WealthWise

The View from Vienna

Columnist: David Raub
Sep, 2008 Issue

For the second time in two years, I found myself in an intensive German language program at the University of Vienna. The majority of my classmates were young, bright, eager students from Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia—countries we used to think of as trapped behind an iron curtain. Typically, these students were studying to prepare for practical careers in business, economics, engineering, medicine and law.

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Bulking Up

Columnist: Richard L. Thomas
Sep, 2008 Issue

With the current status of the economy, has the wine industry felt anything negative or positive? It’s very difficult to tell at this stage, but the looming short crop (due to very abnormal weather patterns and major spring frosts in many areas) means grape prices could rise significantly. Spot market fruit—that is, grapes that are grown without a contract—will be in big demand, or so the story goes. Interestingly enough, just after the frost last spring, there was suddenly not a drop of wine available on the bulk market. Those wineries that had surplus wine to sell must have realized that the value would increase dramatically. And right they were.

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Dividend Growth Update

Columnist: David Raub
Aug, 2008 Issue

Recently, the Wall Street Journal reported the results of research published by the highly respected Ned Davis organization. According the article, data from Ned Davis Research showed that, since 1972, stocks in the S&P 500 Index that had consistently increased their dividends generated average total returns that were 2.2 percent greater (on an annualized basis) than stocks that didn’t raise their dividends.

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What I Learned at the Race Track

Columnist: David Raub
Jul, 2008 Issue

As a third-year law student at Harvard, I became fascinated with horse racing (or, to be more exact, with betting on the horses).

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