Hackers attack Yahoo Mail accounts

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Yahoo (YHOO, Fortune 500) said it recently identified a coordinated effort by hackers who tried to log into many email accounts with stolen usernames and passwords. The note by Yahoo products executive Jay Rossiter did not immediately say how many accounts were affected.

The company declined to comment further but said it has teamed up with federal law enforcement to investigate the attack.

The credentials were likely taken from a third-party database, Yahoo said.

Related story: Stolen credentials blamed in Target breach

Yahoo said it reset passwords for users who were impacted. The company sent them text messages Wednesday night warning of "unusual activity on the network."

First Published: January 30, 2014: 6:04 PM ET

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Chipotle shares sizzle following red-hot quarter

Chipotle says it plans to open between 180 and 195 new restaurants in 2014.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The burrito chain's stock surged nearly 13% in after-hours trading Thursday following fourth-quarter results showing the company's strong growth continuing.

Chipotle (CMG) posted $844 million in sales, up 21% versus a year prior, and $80 million in earnings. The company is expanding aggressively, opening 56 new restaurants in the fourth quarter, and now has nearly 1,600 locations.

Related: Which country has the cheapest Big Mac?

Chipotle was spun off from McDonald's (MCD, Fortune 500) in 2006, and shares have been on a tear ever since, rising over 60% in the past year alone.

McDonald's meanwhile may be losing its luster. Its stock has been in the doldrums as it's struggled to match new menu offerings from competitors like Burger King (BKW) and Wendy's (WEN).

Related: Burger King tests Chicken and Waffle sandwich

There are still some Chipotle skeptics out there -- hedge fund moguls David Einhorn and Jeffrey Gundlach have made cases against the stock in the past year and a half.

First Published: January 30, 2014: 6:50 PM ET

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GoldieBlox ad makes Super Bowl history

Debbie Sterling's toy startup GoldieBlox becomes the first small business ever to air an ad during the Super Bowl.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The startup will make Super Bowl history this Sunday by becoming the first small business to have a commercial air on TV during the most-watched event of the year.

GoldieBlox won a contest run by Intuit (INTU), where the grand prize was the 30-second ad that will debut during the third quarter of the game. Intuit will pick up the $4 million cost.

"We still can't believe that we won. We were all crying when we found out," said Debbie Sterling, founder of GoldieBlox, a line of storybooks and toys aimed at getting young girls excited about science and engineering.

GoldieBlox's ad will appear alongside some of the biggest brands in the world such as Budweiser, Cheerios, and Coca-Cola (KO, Fortune 500). Super Bowl commercials typically are dominated by big brands that can afford the hefty price tag.

Related Story: Sneak peek at the Super bowl spots

But GoldieBlox got its start just 18 months ago and has barely 15 employees. Its toys sell in Toys R Us and Target (TGT, Fortune 500).

The ad, which was produced by a top ad agency RPA, puts GoldieBlox shoulder to shoulder with the big leagues, and Sterling hopes the exposure to over 100 million viewers will enable the brand to take a "giant leap forward for our mission."

A Stanford University engineering graduate, Sterling launched GoldieBlox in 2012 after became obsessed with the idea of "disrupting the pink aisle" with a toy that could potentially inspire the next generation of female engineers.

Related Story: Super Bowl creating traffic jam for private jets

She turned to crowdfunding site Kickstarter with the goal of raising $150,000 to fire up her idea.

"We did that in just 4 days," said Sterling. In total, her Kickstarter campaign raised over $285,000. "So yes, we knew we were on to something," she said.

Intuit's contest kicked off last July and asked U.S.-based business with 50 or fewer employees to submit a compelling story about their company.

An online vote determined the top 20 submissions, and then Intuit's 8,000 employees voted to pick four finalists -- GoldieBlox, dog treats maker Barley Labs, organic egg farm Locally Laid Egg Company and natural compost producer POOP. A separate online vote in December determined the grand-prize winner.

Intuit said millions of votes were cast for the entries but declined to say how many went to GoldieBlox.

"GoldieBlox is an outstanding example of the 29 million small businesses across the United States," said Intuit's CEO Brad Smith. "It's clear voters around the world felt the same way."

GoldieBlox's Intuit win, however, isn't its first brush with fame.

Last year, the company created a parody video that featured the Beastie Boys song "Girls." The video, which featured young girls rejecting the "princess" stereotype as they built a complex maze, became a viral hit. But it also brought on a copyright infringement lawsuit by the Beastie Boys for using their song.

GoldieBlox initially countered with its own lawsuit but ultimately removed the song from the video.

Intuit also confirmed that it will hold a similar contest again next year.

First Published: January 30, 2014: 6:17 PM ET

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Google to sell Motorola Mobility unit to Lenovo

China-based Lenovo is the world's largest PC maker.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The search giant announced Wednesday that it will sell its Motorola Mobility smartphone unit to Chinese PC maker Lenovo for $2.9 billion, giving up on a business it purchased for $12.5 billion in May 2012.

The deal was Google's largest-ever acquisition, giving it the ability to produce hardware to go along with its Android mobile operating system. But Motorola has been a perpetual money-loser, raising the ire of shareholders and Wall Street analysts.

Google (GOOG, Fortune 500) said it will maintain ownership of the "vast majority" of the Motorola Mobility patent portfolio after the sale.

When Google bought Motorola, the company said it planned to use those patents to ward off lawsuits from Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) and Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500) that threaten Android. Lenovo will be able to license those patents from Google.

In a blog post announcing the deal, Google CEO Larry Page acknowledged that it doesn't make sense for his company to continue manufacturing phones itself.

"[T]he smartphone market is super competitive, and to thrive it helps to be all-in when it comes to making mobile devices," Page wrote. "This move will enable Google to devote our energy to driving innovation across the Android ecosystem."

Google shares rose 2% in after-hours trading.

Related: Can Lenovo do it?

Lenovo chief Yang Yuanqing said the deal "will immediately make Lenovo a strong global competitor in smartphones."

In addition to being the world's largest PC maker, the company is already the No. 4 global smartphone maker after Samsung, Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) and Huawei. In a conference call with reporters Wednesday afternoon, Lenovo executives said the company will soon be able to sell more than 100 million smartphones annually, challenging Apple and Samsung.

While its phones are already well-known in China and other international markets, Lenovo will continue to use the Motorola brand in the U.S. and Latin America.

"We are confident that we can bring together the best of both companies to deliver products customers will love and a strong, growing business," Yang said.

Lenovo announced another big transaction with an American company last week, agreeing to pay $2.3 billion for IBM's (IBM, Fortune 500) low-end x86 server business.

Page, for his part, said Google's sale "does not signal a larger shift for our other hardware efforts."

Earlier this month, Google announced that it was buying connnected home-appliance maker Nest for $3.2 billion.

"The dynamics and maturity of the wearable and home markets, for example, are very different from that of the mobile industry," Page said. "We're excited by the opportunities to build amazing new products for users within these emerging ecosystems."

First Published: January 29, 2014: 5:31 PM ET

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Stolen credentials blamed in Target breach

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Since discovering the breach, "we have taken extra precautions such as limiting or updating access to some of our platforms while the investigation continues," Target spokeswoman Molly Snyder said.

The news adds details about the cause of the Target (TGT, Fortune 500) hack, which remains under investigation. It could be the largest breach in U.S. retail history.

The holiday shopping season breach affected up to 110 million customers, including 40 million credit and debit cards and up to 70 million customers' personal information.

The discount retailer discovered the breach in mid-December, notified customers several days later, and launched an investigation with the help of a private security firm and law enforcement.

Related: Target hack: Tips for all customers

Attorney General Eric Holder spoke about the federal investigation at a Senate hearing on Wednesday.

"The Department of Justice takes very seriously reports of any data breach, particularly those involving personally identifiable or financial information, and looks into allegations that are brought to its attention," he said. "And we are committed to working to find not only the perpetrators of these sorts of data breaches, but also any individuals and groups who exploit that data via credit card fraud."

Since Target's disclosure, high-end retailer Neiman Marcus announced over 1 million customer cards were compromised in a breach last summer. Over the weekend, crafts retailer Michaels said its systems may have been breached.

It isn't immediately clear if these possible attacks were related. Security experts have warned it is likely other companies were targeted by the hackers who hit Target.

First Published: January 29, 2014: 7:53 PM ET

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Asia stocks battered by emerging market fears

HONG KONG (CNNMoney)

Japan's Nikkei was off 3.2% in morning trading, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 1.4% and Australia ASX All Ordinaries lost 1%.

The Shanghai Composite, which often diverges from other Asian markets, was trading 0.6% higher.

Investors have been rattled in recent weeks by growing fragility in Turkey, India, Brazil, Indonesia and South Africa as the Federal Reserve rolls back the bond-buying program that has supported growth in emerging markets. Weakness in China's all-important manufacturing sector has only added to worries.

Emerging market currencies have suffered a broad decline, and even drastic efforts to control the situation appear to be falling short.

On Tuesday, Turkey's central bank increased its key overnight lending rate to 12% from 7.75%.The Turkish lira fell further Wednesday.

In addition to Turkey, India and South Africa have raised rates this week to stabilize shaky currencies. The Argentinian peso has been in free fall since Argentina's government moved to devalue the currency last week.

Related story: Google to sell Motorola Mobility unit to Lenovo

Many emerging markets have benefited over the past few years as the Fed and other central banks have pumped money into the global economy.

But investors have been pulling out of emerging markets this year now that the Fed has begun to scale back its bond buying. The central bank said Wednesday that it would reduce its bond-buying program to $65 billion a month from $75 billion.

The bet is that higher rates in the U.S. and a stronger dollar will make emerging market investments far less attractive.

First Published: January 29, 2014: 9:56 PM ET

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Obama offers new 'MyRA' retirement accounts

President Obama used his address to proposed a new kind of retirement savings account.

WASHINGTON (CNNMoney)

Obama is calling them the "MyRA" and said he would, by executive order, direct the Treasury Department to create them.

Details were scarce Tuesday night, but employees will be able to contribute part of their wages to the savings accounts, which would be backed by the U.S. government.

"It's a new savings bond that encourages folks to build a nest egg. MyRA guarantees a decent return with no risk of losing what you put in," Obama said during the State of the Union.

About half of all American workers are employed by companies that don't offer retirement plans, according to a 2009 Brookings Institution report.

And those who do save, don't save much.

About two-thirds of all workers said they put some money away in 2013 for retirement savings, according to a survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute. More than half of workers said they had less than $25,000 in savings, outside of their home and pensions. And 28% of workers said they had less than $1,000 in savings.

Related: Should I take my pension's lump sum?

The Obama administration has been moving to try and promote savings through executive maneuvers. In 2010, Treasury set up a new program to allow Americans to automatically use their tax refunds to buy savings bonds.

The White House said the MyRA would be offered through Roth IRA accounts and that any saver with wages could set one up.

Roth IRAs allow users to put after-tax income into a savings account, where it grows tax free.

And then when savers hit retirement age, they can withdraw the money without additional tax penalties. In 2013, taxpayers could contribute up to $5,500 into a Roth IRA.

First Published: January 28, 2014: 10:50 PM ET

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Obama's soft sell on income inequality

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

And, true, he topped it with some emphatic observations about the widening income and opportunity gap in America.

But it was short on rhetoric and heavy on wonk. He used the bulk of his speech to list a bevy of policies, many of which he has already started or proposed before.

We've gleaned a few choice comments about income inequality -- a phrase he never actually uttered in the address, which was titled "Opportunity for All."

On opportunity:

-- What I believe unites the people of this nation, regardless of race or region or party, young or old, rich or poor, is the simple, profound belief in opportunity for all -- the notion that if you work hard and take responsibility, you can get ahead.

-- Opportunity is who we are. And the defining project of our generation is to restore that promise.

-- [T]he best measure of opportunity is access to a good job.

-- [O]ur opportunity agenda won't be complete -- and too many young people entering the workforce today will see the American Dream as an empty promise -- unless we do more to make sure our economy honors the dignity of work, and hard work pays off for every single American.

On the divide between rich and poor:

-- Today, after four years of economic growth, corporate profits and stock prices have rarely been higher, and those at the top have never done better. But average wages have barely budged. Inequality has deepened. Upward mobility has stalled. The cold, hard fact is that even in the midst of recovery, too many Americans are working more than ever just to get by -- let alone get ahead. And too many still aren't working at all.

-- [H]ere in America, our success should depend not on accident of birth, but the strength of our work ethic and the scope of our dreams.

-- Americans understand that some people will earn more than others, and we don't resent those who, by virtue of their efforts, achieve incredible success. But Americans overwhelmingly agree that no one who works full time should ever have to raise a family in poverty.

On workplace fairness:

-- A woman deserves equal pay for equal work. She deserves to have a baby without sacrificing her job. A mother deserves a day off to care for a sick child or sick parent without running into hardship -- and you know what, a father does, too. It's time to do away with workplace policies that belong in a "Mad Men" episode.

On closing the gap for the next generation:

-- It's the spirit of citizenship -- the recognition that through hard work and responsibility, we can pursue our individual dreams, but still come together as one American family to make sure the next generation can pursue its dreams as well.

-- The America we want for our kids -- a rising America where honest work is plentiful and communities are strong; where prosperity is widely shared and opportunity for all lets us go as far as our dreams and toil will take us -- none of it is easy.

First Published: January 28, 2014: 10:20 PM ET

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Obama: 9 million covered by health reform. Well maybe.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Obamacare got a bad rap after the disastrous launch of the federal and state exchanges in October. But enrollment has since improved, but not quite to the level that the president extolled.

Obama said Tuesday that more than 9 million people have signed up for insurance thanks to Obamacare.

Here's how it breaks down:

Some 2.1 million had signed up for private insurance through the state and federal exchanges as of Dec. 31. This figure was updated to 3 million last week. However, it includes both people who have paid their first month's premium and those who have not yet fully enrolled. Those who don't pay by their insurers' deadline will not be covered.

More than 3 million young adults under age 26 obtained insurance through their parents' policies. This provision was one of the earliest ones to take effect, starting in September 2010.

And another 3.9 million people learned they're eligible for Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) in October and November.

But this final figure is pretty squishy since it includes people who already had Medicaid and were simply renewing. Administration officials could not give the percentage of renewals. Experts say renewals could be a sizable chunk of that figure.

Related story: Obama's soft sell on income inequality

Still, Obama took the opportunity to highlight how health reform was helping Americans, pointing to a newly covered single mom from Arizona whose emergency surgery earlier this month would have bankrupted her had she remained uninsured. Prior to Obamacare, she could not obtain insurance because of a pre-existing condition.

And he highlighted Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear, whom he called "a man possessed" with covering his state's families.

The president also wove his income inequality theme into his lauding of Obamacare.

"For decades, few things exposed hard-working families to economic hardship more than a broken health care system," he said. "That's what health insurance reform is all about -- the peace of mind that if misfortune strikes, you don't have to lose everything."

First Published: January 28, 2014: 11:16 PM ET

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Should I take my pension's lump sum offer?

Start researching your options at least a year before your desired retirement date to figure out what the best fit is for you.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Choosing between monthly pension payments for life or one, large lump sum payment can affect your income and lifestyle for decades to come, so it's a decision that shouldn't be taken lightly.

"People need to think very carefully about whether a lump sum is their best option," said Nancy Hwa, a spokesperson for the Pension Rights Center.

Related: Couple with pension plans play too safe to win

Susan Fulton, founder of FBB Capital Partners in Bethesda, Md., recommends you start researching options at least a year before your retirement date. Here are some key factors to consider:

Your retirement savings: Beyond your pension, do you have any other retirement savings?

If not, consider this: Taking the lump sum means you will need to make sure the money lasts for decades. For most people, that means investing the money through an IRA. While your nest egg could grow larger, it also means you risk losing some or all of that cash if the market takes a dive or if you make a bad investment.

So, if you have little-to-no extra savings cushion, the security of receiving a monthly check may allow you to sleep better at night.

If you have enough savings to cover your essential retirement expenses and can afford to invest the lump sum, then your money will have the chance to grow. Since most private pension plans don't provide cost of living increases, investing the money will give you the chance to at least try to keep up with inflation.

Related: Pensions ask retirees to pay back tens of thousands

Your health: Did your parents live into their 90s? Are you nearing retirement and still feeling younger than ever? Lump sum payments are calculated based on average life expectancies. So if you choose the lump sum but live longer than those calculations figured, you could run out of funds.

If you're in poor health and worry that you won't live long enough to receive many pension checks, you will likely get more out of a lump sum.

Calculator: Will you have enough for retirement?

Monthly pension payments typically stop arriving when you die, unless you opt for a survivor option that will allow your spouse to continue receiving payments for his or her lifetime. Any leftover proceeds from a lump sum, however, can be left to your heirs.

Your pension plan's financial health: To make sure your pension plan isn't on the brink of running out of money, and your benefits aren't at risk, do some research.

Request a copy of your plan's annual report, called a form 5500. Look for the funding ratio, or the amount of money that the plan has set aside to pay its future obligations. Typically, a healthy pension fund will have a ratio of at least 80%.

Even if your plan becomes insolvent, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., which insures private pension plans, will take over and pay your benefits. But there is an annual limit to what it will pay (in 2014, nearly $60,000 for single-employer plans).

If you're in a significantly underfunded plan and your promised pension is larger than that limit, a lump sum could be a safer option.

What you would do with the money: Opt for the lump sum? Don't go booking that around-the-world cruise yet. The only way to avoid a major tax bill is to roll over the lump sum payment directly into an Individual Retirement Account.

If you don't have investing experience, you may want to hire a financial adviser to help you invest those funds. Just remember, that means paying investment management fees, which can eat away at your savings.

Related: Where's the Yelp for financial advisers?

Before taking a lump sum, Fulton recommends meeting with a few financial advisers to learn their investment strategy and fee structure. Be skeptical of anyone promising soaring returns, especially since retirees should typically invest in more conservative assets.

"A great deal is at risk," Fulton said. "The most important thing is that you really, really need to take your time doing it."

First Published: January 27, 2014: 6:10 PM ET

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Investor apologizes for Nazi comparison, stands by message

Here's what a "literal knight" looks like.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The venture capitalist apologized Monday for comparing criticism of the wealthy to a wave of Nazi attacks on Jews ahead of the Holocaust, but doubled down on his warning about anti-rich "radicalism."

Perkins came under fire this past weekend after penning a letter to the editor in the Wall Street Journal in which he compared Nazi persecution of the Jews to "the progressive war on the American one percent."

"This is a very dangerous drift in our American thinking. Kristallnacht was unthinkable in 1930; is its descendent 'progressive' radicalism unthinkable now?" Perkins wrote, referencing an infamous 1938 evening in which Nazis and their supporters killed dozens of Jews and imprisoned 30,000 in concentration camps.

The comments quickly provoked a storm of criticism online. In an interview with Bloomberg TV Monday, Perkins acknowledged that Kristallnacht was "a terrible word to have chosen."

"I regret the use of that word," he said. "I don't regret the message at all."

Related: Tech company buses draw criticism in San Francisco

Perkins noted that his former business partner, Eugene Kleiner, had escaped Nazi rule in Austria and had admonished him to "never imagine that the unimaginable cannot become real."

"My point was that when you start to use hatred against a minority, it can get out of control," he told Bloomberg.

"It's absurd to demonize the rich for being rich and for doing what the rich do, which is get richer by creating opportunity for others," he added. "I think the rich as a class are threatened through higher taxes, higher regulation and so forth."

The lengthy interview then took a turn for the bizarre, as Perkins boasted of owning an "underwater airplane" and a watch worth "a sixpack of Rolexes." He added that he was "a literal knight" in Norway based on his philanthropic efforts there.

Among Perkins' critics in recent days was his old firm, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, which said it was "shocked" by the letter. Perkins accused KPCB of "throw[ing] me under the bus," and said the organization had been in decline since he left.

"I'm at peace with myself, and the fact that everybody now hates me is part of the game," he said.

First Published: January 27, 2014: 7:50 PM ET

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Farm bill ends subsidies, cuts food stamps

A food pantry New York City.

WASHINGTON (CNNMoney)

The deal could trim as much as $90 a month from food stamps for 850,000 recipients.

The farm bill would last five years and needs to pass both chambers and then be signed by the president.

The bill could be passed before the spring planting season. That's significant because farmers need to know early how it might affect prices and what to expect for their corn, wheat or tobacco yields.

The bill changes the current agricultural subsidy system. It ends direct payments to farmers for planting crops and replaces it with a revamped, beefed-up crop insurance program.

"Today's bipartisan agreement puts us on the verge of enacting a five-year Farm Bill that saves taxpayers billions, eliminates unnecessary subsidies, creates a more effective farm safety-net and helps farmers and businesses create jobs," said Sen. Debbie Stabenow, a Michigan Democrat who chairs the Senate agriculture panel.

The changes to food stamps would trim $8 billion from the program over the next 10 years, according to congressional aides. That's less than the $39 billion that Republicans had wanted to cut from the program, but double what Democrats had suggested.

Lawmakers say the deal will prevent 17 states from doling out more generous food stamps to people who get federal help to heat or cool their homes, even if the help is as little as $1. They stress the move won't cut families from food stamps, it will just shrink the amount some families get.

850,000 may get $90 less in food stamps

Advocates for the poor are irate. The newly-proposed reductions come just months after the $11 cut from food stamp checks that went into effect on Nov. 1, when the recession-era boost in funding ended.

Since then, food pantries have reported larger crowds, as families exhaust their allotment before the month ends.

Currently, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the official name for food stamps, feeds 47 million people.

Related: Dairy prices won't spike

Meanwhile, the bill ensures that the federal government will avoid re-implementing a 1940s era subsidy program that could have caused the price of milk to double to $7 a gallon from the current national average of $3.50.

First Published: January 27, 2014: 8:03 PM ET

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ATM outage strands U.K. bank customers

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

A Lloyds Banking Group (LLDTF) spokeswoman said the three-hour outage had been resolved but did not know how many customers had been unable to use their cards.

Issues with in-store purchases were resolved by 6 p.m. local, and ATM outages were resolved by 7:30 p.m. At 7:45 p.m. local, the bank's customer service hotline was still warning callers "we're extremely busy at the moment" because the bank was "experiencing issues with some credit cards and debit card transactions."

One bank executive took to social media, directly answering customer complaints and questions. He said the outage was caused by a server failure.

"My apologies to TSB customers having problems with their cards. I'm working hard with my team now to try to fix the problems," wrote Paul Pester. He is CEO of TSB Bank, which split off from Lloyds in September but is one of several banks that he tweeted "use the same IT systems."

Related: ATM heist thieves pocket $3 million in just hours

The banking group has suffered other payment outages, including one when the two banks split and divvied up their retail locations and customer accounts.

First Published: January 26, 2014: 4:03 PM ET

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Investor compares U.S. wealth debate to Nazi Germany

Tom Perkins, pictured in September 2013.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

"Writing from the epicenter of progressive thought, San Francisco, I would call attention to the parallels of fascist Nazi Germany to its war on its 'one percent,' namely its Jews, to the progressive war on the American one percent, namely the 'rich,'" he wrote, opening a letter to the editor of the Wall Street Journal.

"This is a very dangerous drift in our American thinking. Kristallnacht was unthinkable in 1930; is its descendent 'progressive' radicalism unthinkable now?" he concluded.

The venture capital firm he co-founded -- Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers -- lists him as a "partner emeritus" but distanced itself from his comments.

"Tom Perkins has not been involved in KPCB in years. We were shocked by his views expressed today in the WSJ and do not agree," an online posting from the firm read.

Perkins told CNN's Dan Simon on Sunday he stood by his comments. "As for criticism of the letter, everyone is entitled to his or her opinion," he said.

In an email to the news outlet Bloomberg, he dismissed the views of his former firm.

"[O]ur philosophies and strategies have drifted so far apart that now my name means little on the door," the outlet said he wrote.

"In the Nazi area it was racial demonization, now it is class demonization," Perkins wrote.

On Kristallnacht in 1938, almost 100 Jewish people were killed and 30,000 imprisoned in concentration camps amid destructive riots that targeted Jewish-owned businesses and synagogues.

In the letter, he claims evidence of "a rising tide of hatred of the successful one percent," including protests surrounding private buses that transport technology workers from San Francisco to the campuses of companies like Google (GOOG, Fortune 500). He also takes aim at the San Francisco Chronicle, which he claims spends "virtually every word" demonizing the rich and has launched "libelous and cruel attacks" on his ex-wife, Danielle Steel, an author and philanthropist.

Another prominent investor was criticized for referencing the Nazis. In 2010, Blackstone chief Stephen Schwarzman reportedly likened an Obama administration proposal to raise tax rates for hedge funds to a war, then added, "It's like when Hitler invaded Poland in 1939." He later apologized.

First Published: January 26, 2014: 1:08 PM ET

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Emerging markets rattled as anxiety rises

India's rupee has weakened in recent days amid concerns about emerging market economies.

HONG KONG (CNNMoney)

Asian markets opened sharply lower as benchmark indices in Tokyo and Hong Kong shed more than 2% as investors looked to move out of riskier assets. South Korea's KOSPI Index and the Mumbai Sensex were off by 1.5%.

In currency markets, the yen gained ground against the dollar as investors parked their money in traditional safe havens. Emerging market currencies extended losses, building on a trend from last week that hit the Argentinian peso, Turkey's lira and India's rupee especially hard.

Emerging markets have been hammered in recent days due to the possibility that the Federal Reserve, Bank of England and Bank of Japan will pull back on propping up their own economies. Signs of weakness in China's huge manufacturing sector and a looming default in the shadow banking system have only added to worries.

"The fear is that the Fed, Bank of England, and even the Band of Japan will become less dovish more quickly than had been though even a few weeks ago," said Steven Englander, head of foreign exchange strategy at CitiFX.

Related story: Will stocks break out of their rut?

Developing markets were the prime beneficiaries of low interest rates in the United States, which encouraged a rush of capital into the developing world. Should rates rise and that trend reverse, vulnerable economies could take a hit as their currencies weaken and investors flee.

Related story: Buckle up! 2014 will be a bumpy ride

The Fed will reveal its latest policy decision Wednesday. At its previous meeting, the Fed announced plans to begin scaling back its massive stimulus program by $10 billion per month to $75 billion in monthly bond purchases, citing signs of economic growth.

Even though the economy only added 74,000 jobs in December, many market observers expect the Fed will continue to cut back on its quantitative easing.

First Published: January 26, 2014: 10:07 PM ET

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Michaels stores: Possible data 'attack'

The country's largest crafts chain said Saturday it learned recently of 'possible fraudulent activity' on some customer payment cards, suggesting there may have been a breach.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Michaels said Saturday that it learned recently of "possible fraudulent activity" on some of its customers' payment cards, suggesting there may have been a breach.

CEO Chuck Rubin said the company has not confirmed a breach, but wanted to alert customers.

"We are concerned there may have been a data security attack on Michaels that may have affected our customers' payment card information and we are taking aggressive action to determine the nature and scope of the issue," Rubin said in a statement.

The company gave no additional information on the possible breach, including how many customers may be involved, when those customers shopped at Michaels, and if the possible breach affected online or in-store shoppers.

In recent weeks Target (TGT, Fortune 500) and Neiman Marcus have each acknowledged breaches.

The attack on Target affected as many as 110 million customers, including 40 million credit and debit card shoppers at the height of the holiday shopping season.

Neiman Marcus said a three-month breach in the summer and fall affected 1.1 million customers.

Michaels says it operates more than 1,100 stores in the U.S. and Canada.

First Published: January 25, 2014: 2:42 PM ET

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Buckle up! 2014 will be a bumpy ride

BlackRock CEO Laurence Fink: "I hear way too much optimism going forward -- we're going to be in a world of much greater volatility."

Davos, Switzerland (CNNMoney)

Financial experts at the World Economic Forum in Davos were cautiously optimistic about the outlook for growth in 2014, but the beginning of the end of post-crisis emergency financial support will be bumpy.

The Dow just had its worst week since 2011. And emerging market currencies got hit hard as investors fled riskier assets.

Investors were troubled by signs of weakness in China's huge manufacturing sector and a looming default in the shadow banking system. Expectations that the Federal Reserve will continue to pull back monetary stimulus pushed things along.

"I hear way too much optimism going forward -- we're going to be in a world of much greater volatility," said BlackRock CEO Laurence Fink.

Related: Cry for me Argentina? Peso plunges

Investors had been encouraged by "good, consistent" central bank policy around the world in recent years, he said. But the next impetus for growth would depend on governments in China, Japan, the U.S. and Europe delivering on promised economic reforms.

"That troubles me, because there has been great consistency of governments dragging their feet," Fink said.

Monetary policy is already beginning to change in the U.S. and U.K., in response to stronger growth and falling unemployment.

The Federal Reserve has begun to "taper" its purchases of government bonds, and some analysts predict the Bank of England will raise interest rates as early as the fourth quarter.

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said there was "no immediate need" for an increase in the cost of borrowing, and that when it comes, the process will be gradual.

But the return to more normal levels of market volatility would feel worse than it is, coming after an extended period of calm, he said.

Related: India headed for 8% growth

The International Monetary Fund upgraded its forecast for world growth on Tuesday. It warned that the outlook would depend on the impact of the withdrawal of central bank support.

"This is clearly a new risk on the horizon, and it needs to be watched," IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said.

The flow of money back to the U.S. and other developed economies would not affect emerging markets uniformly, she added. Investors would differentiate based on political stability, commitment to reform, and signs of financial weakness.

"The risk is there, but well managed emerging markets will be able to cope with it," said Montek Ahluwalia, deputy chairman of India's planning commission.

Fink said too much attention was paid to the actions of the Fed and other central banks, and not enough to the reforms needed to respond to the massive technological changes that are destroying jobs.

First Published: January 25, 2014: 11:22 AM ET

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Weather Channel-DirecTV blackout: No end in sight

TV channel owners and distributors usually haggle in private. But the dispute between the Weather Channel and DirecTV underscores how contentious the negotiations can become.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

On Friday, DirecTV Chief Executive Mike White published a letter online blasting television channels for acting like "it's their absolute birthright to be paid more and more each year for the same content they offer, regardless of how many customers actually watch their channels."

White didn't stop there. He asserted that the Weather Channel's total audience has been declining as consumers gravitate to the Web.

"Why should DirecTV customers pay more for a channel they are watching far less?" he wrote.

White's letter was unusual. Television channel owners and distributors usually haggle in private and come up with carriage agreements that both sides can live with.

The dispute between the Weather Channel and DirecTV underscores how contentious the negotiations can become.

Related: Cable TV competition from the Web

White asserted in his letter that DirecTV believes the channel is only worth "one-quarter" of the price the channel wants.

According to research firm SNL Kagan, the Weather Channel earns about 13 cents per television subscriber per month. During the dispute, the channel has said that it's asking for a penny more, while DirecTV is asking it to accept a 20% reduction, or roughly 10 cents per subscriber per month.

The more drastic reduction that White described in his letter is basically unheard of in the television business.

But White's stated logic may appeal to many of his customers: "In every other industry, when the demand for any product is reduced, prices go down, they don't go up. That is the heart of this issue."

In response, Weather Channel spokeswoman Shirley Powell said that DirecTV's decision to drop the channel "has nothing to do with keeping costs down for consumers." She noted that DirecTV recently said it would raise its prices by 4.4% on average.

Related: Verizon bets on future of TV

For his part, White conceded that DirecTV was raising its prices along with other TV providers like Comcast, Dish and Time Warner Cable. But he blamed the content providers.

"[W]e are forced to raise our prices annually due to programmers like the Weather Channel, demanding to be paid more and more each year," he wrote. He said DirecTV "will be forced" to pay 8% more for programming in 2014 and that it was passing on to its customers only a 3.7% increase.

White's letter sent a message to DirecTV customers: Don't switch to another provider, because channels like the Weather Channel are forcing them to raise rates, too.

DirecTV provides television service to about 20 million homes, totaling roughly one in six households in the United States. Before the dispute with the Weather Channel, DirecTV introduced an upstart channel, WeatherNation, as an alternative.

White admitted in Friday's letter that WeatherNation is not an "exact substitute" -- far from it -- but said it "offers our customers what they want at a fraction of the price."

One of White's main points is the same one that outside analysts have pushed: The television version of the Weather Channel is being cannibalized by the parent company's Web sites and apps. The channel's Weather.com is one of the preeminent sources for online weather information.

"Our customers tell us the Weather Channel is their fourth choice when looking to access weather information," White said. "They first turn to mobile devices and computers for instant weather information and then to local news sources that have a better grasp on local conditions."

Last week, on CNN's "Reliable Sources," I asked Weather Channel meteorologist Jim Cantore if the channel's apps were pulling people away from TV.

"Here's my analogy," he said. "If your knee is starting to ail a little bit, you may go online and see what the symptoms may be. But at the end of the day, you're going to the doctor to find out what's going on with that." The flagship television channel, he said, is the doctor.

But the back-and-forth between the Weather Channel and DirecTV suggests that DirecTV subscribers won't be seeing that doctor anytime soon.

First Published: January 25, 2014: 7:31 PM ET

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Nissan spanked over fake dune-climbing ad

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

So Nissan and its advertising agency have entered into a proposed settlement with the Federal Trade Commission over charges of deceptive advertising. Neither Nissan (NSANF) or its advertising agency, TBWA Worldwide, will pay any fines. They simply agree not to make any more misleading ads.

The ad aired in October and November of 2011. In making it, the truck and the dune buggy were actually pulled up the hill using cables, according to the FTC. That means the ad, which is shot to look as if it were done by an amateur with a cell phone camera, does not accurately show the true capabilities of an unaltered Nissan Frontier.

Plenty of TV ads show vehicles doing absurd things -- like jumping on and off moving trains -- but those ads depict situations that are completely unbelievable and, so, don't actually mislead anyone. In the case of the Nissan Frontier ad, someone might actually think the truck could do this.

"Special effects in ads can be entertaining, but advertisers can't use them to misrepresent what a product can do," said Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. "This ad made the Nissan Frontier appear capable of doing something it can't do."

Gallery - 10 priciest collector cars from Scottsdale auctions

"Under the proposed settlements, Nissan and TBWA cannot misrepresent any material quality or feature of a pickup truck through the depiction of a test, experiment, or demonstration," according to the FTC's statement. Special effects can still be used, however, as long as they do not misrepresent the truck or its capabilities.

Nissan and TBWA both said they take their "commitment to fair and truthful advertising seriously" and that they are "committed to complying with the law."

The proposed settlement will be available for public comment for 30 days before the FTC decides to make it final.

First Published: January 24, 2014: 3:56 PM ET

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Sony gets rights to Sandberg's 'Lean In'

Sony Pictures has acquired the film rights to Sheryl Sandberg's book "Lean In."

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Sony Pictures confirmed that it has acquired the rights to make the Facebook (FB, Fortune 500) COO's book into a movie.

Published in March 2013, "Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead" encourages women to advance their careers. If the film stays true to the book, it won't be so much a biography of Sandberg, who recently became one of the youngest female billionaires ever, as a manifesto advising women on how to achieve professional success.

Sandberg also launched an organization, Lean In, to further promote her message. She will donate her proceeds from the film to the foundation, according to Deadline, which reported the story earlier.

While there were few specifics available about the movie or the deal, Deadline said Sony Pictures (SNE), which made "The Social Network" about Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg -- tapped Nell Scovell to write the script. Scovell helped Sandberg write the book.

--CNN's David Daniel contributed to this report.

First Published: January 24, 2014: 5:54 PM ET

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Sam's Club laying off 2% of workers

Sam's Club will lay off 2% of its workforce.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

That's 2% of the workforce for the wholesale club chain, which has nearly 600 locations in the United States.

A little less than half of the employees affected are assistant managers, according to Sam's Club spokesman Bill Durling. Before the layoff, each club's fresh section -- which sells meat, poultry, seafood, dairy, produce and baked goods -- had six managers. Half of those jobs have been eliminated. Instead there will be three fresh section managers, who will be paid more, Durling said.

The company eliminated some hourly positions too.

Each employee affected by the cut will be paid for 60 days and is encouraged to look for other jobs at Sam's Clubs or its parent company, Wal-Mart, (WMT, Fortune 500)stores. If they cannot find a job within the company, they will receive some severance, Durling said.

Durling said that the company also plans to add at least fifteen more stores in the next year.

--CNN's Poppy Harlow contributed to this report.

First Published: January 24, 2014: 7:18 PM ET

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Microsoft sales soar 14%

Microsoft shares rise after company reports strong second quarter sales that beat analyst estimates

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The software giant posted solid shipments of the Xbox One, selling 3.9 million of the new game consoles. Microsoft has been neck-and-neck with rival Sony (SNE), which launched the PlayStation 4 console a week before the Xbox One went on sale.

Microsoft also doubled sales of its Surface tablet, bringing in nearly $900 million in revenue from the device. That's a positive turnaround for a device that got off to such a slow start last year that the company was forced to write down nearly $1 billion in inventory.

But PC sales continued to haunt Microsoft: Consumer sales of Windows 7 and Windows 8 fell 20% last quarter, the company said. The company said overall Windows revenue fell just 3% in the quarter, as a 12% increase in businesses licensing the software offset the awful consumer sales.

Overall, Microsoft said in a statement that its fiscal second quarter sales topped $24.5 billion -- a 14% jump from the same time last year. Profit rose 3% to $6.6 billion and 78 cents per share.

Wall Street analysts were expecting revenue of $23.7 billion and earnings per share of 68 cents, according to a survey conducted by Thomson Reuters.

Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500) shares rose 4% in after hours trading.

"It's a good quarter to ride out on," said BGC Partners analyst Colin Gillis, referring to the impending departure of Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.

Related: Microsoft CEO should be...

It was a good quarter for Microsoft, but the real question, he said, is who is going to succeed Ballmer.

"What direction are they going to take the company," he said. "They need to get it done."

Microsoft is expected to announce a successor sometime in the next month or two.

Microsoft's stock, like the broader market, enjoyed a healthy 2013 -- rising 38%. But Microsoft hasn't carried that success into 2014.

Weighing on the stock is uncertainty surrounding who will succeed Ballmer, declining PC sales and the rise of PC alternatives such as smart phones and tablets -- a segment the company has not been able to dominate.

First Published: January 23, 2014: 4:21 PM ET

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Jack Lew: U.S. could grow by 3% this year

Davos, Switzerland (CNNMoney)

"We have a good first quarter underway, I believe," Lew said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Lew was reluctant to make a specific prediction about the rate of expansion this year, but said there were reasons to believe growth in the world's biggest economy would "break through 3%."

He believes that, freed from last year's drag of tax rises and spending cuts, and with business confidence strong, the economy should accelerate sharply from last year.

"I really think there is every reason to be hopeful that we will do well this year," Lew said.

Related: My minimum wage isn't a living wage

In its latest forecast Tuesday, the International Monetary Fund upgraded its projection for U.S. economic growth in 2014 to 2.8% from 2.6%, citing stronger domestic demand and the boost from smaller spending cuts as a result of the recent budget deal.

The IMF estimates U.S. growth of 1.9% in 2013.

While the U.S. is recovering at a faster pace than other developed economies, Lew said there was still a way to go in creating jobs and making work pay.

Related: Economic mobility: No better, no worse

"We don't think it's OK to work full time and be below poverty," he said. "Until every American who wants a job has a job, we'll have more work to do."

Lew also cautioned companies against rushing to do business with Iran following an interim deal that limits the country's nuclear program in exchange for lighter sanctions.

President Hassan Rouhani said earlier Tuesday that Iran would continue with its peaceful nuclear program, and will push to re-engage with the world to build its economy.

"I've been very clear that business should be very clear headed about going to do business in Iran because the sanctions regime has not been lifted," Lew said.

He said it was way too early to predict the outcome of negotiations with Iran aimed at securing a comprehensive, long-term agreement on the future of its nuclear program.

First Published: January 23, 2014: 1:39 PM ET

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Oops! Pentagon didn't actually order 80,000 new BlackBerries

Smartphone maker BlackBerry didn't sell 80,000 new phones to the Pentagon, but the sale of most of its Canadian real estate holdings will help its finances.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

"The Department of Defense is not planning to purchase upwards of 80,000 BlackBerry devices," a Pentagon spokesman said in a statement.

The confusion began when the DoD said in a Jan. 16 press release that it launched a new mobile network that would support 80,000 BlackBerries in addition to 1,800 iPhones, iPads, and Android devices. Shares soared 5% the following day.

The problem is that those 80,000 BlackBerry smartphones are existing devices -- not new ones. So down shares came tumbling after The Verge first reported the Pentagon's clarification.

Despite Thursday's setback, BlackBerry shares have been on a tear in 2013 -- up 38% so far. Investors have enthusiastically embraced new CEO John Chen -- who took the top spot only recently and has been successful turning around other companies.

Real estate sale drives stock: Investors particularly supported Chen's latest move, announcing earlier this week that BlackBerry would sell most of its real estate in its home country in a bid to raise much needed cash. BlackBerry shares had been up 19% this week prior to Thursday.

The real estate in question totals over 3 million square feet -- or nearly the same amount of office space in the Pentagon. Blackberry said it will lease back much of the space and will stay in its hometown near Toronto.

"BlackBerry remains committed to being headquartered in Waterloo," John Chen, the company's CEO, said in a statement. "This initiative will further enhance BlackBerry's financial flexibility, and will provide additional resources to support our operations as our business continues to evolve."

The company wouldn't say how much it expects to make off the sale. Peter Misek, a managing director at Jefferies & Co. that covers Blackberry, thinks it will be at least $450 million.

Misek does not see the move as an act of desperation or an indication that the company may move elsewhere.

"He's raising fortress levels of cash to show people that this company is going to be around, at least in the near term," Misek said of CEO Chen's move. "It's a really smart idea."

Related: BlackBerry CEO may have golden touch

Struggling business: BlackBerry (BBRY) sure needs the cash. The company has $3.2 billion in cash but has been bleeding money and subscribers for the better part of a year as customers flock to other smart phones, such as Apple's (AAPL, Fortune 500) iPhone or Samsung's Galaxy.

Last quarter BlackBerry announced a huge $4.4 billion loss, including a $1 billion writedown on the failed Z10 smartphone. Sales fell 56% from the same time a year prior. Earlier this fall it said it was laying off 4,500 employees -- 40% of its work force -- and gave up on a bid to sell itself.

BlackBerry's losses going forward are expected to be much more manageable -- maybe $300 million a quarter for the next couple of quarters, said Misek. Ideally, the company would return to profitability sometime after that.

First Published: January 23, 2014: 4:03 PM ET

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Cheerleader sues Oakland Raiders over wages

The Oakland Raiders are facing a potential class action over cheerleader compensation.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

A member of the Raiderettes -- "Football's Fabulous Females" -- filed suit against the Oakland Raiders football team on Wednesday, claiming she was not paid properly.

Identified in court documents only as "Lacy T.," her allegations included unpaid work, pay below the minimum wage, no meal or rest breaks and untimely pay.

Mike Taylor, director of public relations for the Raiders, has no comment when contacted Wednesday by CNN.

The cheerleader claims that her pay of $1,250 for the season -- including $125 per game -- was less than $5 per hour for appearances at games, rehearsals and charity events. Raiderettes, she said, are not paid until the end of the season and have "fines" for late arrival and other infractions deducted from the paycheck.

Related story: Why football is still a money machine

"I love the Raiders and I love being a Raiderette, but someone has to stand up for all of the women of the NFL who work so hard for the fans and the teams," the plaintiff said in a statement released by her lawyer.

The plaintiff is asking for the suit to move forward as a class action -- meaning other Raiderettes could join -- and sought restitution from the team.

-- CNN's Joseph Miller contributed to this report.

First Published: January 22, 2014: 11:20 PM ET

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China's factories sputter into the new year

China's factories are growing at a slower pace to start the new year.

HONG KONG (CNNMoney)

HSBC said that its "flash" measure of sentiment among manufacturing purchasing managers fell to 49.6 in January from 50.5 in December.

January's reading raises a red flag, as any number under 50 indicates a deceleration in the manufacturing sector. If factory activity continues to lag in the coming months, it could be ominous for China's economy and pose an even greater challenge for the government's plans to enforce economic reforms.

Experts believe reforms are necessary to sustain the world's second-largest economy, especially as China seeks more stable expansion following decades of ballooning growth.

Related story: Yet another China credit crunch: What's going on?

HSBC economist Hongbin Qu said in a statement that weakness in the manufacturing sector was due to slowing domestic demand. Government policy should shift to focus on boosting growth to avoid a deceleration in the first half of the year, he said.

Related story: China's 7.7% GDP growth beats official target

Other economists said they're holding off from reading too much into the data, due to seasonal fluctuations around the Lunar New Year holiday, which kicks off late next week.

The January dip "looks too far out of step with recent evidence of an improving global business cycle," said Bill Adams, an economist at PNC Financial Services Group. "This release calls for caution -- but not angst."

HSBC's final reading will be released on Jan. 30.

First Published: January 22, 2014: 10:44 PM ET

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Buyers flocked to foreclosures last year -- and many paid all cash

The surge in sales of distressed properties comes despite the fact that far fewer Americans lost their homes to foreclosure last year.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Sales of foreclosed and distressed homes made up 16.2% of all home sales last year, up from 14.5% in 2012, according to RealtyTrac. Overall, U.S. home sales were up 10% year-over-year.

And many deals were done in cold, hard cash. All-cash deals accounted for 29.1% of all home purchases last year, up significantly from 19.4% the year before, RealtyTrac said.

The surge in sales of distressed properties comes despite the fact that far fewer Americans lost their homes to foreclosure last year.

Related: Million-dollar housing markets

"It may surprise some to see distressed sales rising in 2013 given that foreclosure starts dropped to a seven-year low for the year," said Daren Blomquist, spokesman for RealtyTrac. "[But] there are still more than 1.2 million properties in the foreclosure process or bank-owned, providing a sizable pool of inventory that the housing market is in the process of absorbing."

Distressed properties are attractive to buyers because they tend to be significantly cheaper. The median home price of a foreclosed or bank-owned property was $108,500 in December compared with $174,400 for non-distressed properties.

Institutional investors, including hedge funds and private equity groups, were buying up homes of all types last year including foreclosures. During the year, 7.3% of all home sales were to investors, up from 5.1% the year before.

Related: Vulture investors flipping their way to big profits

Major markets where investors claimed the largest percentage of sales in December included Jacksonville, Fla., at 38.7%, Knoxville, Tenn., (31.9%), Atlanta (25.2%), Cape Coral, Fla. (24.9%), Cincinnati (19.3%), and Las Vegas (18.2%).

As home prices continue to recover, Blomquist believes there will be even fewer short sales, when a borrower agrees with their lender to sell the home even though they owe more on their mortgage than the home is worth.

Related: Home prices: Your local forecast -- 384 markets tracked

As home prices rise, he said more lenders will be able to afford to take the time to foreclose on a borrower because the value of the home will be higher by the time the process is over. Plus, struggling homeowners could try to hold off on a short sale until they're no longer underwater.

"Sellers may be able to do an equity sale and avoid damage to their credit score if they wait," said Blomquist.

First Published: January 23, 2014: 12:07 AM ET

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Opinion: Mobility is the problem, not income inequality

The problem for the 99% is not that incomes for the top 1% have grown faster than everyone else's, says social policy expert Scott Winship. It's because economic mobility has been stagnant for decades.

Washington, D.C. (CNNMoney)

Too many families struggle in poverty, too many workers have given up looking for work, and too many young adults have graduated into a weak economy that will lower their lifetime earnings.

If the economy were stronger, there is reason to believe inequality would not be such a concern. For instance, inequality was high and rising during the late 1990s, but because the growing economy was largely benefiting everyone, few people were worried about income concentration at the top.

What's more, living standards have improved over time for the poor and middle class even as income inequality has grown. For that matter, the growth in inequality has been exaggerated. And contrary to claims that rising income inequality has hurt their economic opportunity, evidence of a link between the two is weak.

Average income in the middle fifth of households rose 66% between 1969 and 2007 and it grew 55% in the bottom fifth. This growth was much slower than it was in the 1950s and '60s. But the slowdown actually began in the 1970s, before income concentration at the top started to take off.

Opposing view: Why growth in income inequality does matter

Economic mobility hasn't changed much either. No research shows a sizable increase in mobility since the mid-20th century. And the most common change found in many studies is so modest (up or down) as to be statistically insignificant.

In the face of this unsupportive research, proponents of the view that inequality has hurt mobility have turned to cross-national research, notably the "Great Gatsby Curve." This chart shows a strong statistical relationship between countries' inequality levels and the mobility their citizens enjoy.

But it's problematic as evidence for several reasons. The most damning: it uses a measure that automatically assigns a country a lower mobility value when its growth in inequality is greater than in other countries.

New research by the creator of the Great Gatsby Curve, which does not automatically adjust mobility downward when there are differences in inequality between nations, suggests that there may be no cross-national relationship between high inequality and low mobility.

While there's reason to believe mobility has not diminished much if at all over time, it has been stuck at unacceptably low levels for decades.

If past patterns hold, 70% of poor children today will fail to make it to the middle class as adults. Four in 10 will be mired in poverty themselves in midlife.

These are not the kind of odds those of us solidly in the middle class would accept for our children. The American Dream is in poor health if children who grow up in the bottom can aspire only to fill the same sorts of jobs as their parents hold.

The challenge is to identify real solutions to the problem of limited mobility. Fifty years after Lyndon Johnson's declaration of war on poverty, we should establish a second front against immobility.

Attacking inequality, however, is unlikely to mitigate either problem.

First Published: January 21, 2014: 6:25 PM ET

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The world's most expensive whisky

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

A large crystal decanter filled with rare Macallan "M" whisky sold for $628,205 at a Sotheby's auction in Hong Kong this weekend. That hefty price tag set a new world record for the most expensive single-malt whisky sold at auction.

What makes this whisky so special?

Mostly, its rarity.

First, there's the bottle. The faceted crystal decanter of The Macallan Imperiale "M" is 28 inches tall and holds 6 liters of whisky -- the same volume as 3 big soda bottles. The glass crafter said forty of the hand-blown decanters were created and destroyed due to imperfections before the piece was finally completed. Named after the Roman emperor, the "Constantine" decanter took 17 craftsmen over 50 hours to complete, the French glass company said.

The Constantine is one of only four bottles of its kind.

Then there's the bottle's amber-colored contents.

At The Macallan distillery in Scotland, the resident whisky maker spent two years choosing seven casks out of nearly 200,000 that would be blended to create "M," according to the auction catalog. The Macallan brand ambassador, Charlie Whitfield, said those rare sherry oak casks range in age from about 75 to 25 years old.

Related: Spending $402 million in one week

Before the sale, the world record was held by another Macallan whisky, a 64-year-old scotch that went for $460,000 in New York in 2010.

But The Macallan Imperiale "M" doesn't have an age statement since the casks were chosen for rarity rather than age. Instead of paying for years, the winning bidder was buying what Whitfield called "a unique opportunity to own a collaboration between best-respected luxury brands."

In recent years, such collaborations between spirit producers and luxury brands have become increasingly appealing to high-end bidders, according to Jennifer Simonetti-Bryan, a certified wine and spirits expert.

Asian buyers have been central to that trend, she said.

While Macallan's largest market is the United States, Asia is becoming a new hotspot for spirit investors. "In the past ten years the Asian market for rare spirits has exploded," Whitfield said.

An added incentive for local buyers -- all proceeds from the sale go to Hong Kong charities.

Another attractive quality of these rare spirits is their long-lasting drinkability. Unlike an uncorked bottle of wine, most spirits, like the Macallan scotch, can be opened and drunk over a period of months or even years, the expert said.

Whenever the winning bidder, who chose to remain anonymous, decides to pull out the stopper and pour a dram, Whitfield said they can expect to taste notes of cinnamon, green apple, raisin, and wood smoke.

And if you're lucky enough to taste a drop from the "Constantine," the whisky inside, "M", is available in regular-sized bottles as well. Good luck finding it though. There are just 1,750 in the world, selling for the bargain price of $4,500.

First Published: January 21, 2014: 4:37 PM ET

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Opinion: Why growing income inequality matters

The concern about growing income inequality is not about begrudging the wealthy their success, says economist Jared Bernstein. The worry is that it is curbing everyone else's economic potential.

Washington, D.C. (CNNMoney)

First, by giving a major address on the issue, President Obama elevated it to front-page status. Next, high visibility politicians with very different views than the president on such matters, like Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. Paul Ryan, also embraced the topic. Sen. Rubio called the inequality trends "startling" and agreed that they "deserve attention."

Now, I'll be the first to admit that Washington has been dysfunction junction for a long time now, but I consider this to be progress: Policymakers who agree on almost nothing agree that the level of inequality facing America today is a big problem. The first step to getting better is to recognize you're not well.

Of course, there will always be gaps between the resources of American households at different points in the income scale. There may be some out there who seek equality of outcomes, but I don't know them.

Yet, while we don't always achieve it, most Americans deeply value equality of opportunity.

I believe the reason that policymakers of all stripes are now talking about inequality is that they worry, as do many analysts like myself who've been working on this a long time, that the historically high levels of economic disparity threaten the opportunities of those on the wrong side of the economic divide.

Opposing view: Mobility is the problem, not income inequality

Ask yourself this question: Is America a meritocracy, meaning that regardless of the status of your birth, you're free to go as far as your inherent talents will take you?

It's a question I pose to audiences all the time, and most people recognize that we are not there yet. In fact, we're far from it. Research shows that not only is the correlation between parents' income and education a reliable predictor of how their kids do, but that correlation is higher here than in most other advanced economies.

In other words, while knowing a baby's zip code won't tell you for certain how successful they'll be as a grownup, it tells you more than it should.

But how does this relate to income inequality? First of all, there's a strong, positive relationship between countries with high inequality and that zip code problem. That suggests the two are linked, and that when high levels of income inequality persevere, barriers to getting ahead -- opportunity barriers -- will arise.

Some indicators suggest this process is already at work in the United States:

• There's a wide and growing gap in how much parents invest in their kids. High-income families spend increasingly more on tutoring, art, sports, books, and so on relative to low-income families.
• The academic achievement gap on standardized tests between students for low- versus high-income families has increased by 40% over the last 30 years, the period of rising inequality.
• College attainment has increased much more among kids from wealthy families. The wealthier your family, the more likely you are to go to a top-tier college.

To many Americans, that's why we worry about the heights to which inequality has grown. Not because we begrudge the wealthy their success, but because we want our own kids to be able to realize their economic potential.

And society's growing economic disparities are threatening that most basic aspiration.

First Published: January 21, 2014: 6:25 PM ET

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