4:20 pm : Just as investors breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of plummeting oil prices last week, lifting the S&P 500 to the tune of 1.6%, a second straight rebound in the commodity (+2.2%) prompted investors to consolidate gains across the board. Broad-based consolidation, also fueled by concerns of further Fed tightening following the release of the FOMC minutes and the largest gain (1.1%) in monthly leading indicators since June, closed seven of 10 economic sectors in negative territory. Today's pullback plays into our view that earlier optimism from Bernanke's testimony
Should You Stretch? If you're a stickler for stretching before exercise, think about bending the rules.
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General Health Tip
Good Carbs vs. Bad. Base your diet on whole grains, starchy vegetables, beans, soy foods, green vegetables and fruits -- foods served as nature grew them -- and you'll lower your risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and many major cancers.
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JESSICA'S DIVA DEMANDS
Jessica Simpson, 25, likes to act clueless, but she can swing her celebrity weight like a pro. According to a studio source, weeks before the press tour for The Dukes of Hazzard began, "we were bombarded with a six-page pamphlet of demands for Jessica from the office of her dad, Joe Simpson." Among Jessica's requests: paid accommodations for her hairstylist and assistant in the same hotel as Jessica; a wardrobe budget estimated in the thousands of dollars; cases of Evian water; and paid private... JEN FREAKS OVER ANGELINA'S NEW BABY JULIA STILES, GWYNETH PALTROW AND MORE!
Iraq Shi'ites call for revenge over mosque blast An Iraqi Shi'ite carries a weapon during a protest in Baghdad's Sad'r city February 22, 2006. Bombs wrecked the dome of a major Shi'ite shrine in the Iraqi city of Samarra on Wednesday in an apparent sectarian attack that sparked demonstrations and a call from the top Shi'ite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, for "suitable" protests. REUTERS/Kareem Raheem
12:23 am PT More On The Wires : VASCO Data Security Intl (VDSI)�announces that Banca Monte Paschi Belgio will use VASCO's Digipass 260 to add strong user authentication to the bank's Internet banking applications.
11:36 pm PT Yamana Gold announces the acquisition of Desert Sun Mining (AUY) 8.58 : Co and Desert Sun Mining (DEZ 4.34) announce a transaction which provides that Yamana will acquire all of the outstanding common shares of DEZ in exchange for Yamana common shares. DEZ shareholders will receive 0.6 of a Yamana common share for each DEZ common share held. Based on the 5-Day weighted average of Yamana's share price, the transaction price is C$5.47 per DEZ common share, representing a premium of 21.1% over the 5-Day weighted average price of DSM's common shares. The transaction is accretive to Yamana in terms of net asset value and longer-term earnings and cash flow per share.
11:31 pm PT Centurytel announces $1 bln stock repurchase program; increases cash dividend 4.2% (CTL) 34.83 : Co announces�that its board approved a stock repurchase program authorizing the co�to repurchase up to $1�bln of its common stock and terminated the approx $13 mln remaining balance of its $200 mln share repurchase program approved in February 2005. The board also increased CenturyTel's quarterly cash dividend to $.0625 from $.06 per share payable on March 17, 2006, to shareholders of record on March 6, 2006.