This post is part of a special report, Top Picks for 2010, the 27th annual survey in which TheStockAdvisors.com asks the nation's leading advisors for their single favorite stock for the new year. See all 80 stocks listed here.

"Our top pick for 2010 is engineering and construction (E&C) firm AECOM Technology (ACM)," says Geoffrey Seiler.

In his BullMarket.com the advisor explains, "AECOM, unlike some better-known E&C names, offers a relatively low-risk business model. It performs no construction work at all and thus has none of the lump-sum, fixed-rate contracts that other companies might sign."

Continue reading Top Picks for 2010: AECOM Technology (ACM)

Top Picks for 2010: AECOM Technology (ACM) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 07 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Investors in developing countries no doubt wonder which countries that issue debt are safe and which ones could default. CMA Datavision, a subsidiary of CME, has put together the "Sovereign Risk Monitor."

The Risk Monitor uses five-year credit default swaps (CDSs) and ranks the countries according to volatility. It uses the percent of change to determine the ranking of these countries. The new index is called the cumulative possibility of default (CPD). If, for example, a country has a 20% CPD, it has a one in five chance of defaulting in the next five years. Also included is their most recent credit rating.

Continue reading Which Government Debt Issuers Are Most Likely to Default?

Which Government Debt Issuers Are Most Likely to Default? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 20 Dec 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The numbers:

Dow 10,501.43 +29.93 (0.29%)
S&P 500 1,114.10 +7.69 (0.70%)
Nasdaq 2,212.10 +21.79 (0.99%)

Continue reading Closing bell: a lot of news and nothing to show for it (XOM, XTO, C)

Closing bell: a lot of news and nothing to show for it (XOM, XTO, C) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Gold has been on a tear, rallying to above $1,200 per ounce. Is gold vulnerable at these levels?

Commodity markets a quite unpredictable. Last week spot gold soared to a new high of $1,226.30 per ounce. The US dollar hit new three month lows. It seemed that all was well in wonderland.

Continue reading Is gold vulnerable at these levels?

Is gold vulnerable at these levels? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 08 Dec 2009 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The dollar rallied as traders reacted to heightened concerns about the ability of the Greek government to manage its fiscal debt. The crisis in Dubai is not going away and may take several months to settle.

In New York the S & P rose .7 to 1096.1. The Vix index, a measure of expected equity market volatility, rose 5.1% to 23.23.

In Greece, the Athens index fell 6% and the Dubai stock market fell 6.1% to a new 21-week low.

Continue reading Markets are rattled on fresh debt worries

Markets are rattled on fresh debt worries originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 08 Dec 2009 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Dubai crisis is not going away. Government owned Dubai World has scheduled a meeting with creditors to discuss the possible settlements.

What is most troubling is that the government of Dubai has refused to guarantee Dubai World's debt. That creates an international situation. While it has not been confirmed, it is believed that Standard Chartered Bank, HSBC, Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland and local lenders Emirates NBD, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank are key creditors.

Continue reading Dubai World to meet with creditor panel to discuss debt crisis

Dubai World to meet with creditor panel to discuss debt crisis originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

From TheStreet.com Network

• Dubai World, AIG: Tuesday's Headlines
• Cyber Monday Sales: Holiday Bright Spot

Continue reading Cramer on BloggingStocks: Dubai story lacks legs

Cramer on BloggingStocks: Dubai story lacks legs originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 01 Dec 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Oil prices head higher on Iranian controversy

Oil prices head higher on Iranian controversy originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Closing Bell: Dubai almost stole the day (AMZN, LVS, AIG, SOMX)

Closing Bell: Dubai almost stole the day (AMZN, LVS, AIG, SOMX) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 30 Nov 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Closing Bell: Dubai sends jitters throughout the market (S, BBY)

Closing Bell: Dubai sends jitters throughout the market (S, BBY) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 27 Nov 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Before the bell: Futures sharply lower on Dubai's debt problems

Before the bell: Futures sharply lower on Dubai's debt problems originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 27 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Now that it's reached 10.2%, the unemployment rate is higher than it's been in 26 years. That puts plenty of people on the hunt for work, especially since the unemployment rate doesn't reflect everyone who's been affected by the recession, such as those who have been unemployed too long or who are underemployed. Lacking alternatives at home, more Americans are heading overseas to find their fortunes weather the storm.

The number of people looking for international work through Manpower Inc. (MAN), the largest staffing firm in the country, has increased over the past six months. Half a year ago, Jeff Joerres, the company CEO, said that only a few dozen were looking for work outside the U.S. Now, it's up to 500. He tells USA Today, "It is a phenomenon we haven't had before."

Continue reading New U.S. export: labor

New U.S. export: labor originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

You can tell the oil market's in rough shape when companies are drilling more to pull in smaller profits. This is the situation in which Halliburton (NYSE: HAL) finds itself, with lower energy prices pushing down the cash that comes through the door.

So, its revenue was up for the most recent quarter, but earnings were down. The $262 million that came to the bottom line is 61% lower than the profit for the same quarter the year before.

Continue reading Halliburton earnings plunge 61%

Halliburton earnings plunge 61% originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 18 Oct 2009 10:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) are investment funds for government money. Essentially, these are for countries that get huge amounts of capital surpluses, such as China.

Interestingly enough, SWFs are running into some problems as asset values have fallen across the globe. A report from the Monitor Company Group indicates that these funds suffered losses of roughly $67 billion in the past year.

At the same time, there has been a reduction in capital infusions, primarily because of the drop in oil prices.

Continue reading Dubai sovereign wealth fund says no to investments

Dubai sovereign wealth fund says no to investments originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Late last Friday, casino giant MGM Mirage (NYSE: MGM) announced that it would provide $200 million to keep its $8.7 billion CityCenter project running.

This move should help resolve a "likely bankruptcy filing." Of the $200 million, $100 million should be provided by Dubai World, which is MGM's partner in the CityCenter joint venture. MGM stated that the funding is "with the authorization of its senior lenders" and satisfies the necessary sponsor equity contributions.

Continue reading MGM resolves a potential bankruptcy filing

MGM resolves a potential bankruptcy filing originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 30 Mar 2009 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

	Media Biz: What will happen when print media dies?
	Why the banks won't price their toxic assets
	Dubai: What goes up must come down
	Continental plane crash ends remarkable aviation safety streak
	Stocks picks and pans: MCD, CPB, CLH, POT, KO, VZ, TIF, HNZ ...

DailyFinance today: the death of print media, toxic assets, and Dubai falling originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 13 Feb 2009 18:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Boeing (NYSE:BA) delayed the launch of its 787 Dreamliner four times. That certainly allowed some customers to ask for penalties and it even may have allowed some airlines to cancel orders without financial consequences. Boeing has already reported a bad quarter due to weak sales and a worker strike. The recession in air travel and Boeing's tardiness in getting its new aircraft out the door may be about to exact a very large pound of flesh from the U.S. firm.

According to The Wall Street Journal, "A Dubai-based aircraft-leasing company called LCAL -- set up specifically to handle the Boeing 787 Dreamliner -- has decided to cancel 16 of the 21 jetliners it had on order."

Continue reading Boeing's (BA) future gets more bleak

Boeing's (BA) future gets more bleak originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 05 Feb 2009 10:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Sometimes in a recession, it's worth watching the little things for signs that the economy is getting worse.

Dubai is, by most measures, part of one of the richest countries in the world. It has vast supplies of oil, even though it is a small country Dubai is small geographically.

Yesterday, the news came out that a government-owned investment fund had fired 10% of its employees. According to the AP, "Istithmar World said Sunday it is cutting the 13 jobs because of 'external market conditions' and to match its resources with its current needs."

Granted, the price of oil has fallen, but the news may have a broader meaning. Middle East sovereign funds have provided investment capital to the West, including making large investments in some of the world's largest financial firms.

The U.S. government is still hoping that private capital will come into troubled U.S. banks so the the taxpayers are not the only investors. At the very least, the Treasury would like to see some of the money it has put into financial firms purchased by private equity operations sometime in the next year or two.

For now, it looks like the federal government won't get much help from formerly flush investors like the ones in Dubai.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Dubai firing investment managers originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 18 Jan 2009 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Forget Wall Street; what about Lujiazui? Cities fight to become the next New York originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 20 Oct 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Wall Street has a habit of riding its booms a bit too long. And that leads to collapse, layoffs, and hand wringing about the future. But it looks like Wall Street is already moving forward. And that means exporting its future by taking its finance franchise to cash rich countries and out of the canyons of Wall Street.

Wall Street's boom and bust cycles tend to eclipse a decade. In the 1980s, junk-bond fueled takeovers created massive amounts of wealth -- and also led to the collapse of junk-bond issuer Drexel Burnham. Wall Street licked its wounds for a few years and by the mid-1990s it had reinvented itself as the headquarters for Internet initial public offerings. That bubble burst in 2000. Then the Fed cut rates to 1% and Wall Street reemerged as a packager of mortgages -- along with servicing hedge funds and private equity moguls.

That all ended last August and the collapse of that bubble led to the demise of Bear Stearns and Countrywide and the loss of about $8 trillion worth of wealth. The New York Times reports that the latest collapse has cost 80,000 finance jobs as well. But Wall Street is already mapping out its future by following the money. And the Times pinpoints where Wall Street thinks that money resides -- based on the growth in the number of Wall Street people moving to various global money centers.

Continue reading Wall Street exports its future

Wall Street exports its future originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 12 Aug 2008 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.