Financial News

Shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) are up today 1.6% but Altria Group (NYSE:MO) and Reynolds American (NYSE:RAI) are trading slightly lower as the FDA strengthens regulations to curb smoking by kids.  

Big Tabacco is going to do just fine outside the U.S. (i.e. Philip Morris), however the pinch could hit U.S. tobacco companies as the FDA plans to significantly curb adolescents' access to cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products. It would also keep manufacturers from marketing tobacco products for the younger smoker.

Palm Inc. (NASDAQ:PALM) its over and to quote the late and great Kurt Cobain or Def Leppard's "Rock of Ages" -- Its better to burn out, than fade away. 

Palm said it shipped 960,000 smart phones in the latest quarter, but sold only 408,000 devices.  They are fading, and today its shares are down 20% and hit a new 52-week low of $4.55.

Short sellers beware; stocks are seeing a buyer's market this week. Now that the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average have cleared major resistance levels - at 1150 and 10,700 respectively - investors seem to be comfortable being bullish once again... whether or not they should be.

Case in point: this week's big name technical charts. Intel (INTC), Exxon Mobil (XOM), and Alcoa (AA)

Blockbuster Inc. (NYSE:BBI) hit a new low today, 25 Cents a share, that's right, just one U.S. Quarter. 

BBI shares are down 33% today on very real bankruptcy fears, where shareholders could lose everything. 

General Electric (NYSE:GE) stepped up its game today,
the company plans to increase its dividend in 2011.  GE shares moved up 2.3% on the positive news and closed over $18 a share.

GE is big pimpin', spendin' cheese (Check 'em out now).

Sony Corp. (NYSE:SNE) is going to shell out $250 million to the late MJ, thus the Michael Jackson's estate is set to produce 10 albums over seven years, including previously unreleased songs and new packages of familiar ones.

Long live the Thriller (video attached of course).

Get ready for the S&P 500 to "Crash and Burn" just like the 1990 low budget Sci-Fi film starring Megan Ward and Paul Ganus (who? -- exactly).

Your weapon of choice -- Direxion Daily Small Cap Bear 3X Shares (ETF) (NYSE:TZA) trading today at $7.45 a share.

Tony Montana has nothing on the Wall Street minds that managed to destroy $1.75 trillion of wealth in the subprime mortgage markets. 

Michael Lewis in his new book, called "The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine," comes out later this week and it explains how everything went wrong with the executives we trusted the most, enough to make the legendary Scarface proud.

In Greece today an estimated 50,000 people took to the streets. Flights were grounded and trains suspended amid a nationwide general strike Thursday, as Greek police fought running street battles with anarchist youths in fresh and violent signs of anger at the government's austerity plans.
Usual morning news shows on local television were replaced with alternative programming. Many businesses were shut amid fear of violence, and police blocked main thoroughfares around the city center.

Go Gas and Oil! Summer Driving Season is upon us, time to go long the best in breed in the sector which includes Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO), Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM), and ProShares Ultra Oil & Gas (ETF) (NYSE:DIG).

Why fight it and get pissed these guys are going to cash in? Get rich with them.