In a special section on personal finances published on January 25, the Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette quoted four faculty from the College of Business on a wide range of financial topics -- from the impact of the possible war with Iraq to the impact the decline of the market has had on retirement.

Associate Professor Hadi Esfahani, Professor Fred Gottheil, and Assistant Professor George Deltas were interviewed for the lead story on the economic impact of the current uncertainty about war with Iraq. Esfahani and Gottheil both noted that once the question of war is resolved, the economy will likely improve.In the article, Gottheil commented out that uncertainty in financial markets "makes business people cautious about investing."

Esfahani also pointed out that the price of crude oil is another source of uncertainty. Management of the US oil supply is also a factor in changing oil prices. According to Deltas, current commercial oil reserves are at an all time low but the government's strategic reserve is at an all-time high.If the market has ready access to oil even if war breaks out, "it's possible that oil prices are not going to go higher than what they are now," he said.He went on to say that Saudi Arabia's capacity, which is "underused," could make up for the interruption of supply from Iraq for "months and months and years."

Todd Elder, an assistant professor of economics and labor and industrial relations, was interviewed for the article on retirement. "The people in the best shape are the ones who have changed their investment strategy and approproately adjusted their portfolios," said Elder. "If someone wants to retire within 10 years, they should definitely have less than half their assets in the stock market." He also noted that many people need to continue working because of the access to healthcare that employment provides.

The special section is not available online.