Latest Posts
-
News 0
A long a painful journey
Just how bad is the global economic outlook? The lack of a consensus answer to that question is telling. Normally, the financial institutions that steer the world economy show a degree of agreement. But these are uncertain times. The International Monetary Fund said recently that the credit crunch had cost financial firms a stunning $945bn; the Bank of England slated that estimate as “misleading”. The IMF was confusing credit losses with losses “implied by market prices,” it said. Those market prices were unrealistic, and the losses they pointed to would not materialise, the Bank argued – things were not as grim as they seemed. Mayb... -
News 0
Specialising in economic analysis
It isn’t just corporate bombast. It’s a reality many US businesses have already witnessed. For many corporates, transfer pricing is the most important issue any large global business has to face up to during the next five years. Tax authorities – including Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customers (HMRC) – are getting tough with any company which may have pushed the envelope when it comes to clearly explaining their transfer pricing regime. But it’s also an environment where tough, intellectual rigour is increasingly valued says Dr Ted Keen of Ballentine Barbera, the US-based transfer pricing boutique specialist. “A lot of countries... -
News 0
Banks’ losses fail to dampen bonus season goodwill
If large banks had suffered losses, it seemed logical that their highly-paid employees would share the pain. The reality is likely to be more complicated. Though several institutions have not yet reported their results, it increasingly looks as if the bonus pot shared between employees of the world’s largest investment banks will be larger than ever before. Even though several bulge bracket banks have suffered catastrophic losses on investments linked to the US subprime mortgage crisis, many parts of their business enjoyed a record year in 2007. Moreover, not all banks have been equally affected. This has produced some surprising results. T... -
News 0
Forex, the new futures?
1995 represented a major turning point in the financial markets. The futures markets ruled supreme with the tail wagging the dog in the underlying cash markets. Few saw the significance of 1995 though, as it marked the introduction of Windows 95 and Internet Explorer. However, the real change came in 2000 when DSL lines became available. This provided secure and permanent access to the Internet with limited downtime. As the new Millennium progressed so did the broadband market. However, proceeding this period the futures market had moved from an on-floor open outcry system to a computer trading system where the connections were made from the ... -
News 0
Selling England by the pound
When I started in the City of London, the UK was entering a terrible period. Sterling was in free fall and the IMF were being called in by the then Prime Minister James Callaghan. His nemesis came in the form of Margret Thatcher who boldly stood on the election platform in 1979, tearing a Pound Note in half and claiming that the Pound in your pocket was now worth half of what it had been. It helped the Iron lady to take power and become the UK’s longest serving Prime Minster, just recently surpassed by Tony Blair. However, this was a revolution created by the need to move the basics of economics to monetarism. This has been the foundation f... -
News 0
Economies braced for bumpy ride
A year ago, it all seemed so much simpler. Following a bumper year in 2006, most economists were looking for a continuation of the good times into last year. Some talked about worries over the health of the US economy, but the expectation was that any downturn would be short-lived. Sub-prime may have been on many economists’ radars, but the phrase would have meant little to the public. At the start of this year, things look gloomier. Most economists expect the US to grow by less than 2.5 percent, with a sharp slowdown in the eurozone to about 2 percent, and the UK, worse affected than many, down to about 1.9 percent. However, thanks to cont... -
News 0
PLUS prepared for bear
Is it or isn’t it a bear market? Perhaps that’s not the question, but rather whether a young, new stock exchange in London like PLUS Markets Group can survive the volatility that’s been seen in the stock markets in the past few months. Ask these questions to PLUS’s director of business development Nemone Wynn-Evans, however, and she does not flinch. “Many people would look at current valuation levels in London today and say that we were in a bear market,” said Ms Wynn-Evans. “Indeed, many people would look at the smaller end of the London equity market and say that it has been in a bear market since the end of last year. “From... -
News 0
Showcasing Caribbean investment opportunities
The Ministry (MTI), Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT) and RBTT Bank Limited have joined forces to sponsor the event, which is the flagship inward trade mission of the Trinidad and Tobago Manufacturers’ Association (TTMA buy generic levitra online ). TIC 2008 takes place from April 30 to May 3, 2008. It is the Caribbean’s biggest business-to-business event, and includes a multi-sectoral 292-booth tradeshow, structured networking opportunities and a topical business education programme. A wide cross-section of companies from around the world will showcase goods and services to thousands of local, regional and interna... -
News 0
The pole position – a blessing or a curse for FDI?
Slovenia’s business makeover has not been a bumpy ride experienced by other economies in transition at the beginning of the 1990s. Slovenian companies were a target for foreign interest as early as in the late 1970s thanks to Slovenia’s manufacturers of household appliances, cars and commercial vehicles, furniture and garments. Conveniently nestled between Austria and Italy, Slovenia has traditionally served as a gateway for exports to the discerning markets of West Europe even in former Yugoslavia. Much has been done to boost the country’s attractiveness as a place to do business between Slovenia’s independence and today. The call fo... -
News 0
Custodians juggle challenges of risk and reward
Custodians have a love/hate relationship with risk. On the one hand, they are wary of using their balance sheets for client financing, a reluctance that has helped investment banks make headway in the administration business. At the same time, custodians are interested in administering highly complex investment portfolios and products, many of which carry a significant operational risk. Custodians also want to play a part in risk measurement and analytics, although few have developed a compelling service proposition. Even the largest custodians are feeling their way when it comes to risk services. According to Gunjan Kedia, global head of pro...
Top Posts
-
The Importance for Individuals to Use Sustainable Chemicals
-
Small Businesses: Finding the Right Candidate for the Job
-
How to Write the Perfect Thank You Letter After Your Job Interview
-
3 Best Large-Cap Blend Mutual Funds For Enticing Returns
-
China suspected in massive breach of federal personnel data
