• A credit card: how to select and to use...

    Sep 07, 2011  Posted by Admin    No Comments »
    A credit card: how to select and to use

    You should know that credit cards are not only convenient, but they are also dangerous. Many people destroy their financial lives because they couldn’t stop charging. It becomes a reflex for such losers. It is a real problem, but this article will help you to make good use of credit cards and to choose a credit card though. All accessible...
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  • Investing online you invest in your solid future...

    Aug 08, 2011  Posted by Admin    No Comments »
    Investing online you invest in your solid future

    Online advertising was the most preferred advertising in the current scenario of business. That’s because today’s Web sites generate a significant portion of sales and there are many others who conduct their business online. There is always an increase in online business investing online and their success rates are a benchmark for the...
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  • Small business loans ideally suits your small business requirements...

    Jul 10, 2011  Posted by Admin    No Comments »
    Small business loans ideally suits your small business requirements

    Small business loans are a perfect option for small business owners. Now you can easily track your cash flow and solve related business expenses easily. Loans to small businesses give you a possibility to resolve debts, investing in new businesses, purchase of raw materials, payment of wages or salaries, purchase of machinery and various tools,...
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  • What are the best bank rates?...

    Jul 07, 2011  Posted by Admin    No Comments »
    What are the best bank rates?

    What are the best bank rates? Which bank will give you the most for your money? Clearly, today, with very low interest rates being offered, finding a bank that will give you the highest possible rate for your savings account and control is very important. Some companies have higher percent than others, to find the best one is important to improve...
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SMEs: Tax breaks too complicated

Jul 27, 2011  Posted by Joseph Ward in Business News | | No Comments »

Tax breaks designed to help small firms invest in new equipment are too complicated and are failing to boost spending, finds research.   A survey of 950 businesses by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) asks whether the capital allowances rules are clear enough, with just 8 per cent of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) finding them easy to understand.

Some 19 per cent rate them ‘acceptable’, 31 per cent think they are ‘complicated’, and 42 per cent do not know and/or leave it to their accountants.   Under the capital allowances system, firms investing in new equipment pay less tax on their profits.   The survey also reveals that for 80 per cent of firms, capital allowances have no impact on their investment decisions, which suggests that the allowance is not acting as an incentive for growth, according to the FLA.

The risk for the economy is that small businesses do not have the latest equipment that means they can compete for new business in global markets, continues the firm.   Julian


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Tags: Breaks Tax Breaks

Carbon tax uncertainty pulls consumer sentiment down

Jul 26, 2011  Posted by Shannon Cox in Business News | | No Comments »

Consumer sentiment fell 8.3 percent in July, to levels not seen since May 2009, thanks to uncertainty about the carbon tax, concerns over the European financial crisis and the ongoing impact of seven rate rises between October 2009 and November 2010.

The Westpac-Melbourne Institute Index of Consumer Sentiment fell from 101.2 in June to 92.8 in July, despite unemployment sitting at the low rate of 4.9%, with Chief Economist Bill Evans referring to the result as “surprisingly weak.”

“The only other time in recent history when the Index has been sustained around the current level was during the period following the GST introduction which also coincided with the bursting of the dot com bubble.”

“We then have to go back to the deep recession of the early 1990s for the next period of comparable weakness in the Index,” he added.

Evans said the current index level is “disturbing low” and the magnitude of the fall ”remarkable,” but did stress the July survey closed the day before the government’s carbon tax announcement.

Evan noted one positive result in the survey however – with confidence in housing rising 3.3 percent to its highest level in 18 months.

Tags: Carbon Tax Consumer Sentiment Sentiment

Aussie car cleaning franchise expands to Russia

Jul 26, 2011  Posted by Shannon Cox in Business News | | No Comments »

Nanotek, the Australian-owner car cleaning franchise, has made history by becoming the first Australian mobile franchise to arrive in Russia.

Russia now forms one of the 12 countries across Europe, the Middle East and North America Nanotek has expanded to, with CEO Jim Cornish revealing that exports now contribute 60 percent of the franchise’s operations.

“We are expecting to have over 130 mobile units internationally by the end of 2011 with revenues up to $15 million. We expect Russia alone will generate about $2 million after the first year.”

Cornish said his company believes Russia holds “enormous” potential, as it’s a large, untapped market and one without an existing mobile car cleaning franchise, giving Nanotek the opportunity to establish its place.

“The market has the potential for at least 500 mobile units across all major territories and we expect to have 30 up and running by the end of this year,” he said.

Headquartered in Moscow, Nanotek’s operation will have an immediate focus on the federation’s capital and St Petersburg. The franchise was l


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Tags: Car Cleaning Car Cleaning Franchise Cleaning Franchise Russia

Britain a shave above recession

Jul 25, 2011  Posted by Shannon Cox in Business News | | No Comments »

LONDON, July 26 (UPI) — Britain’s gross domestic product rose 0.2 percent in the second quarter of 2011, the Office of National Statistics said Tuesday.

The growth in economic output slowed from the 0.5 percent growth of the first quarter.

The first quarter’s figure was already considered a significant recession scare. Two quarters of negative growth is generally assumed to indicate a country in recession.

ONS said construction output rose by 0.5 percent in the second quarter, while total business production decreased 1.4 percent, following a 0.1 percent decline in the first quarter.

The largest decline came from mining and quarrying. Manufacturing slipped 0.3 percent quarter-to-quarter, while output from mining and quarrying dropped 6.6 percent.

Utilities — gas, electricity and water supply — saw a 3.2 percent drop in output. Output from agriculture, forestry and fishing fell 1.3 percent in the quarter.

Tags: Britain Britain Shave

Which store strategy works best – clean or cluttered?

Jul 24, 2011  Posted by Shannon Cox in Business News | | No Comments »

For those of you who are in the retail industry, you may have noticed a recent trend to clean up in-store environments – reduce shelf heights, remove dense ends and dump bins, widen aisles etc. – in order to increase comfort and make the shopping experience less stressful for customers.

The big question then becomes “does clean make customers keen? According to Walmart, arguably the largest and most successful retailer in the world, clean stores mean fewer beans (on the bottom line).

As reported in the New York Times, Walmart conducted a massive in-store experiment to improve sight-lines, rationalize the overall number of items offered, remove warehouse-like merchandising in centre aisles, and increase the width of core aisles. According to Walmart’s CEO William S. Simon, “(Customers) loved the experience. They just bought less.”

As a result, Walmart reverted back to its original strategy of offering more products, with tighter aisles, more clutter and lots of bargain bins in the hopes that customers would spend more because of a perception “there were bargains to be had”.

If you do a quick search on the internet, there are dozens of experts who subscribe to the view that a larger selection, more bargain bins, and sales signage equates to “better value”. In essence, the mor


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Tags: Clean Clean Cluttered

Managers struggle to find time for holidays

Jul 24, 2011  Posted by Joseph Ward in Business News | | No Comments »

Most managers take little holiday and one in eight claim to take none at all, research finds.

More than two thirds (69 per cent) took two weeks or fewer off work throughout the course of last year, with 13 per cent saying they took no time off, according to a study of 507 decision makers by IFF Research.  

The number varies greatly between size of organisation, with 16 per cent of sole traders taking no time off but only 1 per cent of decision makers in companies of 50-250 employees claiming the same.

While 41 per cent of employers feel that the amount of holiday they had taken was ‘about right’, around half, (52 per cent), think it wasn’t enough.  

Some 56 per cent of sole traders think the holiday they’d taken was not sufficient, compared with 34 per cent of managers from organisations employing between 50 and 250 people.

Whereas 54 per cent of female staff are very satisfied with the holiday they get from work, just 40 per cent of men feel the same.  And although 57 per cent of employees in the public sector are very satisfied, the figure falls to 40 per cent in the private sector.     

IFF Research managing director Mark Speed says, ‘The pressures of running a business seem evident with the finding that the majority of employers take well below the four to five weeks’ holiday typical for UK workers, with a full 13 per cent saying they never take a break.

‘In smaller organisations, employers are more able to set the level of holiday which they personally take. Even with this contr


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Tags: Find Find Time

Markets slide with budget in question

Jul 24, 2011  Posted by Shannon Cox in Business News | | No Comments »

NEW YORK, July 26 (UPI) — U.S. markets fell Tuesday after Democrats and Republicans both warned that a failure to raise the debt ceiling would have dire consequences.

In televised speeches Monday evening, President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, both warned that leaving the budget debate unresolved past Aug. 2 would put the nation in default, which would be a huge drag on the economy.

In early afternoon trading Tuesday, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 69.14 points, 0.55 percent, to 12,523.66. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index lost 3.73 points, 0.28 percent, to 1,333.70. The Nasdaq composite index lost 0.25 or 0.01 percent to 2,842.55.

The benchmark 10-year treasury note rose 12/32 to yield 2.96 percent.

The euro rose to $1.4505 from Monday’s $1.4376. Against the yen, the dollar fell to 77.99 yen from Monday’s 78.30 yen.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index rose 0.47 percent, 47.71, to 10,097.72.

In London, the FTSE 100 index rose 0.08 percent, 4.47, to 5,929.73.

Tags: Markets Markets Slide

28 states see unemployment rates rise

Jul 23, 2011  Posted by Shannon Cox in Business News | | No Comments »

WASHINGTON, July 23 (UPI) — Twenty-eight states and the District of Columbia saw their unemployment rates increase in June, the U.S. Labor Department said.

In June, 14 states saw no change in their unemployment rates, while eight states recorded decreases, the department said in report released Friday.

The number of jobs rose in 26 states and the District of Columbia, while 24 states saw the number of jobs decline.

Texas added the most non-farm jobs in June, gaining by 32,000. California added 28,800 jobs in the month — having lost 29,200 in the previous month — while Michigan added 18,000 jobs in June.

The largest declines were posted by Tennessee, which lost 16,900 jobs. Missouri lost the second largest number, down 15,700. In Virginia, 14,600 jobs were lost in the month.

The unemployment rate is highest in Nevada, where the rate jumped from 12.1 percent in May to 12.4 percent. California’s unemployment rate, second highest in the nation, is 11.8 percent.


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Tags: Rates Unemployment Rates
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