PODCAST: The man who created BRIC’s, so long Saturday mail?

Japan’s Nikkei index hit a 4-and-a-half-year high today after jumping almost four percent. Now, you could give all the credit to a weakening yen which is making Japanese exports cheaper abroad and thereby boosting business. But, Japan isn’t the only place where the stock market is booming right now — markets in the U.S. and even Europe are up as well.

Boeing is speaking out this morning about the problems its 787 Dreamliner is having. The planes have been grounded around the world –  after a series of incidents including a fire onboard a Dreamliner in Boston. But in an interview this morning, Boeing remains upbeat about the plane’s future.

Now to the ongoing battle between Samsung and Apple. The two have been duking it out for the number one spot in smartphones for some time. And now the Korean electronics maker is planting a flag right in Apple’s backyard. It’s building a one million square foot research and development center in Silicon Valley and dedicating $100 million to fund emerging technologies.

And finally, to a bit of retirement news. We learned this morning that the U.S. postal service is planning to retire Saturday mail delivery to cut costs. Hasbro is retiring the Iron from Monopoly and replacing it with a cat. A guy named Jim O’Neil is retiring as chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management. O’Neil is the guy who coined the term BRIC’s, which in the world of economics stands for Brazil, Russia, India and China — the four key emerging markets. He starting using that term in 2001, to help sell investors on emerging markets. And since then, according to Barrons, the Russell BRIC Index has gained 363 percent.