A major wild card that has yet to really surface is...

A major wild card that has yet to really surface is legislation that allows U.S. corporations to repatriate foreign earnings at a 5.25 percent tax rate instead of 35 percent. To be eligible the money has to be repatriated in 2005 and reinvested by Dec. 31, 2007. While the money cannot be used for many corporate activities, it can be used for mergers and acquisition.