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http://www.suntimes.com/output/business/cst-fin-monk01.html

Monkey portfolio besting market at mid-year point 

July 1, 2004

BY DAVID ROEDER Business Reporter 

Mr. Adam Monk can do no wrong. Most of the time.

The Sun-Times stock-picking monkey is again putting Wall Street's rat pack to 
shame. His
five-stock portfolio, selected at the start of 2004, has a year-to-date gain 
of 14
percent.

He's found a tailwind in a market that's been otherwise stagnant through this 
year's
second quarter, which closed Wednesday. The Dow Jones industrial average is 
down a teensy
0.18 percent for the year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index is up 2.6 
percent and
the Nasdaq composite index is up 2.2 percent. 

Mr. Monk, a 32-year-old cebus monkey who helms our Monkey Business 
stock-picking contest,
has to live down a couple mistakes. Two of his stock picks have lost ground, 
an Internet
porn company and a Chicago-based real-estate investment trust that lost 
Arthur Andersen
as a tenant, and now might lose Bank One.

A native of Brazil's rain forest, Mr. Monk now admits he bought the porn 
company in the
mistaken belief that the company produced some really hot National Geographic 
videos.

But the rest of his portfolio more than compensates, and reflects his innate
understanding of human society. We crave oil, and we get old and sick. His 
best stocks
are an oil pipeline firm and a health insurer.

Inspired by Mr. Monk's example, more than 400 readers entered this year's 
contest to pick
the best performing stock. The chart on Page 57 lists the leaders, who 
clearly have found
big winners in a drab market. Watch the Sun-Times for further updates for the 
rest of the
year.

At yearend, the person whose stock has appreciated the most will win an 
Australian gold
coin commemorating 2004, Year of the Monkey, from Harlan J. Berk Ltd., 31 N. 
Clark.

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