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4A Daily News ��� Wednesday, January 2, 2013 Commerce business&enterprise Happy New Year! The holidays are always a busy time but looking forward over the next six months, the Chamber will be in warp speed mode. Now is the perfect time to get involved with the Chamber if you love public relations and special events. Email me at lisa.hansen@expresspros.com if you���d like to get more involved. Jan. 22-26 make sure to stop by the Chamber and Visitor���s Center booth at the Bull and Gelding Sale. Feb. 21 B.E.A.M on over to the Business Expo After-hours Mixer featuring a trade show where local businesses are showcasing products and services 5-7 p.m. at the Elks Lodge. We are going to pack the house with wall to wall businesses. Space is limited so reserve your spot soon. The public is invited, free admission. In April we have the 11 Days of Round-Up featuring the world are still working on a motorcycle run along beautiful Highway 36 renowned chili East up to Mt. Lassen with a cook off, business barbeque and poker run. decorating awards Let���s enjoy this beautiful at the Cowboy mountain in our own backCoffee, the annual yard. Round Up Saddle up. It���s going to Mixer, be a wild ride the next six Kiwanis months. pancake *** breakfast and Round Up New Red Bluff Member parade plus this year we Lepage Companyare bringing back the Tehama Rock Products, 645 Chamber of Commerce Antelope Blvd. Ste. 38, Red Cowboy Golf Tournament Lisa Bluff, (530) 529-9901, fax at Wilcox Golf Club plus (530) 529-9903, lepagethe fun and exciting rodeo company@att.net events at the Round Up, of course. Lisa Hansen owns Express In May don���t miss the City of Red Employment Professionals, 243 S. Bluff hosting Good Morning Red Bluff and then June will be a wild Main St. in Red Bluff, (530) 527ride with the annual Red Bluff 0727 and is president of the Red Crawdad Festival, Wednesday and Bluff-Tehama County Chamber of Saturday Farmer���s Markets and we Commerce. Hansen Investment outlook for 2013 clouded by uncertainty By Eileen Ambrose The Baltimore Sun (MCT) Usually by early December, investment professionals have mapped out their outlook for the next year. But such forecasting has been made difficult by the "fiscal cliff" ��� the confluence of spending cuts and higher taxes that kick in automatically in 2013 if politicians in Washington can't reach a deal. Some experts are waiting for the dust to settle on a compromise before outlining a 2013 investment strategy. But others say if it isn't the fiscal cliff, it would be the debt ceiling or some other Washington-manufactured crisis to worry investors. They recommend that investors look past the immediate policy crisis and think long term. After all, they say, most investors are saving for college or retirement ���goals that are many years off. "There is life after the fiscal cliff," said Craig Fehr, an investment strategist with Edward Jones in St. Louis. Even with all the uncertainty now, some experts feel comfortable making a few predictions for the new year. The economy, they say, will continue to grow at a modest annual rate of 2 percent to 2.5 percent. Interest rates will remain low, a challenge for savers and bond investors. The U.S. stock market will post a gain, but not as much as in 2012. The S&P 500 index, a broad measure of market performance, is up more than 12 percent in 2012. The market will go up by 6 percent to 10 percent, forecasters say. And no matter what kind of resolution Congress and the White House reach on the fiscal cliff, higher taxes and lower government spending in the coming year are a safe bet. "The debate in Washington now is what magnitude and who gets hit," said Wayne Lin, portfolio manager with Legg Mason Global Asset Allocation in New York. Here are other observations for the 2013 outlook: U.S. STOCKS: Several signs bode well for the stock market here. "A lot of corporations are loaded with cash. They have not spent it. They have not hired new workers," said Jerry Scheinker, an executive vice president with Janney Montgomery Scott's Baltimore office. "The economic numbers are better. The housing numbers are better. Clients are finally more positive about investments, instead of keeping money in CDs and Treasury bills and bank accounts." Chicago-based Morningstar tracks 1,500 stocks, mostly in North America. Under a formula that takes into account future cash flow and current stock prices, Morningstar concluded that the median stock going into 2013 was mildly undervalued. In other words, at least half the stocks are selling for less than they're worth. Lin also leans toward U.S. stocks, rather than international equities. He noted that currency volatility puts investors at exchange-rate risk. Some investment professionals recommend stock in companies that regularly increase their dividends, even though the tax rate on this income is set to go up. "Over time, those are the best performers," Fehr said. "We don't think that track record changes because tax rates change." Scheinker added that even if investors must pay more taxes on dividends, that's still better than earning meager interest on a certificate of deposit and paying taxes on that. I N T E R NAT I O NA L EQUITIES: For the past couple of years, investors have been wise to stick with the U.S. stock market, which has shown more stability than markets elsewhere, said Rick Vollaro, chief investment strategist with Pinnacle Advisory Group in Columbia, Md. But for 2013, he suggests that investors set their sights overseas. "We've already dipped a toe in Europe," he said. His firm put money in exchange-traded funds that follow a European stock market index and one that tracks the Italian stock market, which is down by more than 70 percent since 2007 2013 The Year of Heart Let The Romance Begin Estate Jewelry Event Jan. 2nd - 19th recession. Europe is still digging out of its fiscal problems, but if the economies there merely stabilize, that would be good news for investors, he said. Vollaro said his firm also is raising its position in emerging markets, particularly China. "China is attractive compared to the United States," agreed Brenda Wenning, principal of Wenning Investments in Newton, Mass. China's stock market isn't even close to hitting its highs, she said. Wenning acknowledged that some of the economic data coming out of China is mixed, but added that the country appears to be growing, particularly in trade and manufacturing. "China is in a position to emerge as the world's largest trading giant," she said. TECHNOLOGY: This is one sector that could shine in 2013, experts say. Businesses have been sitting on piles of cash for a long time, waiting for clarity on spending cuts and tax increases. Once that happens, businesses can plan their spending and likely will make technology updates that they had been putting off, experts say. Many tech companies, including Apple, Microsoft and IBM, are holding a lot of cash, said Doug Ober, CEO of Adams Express Co. and Petroleum & Resources Corp. in Baltimore. He expects some will buy back their own shares, thus increasing the value of stock held by their investors. ENERGY: This sector looks undervalued, largely because of what's been going on with natural gas, said Paul Larson, chief equity strategist for Morningstar. The marketplace has been flooded with a supply of natural gas, thanks to discoveries of new sources and developments in drilling methods. The price of natural gas has fallen by about two-thirds in the past four years, he said. Larson predicts that natural gas prices will return to normal levels in the next couple of years. Indirectly, that would benefit Chicagobased Exelon, which acquired Baltimore's Constellation Energy in 2012, Larson said. Gold Exchange Business of the Year 423 Walnut St., Red Bluff ��� 528-8000 facebook.com/redbluffgoldexchange www.redbluffgoldexchange.com Once again, it���s time to make some New Year���s resolutions. This year, in addition to promising yourself that you���ll hit the gym more often, learn a new language or take up a musical instrument ��� all worthy goals, of course ��� why not set some financial resolutions? Consider these suggestions: ��� Boost your retirement account contributions. If your income will rise this year, consider putting more money into your employer-sponsored retirement plan, such as a 401(k), 403(b) and 457(b). You typically contribute pre-tax dollars to your plan, so, the more you put in, the lower your taxable income. Plus, your money can have tax-deferred growth potential. ��� Don���t over-react to the headlines. Lately, you���ve heard a lot about the ���fiscal cliff,��� political paralysis, the Tyler debt ceiling and other Really Scary Topics. These issues are not insignificant ��� but should they keep you from investing? After all, in any given year, you won���t have to look hard to find warnings and negative news events ��� and many people do use these ominous-sounding headlines as a reason to head to the investment ���sidelines��� for a while. But if you���re not investing, you���re unquestionably missing out on opportunities to make progress toward your financial goals. So, instead of focusing on the news of the day, make your investment decisions based on the fundamentals of those investments you may be considering, along with your goals, risk tolerance and time horizon. ��� Keep whittling away your debt. Over the past few years, Americans have done a good job of lowering their debt burdens. Of course, the economy is still tough, and it can be challenging to avoid taking on new debts. But the less debt you have, the more you can invest for your retirement and other important objectives. ��� Rebalance your portfolio to accommodate your risk tolerance. If you spend too much time worrying about the ups and downs of your investments, then your portfolio���s potential for volatility may be too great for your individual risk tolerance. On the other hand, if you continually see little growth in your holdings, even when the financial markets are going strong, you may be investing too conservatively ��� especially if you are willing to take on some calculated risk to potentially boost your returns. So review your portfolio at least once in 2013 to see if it needs to be ���rebalanced��� to fit your risk tolerance. ��� Get some help ��� Navigating the investment world by yourself is not easy. For one thing, there���s a lot to know ��� different types of investments, changing tax laws, the effects of inflation, interest rate movements, and much more. Furthermore, when you���re making investment decisions on your own, you may have a hard time being objective ��� so you might end up investing with your heart, and not your head. The need for knowledge and objectivity point to the advantages of working with an experienced financial professional ��� someone who understands both the financial markets and your individual needs and goals. These aren���t the only financial resolutions you could make for 2013 ��� but if you follow through on them, you may well need to make fewer ones when 2014 rolls around. Smail This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones financial advisor. Tyler Smail is a a financial advisor for Edward Jones, his office is located at 733 Washington St. in Red Bluff. He can be reached at 529-3627 or tyler.smail@edwardjones.com. Minimum wage gap grows wider between states OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) ��� With a bump in the Washington state minimum wage to $9.19 an hour, high school student Miranda Olson will edge closer to her goal of buying the black Volkswagen Beetle she���s been researching online. Olson is only able to pick up part-time hours working at a cafe after classes and on weekends. But the extra pennies she���ll earn in 2013 will add up over the coming weeks and months. ������It���s not much, but it���s something,������ said Olson, 16, who works at Wagner���s European Bakery and Cafe in Olympia. ������Every bit helps.������ Many workers around the country won���t be as lucky as residents of Washington state, which is raising its minimum wage Tuesday by 15 cents an hour even though it already has the highest state baseline in the country. Minimum-wage workers in Idaho will make nearly $2 an hour less in 2013 than their counterparts living just one state to the west. Automatic increases designed to compensate for inflation have steadily pushed up wages in some states, even through the recession, expanding the pay gap between areas that make annual adjustments and those that don���t. Of the 10 states that will increase the minimum wage Tuesday, nine did so automatically to adjust for inflation. KWIK KUTS Family Hair Salon 50% Off Natural gas is used to generate electricity. And as gas prices go up, the cost of electricity will go up for consumers, and that will mean higher Exelon earnings, Larson said. HEALTH CARE: As the number of older Americans continues to rise, so does their use of health-related products and services. This should benefit a wide range of health-related businesses, such as hospitals, pharmacy management companies and drug makers, particularly those making less-expensive generics, Ober said. Health insurers also will benefit from having millions of new customers when the Affordable Care Act takes full effect in 2014, he said. But not all health carerelated companies stand to gain as the United States grapples with the rising cost of health care. Hospitals that have many patients on Medicaid and Medicare, the government programs that pay for health care for the poor and elderly, could see their payments reduced through federal spending cuts, Ober said. BONDS: "It's going to be boring" in 2013, said Dick O'Brien, a bond expert and senior executive vice president at Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas brokerage in Hunt Valley, Md. Federal Reserve policymakers plan to keep shortterm interest rates low until employment and the economy pick up, so yields on bonds will remain low, he said. "We will end (2013) very close to where we are presently," O'Brien predicted, "unfortunately for investors and savers." O'Brien said some clients have been so disappointed in bond yields that he recommended highgrade common stocks that pay dividends, such as Microsoft, ExxonMobil and Johnson & Johnson. "This is heresy for a bond person," O'Brien said. But Microsoft's 10-year bond in December had a yield of about 2.2 percent, while the dividend yield on its common stock was 3.38 percent, he said. Investors often consider bonds safer than stocks, but some experts warn against forgetting the big risk to bonds ��� rising interest rates. Make some New Year's (financial) resolutions for 2013 20 % off ANY RETAIL PRODUCT with any chemical service of $50 or more 2 Regular $ Haircut 00 off COMPLETE AUTO REPAIR All makes and models. We perform dealer recommened 30K, 60K, 90K SERVICES AT LOWER PRICES Smog Check $ 2595 certificate starting at +8 $ 25 Reg. $13.95 Not good with other offers Expires 12/31/12 With coupon (MOST CARS & PICK-UPS) 1064 South Main St., Red Bluff ��� 529-3540 527-9841 ��� 195 S. Main St.