Good morning, investors, and welcome once again to "Breakfast With the Fool." Grab a cup of joe and sit yourself down while we scan the morning papers together. First up ... for investors who've been wondering whether there is any price Rupert Murdoch will not pay to control every media outlet in the world, the answer arrived on Saturday.
That was the day News Corp.
So how much will Murdoch pay to control the world's newspapers? To increase his stranglehold on New York-based media outlets, he'll apparently pay roughly 1.2 times sales, and not a penny more. Of course, if the paper is named The Wall Street Journal, Murdoch will be happy to double the price.
Have a penny? Leave a penny. Need a penny? You're out of luck.
In other news, those of you still using snail mail will be elated to learn that the U.S. Postal Service is giving you the chance to support your favorite surly bureaucracy this week. Rates for first-class postage stamps rise one penny to $0.42 today, with other charges rising in tandem.
That's bad news for heavy users of the USPS, including Netflix
News to go
Moving on to non-penny news affecting your investments, the strike at American Axle looks likely to drag on further this week. United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger took umbrage at a GM
GM blamed the strike for production cuts in its pickup and SUV lines that cost the automaker some $800 million last quarter -- and one Deutsche Bank analyst predicts that the damage will grow worse if the strike continues. So does GM have incentive to pay up to make this problem go away? I think it does.
Meanwhile, Ford