Candy maker Mars Inc. is buying Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co., the confectioner behind Juicy Fruit and Doublemint gum and Life Savers candy, for about $23 billion in cash, the companies announced Monday.

The agreement has the potential to transform the globe's confectionery industry and could spawn a series of other combinations.

Warren Buffett’s 31st annual Chairman’s Letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders, released over the weekend, is one of those must-read reports that every serious investor should spend a few minutes perusing. It is essentially Buffett’s annual review of the various Berkshire Hathaway operations, but it also contains a treasure trove of wit and wisdom from the Oracle of Omaha.

Although traders who are comfortable flipping stock and spreading options typically don’t look to Berkshire Hathaway for advice or for trading cues, an interesting idea showed up in Berkshire’s recently released 2007 annual report. On page 16, the chairman explains the two categories of derivative contracts that the company does hold.