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    November 01

    Fw: MEET CHINESE BILLIONAIRE LI KA-SHING // EMBARGO MIDNITE

    Look at this guy's name.... Nnnnnnoooooooooooooooooo- that wouldve been gold, gold I tell you.....,nnnnnnoooooooooo

    -----Original Message-----
    From: Bird, Laura (NBC Universal, WSJ)
    To: Bonin, Todd (NBC Universal); Kosowski, Ed (NBC Universal, CNBC); Gewirtz, Jason (NBC Universal, CNBC); Wald, Jonathan (NBC Universal); Sittenfeld, Linda (NBC Universal, CNBC); White, Rebecca (NBC Universal, CNBC); Mathisen, Tyler (NBC Universal, CNBC); Trivett, Anne (NBC Universal, CNBC); Fasbender, Bob (NBC Universal, CNBC); Aiken, Chip (NBC Universal, CNBC); Binder, Daniel (NBC Universal, CNBC); Egeth, Ellen (NBC Universal, CNBC); Connor, Jim (NBC Universal, CNBC); Wellons, Mary Catherine (NBC Universal); Levine, Matt (NBC Universal); Quayle, Matt (NBC Universal, CNBC); Reeder, Meghan (NBC Universal, CNBC); Dorfman, Michelle (NBC Universal, CNBC); Dunn, Nick (NBC Universal, CNBC); Domm, Patti (NBC Universal, CNBC); Schindelheim, Ramona (NBC Universal, CNBC); Fisherman, Rich (NBC Universal, CNBC); Taliaferro, Richard (NBC Universal); Contino, Robert (NBC Universal, CNBC); Ruggiero, Ryan (NBC Universal); Cannold, Sandy (NBC Universal, CNBC); Lewis, Steve (NBC Universal, CNBC Business News); Busby, Tom (NBC Universal, CNBC)
    Sent: Thu Nov 01 19:12:25 2007
    Subject: MEET CHINESE BILLIONAIRE LI KA-SHING // EMBARGO MIDNITE

    EMBARGO MIDNITE

    BILLIONAIRE LI KA-SHING, chairman of Hutchison-wampoa, INTRODUCES REVOLUTIONARY CONCEPT IN CHINA: PHILANTHROP



    By Kate Linebaugh

    And Jane Spencer

    Shantou, China

    Li Ka-shing, Asia’s richest man, is shaking up philanthropy in China.

    While multibillion-dollar donations by Western entrepreneurs such as

    Warren Buffett, Bill Gates and Mexico’s Carlos Slim are turning private wealth

    into a force for tackling social problems, philanthropy remains a radical

    concept in China. The Communist Party has long stymied privately funded

    institutions, from churches to schools, viewing them as a threat to its grip on

    power. And traditional Confucian beliefs hold that charitable donations should

    be done quietly, so as not to extract personal benefit from altruism.

    Now, Mr. Li, the chairman of Hong Kong conglomerate Hutchison Whampoa

    Ltd., is leading a growing group of wealthy Chinese who are challenging

    tradition and embracing a more open approach to giving. Last year, Mr. Li

    announced plans to give a third of his fortune—a pledge estimated at more than

    $10 billion—to his foundations that fund philanthropic projects around the

    world. The move will give the Li Ka-shing Foundation an endowment that rivals

    the $11 billion Ford Foundation, the second largest U.S. philanthropy after the

    Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

    “In the U.S., philanthropic support from entrepreneurs is tightly

    integrated into the fabric of society, whether it’s health care, medical

    research or education,” the 79-year-old Mr. Li said during a rare interview

    about his philanthropic work. “Now, slowly, China will know this.”

    Dozens of high-profile Chinese entrepreneurs are following Mr. Li’s

    lead. Yang Lan, a prominent talk-show host who is often dubbed the Chinese Oprah

    Winfrey, has donated an estimated $72 million to set up a foundation aimed at

    cultural exchanges, environmental protection and education, according to the

    Hurun Report, a publication that tracks philanthropy in China. Yu Pengnian, the

    85-year-old head of the Chinese luxury-hotel empire Shenzhen Pengnian Hotels,

    has donated close to $270 million, roughly 80% of his net worth, to health-care

    causes, including funding cataract operations for thousands in rural China,

    Hurun Report says. And Niu Gensheng, chief executive of Mengniu Dairy Group, has

    donated all his shares in one of China’s largest milk companies—valued at nearly

    $600 million—to a foundation devoted to agriculture, education and medical

    endeavors, according to the company.

    The Chinese government is gradually becoming more open to philanthropic

    giving as capitalism generates new concerns about wealth disparity. While the

    average wage in China is less than $200 a month, some 500,000 Chinese have a net

    worth over $1 million, and China is home to about 106 billionaires, according to

    Hurun Report.

    “As the wealth gap grows, the government is concerned about growing

    social discord because the poor are being left out,” says John Peralta, managing

    director of the consulting firm Global Philanthropic in Hong Kong. China will

    eventually “embrace philanthropy as a way to maintain social harmony,” he

    predicts.

    But today, many factors work against private giving in China. One is the

    region’s long tradition of family money remaining within a family. “In Asia, our

    traditional values encourage and even demand that wealth and means pass through

    lineage as an imperative duty,” Mr. Li said last September, shortly after he

    announced the donation. He called on Asia to “transcend this traditional

    belief.”

    China has no comprehensive law on charitable giving. There’s no

    requirement, for instance, that charities disclose information on their

    activities or works, which can lead to suspicions among the public about their

    activities. Moreover, Beijing still requires that all donations be funneled

    through the government.

    But the government is growing more accepting of philanthropy. A major

    report released at the 17th Party Congress in October said China’s

    social-welfare programs should be “complemented with charity programs.” “There

    are high expectations for a comprehensive law on philanthropy in China,” says

    Liu Youping, chief editor of China Philanthropy Times, which is published by the

    Ministry of Civil Affairs. The ministry couldn’t be reached for comment.

    In the meantime, donors tend to stick to causes considered “safe,” like

    health care, to avoid conflicts with officials. But not even all health-related

    donations pass muster. Earlier this year, the government shut several offices of

    the China Orchid AIDS Project, which provided funding to AIDS patients, and

    detained the organization’s head. Many saw the move as a warning to charities

    about the risks of getting involved with causes considered controversial by the

    government.

    In China, Mr. Li has stuck to relatively uncontroversial causes, such as

    education. At a leafy university campus near his childhood home in southern

    China, Mr. Li has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to build Shantou

    University, and is helping shape the school’s unusually global curriculum.

    Starbucks Coffee Co. founder Howard Schultz lectured students on

    business ethics last year. Former CNN correspondent Peter Arnett has been

    teaching journalism since February. Three U.S. congressmen came through in April

    to discuss the U.S. political system. And a crew of former NBA stars was

    recently hired to help Shantou’s basketball squad with their bounce passes.

    Born in China in 1928, Mr. Li fled to Hong Kong with his family in 1940

    after Japanese troops began bombing his village. In his teens, he lost his

    father to tuberculosis and had to drop out of school, which he never formally

    finished. From then, Mr. Li saved his paychecks from a Hong Kong watch factory

    and, in his early 20s, bought a plastics factory that became the largest

    supplier of plastic flowers in Asia. The father of two says he had enough money

    at 30 to last his entire life.

    Now, as chairman of Hutchison Whampoa and Cheung Kong, he sits on top of

    a business empire that operates in 55 countries and employs 220,000 people

    working in retail, telecommunications and ports. His personal stake is valued at

    over $30 billion.

    In Hong Kong, his rags-to-riches story has bred as much resentment as

    admiration. Many locals refer to the 5-foot 6-inch Mr. Li as “Superman” for his

    ability to time markets. His detractors resent the control his businesses have

    over the economy of the capitalist enclave, and at times have attacked his

    philanthropy.

    In 2005, Mr. Li’s foundation gave one billion Hong Kong dollars (about

    US$128 million) to the medical school of Hong Kong University, which renamed the

    school the Li Ka-shing Faculty of Medicine. That prompted street protests by

    some university graduates who said it amounted to Mr. Li buying the name of a

    storied institution. Mr. Li dismisses the accusations as “jealousy,” and says

    his donations don’t have any correlation to his business interests.

    While Western philanthropists face increasing pressure to bring

    accountability and transparency to their work, Mr. Li’s charitable deeds remain

    opaque. He won’t provide any estimate of his net worth, or the exact amount he

    plans to give away. He says he is “70% of the way” toward donating a third of

    his fortune to the foundation, though he won’t disclose how much that is.

    Mr. Li is spry, sharp and very engaged in his work. He says he wakes

    around 5 a.m. and plays golf about four times a week. He wears an inexpensive

    Seiko wristwatch, which he sets 20 minutes fast.

    His project at Shantou has grown from an empty field 20 years ago into a

    compact campus with a man-made lake, nine schools—including one of China’s best

    medical schools—and a $20 million library that is under construction. For nearly

    two decades, Mr. Li passively funded the school, and left the curriculum in the

    hands of government bureaucrats. But several years ago, when the school’s

    mission seemed adrift, Mr. Li assigned Solina Chau, his personal companion and

    the director of the Li Ka-shing Foundation, to take a more active role in the

    school’s affairs.

    Since then, Ms. Chau, who provides much of the strategic vision that

    drives Mr. Li’s foundation, brought in a new cast of academics, administrators

    and scientists largely educated outside of China as part of an effort to turn a

    second-rate college in a depressed coastal town into one of China’s top

    universities.

    The changes haven’t been easy. Even the smallest have involved

    negotiations with local officials, the local Communist Party and the

    university’s state employees. The university, for example, was reluctant to keep

    the cafeteria open most of the day, as many Western universities do, to allow

    students more flexible schedules. At Chinese universities, cafeterias are open

    for only a brief window at lunch and dinner.

    China’s educational system has traditionally stressed rote memorization

    over critical thinking. But the educators at Shantou are trying to create a new

    educational paradigm for China that is more open to debate, discussion,

    creativity and freedom. “If you can’t do it in a university, how can you do it

    in society?” says Gu Peihua, the university’s vice president, who moved to

    Shantou from Calgary, Canada. “You’re changing people’s behavior.”

    —Sue Feng contributed to this article.



    Laura Bird

    News Editor

    The Wall Street Journal/CNBC

    201/735-3073



    April 16

    Fw: Ka Ching Post and Possible Segment

    Monday post

    -----Original Message-----
    From: Navarro, Peter <PeterNav@uci.edu>
    To: McCandless, Bill (NBC Universal, CNBC)
    Sent: Sun Apr 15 20:00:50 2007
    Subject: Ka Ching Post and Possible Segment

    Hey BIll,

    Here's a Ka-Ching! post and fodder for a possible segment.

    best,

    peter navarro


    POST FOR Ka-Ching! Blog



    GETTING RICH ON GLOBAL WARMING

    Just about everyone agrees something needs to be done about global warming, but there still is no consensus on just what to do. The most efficient policy economically is simply to tax CO2 emissions, but this solution is the least politically viable. A second approach would be to subsidize efforts to cut CO2 emissions – from promoting wind farms to helping industry pay for its pollution control technologies – but that is a recipe for breaking the government bank. That leaves carbon emission trading – a $30 billion industry which will grow close to 20% annually over the next several years.

    Peter Navarro is a CNBC contributor, business professor at the University of California-Irvine, and author of The Coming China Wars <http://www.amazon.com/dp/0132281287?tag=peternavarroc-20&camp=14573&creative=327641&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=0132281287&adid=1DMQEJ3T6V1FT635Z3FX&> . His commentary provides some useful background for investors on the coming boom in emissions trading – and how investors might be able to capitalize on that boom.


    WHAT IS EMISSIONS TRADING AND WHO IS DOING IT?


    The biggest emissions trading program is the European pilot project set up under the Kyoto Protocol but Great Britain, Japan, Australia, and the state of California are all considering instituting programs.

    The idea of an emissions trading program is for the government to first set a cap on emissions at a target level. Then the government issues permits to companies that tell them how much they are allowed to pollute over time. If a company pollutes less than its target, it can sell its credits. If it pollutes more, it pays a penalty and must buy credits.

    The European program also allows companies to create new credits which can be traded by funding emissions-reducing projects such as wind power in poorer countries. China, by the way, dominates this market, with nearly two thirds of new credits.


    WHAT CAN GO WRONG?


    In order for emissions trading to work correctly, the government has to set the various industry caps at levels low enough to provide for meaningful carbon reductions. Because industry lobbyists are powerful, that might not happen. This is the problem that has plagued the pilot project being run by the Eurozone under the banner of the Kyoto Treaty. The targets were far too easy to meet. As a result, the price of credits has plunged, and rather than reduce emissions under the program, emissions will actually rise.

    This is not the only problem. If implemented poorly, the result can be extreme inefficiency. A case in point was offered up recently by Nature magazine. It cost $6 billion to reduce emissions of the HFC-23, a powerful greenhouse gas, which could have been reduced by buying about $130 million of equipment upgrades.

    The biggest problem of all is that polluters may game the system by building heavily polluting facilities which they can then make a buck off of by cleaning up and selling credits.


    HOW CAN IINVESTORS MAKE MONEY OFF GLOBAL WARMING AND EMISIONS TRADING?


    Carbon emissions trading already is very big business – close to $30 billion a year and rising rapidly. One play here is Goldman Sachs. It has bought a 10% stake in the London-listed carbon trader Climate Exchange. More broadly, a report by Credit Suisse recently recommended buying 14 stocks “including Toshiba, the biggest Japanese supplier of nuclear power reactors; NGK, a maker of exhaust filters; and Toyota Motor, the maker of the world's best-selling gasoline-electric hybrid cars. … More than 100 new nuclear reactors are scheduled for construction worldwide by 2020.”

    Emissions trading systems will provide a further boost to renewable energy and pollution control technologies. Those companies that can provide technologies to reduce carbon most cost effectively, will reap the greatest rewards.



























































    December 01

    EXCLUSIVE: Publicis Will NOT Buy Interpublic

    Saatchi & Saatchi CEO Kevin Roberts telling us Friday ight there is no consideration of such an offer- nor will there be an offer for Interpublic. Saturday's NY Post reports the company is considering the bid, guess they didn't bother listening to board member Roberts who told us : "Why would we be interested in doing that? You would create a big media company. It would be a backwards company. I would hope with the industry moving the way it's moving, we would look more forward. Interpublic looks like rear view mirror."

    Earlier Friday AdAge reported: Publicis Groupe is expected to conduct preliminary internal discussions next week about whether to attempt an acquisition of Interpublic Group of Cos., a move that would combine two of the ad industry's largest players and create a $12 billion leviathan with a client list topped by the world's two largest automakers and two of the world's largest package-goods players.

    November 30

    The iPhone is here!

    We're just now going over the patent for the phone/ipod- we'll have more as we get it.
     
    First look- it is a the Mini casing with a phone in it- we don't see a key pad-
     
     
    We're on this and we'll have it all tonight!
    applephone11-30-2006.jpg
     
     
    November 29

    SoMuchGoingOn

    let's start with Apple- closing in on $100- it is an iPod/Mac Christmas- the stock is telling you the things are selling faster than ever, also the game wars are stunning today the Wii and PS3 and Xbox fighting it out- and the winner may be clear today- plus Time Warner- we spent a lot of time hammering the way this company has been run- and now- as we noted recently- its getting better- much better- we'll explain why- and changing gears- NASCAR is not doing so well- once the up and coming sport- now its having engine trouble- how will that impact companies who spent big on cars and races. citi -vs- BofA- the bank battle to end all bank battles- can Prince save it? Has Ken already won? And Traveling either got really easy in Ny or really bad in NY- we'll explain why a new plan for check in designed to make life easier- may have the opposite effect.

    Phew!

    Ka-Ching!

    November 28

    Investing in Plastic surgery as a gift

    Gift certificates are increasingly available for face lifts and more- and that is boosting the bottom line and your profits.  "On the Money's" Jane Wells reports.

    Cell phone war shaping up

     
    As the major phone makers wait for Apple to enter the marketplace, they are readying improvements of their own. "On the Money's" Margaret Brennan reports.

    You Bought EMI?

    Remember those ads? Anyway- it looks like EMI is for sale and it is a bidding war- with even Bidu.com involved {!?} Also today- WE HATE OIL SPECULATORS! And we'll have a few on tonight and rough them up over oil's new spike based on, gasp! COLD WEATHER!!!!! Oh NO! NOT COLD WEATHER- you'd think its Winter or something crazy like that!!!!

    Anyway- what is Barry Diller up to- oh sure he's bashing the NYT- who doesn't!! But it's his spending of cash on the web sites that has us interested- he can't compete with the big boys- so is he beefing it up to sell it to some dumb media company? What's his plan?! We're diving in-

    Also- we call WTF on Joe Kennedy- those Teeth- that hair... anyway he's cut a new deal with the mayor of Bad Guy Island for more cheap oil- wait until you see the TV ads Joe K. is running! Talk about trading with the enemy! And is Dell for sale?!?!?

    Ka-Ching!

    November 27

    CNBC Holiday Central Poll

    Despite a huge turnout of shoppers on Black Friday and the rest of the Thanksgiving weekend, most Americans will spend less or the same amount they spent last year on gifts, according to CNBC’s exclusive Holiday Central Survey.

     

    Surprisingly, overall falling gas and energy prices had little or no effect on overall expenditures, according to the survey.

     

    And, one of the hottest subjects in the retail industry in recent years has been the controversy of whether merchants should say “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Holidays” in their stores and in their advertising. Most Americans, according to the CNBC Holiday Central Survey said they prefer “Merry Christmas” to the more non-denominational “Happy Holidays.”  Specifically, 41% of consumers surveyed said they want to hear “Merry Christmas.”

     

    Conducted by the same group responsible for the renowned CNBC/Wall Street Journal political polls, the Holiday Central Survey closely tracks consumer trends, on-line sales, specialty stores, big box discounters, and the factors affecting overall spending.

     

    Specifically, 46% of those surveyed said they will spend “about the same amount” they spent on gifts last year and 32% said they plan to spend less than they spent last year. The average amount spent on gifts last year was $764. Only 20% said they plan to spend more than they did last holiday season.

     

    According to the survey, 49% of consumers plan to spend most of their money at big box retailers like Wal-Mart or Best Buy, a 2-to-1 margin over department stores, including Nordstrom and Macys. Only 18% of consumers like the convenience of online shopping and will begin searching for discounts today, “Cyber Monday,” as online merchants kick off the online shopping season.

     

    CNBC announced the first results of the Holiday Central Survey today, Monday, November 27th, and will announce additional results in three successive installments until Christmas.

    Monday Madness

    Is Dell going private? Whoa. that's a game changer right? We're diving in- plus what in the world is Barron's thinking saying Google is a sell- they said the same thing at 360 - how's 140 points of wrong taste? And since the suits over at 30 Rock have decided to call Iraq a Civil War, what does Wall Street want- what does it want from the US and the world in that mess.

    See you at 7.

    Ka-Ching!

    November 25

    Consumer electronics are the 'it' gifts

    Despite the battery scare earlier this year, sales are expected to be good on items small – computers – and large – HD televisions. "On the Money's" Jim Goldman reports.

    Early Read on Black Friday

    The data looks good so far- as we have been telling you- the signs are there that this will be a big shopping season with great numbers- here's a line from Saturday's WSJ round-up:
     
    Overall, the number of shoppers who hit stores Friday was greater than anticipated by Bill Martin, co-founder of ShopperTrak RCT Corp., of Chicago, which collects data from 40,000 sensors in enclosed malls and strip centers. The research firm had been predicting a 2.5% increase in traffic Friday over the same day last year. But by late morning Friday, he said the increase in shopper traffic seemed likely to surpass that by at least a few tenths of a percentage point. "That's a pretty strong increase," he said.
    The article does its best to be positive - something that's hard for the Journal to do. 
     
    And then Later in the day from AP:
    According to ShopperTrak RCT Corp., which tracks total sales at more than 45,000 mall-based retail outlets, total sales rose 6 percent to $8.96 billion on Friday, the start of the holiday shopping season, compared to the same day a year ago.
     
    Photo
     With gas prices low- and crossover shoppers {use both on-line and real stores to shop} starting earlier- this is a going to be a strong sales season- we'll wrap it all up Monday with the first results of the CNBC Holiday Central Index.
     
    See you Monday!
    Ka-Ching!
    November 23

    Apple working on v.2 iPhone before first is out

     

    Before the initial model is officially announced, word comes the computer maker is busy working on an improved version. "On the Money's" Mike Huckman reports.

    Retailers go high-tech to stop shoplifters


    This Black Friday retailers are seeing organized gangs attacking their wares. But they are employing technology to fight back. "On the Money's" Bill Griffeth reports.

    November 22

    Sally Is Leaving Citi?!?!?!?!? WTF?!?

    CNBC's Charlie Gasparino reporting on market speculation that CFO Sallie Krawcheck is leaving. Gasparino says Krawcheck has stated that she is not leaving, but his sources say that she will, citing a difficult work environment. Gasparino says such an announcement would be a "blow" to Citigroup. Citigroup says the report is not true. 
    We're on this- this would be huge if she left- a few years ago she could have had ANY job on the street- and now she's at Citi, and that stock is going NOWHERE.
     
     
     

    CNBC Holiday Central Index

    CNBC TRACKS 2006 SHOPPING SEASON WITH EXCLUSIVE HOLIDAYCENTRAL SURVEY  BEGINNING MONDAY, NOVEMBER 27TH

    ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J. - Nov. 21, 2006 - And they're off! With the official start of the holiday shopping season this Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, retailers and investors alike are eagerly waiting to see if 'tis the season to be jolly.

     CNBC will have the answers with its new exclusive Holiday Central Survey.

     Conducted by the same group responsible for the renowned CNBC/Wall Street Journal political polls, the Holiday Central Survey will closely track consumer trends, on-line sales, specialty stores, big box discounters, and the factors affecting overall spending.

     CNBC will report the first results of the Holiday Central Survey beginning on Monday, November 27th, and then in three successive installments until Christmas.

     Monday also marks a special day of Holiday Central programming on CNBC, with every hour from Worldwide Exchange and Squawk through Morning Call, Power Lunch, Street Signs, Kudlow and Company, to On The Money, focusing on retail sales in addition to the regular array of instant analysis, debate, and breaking business news headlines. 

    Dating Help for Geeks

    PickUp 101 makes big money helping the brainy tech-oriented male learn to be more confident around women. "On the Money's" Jane Wells reports.

    November 21

    Tuesday

    Google roars thru $500- so is 600 or 400 next? We'll Blow Out Goog tonight and see what impact this giant is having on Madison Ave and on something called a Widget. Also- how good will Santa be to Apple? We hear some interesting things about supply and demand this season- and it could impact the stock. Also- the battle is over and XBox may be the winner- we'll show you why the Mr. Softie platform may already be the king of the box. Plus Jerry Bruckheimer has made billions at the box office- so how does he do business? How does he choose movies and why is he always right?! And making money off geeks who don't know how to date. It's a story you have never seen before!!

    Ka-Ching ! !

    Is Second Life about to Solve Real Life Copyright Issues?

    Second Life's real world problem

    Copyright issues come up in the simulated reality game, and the game makers come up with a novel way to address the problem. "On the Money's" Margaret Brennan reports.