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Canada’s Gold

    March 01, 2010

Frank at Olympics Canada vs US 030110I was lucky enough to be at yesterday’s Olympic hockey final between Canada and the U.S., and I’ve never seen better. The 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia, have a high mark to shoot for.

As a “TexCan” – grew up in Toronto, live in Texas – I was particularly proud to see both Canada and the United States turn in such outstanding performances in Vancouver. The U.S. finished first in overall medals, and Canada won the most gold medals ever at a single Winter Olympics.

The Games sent a message of peace and decency around the globe. The athletes competed with sportsmanship and class, and the combination of hard work (all of them) and good fortune (some more than others) made for a glorious experience.

Olympics Hockey Canada vs US 030110

In appreciation, NBC news anchor Brian Williams wrote a thank you note to Canada. Among other words of praise, he mentioned that he felt secure without seeing any armed guards, and that it reminded him of times past, when “we used to be a more civil society.”

Read thank you note to Canada

Sports can be a powerful vehicle to bring nations together, and as a global citizen, I hope the spirit of togetherness and kindness toward others is carried home from Vancouver by both visitors and athletes.

By clicking on the link, you will be redirected to ctvolympics.com. U.S. Global Investors does not endorse all the information supplied by this website and is not responsible for its content.

 

World’s Most Powerful People

    February 17, 2010

Powerful People 021710I was catching up on my reading backlog and came across a Forbes.com article from a while back titled “The World’s Most Powerful People.”

Of course, you see a list like that and you just have to open it.

The political leaders of the United States, China and Russia occupy the top three slots — hard to argue too much with that, though if the list came out today, the order might be different.

Batting cleanup is Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke — his considerable influence over the global economic recovery effort didn’t keep him from being raked over the coals by Congress during his reappointment hearing.

Next comes a run of businessmen — the co-founders of Google, Mexican multibillionaire Carlos Slim, media magnate Rupert Murdoch and then the CEO of Wal-Mart. Rounding out the top 10 are the king of Saudi Arabia and the king of Microsoft.

Further down you find the pope (#11), Warren Buffett (#14), the Dalai Lama (#39), Russian president Dmitry Medvedev (#43 — 40 slots below Mr. Putin), Steve Jobs (#57) and International Olympic Committee head Jacques Rogge (#60).

Not all on the list are using their power for good — North Korea’s dictator Kim Jung Il (#24), terror leader-in-hiding Osama bin Laden (#37), and Venezuela president and global agitator Hugo Chavez (#67).

Who makes these lists and their order is highly subjective and thus open to debate, so let the debate begin.

Find Out Who Else Made the List

By clicking on the link, you will be directed to Forbes.com. U.S. Global Investors does not endorse all information supplied by this website and is not responsible for its content. The following securities mentioned in the article were held by one or more of U.S. Global Investors family of funds as of 12/31/09:  Google, Wal-Mart. #10-112

 

Happy Holidays from India

    December 24, 2009

Frank in India 122409I am currently traveling in India but I wanted to take a moment to wish you happy holidays. Wherever I go in the world, travel at this time of year always provides a unique experience to observe how different cultures celebrate the winter season.

Though only 2.3 percent (about 27 million people) of India’s population is Christian, Christmas is widely observed by citizens of many different religions after it was introduced during European colonization.

Indians have several unique Christmas customs of their own. Instead of decorating a Christmas tree, Indian families decorate a banana or mango tree. It’s also customary to light clay lamps and place them on the top of their homes.

India’s largest holiday—Diwali—took place in mid-October. The “Festival of Lights” is a Hindu celebration and recognition of one’s inner light. During the five days of worship and celebration, Indians feast, exchange gifts and spend time with their families—just like the holiday season in the U.S.

I hope that you are able to spend extra time with your friends, families and loved ones this holiday season.

All opinions expressed and data provided are subject to change without notice. Some of these opinions may not be appropriate to every investor.

 

Harvard Names Top CEOs

    December 23, 2009

Top CEOs 2009 122309The Harvard Business Review is out with a list of the world’s top public-company CEOs. Apple’s Steve Jobs sits atop the heap, but the global natural resources sector scores well.

No. 3 on this list is Alexey Miller, who has run the Russian natural gas giant Gazprom since 2001. Two rungs lower is Mukesh Ambani of Indian energy and chemicals conglomerate Reliance Industries. Both Miller and Ambani finished ahead of the CEOs of Amazon.com, eBay and Google.

At No. 12 is Bill Greehey, who retired a few years ago from Valero Energy, one of the world’s largest independent oil refiners.  Also in the top 25 were the heads of Canadian fertilizer producer Potash Corp. (14), Brazilian steel giant Companhia Siderurgica Nacional (15), Russian miner Norilsk Nickel (22), U.S. oil and gas explorer EOG Resources (23) and British natural gas producer BG Group (25).

The infrastructure sector also fares well – a couple of utilities are in the top 25 (Finland’s Fortum and U.S.-based TXU) along with Japanese heavy equipment maker Komatsu.

So how were the top CEOs picked? Market cap growth during the CEO’s tenure was one metric, along with total shareholder returns adjusted both by country (to account for overall stock market performance) and by industry.

In Gazprom’s case, market cap has grown $101 billion during Miller’s tenure, and both adjusted return categories exceeded 2,000 percent. By comparison, Apple’s market cap growth is more than $150 billion under Jobs, and its adjusted return measures are both over 3,000 percent.

There is one key caveat: only CEOs that took over after 1995 and before 2007 were considered, whether or not they were still at the helm in 2009. HBR says this was to ensure that it had adequate and accurate data to work with, but it eliminated Bill Gates, Warren Buffett and a bunch of others who might have put up some pretty good numbers.

Click here for a slide show of Harvard Business Review’s top 100 CEOs.

By clicking the link, you will be directed to a third-party Web site. U.S. Global Investors does not endorse all information supplied by this website and is not responsible for its content. The securities identified in the article were selected for inclusion by the Harvard Business Review and may or may not be held by portfolios managed by U.S. Global Investors, Inc., whose holdings may change daily.

All opinions expressed and data provided are subject to change without notice. Some of these opinions may not be appropriate to every investor. The following securities mentioned in this article were held by one or more of U.S. Global Investors family of funds as of September 30, 2009: Apple Inc., Gazprom OAO, Amazon.com Inc., Valero Energy Corp.#09-886

 

Music, BBQ & Economic Clout

    November 25, 2009

Austin Best Performing City 2009The Milken Institute recently released its 2009 list of Best-Performing Cities Index and Austin, Texas has been named the best-performing metropolitan area in the U.S.

The index is designed to measure which U.S. cities are most successful in terms of job creation and retention, the quality of jobs being produced and overall economic performance.

Austin combines several advantages that put it atop the rankings. It is the capital of an economically powerful state (at $1.1 trillion, the Texas GDP is the nation’s second-largest and in the top 15 worldwide), and home to the well-funded research centers at the University of Texas, a thriving technology cluster and an extensive professional services sector.

Austin has plenty of local company on this year’s list – Texas claimed four of the top five spots and nine of the top 25. Our hometown of San Antonio came in at No. 11, up four places from last year.

Best Performing Cities Table 1122509

Texas cities benefited from a welcoming business climate and a housing market that has declined less than other markets. The state also benefited from its huge oil and gas industry.

The Northeast corridor of the U.S showed considerable improvement from last year, as 14 of the top 20 biggest gainers were from the region. After a rough 2008, the Connecticut cities of Hartford (#48) and New Haven (#88), and Cambridge, Mass. (#45), each moved up about 100 spots in 2009.

View the Interactive Version of the Report

By clicking the link to the interactive report, you will be directed to MilkenInstitute.org. U.S. Global Investors does not endorse all information supplied by this website and is not responsible for its content. All opinions expressed and data provided are subject to change without notice. Some of these opinions may not be appropriate to every investor. #09-825

 

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