Morning Update

"The more we do, the more we can do; the more busy we are, the more leisure we have." - William Hazlitt

Morning News of Note:

• CEO UCL CVX: U.S. Doesn't Need To Block Cnooc Bid -- The Threat Is Enough There is no good reason for Washington to block the bid by Chinese oil company Cnooc Ltd. to buy Unocal Corp. But it won't have to. The Sturm und Drang on the Potomac ensures Chevron Corp. is likely to win this takeover battle and make the matter moot. Consider: A Cnooc purchase of Unocal isn't a threat to U.S. energy security. (Full Story) WSJ
• TSCM: TheStreet Closes Research Unit TheStreet.com Inc. closed its research and brokerage unit, citing the firm's slow profit growth and shifting dynamics in the brokerage industry. In a press release Tuesday, the online financial news company said Independent Research Group LLC spent more than twice the amount it generated in revenue during 2004. The unit currently employs 40 people on Wall Street (Full Story) WSJ
• ATHR BRCM: Wi-Fi's Promise May Elude Investors WIRELESS NETWORKING, or Wi-Fi--the same technology you use at Starbucks and airports to surf the Web from your laptop--is about to morph into a kind of go-anywhere, connect-anywhere networking. That could mean the beginning of the end for now-standard computer networks. "The wired desktop will disappear in our lifetimes," says Craig Mathias, Principal with research firm the Farpoint Group in Ashland, Mass. (Full Story) BARRONS
• GDP: U.S. Economy Grew 3.8% in First Quarter, Survey Says The U.S. economy grew at a 3.8 percent annual rate from January through March, faster than previously estimated, as companies built up inventories, economists surveyed by Bloomberg News said before a government report today. The estimate for the government's final report on first- quarter gross domestic product, the sum of all goods and services produced in the U.S., compares with the 3.5 percent rate reported on May 26 and 3.8 percent in the fourth quarter. (Full Story) Bloomberg
• AAPL: Apple Upgrades IPod and ITunes Apple Computer Inc. released new software Tuesday designed to make it easier for users to listen to the increasingly popular, but largely unstructured podcast offerings. Apple, which also announced color screens for its iPod digital music players, said the new iTunes software comes with a podcast directory that lists more than 3,000 free audio programs. It also sports a new menu and the ability to automatically send new episodes of podcasts to the user's computer. (Full Story) Washington Post

Market Comments: The market is roughly flat in the early going, despite a very positive GDP report. 1Q GDP was revised higher at +3.8%, while the price component came in lower at +2.9% (benign inflation). Oil is also lower again on a higher-than-expected rise in crude inventories. This should help stocks build on yesterday's gains.

long BRCM