immediately returned Thursday.

Several other cases handled by the Justice Department involved odometer fraud and inflating a car buyer's income in order to qualify them for a loan. Other cases pursued by state attorneys general found that some car dealerships failed to disclose mechanical defects and charged customers supplemental warranties without their consent.

A complete list of the 252 enforcement actions can be found online.

 

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Bankruptcy Hearing to Decide What's Next for RadioShack

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RadioShack To Sell Name Separately With $20 Million Opening Bid
Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty Images
By RANDALL CHASE

WILMINGTON, Del. -- An attorney for a lender that lost a bankruptcy auction for electronics retailer RadioShack has asked a Delaware judge to reopen the bidding.

RadioShack says an offer of about $160 million from hedge fund Standard General was the best bid submitted this week. Standard General's bid, which would keep 1,743 stores open and preserve about 7,500 jobs, consists mostly of credit on debt it is owed.

Salus Capital Partners, which is owed about $150 million, says it is willing to pay about $271 million for RadioShack's assets, and that the auction was simply a charade in which Standard General cut a deal.

Salus also argued along with other senior RadioShack lenders at a hearing Thursday that Standard General hasn't met the requirements for being allowed to credit bid.

 

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Market Wrap: Wall Street Extends Losses to a 4th Day

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Dow Down Nearly 300 Points On Weak Economic Data
Andrew Burton/Getty Images
By Rodrigo Campos

NEW YORK -- U.S. stocks fell for a fourth straight session Thursday but indexes ended well off session lows with support from economic data and earnings, including Accenture's.

Semiconductor stocks were again under pressure, this time after SanDisk (SNDK) cut its revenue outlook. Its shares tumbled 18.4 percent to $66.20 and an index of chipmaker shares fell 1.4 percent. The index fell as much as 3.5 percent earlier.

The S&P 500 is still less than 3 percent below its record high hit three weeks ago. The index rallied last week as concern ebbed about an overheating dollar.

Earnings, particularly from U.S.-based companies, continue to be very strong.

Consulting company Accenture's (ACN) quarterly net revenue rose 5 percent, helped by growth in its outsourcing business as North American companies look to cut costs. Its shares rose 6.8 percent to $94.17.

Red Hat (RHT) rallied 10.1 percent to $75.36 after it forecast a profit for the first quarter that matched analyst estimates despite warning about a strong dollar hurting its revenue.

"Earnings, particularly from U.S.-based companies, continue to be very strong," said Doug Foreman, chief investment officer at Kayne Anderson Rudnick in Los Angeles.

The Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI) fell 40.31 points, or 0.23 percent, to 17,678.23, the Standard & Poor's 500 index (^GSPC) lost 4.9 points, or 0.24 percent, to 2,056.15 and the Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) dropped 13.16 points, or 0.27 percent, to 4,863.36.

Crude Rallies

Energy stocks on the S&P 500 ended down 0.2 percent despite a rally in crude prices following Saudi Arabia's air strikes in Yemen.

The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits fell more than expected last week while activity in the services sector hit a six-month high in March, underscoring the economy's solid fundamentals despite a recent softening in growth.

Winnebago Industries (WGO) fell after reporting a lower-than-expected quarterly profit as expenses rose. Shares tumbled 14.3 percent to $20.39.

Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by 1,834 to 1,187, for a 1.55-to-1 ratio; on the Nasdaq, 1,492 issues fell and 1,198 advanced, for a 1.25-to-1 ratio. The benchmark S&P 500 posted 3 new 52-week highs and 5 new lows; the Nasdaq composite recorded 18 new highs and 45 new lows. About 7 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, above the 6.8 billion daily average so far this month, according to BATS Global Markets.

What to watch Friday:
  • BlackBerry Ltd. (BBRY) and Carnival Corp. (CCL) release quarterly financial results.
  • The Commerce Department releases fourth-quarter gross domestic product at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time.

 

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15 Natural Cleaning Products You Can Make at Home

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happy young woman housewife washes a window
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My parents and I immigrated to the U.S. when I was young, and money was tight. My dad worked long hours, while my stay-at-home mom focused on saving as much as possible.

My parents shared a car, which meant that my mom couldn't drive to the store whenever she needed to grab an item. She had to creatively deal with stains and messes at home. I remember spilling something on the carpet once. My mom tried to clean it out with dish soap and warm water, which was all she had around the house.

Times have changed: thanks to the internet, now we can look up natural cleaning product recipes online. My mom, it turns out, would have had an easier time getting that stain out of the carpet if she'd combined this with a little vinegar.

Whether you want to save money, live a more eco-friendly lifestyle, or use products that are more safe and natural (or all three), there are plenty of ways you can use every household items to make your own cleaning products. Here are 15 of our favorites.

1. All-Purpose Cleaner
  • 4 tablespoons baking soda
  • 1 quart warm water
Combine ingredients in a bottle, pour solution onto a clean sponge or cloth and wipe surface clean. Can be used on kitchen and bathroom countertops, appliances and more. Not a disinfectant.

2. Glass Cleaner
  • ½ cup white or cider vinegar
  • ¼ cup rubbing alcohol (70 percent concentration)
  • 1-2 drops of essential oil like orange or lemon verbena for scent (optional)
  • 2 cups water
Combine in a spray bottle and spray onto a soft, clean cloth or paper towel.

3. Heavy-Duty Scrub
  • ½ a lemon
  • ½ cup borax
Dip lemon into borax and scrub directly onto surface. This can be used for rust stains on porcelain and enamel sinks and tubs.

4. Grease Cleaner
  • ½ cup sudsy ammonia
  • 1 gallon water
Dip sponge or mop into solution and wipe over greasy surface. Rinse clean with clear water.

5. Oven Cleaner
  • ½ cup baking soda
  • few tablespoons water
  • small amount of white vinegar

Remove oven racks and clean separately. Combine baking soda and water into a paste and spread paste over interior of oven (avoiding heating elements). Allow paste to sit overnight. Wipe away as much as you can with a damp cloth and use a spatula to scrape away harder parts. Place vinegar in a spray bottle and spray over any remaining baking soda residue. Wipe down with dampened cloth until interior is shiny. Replace oven racks.

6. Disinfectant Solution

  • 2 teaspoons borax
  • 4 tablespoons vinegar
  • 3 cups hot water
  • ¼ teaspoon liquid castile soap (optional-for stronger solution)
Combine in spray bottle and spray onto surface. Wipe with dampened cloth.

7. Toilet Bowl Cleaner and Deodorizer
  • ½ cup baking soda
  • 1 cup distilled white vinegar
  • ½ teaspoon tea tree essential oil
Combine vinegar and tea tree oil in a spray bottle and spray inside toilet bowl and on toilet lid, seat and handle. Allow solution to sit for several minutes, then sprinkle baking soda inside toilet bowl, scrub and flush. Wipe off the lid, seat and handle with a clean dry cloth.

8. Tile Grout Cleaner
  • 1 part hydrogen peroxide
  • 2 parts water
Combine in a spray bottle and spray solution on grout. Allow solution to sit for an hour, then wipe clean with a damp sponge.

9. Furniture Polish
  • ¼ cup white vinegar or ½ cup lemon juice
  • ¾ cup olive oil
Combine in a spray bottle and spray a small amount of solution onto furniture. Rub solution into furniture with a clean cloth. Wipe dry with a second clean cloth.

10. All-Purpose Floor Cleaner
  • A few drops dish soap
  • 1 gallon warm water
Combine in a bucket and mop well. Dampen mop with clean water and mop again to rinse. Not recommended for wood floors.

11. Wood Floor Cleaner
  • 1 part white vinegar
  • 1 part water
Combine in a bucket and mop well. Dampen mop with clean water and mop again to rinse. Wipe the floors well with a dry cloth.

12. Carpet Stain Remover
  • 1 part vinegar
  • 1 part water
  • 1-2 drops dishwashing liquid (optional-for tougher stains)
Combine in a spray bottle and spray onto stain. Let solution sit for 5 minutes and then scrub with a soft brush.

13. Dishwasher Liquid
  • ½ cup liquid castile soap
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 3 drops tea tree extract
  • ¼ cup white vinegar
  • ½ cup water
Combine water and soap first, then add in remaining ingredients and stir until blended. Store in a squeeze bottle and use 2 tablespoons per load of dishes.

14. Laundry Detergent
  • 1 (4.5-ounce) bar of shaved soap
  • 1 cup borax
  • 1 cup washing soda
Combine all ingredients and stir for five minutes, then store in a sealed container with a small scoop. Use 1 tablespoon per load of laundry (or 2 to 3 tablespoons for heavily soiled loads).

15. Air Freshener
  • 2 tablespoons baking soda
  • 2 cups hot water
  • ½ teaspoon essential oil in a fragrance of your choice
Combine mixture in a spray bottle and spray into the air as needed.

Paula Pant is an entrepreneur and real estate investor who has traveled to 32 countries. Her blog Afford Anything is not the same tired, stodgy, uninspired financial advice that you'll find on other websites. Afford Anything shows you how to crush limits, create wealth and maximize life.

 

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5 Billion-Dollar Companies You Don't Know - Yet

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Reinventing Phlebotomy, the new Theranos HQ
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There are some pretty big privately held companies out there that aren't very well known. With many of them, that will undoubtedly change. Most people didn't know about Uber or Pinterest a couple of years ago, either, but now they're household names.

The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones VentureSource track venture-backed private companies that have raised financing that values the businesses north of $1 billion. They call it The Billion Dollar Startup Club.

Uber and Pinterest are in there, and the other familiar names on the list include peer-to-peer lodging provider Airbnb, photo messaging platform Snapchat and payment facilitator Square. But more interesting are some of the potentially game-changing companies on that list that you may not know -- yet.

Palantir

The most valuable member in the club after Uber and Chinese smartphone maker Xioami is Palantir, with its $15 billion valuation. Safety online is a pretty big deal these days, and Palantir's a "big data" darling that lets companies analyze data to improve everything from their responsiveness to their online security. Its reputation is validated because it counts the CIA and FBI as customers. Palantir may never become a household name to the ears of consumers, and that would be fine. What matters here is that Palantir has become a household name in corporate boardrooms, and it has done exactly that with some of the most critical government, commercial and nonprofit institutions on the planet, helping them solve problems that they didn't even know they had.

Flipkart

The Amazon.com (AMZN) of India is a company that was started by a pair of former Amazon employees. Flipkart has raised $2.5 billion in financing with a valuation of $11 billion. Flipkart isn't afraid to follow in Amazon's footsteps. It has been rolling out its own line of tablets and other products, just as Amazon has done in recent years. It's a fair bet that you don't do any shopping online in the world's second-most populous nation, but always remember that Amazon started as a modest stateside bookseller in the 1990s. Successful companies start to make noise overseas, and Flipkart could eventually be a global e-commerce juggernaut.

Theranos

Folks weary of having tubes of blood drawn for a medical test may want to warm up to Theranos. The company with a $9 billion valuation is shaking up the health-care industry with a diagnostic test that requires as little as one-thousandth of the amount of blood being collected for traditional analysis. Beyond appealing to people who get woozy at the sight of a hypodermic needle, the tests are easier to complete and they're also far cheaper than current reimbursement rates. That was enough to get the Cleveland Clinic to tap the Theranos diagnostic test as one of the top 10 innovations of the year for 2015.

WeWork

The shared office phenomenon has been brewing in most major cities, but it's usually a local-minded entrepreneur who is at the heart of building a communal work space for indie contractors. WeWork is thinking bigger. Folks can pay as little as $45 a month for access to workspaces, and that includes discounts on business services. More established startups can pay as little as $550 for a glass-walled office within the complex. WeWork has set up 15 shared spaces in New York City alone, with a presence now in a dozen other cities. It all adds up to a $5 billion valuation for WeWork and a convenient way to work for many people.

Houzz

The smallest of the five private companies to watch is Houzz and its $2.3 billion price tag. It arms interior designers with access to people looking to spruce up their digs. You can browse more than 5 million photos, connect with 2.5 million professionals, and shop more than 3 million curated products. It may not be fair to call Houzz unknown. After all, the viral nature of its catalog of home ideas has helped it top a million followers on Facebook (FB). However, it's still early enough in its growth cycle to single out here.

Motley Fool contributor Rick Munarriz has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends and owns shares of Amazon.com and Facebook. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. Check out our free report on one great stock to buy for 2015 and beyond.

 

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Someone Filed a False Tax Return in Your Name - Now What?

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Crime Scene Do Not Cross cordon tape
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By Kira Brecht

It's not just credit and debit cards that cyber hackers are after these days. Criminals are also using stolen personal information to file fraudulent tax returns and receive tax refunds.

Tax fraud has increased substantially in recent years, according to Federal Trade Commission identity theft data. In 2014, tax or wage-related fraud was the No. 1 consumer complaint in how an identity theft victim's information was misused. In 2005, tax fraud stood at 4.8 percent of overall complaints, but in 2014, it jumped to the largest category at 32.8 percent, according to the FTC.

"Cyber fraud, such as the breach at Anthem Blue Cross, may get all the headlines, but criminals are stealing your personal information in places where you'd least suspect it to happen," says Steve Ribble, CEO of the Guardian Accounting Group in Tampa, Florida.

Cyber Thieves Are Everywhere

Cyber thieves rely on all sorts of tactics to gain access to your personal information. A criminal just needs your name, Social Security number and date of birth to file a tax return, and falsified W-2 information to attempt to claim a refund. "In some instances, the criminal would take a job in a doctor's office and gain access to your private data. Another tactic is calling taxpayers, claiming to be from the IRS and trying to get personal information over the phone or trying to scare the taxpayer into making a payment for taxes they don't owe. This year, thieves were stealing W-2s right out of mailboxes and filing false tax returns," Ribble says.

No matter which way you file -- electronically or through mail -- you can be compromised. If you are e-filing, make sure your computer has the most up-to-date anti-virus software, and that you are filing from a secure connection, not a public Wi-Fi connection. And don't "file from a link in an email purporting to be from the IRS. They won't email you," says Becky Frost, senior manager of consumer education for Experian's ProtectMyID.

If you are mailing your tax return, there are precautions you should take as well. "Send from the post office or other secure carrier. Leaving sensitive postal items in an unlocked mailbox with the pickup flag up is not secure," Frost warns.

The first clue you will have if you are a victim comes when you file your tax return. If you e-file and your identity has been stolen, your return will be rejected by the IRS. If you originally mailed your tax return, you will receive a notice in the mail from the IRS stating that someone has already filed using your Social Security number.

If This Happens to You, Act Fast

"Acting quickly and alerting your financial institutions and the credit reporting agencies to the fraud can help stop thieves from opening new accounts. Thieves don't just use your information once -- they use it again and again. The faster you respond, the less time they have to do damage," Frost says.

Jeremy Morris, product manager at H&R Block, says you should contact the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit at 800-908-4490 and report the theft. The next step is to fill out Form 14039, the Identity Theft Affidavit, available at IRS.gov. If you tried to e-file your return and it was rejected, you will have to mail in your tax return to the IRS.

Taxpayers may want to consider additional avenues, including reporting the fraud to the three major credit reporting agencies: Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. Also consider filing a police report and a complaint with the FTC, placing a fraud alert on your credit-report account and monitoring your credit reports for unfamiliar accounts or activity. Other steps:
  • Get an Identity Protection PIN from the IRS. This is a six-digit number created for eligible taxpayers to help prevent future fraudulent use of your Social Security number. If you have been a victim of identity theft, the IRS will send you a CP01F notice, inviting you to apply for a PIN. Also, if you live in Florida, Georgia or the District of Columbia -- areas with high rates of tax-return fraud -- you may apply on your own. In the future, you will use this PIN when you file your return. Any return filed without the proper PIN will be rejected by the IRS.
  • Be patient. It could take months to not only sort through this process, but to receive your tax refund. "Once you find out that your tax identity has been stolen, it can take six months or more to receive your refund," Morris says.
  • Protect yourself. Here's what you can do to help keep your personal information from being stolen: "Never leave your personal data lying around your house. Store it in a secure location, preferably a fireproof safe," Ribble says. "Never carry your Social Security card in your wallet or purse. You should be checking your credit card and bank activity statements on a monthly basis and report all suspicious activity immediately."
The IRS is acting to punish tax fraud criminals. In fiscal year 2014, the IRS initiated 1,063 identity theft-related investigations, and criminal investigation enforcement efforts resulted in 748 sentencings. "The IRS has been increasing the number and efficiency of identity theft filters and has been able to stop 14.6 million suspicious returns from being processed and saving approximately $50 billion in fake refunds from being paid," Ribble says.

 

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Don't Throw Away Your SodaStream Just Yet

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sodastream.com
The sales trend is problematic at SodaStream (SODA). The company behind the namesake beverage maker that fizzes up tap water has experienced four consecutive quarters of year-over-year declines in U.S. sales.

The negative momentum is accelerating. What began all the way back during the holiday quarter of 2013 -- when SodaStream conceded that syrup sales were falling in the in U.S. -- disintegrated through 2014. We've seen sales in the Americas go from a year-over-year decline of 28 percent during the first quarter of last year to a 49 percent plunge by the time the year's holiday quarter rolled around.

If you're one of the millions of people in the U.S. or tens of millions worldwide who have bought a SodaStream machine over the years, it's easy to question your investment in this kind of scenario. Is it time to store it in the attic, next to the Foreman grill and that cotton candy maker you used just twice?

This may not necessarily be your decision to make. SodaStream is a platform that requires subsequent purchases of carbonator refills and flavors, and slumping sales could lead local retailers to stop stocking the product.

Natural-Born Killers

Consumers are turning on traditional sodas, and SodaStream feels that it needs to switch gears. Late last year it announced that it would be shaking up its marketing strategy. It would be repositioning its product, promoting it as a maker of sparkling water instead of flavored sodas.

SodaStream took a big step in achieving that goal by introducing SodaStream Naturals, a line of flavors that do not contain high-fructose corn syrup or artificial sweeteners. A serving packs just 40 calories.

We're not talking about cola or root beer. The six initial flavors -- Kiwi-Pear, Apple-Peach, Passionfruit-Mango, Green Tea Lychee, Fresh Lemon, and Cranberry-Raspberry -- aim to cash in on the growing consumption of sparkling water, giving folks new ways to enjoy their fizzy beverages.

Water Works

SodaStream is replacing its "Your home soda factory" mantra for a "Water made exciting" tagline. It's no longer taking shots at Coca-Cola (KO) and PepsiCo (PEP), and not just because PepsiCo was rumored to be a potential buyer of SodaStream last year.

Repurposing its machine makes sense. SodaStream leaned on a third-party report earlier this month to point out that it's the leading source of sparkling water consumption in the world.

It may also be SodaStream's last chance to remain relevant. SodaStream expects sales to continue sliding through the first half of this year, and SodaStream Naturals is its best shot at turning things around by appealing to a new base of users. There aren't too many companies that have bounced back after their products show faddish tendencies, but SodaStream hopping on a trend that's actually growing could pay off if consumers believe that the turnaround itself is real and free of artificial sweeteners.

Motley Fool contributor Rick Munarriz owns shares of SodaStream. The Motley Fool recommends Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and SodaStream. The Motley Fool owns shares of PepsiCo and SodaStream and has the following options: long January 2016 $37 calls on Coca-Cola and short January 2016 $37 puts on Coca-Cola. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. Want a sweet deal? Check out our free report on one great stock to buy for 2015 and beyond.

 

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How to Keep Your Privacy in an Era of Pervasive Tracking

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Data protection
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By Mia Taylor

Shuli Hallak is in the cloud business. Storing data in the cloud carries risks, but she is working on a secure version owned, operated and managed by you. That privacy and security for data such as email, calendar and legal documents might cost as much as $100 a month.

"Privacy is a luxury at this point," says Hallak, founder of Invisible Networks, which works to reveal the physical infrastructure of the Internet, and of a company that will create boutique data privacy solutions for high-end clients. Hallak envisions her as-yet-unnamed company starting out as a luxury, aimed at people who can afford it or who need to afford it, such as lawyers and others handling sensitive information.

"We get all of these services for free on the Internet, and in exchange we give up our data," says Hallak, who speaks regularly about issues of data privacy and is among a rapidly growing number of entrepreneurs developing companies that offer data and Internet privacy as a commodity. "If you have your own cloud, you have complete control and you can let certain services access your data for a price. If a bank wants to access your data, there can be a price, and they pay a fee to you."

If you're wondering why one would go to such lengths, just think back to the Sony email hacking scandal (which at the very least disrupted a multimillion-dollar movie release), the nude celebrity photos stolen from Apple's iCloud and plastered over the Internet and that lengthening list of data breaches.

On the Internet, Everybody Knows You're a Dog

Or there's always the digital trail the average user leaves just by innocently browsing the Internet to be picked up by cookies, browser fingerprinting, authenticated tracking and more -- all letting companies monitor your activity to inundate you with targeted ads based on your search history. One search about foot fungus or legal assistance and you are forever seeing banner advertisements on those subjects during Internet sessions.

If you doubt the amount of personal information available on the Internet, just visit Pipl.com and enter your name to be shocked and disturbed by the depth of information about your life available to the public -- age, address, phone number, career history and more.

The $40 billion display advertising industry is built by intruding on the privacy of Web users, says Adriana Herrera, founder and CEO of GrandIntent, a new company that says it has developed the first advertising technology platform to put consumer preferences and privacy at the center of the ad experience.

The average Web user is being tracked by 100 advertising technologies each day, Herrera says. "Existing display advertising platforms do not ask permission before a cookie is placed on your browser to follow, track, profile and advertise to you," she says. "The tracked, profiled and collected information is sold multiple times with no consent from the consumer. It is also used to push advertisements to end users regardless of whether they have transactional intent or affinity for the brand pushing the advertisement."

Free or Cheap Alternatives Available Now

But even before these entrepreneurs sell you privacy, you can get some solutions for protecting your data and your profile for free -- or nearly free.
  • Ekko charges $5 a month or $50 a year and was launched in March by Rick Peters. Ekko can password-protect messages, redact them and set them to delete on read, after a predefined time or after a defined number of unique views. "Let's say I need to send you some sensitive information, like a password, I can set it up so that as soon as you view it, the message will be gone," Peters says. Ekko also allows users to search anonymously across all their messages and search engines. "This isn't about any sort of nefarious concerns," he says. "But you should have some concern that if there is all of this data out there about you, it's relatively easy to set you up for identity theft."
  • Private.Me is for truly private Internet searches. When browsing the Internet through Private.Me, your searches will never be seen, stored or accessed by any single person or entity. But you can still choose to keep and revisit your search history, or delete it forever. When you use Private.me, all your personal data are encrypted, sliced up and distributed between geographically dispersed nonprofit organizations set up to be stewards of user data.
  • Blur allows you to browse the Internet without being tracked or forced to provide personal information to log in or complete transactions. The app also provides a password manager, a masking feature for sensitive information and the ability to block ad networks and data collection companies.
  • Ghostery is a free browser add-on allows its 40 million users to see all the companies on a site trying to track you -- and to block those trackers. It shows you what the company calls the "invisible Web" of cookies, tags, Web bugs and pixels, as well as a list of more than 1,900 ad networks and other companies interested in your activity.
  • DuckDuckGo is a popular anonymous browser that doesn't store or sell data about you, meaning if you conduct a search about bankruptcy, bowling or binge eating, you will not suddenly be barraged by ads on those topics the next time you browse.

 

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The Next Big Automotive Boom: Super-Luxury SUVs

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Automobili LamborghiniYes, it's a Lamborghini SUV: the Urus. Lamborghini first unveiled it as a concept in 2012, and something very close to it is expected to go into production in a couple of years.
What do Lamborghini, Bentley, Rolls-Royce, Aston Martin and Maserati all have in common? They're all super-expensive auto brands. But they're also all planning -- or seriously considering -- adding an SUV to their lineups.

Not long ago, most SUVs were big truck-based workhorses. That has changed, as car-based "crossover" SUVs like Toyota's (TM) RAV4 and Ford's (F) Escape have soared in popularity. But those are mainstream models. What's significant is how that mainstream change is now starting to move far upmarket.

A Slew of Exotic SUVs Are Heading to Market Soon

The idea of a luxury SUV is nothing new, of course. Jeep kicked off the trend with its first Wagoneer model over 50 years ago, and Land Rover's Range Rover has been around almost as long.

But for a long time those were niche products, driven by well-to-do folks who needed the off-road capability -- and were wiling to live with the resulting compromises.

What has changed to make SUVs so popular -- even among the most well-heeled of customers?

That luxury-SUV niche has since exploded. Not only are Jeep and Land Rover thriving, but luxury-car brands like BMW (BAMXF) and Mercedes-Benz are selling thousands of crossover SUVs every month. Even luxury sports-car brand Porsche has gotten into the game in a big way: Its Cayenne and Macan SUVs account for more than half of its global sales nowadays.

And now, the SUV revolution is moving even further upmarket. Lamborghini, which, like Porsche, is now owned by the giant Volkswagen Group (VLKAY), has an SUV under development -- as does fellow VW brand Bentley Motors. Both are likely to share some parts and engineering with Porsche's Cayenne.

Meanwhile, Bentley's ancient rival, Rolls-Royce, now under BMW's corporate wing, has announced plans to follow suit with its own SUV. Maserati's Levante SUV is expected to enter production later this year. And Aston Martin recently showed an electric crossover concept called the DBX -- and hinted strongly that something like it is headed for production.

All these new models are likely to carry six-figure price tags -- some will be well into six figures. And it's a good bet that all of them will post decent sales numbers. Why? What has changed to make SUVs so popular -- even among the most well-heeled of customers?

"Cheap Gas" Isn't Responsible for This Latest SUV Boom

It's not cheap gasoline. That certainly hasn't hurt sales of larger vehicles, but this trend was well underway before gas prices fell last year.

What has changed about SUVs in general is that many of the old compromises are gone. Today's SUVs drive and handle like cars -- but cars with a higher seating position, more room for cargo, and in many cases better handling in snowy or slippery conditions.

TrueCar (TRUE) executive vice president Larry Dominque says that car-based crossover SUVs have become popular precisely because those old compromises have been largely engineered out. Compared to the truck-based SUVs of old, today's crossovers have much-improved handling, sleeker styling, and better fuel economy, he says -- while preserving the traditional SUV advantages of cargo space and all-weather capability.

That explains the popularity of models like Toyota's RAV4 and Ford's re-thought (read: car-based) Explorer. But why are luxury models like Porsche's Cayenne so hot?

In part, it's because technology now allows a crossover SUV like the Cayenne to have the same kind of taut handling and thrilling performance that buyers of cars like BMWs have long prized -- along with all of those SUV-ish virtues. But it's also a reflection of the much larger world market.

Aimed at -- and Supported by -- a Truly Global Market

Over the last few years, China has become the world's largest market for new cars and trucks. Outside of major cities, roads in China can still be rough. That, along with all of the advantages mentioned above, has helped make SUVs extremely popular with Chinese car-buyers.

Add in China's taste for Western luxury brands -- and luxury vehicles -- and it's easy to see where a lot of these new super-expensive SUVs will be heading.

But what's a little harder to see is that the size and tastes of the Chinese market help make the business cases for vehicles like these viable. Put another way, a Lamborghini SUV might not sell enough copies in the U.S. and Europe to make the development costs a worthwhile investment -- but once China is added in, the equation changes.

That, in the end, is why these super-expensive SUVs are coming to market: Because their makers think they can sell enough of them -- all over the world -- to make the investments worthwhile.

Motley Fool contributor John Rosevear owns shares of Ford. The Motley Fool recommends Ford and TrueCar. The Motley Fool owns shares of Ford. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. Check out our free report on one great stock to buy for 2015 and beyond.

 

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