Quote of the Day

"Always listen to a man when he describes the faults of others. Most times, he's describing his own, revealing himself." - Malcolm Forbes

Morning News of Note:

• YHOO: Yahoo Buys Firm That Offers Calls From PC to Phone Yahoo Inc. said it acquired Internet telephony company Dialpad Communications Inc., in a move that will allow it to offer calling between computers and standard telephones. Terms of the deal weren't disclosed. Closely held Dialpad, of Milpitas, Calif., has about 40 employees. It lets consumers make voice calls from their PCs that are routed over the Internet to the conventional telephone network, with unlimited calls within the U.S. and Canada currently costing $11.99 a month. (Full Story) WSJ
• TWX: AOL'S WELL AGAIN Time Warner Cable may have a companion when it goes public sometime next year - America Online. Media giant Time Warner has considered combining its cable unit and AOL into one separate publicly-traded company, according to two sources close to the company. The option is one of many the company is considering for the future of AOL, which still generates plenty of cash even as it bleeds subscribers, and Time Warner is not likely to make a move until it sees if AOL's new plan to offer much of its content for free on the Web can be succesful. (Full Story) NY Post
• GOOG MSFT: Tech Firms Try to Conquer the Globe Google and Microsoft Compete to Offer Navigable 3-D Maps of the Earth A war of the virtual worlds is gearing up between search engine company Google Inc. and software maker Microsoft Corp., as the two tech rivals race to bring competing digital versions of planet Earth onto the World Wide Web. Where traditional, two-dimensional maps are already available online at sites such as MapQuest.com, projects underway at Google and Microsoft will eventually let users click around through immersive and interactive 3-D versions of city streets while sitting at their desktop computers. (Full Story) Washington Post
• AAPL: Apple Computer: Apple store increases wait times for Mac mini - AppleInsider (36.00 ) AppleInsider reports that Apple's online store now lists wait times for the company's Mac mini computer at 6 to 8 business days. For the past two months the Apple store had listed the Mac mini for shipment on "the same business day." An updated Mac mini with double the standard RAM and has been rumored for some time and is expected as part of the company's upcoming summer hardware line.
• Energy: OPEC Gulf Source said OPEC has pact for 2 stage cieling hike of 500k bbls/day; trigger for 2nd hike yet to be agreed upon // Iraqi June output 3.9m bbl/day; exports around 1.45m bbl/day -- Petrologistics // Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said he's monitoring demand for oil not prices; reits that refinery invesmtne needed; would need more customers to boost output currently; sees extra capcity from UAW, Kuwait and Saudi if needed // OPEC agred to implement new oil basket; OPEC to meet again in Sept as expected

Market Comment: The market opened higher this am on another bening report on inflation (CPI +0.1% vs. +0.2% consensus), but has since given up those gains due to a rise in oil prices. Yesterday saw another mid-day spike fade by the close. If today is the down day I have been looking for this week, I will likely use it to add (long) exposure to the market.