February 21, 2012 – 4:30 am
Diane Alter – AHN News Reporter
New York, NY, United States (AHN) – Oil prices were pushed higher Monday after Iran cut exports to Britain and France. The move raised worries that high gas prices are soon to follow. On Sunday, Iran’s oil ministry said it would stop exporting oil to French and British companies. The announcement came just days after Iran threatened to cut supplies to some European countries in retaliation for sanctions put in place by the European Union and the United States. U.S. crude for April delivery rose about 2 percent to $105.28 per barrel. The European benchmark, Brent crude, rose about 0.5 percent to $120.37 per barrel. Prices for Brent crude have not [...] Continue Reading…
February 7, 2012 – 4:37 am
Linda Young – AHN News Writer
Washington, D.C., United States (AHN) – Employers added 243,000 jobs in January, an increase over the 203,000 jobs added in December, the U.S. Department of Labor reported on Friday. Hiring was stronger than expected and many economists were surprised. Private sector job growth was widespread with large employment gains in professional and business services, leisure and hospitality, and manufacturing. However, government employment did not change much during January. At the same time, the jobless rate for January fell to 8.3 percent, marking the fifth consecutive month of declines and taking unemployment to its lowest rate since February 2009. Manufacturing added 50,000 jobs in January. Private sector businesses have consistently [...] Continue Reading…
Tags 243000, added, AHN, D.C., employers, employment gains, full time job, January, job, jobs, linda young, private sector businesses, private sector job, U.S. Department, United States, Washington, writer washington
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January 24, 2012 – 4:33 am
Diane Alter – AHN News Reporter
Washington, D.C., United States (AHN) – Effective Jan. 22, it will cost you an extra penny to mail a first class letter in the United States. The increase, announced in October, is the first change for first class mail stamps in more than two and a half years. Prices also rise for other mail. The cost of sending a postcard rises 3 cents to 32 cents; a 5-cent increase to 85 cents for a 1-ounce letter to Canada or Mexico, and a 7-cent increase to $1.05 for letters to other international destinations. Prices also increase for other mailing services, including standard mail, periodicals, and package and extra services. Not affected [...] Continue Reading…
January 10, 2012 – 4:30 am
Ramallah, Palestinian Territory (IRIN) – Izz Tawil draws a black circle on the flip-chart in his office in Ramallah, capital of the West Bank in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt). “The Palestinian economy is a closed cash-circle,” the general manager of the Palestinian microfinance network Sharakeh explains. He goes on to draw several small arrows on the line, meant to indicate different elements of an isolated system: At the bottom, there is the construction worker, who gets his salary from a company contracted by the Palestinian Authority (PA), while the PA itself is kept alive through foreign aid. “And this aid is the only fuel that keeps the circle running,” Tawil says, with a serious mien. [...] Continue Reading…
Tags Bank, economy, external shocks, gaza strip, healthier, isolated system, microfinance network, occupied palestinian territory, palestinian economy, Visions, West
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December 27, 2011 – 4:32 am
Diane Alter – AHN News Reporter
New York, NY, United States (AHN) – It’s the economy that keeps Americans up at night, on edge and worried, revealed a new CNN/ORC International poll released Friday. Some 70 percent said that things are not going well in the United States, with just three out of 10 saying things are okay, putting the state of the economy as the top worry and the most pressing issue heading into the new year. More than half of those surveyed, or 57 percent, said the economy is the most important issue facing the country at present, and half named unemployment as the most important issue facing the economy. The deficit came in a very [...] Continue Reading…
December 13, 2011 – 4:32 am
Linda Young – AHN News Writer
Berlin, Germany (AHN) – German exports fell by a larger percentage than forecast for October because of lower demand from southern European markets affected by the economic crisis. Exports fell by 3.6 percent in October compared to September. It was larger than the 1 percent drop expected and the largest decrease seen by Germany in six months. By contrast, exports only fell by 1 percent in September compared to August. Germany is Europe’s largest economy and it has been the economic engine for the region during the ongoing economic crisis. In addition, German imports fell by 1 percent, which was also more than expected. Germany saw its trade surplus fall [...] Continue Reading…
Tags AHN, Berlin, berlin germany, economic engine, Europe, Expected, exports, Fall, German, german exports, german imports, Germany, linda young, More, news writer, October, percent, southern European, Than
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November 29, 2011 – 4:32 am
Kris Alingod – AHN News Contributor
Chicago, IL, United States (AHN) – Lawmakers in Illinois over the weekend presented a newly tweaked tax relief measure to entice the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Sears and other companies not to leave the state. The bill provides $100 million worth of tax breaks to CME, which owns the federally regulated exchanges Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the Chicago Board of Trade. It also restores research and development tax credits for Sears. In addition, the measure extends a special property tax incentive given to Sears when the company moved its headquarters to Hoffman Estates two decades ago. The General Assembly is expected to take up the bill, which would cost $250 million [...] Continue Reading…
Tags chicago board of trade, chicago mercantile exchange, finance panel, hoffman estates, Illinois, Keep, lawmakers, plan, retail giant, Sears, state, Take, tax increment financing
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November 15, 2011 – 4:37 am
Colombo, Sri Lanka (IRIN) – Cottage industries such as poultry farming, home gardening and bee-keeping are becoming increasingly popular among returnees in Sri Lanka’s former northern conflict zone as alternatives to regular jobs, officials say. “We have seen a lot of applications for loans for poultry and home gardens,” Prem Kumar, area manager for the Bank of Ceylon, one of Sri Lanka’s two largest state-owned banks, told IRIN in northern Vavuniya District. “When jobs become harder to find, people find it easier to start something on their own, especially so when they see there are opportunities to succeed.” With job creation low , unemployment at about 20 percent and under-employment around 30 percent, cottage industries now [...] Continue Reading…
Tags Allankulam, bank of ceylon, Charles, Colombo, colombo sri lanka, Cottage, former, hope, ILO, industries, Mullaitivu District, North Division, northern conflict zone, northern Vavuniya District, Offer, paddy, poultry farming, Prem Kumar, Sri Lanka, Udayakumar, US, Vavuniya District, zone
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November 1, 2011 – 4:32 am
Jupiter Kalambakal – AHN News Reporter
New York, NY, United States (AHN) – Investors anxious about the global fiscal crisis and afraid losing their wealth in years to come will likely fuel gold futures to further soar in the coming months. Gold prices have risen in skyrocketing proportions in recent years and reached record highs earlier this year. Friday the spot price for gold closed at $1,743.40 per ounce. However, according to Financial Advisor magazine, much of gold’s “golden” history was unremarkable, as it only sold for around $20 an ounce from 1800 to 1933. Gold prices began to increase after the Bretton Woods system, which fixed the world’s currency to the gold standard, was demolished and [...] Continue Reading…
Tags AHN, bretton woods system, california lutheran university, Drive, fear, fear of poverty, Financial, global economic uncertainty, Gold, Losses, market deregulation, NY, price, prices during the great depression, Reporter New, Soaring, U.S., United States, York
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October 18, 2011 – 4:36 am
Jupiter Kalambakal – AHN News Reporter
Sao Paulo, Brazil (AHN) – Prices of iron ore, the main ingredient for making steel, could slide to as low as $140 per tonne in the coming months. In September, spot iron ore prices grew above $181 per tonne, but on Monday fell deeply to $157.25. Analysts and mines experts said developments in China over its monetary policy have been affecting demand for iron ore, noting the commodity’s weakening prices could extend into the early part of this quarter. On Monday, reports circulated that Brazil’s Vale was selling iron ore for fourth-quarter contracts cheaply to the Chinese, an indication that iron ore miners were giving in to Chinese pressure. Reports [...] Continue Reading…
