Justin Sullivan/Getty ImagesBy Jarrett Renshaw and Edward McAllister
NEW YORK -- U.S. motorists made the most of low gasoline prices by driving record miles in the first two months of the year, aided by a national glut in oil supplies, according to new government data released Thursday.
We had bad weather in December, January and February, and we still had growth.
It was the 12th consecutive month of year-on-year growth. Coupled with January's miles, the first two months of the year saw more driving than the same period of any other year since 1990, when records began.
"We had bad weather in December, January and February, and we still had growth," said Robert Sinclair, spokesman for AAA in New York. "We should continue to see that growth when the good weather hits and driving season begins."
Americans' driving habits are watched closely by oil traders, since U.S. gasoline demand accounts for about one-tenth of global oil demand. U.S. gasoline demand in January hit 8.7 million barrels per day, according to the Energy Information Administration. That was down from December's 9.3 million barrels per day but was the highest number for January since 2008.
U.S. gasoline prices have fallen with global oil prices and were around $2.30 a gallon in February, much cheaper than the previous year. U.S. gasoline prices were $2.49 a gallon on average Thursday, a discount of more than $1 a gallon from last year.
GMA big boost in Chevy Silverado sales helped GM's profits. But the company still has work to do overseas.
General Motors (GM) said that it earned $945 million in the first quarter, a big increase from a year ago -- but less than Wall Street expected.
GM has made big improvements to its pickup trucks and big SUVs, and cheap gas prices have helped push sales of both upward this year. That resulted in great profits for GM in its home market, but challenges in other parts of the world put some potholes in GM's road to fatter profits.
Boss Wants the Company to Make More Money
CEO Mary Barra thinks that the old Detroit automaker should be earning a lot more money. GM sells almost as many cars and trucks around the world as Germany's Volkswagen (VLKAY) and Japan's Toyota (TM), but it makes considerably less money.
Part of the problem is that for years GM didn't use its size to best advantage. Rather then selling a single lineup of cars and trucks around the world, like Toyota does, GM's regional units developed their own models, almost independently.
That added a lot to GM's costs, without adding much to its sales or profits. GM resorted to developing its products on the cheap, to try to save money -- but that resulted in cheap-feeling cars and trucks that would only sell with big profit-robbing discounts. Anyone who owned a GM car in the 1990s had a firsthand look at the problem.
GM does things differently now. Like Ford (F), which has used its "One Ford" approach to cut costs and increase quality, GM is reducing the number of different products it offers around the world, while spending more money to make its remaining products better.
Better Cars and Trucks Are Already Boosting GM's Profits
That's starting to pay off -- and if you've visited a GM dealer recently, you've seen the results. GM's quality ratings have risen sharply recently, to the point where they're close to those of longtime leader Toyota. And at least here in the U.S., profits are up: GM's pretax profit margins in its home region have now risen for seven straight quarters.
That's because GM's cars and trucks are a lot better than they used to be. GM's dealers can sell them at strong prices, without the huge discounts of old. GM has also received a boost from lower gas prices, which have led more buyers to consider pickup trucks and big SUVs. GM's were all-new recently, and they're strong entries -- and very profitable for GM. Sales of the Chevy Silverado were up almost 18% in the first quarter, and some of its new SUVs posted even bigger gains.
One downside to that success is that GM's share of the U.S. market for cars has fallen over the last year. Two of its best-sellers, the Chevrolet Malibu and Cruze, are reaching the ends of their lives. Car-shoppers who might have once given them a look are leaning toward newer entries now.
But that might change soon. An all-new Malibu will start arriving at dealers later this year; it's a big improvement over the current car. A new Cruze is expected next year.
Now, GM Is Focusing on Its Problems Overseas
Now, the challenge for Barra and her team is to sustain GM's momentum in the U.S. while bringing the same approach to GM's other operations around the world.
The changes may be most visible in Europe. For years, GM's Opel brand was almost a separate carmaker, running its own operations -- and losing billions of dollars. Now, Opel has strong new leadership, and it's tightly integrated into GM's global operations.
Opel's latest products are still distinctively Opels -- imagine Buicks infused with some German sportiness. In fact, the new Opels are closely related to the Buicks that GM sells in the U.S. and China (the impressive Buick Regal is also Opel's impressive Insignia sedan).
The mashup has improved quality and profits for both brands. Buick isn't a big player in the U.S. these days -- although it's gaining some ground -- but it has become a very popular brand in China. GM's sales in China have been strong, but its profits trail those of VW. Barra is working to change that by bringing more high-profit SUVs and Cadillacs to China, with good results so far.
GM's profits from China took a little dive in the first quarter because of the costs of launching some of those new products, including a sharp new crossover SUV for Buick called the Envision that could come to the U.S. next year. And GM faced some challenges in South America, where a slowdown in new-car sales led to a loss.
GM Is Still on Track to a Much Brighter Future
GM's first-quarter profits disappointed investors who hadn't foreseen the potholes GM hit overseas. That sent GM stock down sharply.
But the longer-term picture is still quite good for GM. Under Barra's sharp leadership, GM is continuing the job of fixing all of the problems that dogged it for decades, one by one. Already, its cars and trucks are a lot better, and its customers are a lot happier. As GM's ongoing revival continues to pick up steam, its sales and profits -- and its stock price -- should continue to rise.
Motley Fool contributor John Rosevear owns shares of Ford and General Motors. The Motley Fool recommends Ford and General Motors. The Motley Fool owns shares of Ford. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. Check out The Motley Fool's free report on one great stock to buy for 2015 and beyond.
Doing some spring cleaning? Now's the perfect time to make some cash off the clothes you want to get rid of. Local consignment shops can be picky and don't usually pay much, but there are some great online options that can not only make selling easier, but they can potentially get you more money for your unwanted duds.
If you're looking for the biggest bang for your buck, check out Tradesy. This site will sell any brand of clothing you have, as long as it's in good condition. Plus and petite sizes are no problem -- even maternity and bridal wear are accepted.
All you have to do to start is take a few photos of your items and assign your price. If you're not sure, they can suggest a rate for you. Once your item sells, they will send you a free, prepaid shipping kit, complete with packaging. They'll even handle returns, so you don't have to. Best of all, Tradesy takes only a 9 percent commission fee, which is the lowest of all the online consignment sites.
If getting the highest price for your clothes isn't quite as important to you as some quick cash, check out Twice. This site pays you instantly, even if your items don't sell. To get started, request a free selling kit to mail Twice your items. Don't worry about the shipping, it's free.
Upon receiving your items, the site will make you an offer and you can get paid right away. You can even use their handy online payout calculator to see which brands the site accepts, and how much cash you can potentially make. Keep in mind that while this site might not earn you as much as you'd get elsewhere, if you're a casual seller trying to unload some designer duds, this system can still be great for making a quick buck.
This season, why not squeeze a few dollars out of your old clothes? Give these sites a try and you'll see that you can keep your closet clean while making a tidy profit, as well.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
The Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) has finally recovered all of the ground lost when the dot-com bubble burst back in March of 2000.
That will go down as one of the worst busts in stock market history. After peaking at 5,048 in March 2000, the Nasdaq lost 78 percent of its value, far more than the Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI) or the S&P 500 (^GSPC).
And while the Nasdaq has been clawing its way back to where it once was, the Dow industrials have soared to 154 new record highs since then, and the S&P has racked up 116 new highs, according to data from S&P Dow Jones Indices.
The Nasdaq closed Thursday at 5056.06, up nearly 21 points.
So now what? Analysts and pundits often like to say: "it's different this time around." But is it really?
Grounded in Reality
In many ways it is. "It's night and day, the differences," said Bob Turner, chief investment officer of Turner Investments. He says valuations in March of 2000 were way out of whack. "IPOs were coming in left and right, coming public without revenue. It was speculation at its most extreme level. It was the tulip mania."
Gone now are most of the highly speculative issues like Pets.com, eToys or Kozmo.com, which now provoke groans or nervous laughter instead of visions to get rich quick. The Nasdaq itself is a very different index. Instead of having nearly 5,000 listed stocks as it did back then, it now has around 2,500. And in the go-go days of 1999, you couldn't read a stock market story that didn't refer to the index as "the tech-heavy Nasdaq." Yes, tech still plays a big part, but it no longer dominates the way it used to, and more importantly, there are far fewer companies built on a wish and a prayer. Instead many of the new tech leaders, like Google (GOOG), Amazon (AMZN) and Facebook (FB) have billions of dollars in annual revenue. And of course Apple (AAPL) is now the world's most valuable company, with a market cap of about $750 billion -- and a profit last year of $39.5 billion.
"Back when you had the Internet bubble, there wasn't really much of an Internet," notes Turner. "We'd do a dial-up connection on AOL that took forever to connect. ... But now everyone has a computer in their hand. Everyone has the ability to have hardware and software for a fraction of the cost it once did."
Mature, Calm and Rational
As a result, many analysts contend that today's Nasdaq is much more mature than it was 15 years ago. Market watchers say that trading now, especially on the Nasdaq, is very calm and very rational.
That's not to say that market won't have a correction or a downturn in the coming weeks or years, but most experts say another crash is unlikely. "To have a crisis you have to have excesses," according to Turner, "and it's hard to see anything that would be very disruptive to global market overall."
Still, many people remain wary of getting back into stocks after enduring the pain when the Internet bubble popped and again when the financial crisis hit in 2008. Many investors lost their nest-eggs, and are reluctant to go through that again.
For them, experts advise that they keep putting money into 401(k) or other retirement plans every paycheck, whether the market goes up or down, stay the course over the long haul, and invest in low-cost, index-based mutual funds.
NEW YORK -- The Nasdaq composite, the U.S. market index most closely associated with technology stocks, closed at an all-time high Thursday, surpassing a 2000 record set just before the dot-com crash.
Its record close of 5,056.06 capped a slow, unsteady climb from a 2002 low of 1,114.11 that spanned a recession, the rise of biotech and social media, and the explosive growth of smartphones that has helped make Apple the most valuable company in the United States.
The Nasdaq jumped as high as 5,073.091 on Thursday, led by shares of Apple, which has been among the biggest positive influences on the index in recent years. The index's last record close of 5,048.62 was hit on March 10, 2000.
The S&P 500 set an intraday high but closed shy of a new record.
Now that it's making a new high, I don't think it's just going to stop. It has the potential to go up, absent some external event that I can't predict.
Rapid growth in biotechnology companies such as Gilead and social media firms like Facebook, driven by the popularity of mobile computing, also helped lift the Nasdaq to its current levels.
Strategists say there is still room for the Nasdaq to rise.
"Now that it's making a new high, I don't think it's just going to stop. It has the potential to go up, absent some external event that I can't predict. I think the companies look as though they ought to power through this environment," said Walter Price, senior portfolio manager and managing director of the AllianzGI Global Technology fund (RAGTX) in San Francisco.
In 2000, "a lot of the high-growth companies were selling at 200 or 300 times next year's earnings. This is nothing like that. This is a whole different world versus 2000."
On Thursday, shares of Gilead (GILD) were up 1 percent at $105.21, while Facebook (FB), which late Wednesday posted quarterly revenue that missed analysts estimates, was down 2.6 percent at $82.41.
Shares of Apple (AAPL) were up 0.8 percent at $129.67, while Google (GOOGL) was up 1.5 percent at $557.46. They are the two top components by market cap in the Nasdaq. Microsoft (MSFT), which was the top component in March 2000, is now third, followed by Facebook.
The Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI) rose 20.42 points, or 0.11 percent, to 18,058.69, the Standard & Poor's 500 index (^GSPC) gained 4.97 points, or 0.24 percent, to 2,112.93 and the Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) added 20.89 points, or 0.41 percent, to 5,056.06.
The Nasdaq lost 78.4 percent of its value from the 2000 peak to its 2002 low 31 months later. From the March 2009 trough to today's record, the index gained 300 percent.
The End Is Near?
Stephen Massocca, chief investment officer at Wedbush Equity Management in San Francisco, cautioned that social media stocks within the sector will likely tumble eventually. "I don't know when it's going to end but I know how it's going to end badly," Massocca said.
Massocca referred to the dramatic rise of the Global X Social Media index ETF (SOCL), which was down 0.4 percent Thursday but is up about 15 percent for the year so far.
The Nasdaq composite's market capitalization is $8.2 trillion, compared with a $19.5 trillion market cap for the S&P 500, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Though the Nasdaq is heavily associated with technology, the S&P 500 technology sector is actually down about 21 percent since March 10, 2000, according to S&P-Dow Jones Indices analyst Howard Silverblatt.
On Thursday, eight of the 10 major S&P sectors were higher.
Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by 2,039 to 956, for a 2.13-to-1 ratio on the upside; on the Nasdaq, 1,659 issues rose and 1,061 fell, for a 1.56-to-1 ratio favoring advancers.
-With additional reporting by Tanya Agrawal, David Randall, Sinead Carew and Rodrigo Campos.
What to watch Friday:
The Commerce Department releases durable goods for March at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time.
Earnings Season
These selected companies are scheduled to release quarterly financial results.
NEW YORK and WASHINGTON -- Comcast's board was meeting late Thursday to finalize plans to abandon its proposed $45 billion merger with Time Warner Cable, according to a person directly familiar with the matter.
A formal announcement is expected as early as Friday, the person added, asking not to be identified because the deliberations are confidential. Comcast and Time Warner Cable declined to comment.
The news came a day after officials of Comcast and Time Warner Cable, the two largest U.S. cable companies, met with reviewers at the Justice Department, which is considering whether the deal would harm competition, and the Federal Communications Commission, which is considering whether the deal was in public interest.
Both agencies signaled reservations, though sources told Reuters it was the FCC's strong stance that particularly tipped the scales to drop the deal, which carries no break-up fee.
FCC reviewers told the agency staff at a Wednesday briefing that they planned to recommend taking the merger issue to an administrative law judge for a hearing, which would amount to the FCC blocking the deal.
That was the latest flex of muscle by the FCC under Chairman Tom Wheeler, who recently imposed the strictest-ever regulations on Internet providers and in 2014 helped scuttle a potential merger between wireless carriers Sprint (S) and T-Mobile US (TMUS).
Bloomberg first reported on Thursday that Comcast planned to drop its merger offer in the face of opposition from regulators. The Justice Department's antitrust attorneys were also nearing a recommendation to sue to block the merger, Bloomberg reported.
Internet and Video Concerns
The Comcast-Time Warner Cable deal has faced vocal criticisms from some politicians, media company executives and diverse consumer and industry groups, who worried it would create a massive monolith with too much control over what Americans do online and watch on TV.
This transaction would create a telecom behemoth that would lead to higher prices, fewer choices and even worse service.
The merger would create a company controlling less than 30 percent of the U.S. pay-TV subscribers, following promised divestitures. It would provide high-speed Internet access to almost 40 percent of Americans, according to SNL Kagan data.
"This transaction would create a telecom behemoth that would lead to higher prices, fewer choices and even worse service. We need more competition in this space, not less," said U.S. Senator Al Franken, a Minnesota Democrat and a vocal opponent, who called the news of potential collapse a victory for consumers.
Though the two companies largely don't compete against each other, opponents, including Dish Network (DISH) and Netflix (NFLX), have been drilling into the combined company's broadband reach and raising concerns about its potential gate-keeping power over the online video market, among others.
Lobbying Heavyweight
Comcast had argued the deal would bring faster service and better video services to more Americans, and it has sounded positive notes about the merger's fate until the last minute.
A heavyweight power broker in Washington, Comcast has spent $21.3 million to lobby on the merger and other matters since the first quarter of 2014, when the deal was announced, according to government disclosures. Comcast's chief executive, Brian Roberts, personally spoke with the FCC's Wheeler as recently as Monday, filings at the agency Thursday showed.
"I thought [opposing the merger] was an uphill battle and a real long shot," said Gene Kimmelman, president of Public Knowledge, a public interest advocacy group that fought the deal. He said Wall Street would now reconsider some aggressive deals.
If the deal falls through, investment bankers also look to suffer as they are worried about whether they will get paid, with smaller advisory firms particularly on edge.
Charter Communications (CHTR) had previously lost out to Comcast in a bid to acquire Time Warner Cable.
A Charter spokesman had no comment on the Comcast-Time Warner Cable deal or what Charter might do next. However, Charter's controlling shareholder, Liberty Media (LMCA), has indicated continuing interest.
At an investor day last November, when asked if he would pursue Time Warner Cable if the Comcast bid fell through, Liberty Media Chairman John Malone said, "Hell yes."
Greg Maffei, chief executive of Liberty Media, had no comment Thursday.
Shares of Comcast (CMCSK) closed up 0.8 percent at $59.23 and Time Warner Cable (TWC) closed down 0.6 percent at $148.76. Charter shares closed down 0.7 percent at $183.58.
The other day, I was at Chipotle frantically digging through my wallet looking for my gift card. I knew it was somewhere, but couldn't find it for the life of me. In the end, my "free" burrito ended up costing me cash, as my gift card was permanently misplaced.
Stores and restaurants absolutely love gift cards because of unorganized people like me. But with a few simple steps, you can easily protect those valuable gift card balances in the event you lose or misplace one.
1. Stash Your Activation Receipt
This is clearly the most obvious, yet overlooked, step to protect yourself. It's often overlooked because the gift card giver doesn't always include the receipt with the card. But if they do, or if you bought the gift card yourself, then by all means stash the receipt someplace safe. In the event you lose the card, you can simply call the retailer or restaurant customer service line and they can access your account balance via the activation receipt. They'll then easily re-issue you a new card.
2. Write Down Gift Card Numbers
If you don't have a receipt, then you can just put pen to paper and copy down the gift card numbers for safe keeping. While this can seem a tedious exercise for a measly $5 Starbucks gift card, you'll be glad you did if you lose a $100 Best Buy card.
3. Get Tech Savvy With a Virtual Wallet
Perhaps the most convenient and fool-proof way of protecting your gift card balances is using a virtual wallet like Google Wallet. You simply download the app to your smartphone (Android or iPhone), enter the card number, balance, snap a picture of the card (front and back) and the app takes care of the rest. You simply present the app when checking out, the cashier scans the corresponding barcode on your phone, and your balance is automatically reduced.
4. Not That Tech Savvy? Just Snap a Pic
If you're just not tech savvy and the idea of adding a gift card to a virtual wallet gives you a headache, I have an easy solution for you. Just use your smartphone or camera to snap a picture of the gift card numbers when you get the card. This is an easy way to access your gift card if you end up losing it.
5. Trace Your Footsteps
If you failed to keep the receipt and/or the gift card number was never recorded, but you used the lost gift card at least once online, you may still have recourse. Your card information may have been recorded when shopping online from the retailer's website. Whether or not your gift card info was saved varies by retailer, but when you are desperate to recapture your account balance, it's worth a shot.
6. Register Your Card With the Retailer
Many retailers and restaurants allow you to actually register your card with them online. Some of the more popular include Crate & Barrel, Starbucks and Tully's Coffee. By doing so, you get balance protection and a quick replacement card in the event you lose yours. Also, you can often use your gift card for rewards and earn free treats and reward points. The Starbucks gift card is famous for this.
Bottom Line: Treat a Gift Card Like Cash
By treating gift cards like cash (which they essentially are), you'll be more proactive when it comes to protecting their balances. By doing just a little bit of work to protect yourself, you'll never be stuck buying a burrito again after you were sure it would be free. Or is that just my story?
Getty Images
The cost of weddings can be outrageously expensive -- and not only for the bride, groom and their parents. The price tag for guests has gone way up, too.
An online survey of 1,882 adults by American Express finds that nearly 79 million Americans plan to attend a wedding this year, and they plan to spend a whopping $673 on each one -- up 13 percent from last year and 21 percent from 2013.
Travel and hotels are the biggest items, topping $400 per person. In addition, there's dressing up, dining out, buying gifts and other miscellaneous expenses. And in a growing number of cases, the big day has morphed into a series of days -- engagement parties, bridal showers and bachelor or bachelorette parties -- and gifts.
Multiple Outfits
"Having a game plan for wedding season can help you manage your expenses over the whole year," according to Jed Scala, a senior vice president at American Express. "It's important to know what you can spend and to prioritize based on the events you want to attend."
Along with the cost of travel, the big variables for wedding guests are the number of events involved, and the level of formality. Multiday affairs require several different outfits, and extra days in a hotel. And if the wedding itself is a formal affair, men may have to rent a tuxedo. You should expect to pay a minimum of $50 for a conventional tux, and $200 for top-notch designer formalwear, according to askmen.com. If you expect to attend more than two formal weddings, it may make sense to buy the tux. That will be $200 to more than $1,000.
For women, costs are often higher. "Think about buying something that you can wear again," advises Jamie Miles, managing editor of TheKnot.com. "It's really true that a little black dress can go a long way."
How Much for That Gift (Um, Those Gifts)?
The old rule of thumb was that the gift should equal the cost of the price-per-plate at the wedding reception, but Miles says that's no longer the case. She says the gift should reflect your own budget and your relationship to the bride and groom: $75 to $100 for a co-worker, $100 to $125 for a relative or friend and upwards of $150 for some you are very close to. However, rules are meant to be broken, said Miles, and the cost of a gift is "completely dependent on your budget. It's understood that everyone has a different financial situation."
If you need to buy multiple gifts for multiple events, Miles suggests dividing up an overall budget: 20 percent on an engagement present, 20 percent for the shower and 60 percent for the wedding gift itself. Pooling all that money -- or pooling your money with a group of friends -- will let you make a big impression by getting one of the pricier items on the couple's wedding registry.
The survey found that guests average nearly $106 on gifts -- more if the bride or groom is a relative. And while the wedding registry is still widespread, the survey also showed that cash is the most popular gift.
EHStock
Americans are embarrassed by their credit card debt but don't like to talk about it.
In a national survey, 42.4 percent of Americans reported having credit card debt, and the average balance is a staggering $10,902. According to a survey by the National Foundation for Consumer Counseling, 37 percent of Americans would be more embarrassed to admit the balance on their credit cards than their age or weight.
Why are so many of us afraid to talk about the problem that is haunting so many of us? And does our inability to talk publicly about debt cause bigger problems in the long run?
I Am a Failure
Credit card debt is viewed as a failure and weakness of character. People who spend too much are accused of living beyond their means, shopping too much and indulging in a life they can't afford.
And to a large extent, this is true. Credit cards make it easy to shop without thinking. If you don't have a budget, it is incredibly easy to spend just a bit more than you should. Countless studies show that spending with plastic means that we spend more. And we don't just spend more money in absolute terms. We will actually pay more for the same item. One of the more famous studies showed that, in some cases, people were willing to pay double for an item when they used a credit card. When we pull plastic out of our wallet, we are no longer savvy shoppers. Instead, we give into the temptation of the moment and build up a debt over time as a result. Spending $50 that we can't afford every week can easily turn into $10,000 of debt within four years.
But there are other reasons for credit card debt. Two of the biggest causes of debt are job loss and medical expenses. Fifteen percent of the population still does not have health care, and a big emergency expense can generate massive medical bills. If you are not prepared financially for a job loss, debt can start to accumulate quickly.
Having credit card debt is never a reason to celebrate. So, people with credit card debt are embarrassed and remain silent.
Silence Is Costly
Credit card debt is expensive. Most store cards charge above 20 percent, regardless of your credit score. And more than 75 percent of people with credit card debt are paying an interest rate higher than 15 percent. By refusing to talk openly about our debt, we make three big mistakes:
We become collectively delusional about the lifestyle that we can afford to live. We continue to buy clothes and eat in restaurants that we can't afford and slowly go into debt together. We end up borrowing to keep up the appearance of success, even though 40 percent of us can't afford our lifestyle.
We end up paying too much on the debt that we have. Because mortgage debt is acceptable debt, people will speak openly about finding the lowest rates from the best providers. But for some reason, refinancing credit card debt is considered a sin. And we are expected to pay high interest rates as punishment for our bad decisions. Banks profit from our fear of finding a better deal.
We lose the chance to help other people learn from our mistakes, especially our children. Because society judges purchasing power as success, we are afraid to admit to our children, our family and our friends that we can't afford something. So we pretend, slowly digging ourselves into deeper debt.
Since I started a price comparison website called MagnifyMoney, I have been able to help many people get onto a path of becoming debt-free. And after I help someone, I always ask him or her if they are willing to tell their story publicly. In the vast majority of cases, my request is declined. Here are some of their reasons: No one knew they were in debt. They were afraid of relatives and spouses finding out. And sometimes they feared that they would be judged. If you are not in debt, chances are the person next to you is in debt. We can pretend this problem doesn't exist, or we can help each other get out of this mess.
Start the Conversation
We need to start talking more openly about our debt. And we need to be more supportive of people trying to get out of debt, in the same way that we support our friends who are training for a marathon or on a mission to lose weight. Becoming debt-free and staying debt-free is a lifestyle choice, and it would be a lot easier if we all get in on it together.
But someone needs to be brave and speak up first.
A startup in California is trying to help people refinance their high interest rate credit card debt into a lower interest rate installment loan. Its name, Payoff, also reflects its mission. Payoff has faced similar challenges as MagnifyMoney: people just do not like to talk about paying off their debt. So, they started getting members of their team to talk about their own debt stories. And they are encouraging their employees to share those stories publicly. For example, Tanya talks about getting into credit card debt because of her marriage, and then finding a way out of debt on its website. We need more people to share their stories.
You Can Get Out Of Debt
Getting out of debt is possible. And it is even more likely if friends and family offer support. If you know your friend is training for the marathon, you would not be pressuring that person to skip training and join you at the bar. Equally, if we know about a friend's commitment to live debt-free, we can stop tempting them with shopping trips or nights our in bars and restaurants.
The mechanics of getting out of debt are relatively straightforward. You can cut expenses, refinance your debt to a lower interest rate and accelerate debt repayment. But creating a community of support is harder -- and more effective.
If you don't know where to begin on your journey towards becoming debt-free, you should consider downloaded my free guide, which helps you put together a plan. And please consider sharing your story with your friends and family. Once we start talking about it, we can start solving it.
Nick Clements is the co-founder of MagnifyMoney.com, a price comparison website that helps you find the cheapest bank accounts, and the best interest rates on your savings and your debt. He spent nearly 15 years in consumer banking, and most recently he ran the largest credit card business in the U.K. You can follow him on Twitter @npclements.
"My mama told me you'd better shop around," Smokey Robinson once sang -- and that sure is true when your put gas in your car.
"Gas stations obviously charge as much for fuel as they think they can, but there's not always a good explanation as to why one station charges a lot more than another," says Patrick DeHaan of GasBuddy.com, which recently analyzed 444 markets to see which have the largest spreads between cheap and costly fuel.
GasBuddy.com, which tracks real-time prices at some 135,000 stations across America, reviewed all of its 2014 readings and found that some locales saw nearly a $1 difference between what the top and bottom 5 percent of stations charged. Given that the average household burns some 1,164 gallons of gasoline per year, sticking to the lowest-cost stations and avoiding the pricey ones could save drivers in those markets around $1,000 annually.
Where the Spread Is the Largest
GasBuddy.com found the biggest price spreads primarily in California. Marie Montgomery of AAA's Southern California chapter believes that's partly because a small number of oil companies operate in the Golden State, meaning gas stations often pay sharply different wholesale prices depending which supplier they use.
She adds that many California cities attract tourists that stations in popular areas hit with high prices, whereas locals often know of cheaper places to fuel up. "We definitely recommend that drivers shop around," the expert says. Montgomery and DeHaan say people who live in areas with big price spreads can also save money by:
Using technology. GasBuddy.com and AAA offer free smartphone apps that can help find the cheapest gas along your route.
Refueling often. "You don't want to let your fuel gauge run down to 'E,' because then you'll be desperate and might be in an area with high-priced gas," Montgomery says.
Hitting truck stops. When in doubt, buy gas at truck-stop chains such as Pilot/Flying J or TA/Petro, DeHaan says. He calls them a "sure bet" for low prices because they want to attract customers who visit their restaurants and convenience stores.
These are the areas where GasBuddy.com found the biggest differences.
5. Santa Barbara, California (Average Difference 72.1 Cents)
This Pacific Coast community some 100 miles northwest of Los Angeles has lots of fancy neighborhoods and tourist areas where customers often pay big bucks for fuel. "Stations in the more-affluent areas of Santa Barbara are going to charge more for gas than those in less-affluent, borderline areas do," DeHaan says. In spot checks in April, GasBuddy.com found that recent local prices ranged from $2.94 a gallon at one Santa Barbara spot to $4.79 at a station in nearby Goleta.
4. San Francisco (Average Difference 76 Cents)
San Francisco gas-price differentials are about as wide as the point spread on Oakland Raiders games these days. DeHaan attributes the gap to hefty prices that drivers often pay in the city's central business district, where land for service stations costs big bucks. Recent Bay Area prices ran from $2.85 a gallon at one San Mateo station to $3.89 in Foster City.
3. San Bernardino, California (Average Difference 81.4 Cents)
The U.S. housing bust hit San Bernardino hard in recent years, but some parts of this metro area some 60 miles east of Los Angeles remain affluent -- leading to a big spread in gas prices. "You have have areas that are very expensive for gas and areas that are very cheap," DeHaan says. AAA's Montgomery adds that prices vary widely at stations along San Bernardino's heavily traveled freeways (Interstate 15 and Interstate 215) depending on how much competition a retailer has nearby. Prices in the metro area recently ranged from $2.89 to $3.49.
Washington's high- and low-priced gas stations have about as much in common these days as President Barack Obama does with the Tea Party. DeHaan notes that local business magnate Joe Mamo owns a big chunk of the metro area's service stations, which some D.C. officials claim leads to overpriced gas. (The courts have so far sided with Mamo, who didn't return a call seeking comment.) The District's prices varied by far more than a buck a gallon recently, from $2.28 at one D.C. Costco to $3.89 at an Exxon in Southeast.
1. Bakersfield, California (Average Difference 85.5 Cents)
Experts say prices in the region, about 120 miles north of Los Angeles, often differ depending on how close you are to nearby Highway 99 and Interstate 5. Bakersfield "is a pass-through community for the vast majority of people on the freeways," Montgomery said, so stations that cater to out-of-towners often charge big bucks, while those popular with locals typically get less, she says. GasBuddy.com found several retailers near Highway 99 and Interstate 5 charging $3.99 a gallon recently -- more than a dollar above the $2.73 that one low-priced station in nearby Shafter was offering.
Blend Images/Alamy
Whether you're out on a shopping spree to take advantage of a great sale or focused on buying just one thing, who doesn't like the chance to save 10 or 20 percent more? The ubiquitous offer of a store credit card with its accompanying signup discount can seem a tantalizing way to save. Before you start the application process rolling, though, stop and think about the potential impacts.
"Before you decide to apply for a store card, you need to think about whether the terms of that card are good, just like you would for any other credit card," says Matthew Goldman, founder and CEO of Wallaby Financial. "In general, don't sign up every time you're offered a card. That's a good way to get yourself in trouble."
Store cards do offer the advantage of a discount and other perks, and they can sometimes be valuable for establishing a credit profile or rebuilding your credit, but not all retail credit cards provide the same benefits. And on the flip side, the addition of a new credit card could backfire on your credit and actually lower your score if you run up the balance. Let's look at what these cards offer and what you need to watch out for.
Store-Only Cards or National Logo Credit Cards
Large retail chains often have both a store-specific retail card that you can only use in the store and a credit card that is co-branded with Visa, MasterCard, Discover or American Express.
"The main disadvantage of a store-specific card is that it's not honored at other locations," says Scott Bird, founder and president of Estate Preservation Advisors. "The major bank or national credit cards can have perk programs that far exceed [those of] your store-specific card, and the interest rates charged on bank cards are lower depending on credit score and other scoring criteria."
Goldman says that store-specific credit cards tend to have a higher interest rate than co-branded credit cards offered by many stores.
"Typically the card you're offered by a retail store depends on your credit," says Goldman. "If you have a lower credit score you're usually only offered the store card. But using a store card can be a good way to build credit if you're careful."
Bird says that retail credit cards with a national brand such as Visa or MasterCard offer a better way to improve your credit. "The credit cards you can use anywhere are more predictive of your spending habits and repayment pattern, thus having more weight in determining your credit score," says Bird.
When to Avoid Retail Credit Cards
If you're an impulse shopper or lack the discipline to pay off your credit card balance or to at least keep the balance low, a store credit card may not be worth the sign-on discount.
The credit limit is typically lower on a store-specific credit card, sometimes as low as $100, says Bird, and ranges into the low thousands. Co-branded cards typically offer a higher credit limit. "You need to be careful not to go over your credit limit or to use more than 50 percent of your available credit on one card because that can lower your credit score," says Goldman. "It's a lot easier to do that if you have a low credit limit."
Besides potentially damaging your credit, you could end up paying a lot of interest on a store card. "High interest rates for store-specific retail cards, which typically run between 20 percent and 30 percent, make unpaid balances very expensive," says Bird. "These charges can quickly exceed the discount for signing up for the card and, if left unpaid, can end up costing more than the original purchase."
Late payments and a maxed-out card can do a lot of damage to your credit profile, says Goldman.
When It Makes Sense to Get a Store Card
Building your credit with a store card can work, however, if you pay off the balance and make your payments on time. There are some other potential reasons to say yes to a card offer at the register.
"If you go to a particular store a lot or you're making a major purchase, opening a store credit card could be advantageous," says Goldman. "For instance, if you shop often at Nordstrom (JWN) and earn rewards points every time, then you can save money. Or if you're buying a new couch at Macy's (M), 20 percent off is a great deal. But 20 percent off a $15 shirt doesn't make a lot of sense."
Goldman says that some customers like to use a specific credit card for certain purchases as a form of budgeting, such as using that Nordstrom card for all clothing purchases, especially if it's a co-branded card that can be used at other retail locations.
"The Target (TGT) Redcard is a great store-specific card if you shop there often, because you get five percent off everything every day and free shipping when you order online," says Goldman. "A lot of store cards give you extra benefits such as 90-day return policies instead of 30-day returns, and free shipping."
Goldman says retail store credit cards are best for people who use the card in one of the following ways:
Shop frequently and spend a lot of money at one store.
Shop often across a group of brands owned by one retailer (such as Gap, Banana Republic and Old Navy).
Plan to make a major purchase that will make the sign-up discount more significant
Charge a lot to a co-branded credit card to earn rewards.
"People don't realize that they can save an average of $600 to $800 annually by using rewards credit cards," says Goldman. "But they have to be careful to pay the balance and protect their credit."
Comcast abandoned its $45 billion offer for Time Warner Cable on Friday after U.S. regulator raised concerns that the deal would give Comcast an unfair advantage in the cable TV and Internet-based services market.
The proposed deal had faced criticism from some politicians, media company executives and consumer and industry groups, who had worried it would create a monolith with too much control over what Americans do online and watch on TV.
The companies' decision to abandon this deal is the best outcome for American consumers.
"The companies' decision to abandon this deal is the best outcome for American consumers," U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement.
Comcast had argued that the deal wouldn't be anti-competitive because the companies had no real geographic overlap. The company had also agreed to divest some assets to help smooth the deal through the regulatory process.
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler said Friday that the merger would have posed an "unacceptable risk to competition and innovation."
The collapse of the deal is a setback for Comcast Chief Executive Brian Roberts.
"Today, we move on," he said in a statement.
The abandoned deal leaves open the possibility of an offer for Time Warner Cable by John Malone-backed Charter Communications (CHTR), which bid for the company last year.
Charter Communications was also involved in the Comcast-Time Warner Cable deal, having agreed to take on some subscribers divested by the merged company.
Malone, a cable pioneer known as the "cable cowboy," was asked in November whether he would pursue Time Warner Cable if the Comcast deal fell through. "Hell yes," he responded.
"We believe that TWC will get a bid from Charter in the next three months, which we expect to be lower than the market expects," Needham analysts said in a note.
The U.S. cable industry has been rapidly consolidating as it grapples with the rising popularity of satellite TV and Web-based entrants such as Netflix (NFLX).
Time Warner Cable (TWC) shares were up 3 percent in early trading, while Comcast (CMCSK) shares up 0.3 percent. Charter shares were unchanged.
Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesBy MARTIN CRUTSINGER
WASHINGTON -- Purchases of long-lasting manufactured goods in March jumped by the largest amount in eight months, but a closer look at the details reveals that businesses kept pruning their investment plans in the face of a softening U.S. economy.
Orders to factories for durable goods rebounded 4 percent in March after a 1.4 percent decline in February, the Commerce Department reported Friday. The result was led by a big jump in demand for commercial aircraft. Outside of the transportation category, however, orders fell for a sixth straight month.
The report was yet another false positive that looks good in the headline but is eroding away underneath.
More worrying was a 0.5 percent drop in demand in a key category that serves as a proxy for future business investment. The retreat followed a 2.2 percent drop in February and marked the seven straight monthly decline.
"The report was yet another false positive that looks good in the headline but is eroding away underneath," said Michael Montgomery, U.S. economist with IHS Global Insight.
U.S. manufacturers have been hurt by a labor dispute at West Coast ports that disrupted supply chains in the early part of the year. They were also hit with winter weather in many parts of the country that was harsh enough to disrupt production.
Moreover, manufacturers have been grappling with a sharp rise in the value of the dollar, which cuts into exports by making U.S. goods more expensive overseas. A stronger dollar also makes imports cheaper and more competitive in the United States.
Demand for commercial aircraft, a volatile category, jumped 30.6 percent in March after a 2.2 percent decline in February. Orders for motor vehicles rose 5.4 percent, and the overall transportation category expanded 13.5 percent. Excluding transportation, however, the weakness was widespread with orders down 0.2 percent.
Demand for primary metals such as steel edged down 0.2 percent, while orders for machinery dropped 1.5 percent. Demand for communications equipment fell 5.3 percent. Orders for computers and related equipment rose 11 percent in one of the few areas of strength in March.
Economists believe that overall economic growth slowed to between 1 percent and 1.5 percent in the January-March quarter. They are forecasting a rebound to growth of around 3 percent for the rest of this year.
Don Ryan/AP
There were plenty of winners and losers this week, with a "cheap chic" discounter quickly selling out of a hot fashion collection and a fast-food giant falling short, again.
The cheap-chic retailer was the place to be on Sunday morning when it began stocking a new line of Lilly Pulitzer items. The 250 items were supposed to last for weeks, but the line sold out online within hours -- and some store shelves were picked dry within minutes.
Yes, Target did get some bad press in the aftermath of the frenzy. The discounter's website was slammed, resulting in a temporary outage. Many initial shoppers simply loaded up their carts, turning to resale marketplaces to flip the items at a profit. There are a lot of things that Target could have done better, but it became the hot and trendy place to shop on the strength of another savvy fashionista collaboration.
Target was already starting to bounce back after the humiliating credit card hack that crushed business during the 2013 holiday shopping season and the recent retreat out of Canada. The quick run on Lilly Pulitzer should make this another healthy quarter.
The global banking giant was giving some visitors to its website in Hong Kong a little more interest than they were expecting. A link on its site was referring visitors to a pornography site.
How did this happen? It's an honest mistake. HSBC's site had a link to the Young Entrepreneur Awards that was scrapped in 2011. A porn site took over the abandoned website address -- a young enterprising move, one might say -- and anyone clicking on the link was being transported to the hardcore site. HSBC apologized for the blunder on Monday after nixing the naughty hyperlink from its site.
Nasdaq -- Winner
The Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) closed at a new all-time high on Thursday. This is the first time that it has happened in 15 years. Yes, this finally takes us to the dot-com bubble peak for the popular market gauge.
This doesn't mean that it's time to worry. Nasdaq companies are far more profitable now than they were in 2000. We can always argue that it doesn't account for inflation on one end or dividends on the other, but it's still a welcome mark to finally break through.
The world's largest burger chain disappointed the market again. McDonald's posted another problematic financial report with comparable-restaurant sales in the U.S. falling for the sixth consecutive quarter. It was also the fifth straight quarter that Mickey D's fell short of Wall Street's profit forecast.
The public has soured on McDonald's. The brand is tarnished. New CEO Steve Easterbrook obviously has his hands full. It will introduce a turnaround strategy on May 4, but realizing that there's a problem isn't the same thing as solving the problem.
The world's largest software company announced that it will open its first stand-alone Microsoft Store location outside North America. The first international location will be in Sydney, Australia, showcasing Windows PCs, Xbox consoles, Lumia smartphones and Surface tablets.
Microsoft seemed to be merely ripping a page out of Apple's (AAPL) playbook when it decided to open namesake stores and kiosks, but after opening 110 locations through the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico -- and a handful of store-in-a-store outlets in China -- Microsoft is back to hoping that its wide array of consumer electronics is enough to support a dedicated store at the other end of the planet.
Motley Fool contributor Rick Munarriz has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Apple and McDonald's. The Motley Fool owns shares of Apple. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. Looking for a winner for your portfolio? Check out The Motley Fool's one great stock to buy for 2015 and beyond.
Laurent Fievet/AFP/GettyImagesModels promote the opening of an Abercrombie & Fitch store.By Ashley Lutz
Abercrombie & Fitch has abolished its infamous "Look Policy" in which it recruited good-looking people who shopped there and referred to associates as "models."
The former policy "banned French-tip manicures, certain hair-styling products and, among other things, mustaches," writes Lindsay Rupp at Bloomberg. Now, "clerks will be referred to as brand representatives, not models," Rupp writes. "They still can't wear extreme makeup or jewelry, but the rules are gentler."
Abercrombie and its competitors have been struggling as young people increasingly spend money on smartphones and lattes instead. Abercrombie CEO Mike Jeffries retired in December after two decades at the helm. Jeffries' obsession with a preppy, attractive image was reportedly the reason behind the Look Policy.
In a 2006 interview with Salon, Jeffries himself said that his business was built around sex appeal. "It's almost everything. That's why we hire good-looking people in our stores. Because good-looking people attract other good-looking people, and we want to market to cool, good-looking people. We don't market to anyone other than that."
Changes in Marketing, Too
Jeffries also told Salon that he wasn't bothered by excluding some customers. "In every school there are the cool and popular kids, and then there are the not-so-cool kids," he told the site. "Candidly, we go after the cool kids. We go after the attractive all-American kid with a great attitude and a lot of friends. A lot of people don't belong [in our clothes], and they can't belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely."
Since Jeffries left, Abercrombie has made a lot of changes.
The brand has scaled back on racy ads and shirtless models and now sticks to more wholesome images for its marketing.
It is adding plus sizes.
Abercrombie is changing the appearance and scent of its stores. The brand removed the louvres, or blinds, from 240 of its namesake and kids' stores. This gave the locations a brighter appearance. It also reduced the scent of its Fierce cologne by 25 percent.
In the past, Abercrombie has been accused of excluding minority and plus-size customers. The company began an anti-bullying campaign which has reached an estimated 750,000 teens. Abercrombie sold T-shirts with saying like "be yourself" and "real is the new black."
Seth Perlman/AP
DETROIT -- Harley-Davidson (HOG) is recalling nearly 46,000 motorcycles in the U.S. because they could stay in gear due to clutches that won't fully disengage.
The recall covers certain Electra Glide, Ultra Limited, Police Electra Glide, Street Glide, Road Glide and Road King models from the 2014 and 2015 model years.
Harley says in documents that gas bubbles can cause the clutch master cylinder to lose its ability to fully disengage the clutch, especially if the bike has been parked for a long time. This could cause a rider to lose control of the motorcycle if it's started in gear.
The problem was found through customer complaints. Harley reported 27 crashes and four minor injuries.
Dealers will flush the clutch and rebuild the master cylinder. The recall was to start April 23.
Don Emmert, AFP/Getty ImagesApple Watches on display Friday at the company's store in New York's Grand Central Terminal.By Yasmeen Abutaleb and Teppei Kasai
NEW YORK and TOKYO -- The Apple Watch launched quietly around the world Friday without the usual frenzy or fanfare for an Apple rollout, as a handful of boutiques in major cities like Tokyo and Paris sold the timepiece -- but not for purchase at its own stores.
Shops included The Corner in Berlin, Colette in Paris, Maxfield in Los Angeles and Dover Street Market in Tokyo and London. Apple (AAPL) courted the outlets to promote the watch as a fashion item rather than just another techie gizmo.
The watch has been on display in Apple stores since April 10, when it became available for preorder. Customers began receiving the smartwatch Friday, though there were delays to June or later as Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook's first product has drawn more demand than expected.
I buy one or two Apple products every time they release something new.
Paired with an iPhone, the watch allows users to check email, listen to music and make phone calls. It also tracks a person's health, for instance by monitoring heartbeats or tracking calories burned during a workout.
A small group of Japanese tech addicts lined up in Tokyo to become the first to buy the watch, with about 50 people at electronic store Bic Camera in Tokyo's Ginza district while another 20 were at a shop of mobile carrier SoftBank.
"I buy one or two Apple products every time they release something new," Chiu Long, a 40-year-old IT worker from Taiwan, told Reuters, waiting at Bic. "I like to run, so the heart rate reader is progress."
In Berlin more than 100 people stood in line at designer boutique The Corner on Friday morning. First to walk out with an Apple Watch Sport was Alex Anikin from Russia, who waited overnight in line outside the store. "We came first at 11 yesterday, so [we have been waiting] 22 hours approximately," he told Reuters.
'Good Early Sign'
At New York's Fifth Avenue Apple store, dozens of customers crowded around watch displays and demos, even though they couldn't purchase the watch there. FBR Capital Markets senior analyst Daniel Ives polled customers at the store and said about 15 percent were there to either try or better understand the watch, which he called a "good early sign."
Several customers said they planned to buy the watch online after trying it, while others had already preordered it but had yet to see it in person.
"I wanted to check it out for the first time," said Steve Sosebee, a 49-year-old nonprofit chief executive who preordered the $349 Sport version. "It has a lot of functions that are useful, especially the fitness."
Reviewers say the smartwatch could make life easier for people on the move, but gave it poor marks for battery life and slow-loading apps.
Technology lovers and investors keen to find out the watch's components were frustrated, with a tough resin coating protecting the core computing module from immediate scrutiny.
Gadget repair firm iFixit, which has successfully pried open other Apple products on their launch day, said the U.S. company also appeared to be promoting the watch's inner workings, complicating a detailed analysis of its origins from underlying parts suppliers.
Gold Edition for $10,000 in U.S.
The lack of lines at Apple stores will make it hard to judge popular demand for the watch, which comes in 38 variations. U.S. prices range from $349 for the Sport version to $10,000 and more for the gold Edition.
Prices are higher elsewhere, ranging from 399 euros to 18,000 euros ($432 to $19,490) in Germany, and 299 pounds to 13,500 pounds ($452 to $20,415) in Britain.
A survey of 1,000 British consumers earlier this month by GfK, a market research firm, found 12 percent planned to buy a smartwatch in the next six months. But nearly three-quarters (73 percent) said they were ready to pay no more than 299 pounds, the cost of the most basic version.
Samsung Electronics (SSNLF), Sony (SNE) and LG Electronics have released their own smartwatches, many powered by software developed by Internet company Google (GOOGL).
Apple hasn't released any numbers since it began taking orders on April 10, although many buyers were told their watches wouldn't arrive for a month or more as the initial supply appeared to dry up.
Guesswork
Wall Street estimates of Apple Watch sales vary widely. FBR Capital's Ives raised his estimate for 2015 this week to 20 million from 17 million, based in part on online order backlogs.
The guesswork was backed up by sources on the ground in Taiwan, where many of the components in the Apple Watch are made. They told Reuters that Apple aims to ship at least 20 million this year.
More than 3,000 apps are initially available for the Apple Watch, according to the company. These are software programs especially designed to work in the confines of the watch's tiny screen.
Germany's Porsche said it is the first carmaker to connect its vehicles to the Apple Watch, allowing drivers to control the car's ventilation remotely, ensure doors are locked and find it in a parking lot.
Apple said Wednesday that some customers will get watches faster than promised.
-With additional reporting by Bill Rigby in San Francisco, Issei Kato in Toyko Rosanna Philpott in Berlin, Pascale Antonie in Paris and Melanie Burton in Melbourne. Writing by Eric Auchard in Frankfurt.
Beverage and snack giant PepsiCo on Friday announced a bold step to try to revive sluggish diet cola sales by replacing the controversial sweetener aspartame in its drinks.
Beginning in August, Diet Pepsi, Caffeine-Free Diet Pepsi and Wild Cherry Diet Pepsi in the U.S. will be sweetened with a blend of sucralose and acesulfame potassium. Aspartame has been linked to cancer in lab mice, among other potential health risks.
"Diet cola drinkers in the U.S. told us they wanted aspartame-free Diet Pepsi, and we're delivering," Seth Kaufman, senior vice president of the Pepsi and Flavors Portfolio, said in a statement.
In an interview, Kaufman described how Pepsi would market the change to customers. "We are going to prominently display it on the package that Diet Pepsi is aspartame free," he said. "And as we get closer in August to the launch we'll obviously have more of the holistic marketing plans fleshed out."
Coke Sticks by Aspartame
Like its rivalCoca-Cola, Pepsi has seen its beverage business weighed down by tepid sales of diet colas due in part to consumers' health concerns about aspartame. Coke could not immediately be reached for comment on whether it is planning any similar moves to replace aspartame in its products. In an interview on CNBC on Friday, Coke CEO Muhtar Kent reiterated that he felt aspartame was safe.
"I think the trends in diet are less negative than they've been, but diet is still under pressure -- there is no question about that," Pepsi executive vice president and CFO Hugh Johnston noted in an April 24 interview with TheStreet. According to Beverage Digest, Diet Pepsi sales fell 5 percent last year, whereas Diet Coke dropped 6.6 percent
Replacing aspartame is yet another step by Pepsi to address more health-conscious consumers, who are no longer responding to diet colas. Johnston explained the company is innovating around the still-large diet cola business to support its sales.
"The biggest opportunity here isn't the traditional old diet cola business," said Johnston. "It's tweeners, or those products with less calories than a regular [soda], but more calories than a diet." Johnston pointed to smaller cans for energy drink Mountain Dew Kickstart as an example.
Steven Senne/APA row of 2013 Ford Fusion sedans sit in a lot at a Ford dealership in Massachusetts.
DETROIT -- Ford is recalling about 390,000 cars because the doors may not latch properly and could open while the cars are in motion.
The recall covers certain Ford Fiestas, Ford Fusions and Lincoln MKZ cars from the 2012 through 2014 model years that were made in Mexico.
The automaker said Friday that a part in the door latch spring assembly can break, causing the latch to fail. If that happens, it's possible a door could fly open while the cars are being driven.
Ford Motor Co. (F) said two people suffered sore shoulders from doors bouncing back after they were closed. There's also a report of one accident when an unlatched door opened and hit another car in a parking lot.
Dealers will replace all four door latches at no cost to customers.
U.S. safety regulators opened an investigation of Fiesta door latches in September after getting 61 complaints about the doors. A dozen people complained that a door opened while the cars were in motion.
Ford said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is aware of the company's recall.
Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesTraders at work Friday on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.By Noel Randewich
The Nasdaq composite and S&P 500 chalked up record high closes Friday, propelled by strong results from tech behemoths Google, Amazon and Microsoft.
The Nasdaq composite added 0.7 percent to end at 5,092.09, its second straight record high close. The S&P 500 rose 0.2 percent to a record high close of 2,117.69 points, barely above its previous high of 2,117.39 set on March 2.
Amazon.com (AMZN) surged 14.1 percent to a lifetime high after revenue beat estimates.
Google (GOOGL) ended 2.9 percent after reporting higher quarterly results while Microsoft (MSFT) jumped 10.5 percent after it topped estimates.
This chapter that the Nasdaq is writing is more suggestive that it's a market that, while still technology-weighted, is much more mature.
The S&P had hit an intraday high of 2,120.92. The Nasdaq earlier reached 5,100.371, the highest since its intraday record of 5,132.52 in March 2000 that marked the peak of the dot-com bubble.
"This chapter that the Nasdaq is writing is more suggestive that it's a market that, while still technology-weighted, is much more mature," said Steven Baffico, chief executive officer at Four Wood Capital Partners in New York. "The companies in it reflect that, companies like Cisco and Microsoft."
Microsoft, Amazon, Google and Starbucks (SBUX) accounted for the bulk of the Nasdaq's rise Friday.
The Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI) closed up 21.45 points, or 0.1 percent, to 18,080.14. The Standard & Poor's 500 index (^GSPC) gained 4.76 points and the Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) added 36.02 points.
For the week, the S&P gained 1.8 percent, the Nasdaq gained 3.3 percent and the Dow added 1.4 percent.
"This is a case of the equity market looking a little bit forward to oil being less of a drag going forward, and that earnings in the second half will be better than they are now," said Anthony Valeri, an investment strategist for LPL Financial in San Diego.
Earnings Season
While markets are at record highs, March-quarter earnings of S&P 500 companies are expected to slip 1.3 percent, with revenues dropping 3.5 percent as the dollar hurts U.S. multinationals and low oil prices affect energy companies, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Xerox (XRX) slumped 8.8 percent after it cut its 2015 profit forecast, blaming the strong dollar.
Apple (AAPL) could be among the biggest market drivers when it reports results after the bell Monday. Results next week from several big energy names, including Exxon Mobil (XOM) and Chevron (CVX), could keep investors on edge.
Wall Street may get new clues on the timing of an interest rate hike when the Federal Reserve issues a statement following its two-day meeting Wednesday.
NYSE advancers outnumbered decliners 1,532 to 1,426, for a 1.07-to-1 ratio; on the Nasdaq, 1,456 issues fell and 1,246 advanced, for a 1.17-to-1 ratio favoring decliners.
The S&P 500 posted 17 new 52-week highs and 1 new low; the Nasdaq composite recorded 88 new highs and 19 new lows.
About 6.2 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, on par with the daily average for the month to date, according to BATS Global Markets.
-With additional reporting by Tanya Agrawal.
What to watch Monday:
Earnings Season
These selected companies are scheduled to releaser quarterly financial results:
Doing some spring cleaning? Now's the perfect time to make some cash off the clothes you want to get rid of. Local consignment shops can be picky and don't usually pay much, but there are some great online options that can not only make selling easier, but they can potentially get you more money for your unwanted duds.
