Business Secretary hails port growth in Southampton - bdaily.co.uk Business Secretary hails port growth in Southampton - bdaily.co.uk

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Business Secretary hails port growth in Southampton - bdaily.co.uk

Business Secretary hails port growth in Southampton - bdaily.co.uk

The Business Secretary has unveiled a new multi-deck trade vehicle terminal at the Port of Southampton, designed to meet extra  demand for exporting British-built cars overseas.

Associated British Ports have made the investment in the expansion of the vehicle export facilities to accommodate the large volume of vehicles being shipped to overseas markets, in particular China.

In 2011 UK automotive exports hit record levels of £29.5 billion in cash terms. A further £7.5 million investment to construct a fifth multideck trade vehicle terminal at the port has also been announced.

Business Secretary Vince Cable said: “The British car industry is a great success story and our increasing exports are proving a boon for the Port of Southampton - the opening of a new vehicle terminal along with provisional funding from the Regional Growth Fund for the City of Southampton’s infrastructure will allow further growth for the future.”

The visit and announcement coincides with other investment by the Department’s flagship policy - the Regional Growth Fund. Southampton City Council received a conditional offer of £5.6m as part of the second round to support the development of the city’s surrounding road infrastructure.

As part of his visit to Southampton, Vince Cable will also visit Griffon Hoverwork Limited – a British owned 40 year old company and world leader in the design, manufacture and operation of Air Cushioned Vehicles (ACV) including hovercraft.

The company has 170 craft operating in more than 40 countries ranging from the humid jungles of South America and the dry heat of the Middle East to the High Arctic.

He continued: “There is still more to do but I am pleased to see that our work to support business and boost British manufacturing with schemes such as the Regional Growth Fund is helping local people unlock growth in their area and give a real boost to the economy.

“I should also remind businesses that they have until June 13 to submit their bids for round three of the Regional Growth Fund.”

As part of the visit the Secretary of State will also meet Doug Morrison, ABP Port Director Southampton and Chair of the local enterprise partnership (LEP). The LEP, in partnership with Portsmouth City Council and local newspaper The News, was awarded £2.1m as part of the Regional Growth Fund.

The funding is for a project to run a competitive programme for their local area to award micro-finance and small business grants (£5k to £100k) to create new business start-ups, and allow existing businesses to grow. This will create some 120 jobs in the area.



Money Mission: Build a money machine - Jamaica Observer

Wouldn't it be wonderful if you could design a machine that can generate cash every hour of the day? Whether you were eating, playing or sleeping, this device would ensure that you were consistently supplied with a steady stream of income. Your money problems would be history and the lifestyle of the financially free would be yours forever.

While many of us would love to possess a magic money machine, this apparatus would probably be impossible to build, and it would definitely be illegal. However, the concept of creating an income source that could eventually produce earnings without your personal effort is something that is entirely in your power to achieve.

Do you have to work to earn?

Most of us have grown up with the idea that the only way to earn money was to physically work for it. We were taught in school to study hard, get good grades and look for a nice job with attractive fringe benefits. For the most part, our education system does not foster entrepreneurial thinking which focuses on teaching people how to create income-generating systems.

Creating a system that will produce income requires us to think differently about how we earn. Most employees and self-employed people are paid for their time and physical effort; to get an income they have to carry out some activity. This type of earning is called linear income, which requires the work output to be constantly repeated in order to make more money.

How can you get paid for something that doesn't always demand your time and effort? The answer lies in understanding how to create passive income sources, which are not dependent on your direct involvement to produce your earnings. While you would initially have to work at building this 'money machine', it will eventually generate income without your physical efforts.

How to earn while you sleep

The simplest form of passive income is portfolio income, which is derived from investments that generate earnings. These include stocks that provide dividends, bonds and money market instruments that pay interest, and real estate that supplies rental income. However, it can take many years for you to build a large enough asset base to generate a meaningful income.

Another way to earn passively is to build a money machine that brings in residual income. Residual income is generated when your initial work output is designed to pay you over and over again. For example, if you create a product such as an eBook, music score or an application for a smartphone, you can sell your work repeatedly without having to produce it from scratch again.

Building a money machine that utilises other people's work effort to generate income is another means of creating passive earnings. This is known as leveraged income, which involves working along with other people in order to increase your final work output. Business owners generally make use of leverage when they hire employees to carry out various tasks.

Turn-key money machines

You don't have to start your own traditional enterprise to earn from leveraged income. There are direct selling companies that allow individuals to become independent representatives to distribute their goods and build networks of other business owners. The networking organisation will reward business builders with a percentage of the revenue generated by their teams' efforts.

We are living in the age of technology, which makes it easier for everyone to earn passively. Even if you don't have the financial means to amass assets which generate portfolio income, or the technical know-how and talent to create a product for sale, or the time and resources to build a business, you can still seek to earn passive income online.

One Web-based option is called affiliate marketing. Online businesses, such as Amazon.com, encourage persons to sign up as affiliates and market their products and services. Anyone with a simple website can promote these offerings and receive a commission on sales. You would have to use creative marketing techniques which encourage persons to purchase your affiliate products.

Start the building process

Lasting freedom from financial stress will come when you find a way to build a passive 'money machine' of your own. Your mission for this month is to learn more about the concept of passive income. You can find several articles on this topic on www.financiallysmartadvice.com and other websites.

Consider different ways in which you can generate passive income. Start by saving and investing as much as possible to build your portfolio income sources. Do you have any talents or ideas that can be packaged into a product that can be sold repeatedly? Look at ready-made business opportunities in network marketing or become an affiliate for someone else's online business.

Don't be afraid to attempt something new in your search for passive income opportunities. Carefully research all options to ensure that they are legitimate, and don't give out sensitive financial information online. Over time, you could build a money machine that gives you the ability to live the life of your dreams.

Cherryl is a money coach, business mentor, and founder of Financially S.M.A.R.T. Services. Her upcoming book The 3 Ms of Money will reveal all the secrets she learned about financial success. Get more advice on money and business matters at www.financiallysmart.org and www.entrepreneursinjamaica.com. Email comments to cherryl@financiallysmartonline.com.



Business confidence plunges amid worries - Business Day South Africa

BUSINESS confidence in May, as measured by the South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Sacci), fell to its lowest level since November 2002 at 92,8, from 94,3 in April.

Also on Thursday, the confidence index compiled by the Bureau for Economic Research (BER) for the second quarter of the year plunged, with sentiment in both the manufacturing and retail sectors hitting a two-year low.

Sacci’s business confidence index (BCI) is a strong gauge of the confidence levels of businesses in current economic conditions.

The chamber said on Thursday the index was now 8,4 index points lower than in May 2011 when it registered 101,2. Its highest level was 122,1 in December 2006, while its most recent low was 93,1 in March 2009.

The downward trend in the index, which started in April 2011, marks what Sacci has referred to as a conspicuous deterioration in the business mood.

Only two of the 13 sub-indices of the BCI were positive month on month. Both the financial and real economic components had only one positive sub-index each.

The annual comparison showed that only three of the 13 sub-indices — household spending (retail and vehicles), government spending and lower real interest rates — had improved in May.

Sacci expressed concern that the fiscal tightrope that Europe had to walk between economic sustainability and political intolerance would leave the euro-zone debt crisis unresolved for the short to medium term.

"The contagion from the economic impasse in Europe is gaining in global impact as faster-growing economies are now also experiencing a slowdown while circular and multiplier effects continue to grow," said Neren Rau, CEO of Sacci.

The chamber also warned that the unstable and weakening economic circumstances, both abroad and domestically, posed serious challenges to South Africa’s business environment and confidence.

"The lack of alignment across economic policy positions locally is cause for concern as business seeks policy stability in an increasingly perplexing domestic economy," Mr Rau noted.

The local business environment continued to be plagued by challenges, Sacci said. In terms of the municipal service sub-index, electricity output deteriorated, while real borrowing from the banking sector by municipalities declined compared with last year.

Sacci noted its disappointment with the performance of the composite sub-index for municipal services, which deteriorated month on month as well as year on year in May.

SHARP DROP IN CONFIDENCE

Meanwhile, the BER confidence index for the second quarter of 2012, sponsored by Rand Merchant Bank , dropped 11 points to 41, with indicators deteriorating in every sector except wholesale trade.

Manufacturing confidence collapsed to 29 from 47, with the percentage of manufacturers rating the general political climate a constraint on business climbing to 70%, an 11-year peak.

The overall reading of the index means that only four out of 10 respondents rated business conditions as satisfactory.

"The sharp drop in business confidence does not bode well for prospective private-sector fixed investment in particular, and economic growth in general," the BER said in a statement.

It added: "If ever there was a time to kick capital expenditure into higher gear, it is now."

Growth in the economy slowed to 2,7% in the first quarter of this year, from 3,2% in the previous quarter, seasonally adjusted and annualised.

"Given deteriorating prospects for consumer spending as well as for exports, the pressure is now even more on fixed investment to come to the economy’s rescue," the BER said.

Retail confidence plummeted to 39 index points in the second quarter from 61 points in the first quarter.



Stocks extend rally after China cuts rates - msnbc.com

Brendan Mcdermid / REUTERS

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.

Stocks extended the prior day’s rally Thursday after the Chinese central bank cut bank lending and deposit rates, fueling hopes of simultaneous action to aid a flagging global economy.

The Dow Jones industrial average was lately up over 120 points.

The surprise move by China's central bank to cut benchmark interest rates by 25 basis points to shore up slackening economic growth comes a day after hopes of more stimulus by central banks drove U.S. stock indexes up more than 2 percent in a sharp turnaround from recent heavy losses.

The rate cut in the world's No. 2 economy had a sudden and dramatic impact on U.S. companies linked to China's commodity-hungry industrial complex.

"The dominant story obviously is the announcement of the cut in interest rates out of China. We are probably going to continue yesterday's rally focused on materials, energy, the areas in the U.S. I'd expect to benefit the most from a strengthening Chinese economy," said Peter Jankovskis, co-chief investment officer at Oakbrook Investments in Lisle, Illinois.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is testifying before a congressional committee Thursday. Investors will parse his words closely after his No. 2, Janet Yellen, said the Fed was ready to support the economy.

U.S. stocks jumped Wednesday, giving the market its best day if the year, as talk of a rescue of Spain's troubled banks and hopes for more monetary stimulus sparked a rebound from recent selling.

After the S&P 500's 6-percent fall in May, and with the index below its 200-day moving average, the market was ripe for a rebound, analysts said. The index has reversed sharply above that closely watched level.

"We were also flirting with the low end of the trading band," said Gordon Charlop, a managing director at Rosenblatt Securities in New York. The S&P bounced up from the 1,290 level, and "this is something that kind of dovetails with the technical rally that we might have seen anyway," said Charlop.

European stocks jumped 1.6 percent in morning trade, adding to the previous session's sharp rally, following the China rate cut and as investors bet policymakers in Europe could soon unveil measures to prop up ailing Spanish banks.

Even though Spain has not yet requested assistance and is resisting being placed under international supervision, Germany and European Union officials are urgently exploring ways to rescue the country's banking sector, sources said.

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc is in talks with pharmaceutical companies about developing drinks for its Keurig brewers that it hopes could aid the health of consumers and company margins, a senior executive said.

Chesapeake Energy Corp need not delay its scheduled annual meeting on Friday to allow shareholders more time to investigate the financial dealings of the natural gas company's embattled chief executive, Aubrey McClendon, a federal judge ruled.

May's stock market rout dealt a blow to many on Wall Street, including several big hedge fund stars whose bets on prominent U.S. companies looked badly timed.

Oracle Corp launched a new suite of cloud-based products on Wednesday to try to catch up with smaller but nimbler vendors, such as Salesforce.com Inc, in the business of hosting and distributing software via the Internet.

Reuters contributed to this report.



Business time for OFC Nations Cup semi-finalists - boxscorenews.com
Group A winners Tahiti will face Solomon Islands at 11am local time before Group B winners New Zealand and New Caledonia square off at 3pm local time.

Heres a look at the action thats in store.

Tahiti vs. Solomon Islands 11:00am Friday 8 June

This clash promises to be an entertaining affair as both sides play an attacking brand of football and will be full of confidence after posting some impressive results in pool play. With 18 strikes, Tahiti are the tournaments most prolific outfit - although that figure is inflated somewhat by their 10-1 humbling of Samoa and the Tehau brothers of Lorenzo, Alvin and Jonathan are also near the top of the individual scoring charts. With three wins on the trot, Tahiti are the only side with a perfect record in Honiara but something will have to give tomorrow as Solomon Islands are also undefeated after posting a win and two draws. The hosts are on a high as the last of those ties was one of the most memorable results in the countrys history - a 1-1 thriller with New Zealand yesterday - and, in a big boost to the Bonitos chances, talismanic striker Benjamin Totori is in fine fettle. The former Waitakere United star scored the winner in the opening 1-0 win over Papua New Guinea but was rested for the scoreless stalemate against Fiji. As a result, he came out firing against New Zealand and was largely to thank for earning the historic draw after scoring a stunning individual goal. At the other end, Nelson Sale Kilifa has been an immovable object at the heart of the Bonitos defence but he will have his hands full in dealing with the physical presence of Alvin Tehau. That battle will be a key to the outcome, as will Totoris with the likes of Tahiti captain Nicolas Vallar and no-nonsense fullback Angelo Tchen. Tahiti coach Eddy Etaeta has a full squad to pick from while the Bonitos only injury concern is Mostyn Beui, who had to be withdrawn in the first half of the second match against Fiji.

In their own words

We are very happy to have qualified for the semi-finals and I think it proves that these are the best teams in the region as New Caledonia, Solomon Islands and ourselves all also made the semi-finals of the Pacific Games. The players are very confident for tomorrow and all the pressure will be on the Solomons as they are playing at home. Tahiti coach Eddy Etaeta

We set a benchmark yesterday with our match against New Zealand and it was good to have a performance like that just before the semi-finals. I think our group was more difficult than the other and Tahiti are probably more fresh than us. But its not a championship now, its a one-off game. It should be a good match because we try to play good football and so do Tahiti. Solomon Islands technical advisor Laurent Papillon

New Zealand vs. New Caledonia 3:00pm Friday 8 June

Two sides with Oceania crowns will come up against each other in this one as New Zealands All Whites are the defending Nations Cup champions while Les Cagous won the 2011 Pacific Games a tournament New Zealand do not take part in. The winner here therefore has reason to call themselves the best side in Oceania, at least until the silverware is presented after Sundays final. Due to their status as reigning champions and the fact they are yet to lose, New Zealand go in as favourites but will be wary of a New Caledonia side packed full of attacking talent. Bertrand Kai, top scorer at the Pacific Games, caused problems for all of Les Cagous Group A opponents and will have relatively fresh legs after sitting out much of the last pool match against Samoa. Worryingly for All Whites coach Ricki Herbert, New Caledonias other major offensive weapon, lightning-fast winger Georges Gope-Fenepej, will also be raring to go after missing the 9-0 Samoa win through suspension. But New Zealand likewise have plenty of players who will cause concern and many of these are also fresh after Herbert elected to put out a second string side against Solomon Islands. Ben Sigmund, Michael McGlinchey, Shane Smeltz, Chris Killen and Ivan Vicelich were all not even included on the bench in that 1-1 draw but they will surely be reinstated for this clash as New Zealand look to book a spot at the FIFA Confederations Cup by successfully defending their title. The only player potentially unavailable to Herbert is veteran goalkeeper Mark Paston, who is still suffering the effects of a head knock picked up in the first match against Fiji, while Les Cagous will be without the suspended Jean Patrick Wakanumune.

In their own words

Its been very challenging so far and I think theres no doubt that trend will continue. New Caledonia have had some good results in pool play as well so I think theyre going to be very tough to get past. But were certainly looking forward to it, we all came here to be part of this stage of the tournament and tomorrow will be a very interesting day. New Zealand coach Ricki Herbert

We have a lot of respect for New Zealand but will play them the same way we have the other teams. We want to show that New Caledonia can compete on the world stage and we hope to create a surprise. New Zealand are very well organised and have not conceded many goals. So we need to be strong defensively because it will be hard to come back and score if we go behind. New Caledonia assistant coach Thierry Sardo

Match Details

Tahiti vs. Solomon Islands
11:00am, Friday 8 June
Lawson Tama Stadium
Honiara, Solomon Islands

Referee: Peter OLEARY [NZL]
Assistant Referee 1: Jan Hendrik HINTZ [NZL]
Assistant Referee 2: Ravinesh KUMAR [FIJ]
4th Official: Bruce GEORGE [VAN]

Tahiti: 1. Mikael ROCHE [GK], 2. Alvin TEHAU, 3. Tamatoa WAGEMANN, 4. Teheivarii LUDIVION, 6. Lorenzo TEHAU, 7. Henri CAROINE, 8. Angelo TCHEN, 9. Teaonui TEHAU, 10. Nicolas VALLAR, 11. Manaraii PORLIER, 12. Hiro POROIAE, 13. Steevy CHONG HUE, 14. Roihau DEGAGE, 15. Heimano BOUREBARE, 16. Pierre KOHUMOETINI, 17. Jonathan TEHAU, 18. Edson LEMAIRE, 19. Vincent SIMON, 21. Xavier SAMIN [GK]
Coach: Eddy ETAETA

Solomon Islands: 1. Shadrack RAMONI [GK], 2. Hardies AENGARI, 3. Mostyn BEUI, 4. Jeffery BULE, 5. Henry FAARODO, 6. Tome FAISI, 7. Abraham INIGA, 8. Timothy JOE, 9. Freddie KINI, 10. Joe LUWI, 11. Nicholas MURI, 12. James NAKA, 13. Leslie NATE, 14. Joses NAWO, 15. Seni NGAVA, 16. Loni QARABA, 17. Nelson Sale KILIFA, 18. Himson TELEDA, 19. Benjamin TOTORI, 20. Felix RAY JR [GK], 21. Joshua TUASULIA, 22. Jack WETNEY, 23. Aleck WICKHAM
Coach: Jacob MOLI

New Zealand vs. New Caledonia
3:00pm, Friday 8 June
Lawson Tama Stadium
Honiara, Solomon Islands

Referee: Norbert HAUATA [TAH]
Assistant Referee 1: Tevita MAKASINI [TGA]
Assistant Referee 2: Michael JOSEPH [VAN]
4th Official: Kader ZITOUNI [TAH]

New Zealand: 1. Mark PASTON [GK], 2. Tim MYERS, 3. Tony LOCHHEAD, 4. Ben SIGMUND, 5. Tommy SMITH, 6. Ian HOGG, 7. Leo BERTOS, 8. Michael McGLINCHEY, 9. Shane SMELTZ, 10. Chris KILLEN, 11. Marco ROJAS, 12. Glen MOSS [GK], 13. Jake GLEESON [GK], 14. Rory FALLON, 15. Ivan VICELICH, 16. Jeremy BROCKIE, 17. Kosta BARBAROUSES, 18. Aaron CLAPHAM, 19. Michael BOXALL, 20. Chris WOOD, 21. Cameron HOWIESON, 22. Tim PAYNE, 23. Adam McGEORGE
Coach: Ricki HERBERT

New Caledonia: 1. Rocky NYIKEINE [GK], 2. Judikael IXOEE, 3. Emile BEARUNE, 4. Georges BEARUNE, 5. Kalaje GNIPATE, 6. Olivier DOKUNENGO, 7. Dominique WACALIE, 8. Miguel KAYARA, 9. Jacques HAEKO, 10. Marius BAKO, 11. Bertrand KAI, 12. Roy KAYARA, 13. Noel KAUDRE, 14. Dick KAUMA, 16. Iamel KABEU, 17. Joel WAKANUMUNE, 18. Jonathan KAKOU, 19. Georges GOPE-FENEPEJ, 20. Marc OUNEMOA [GK]
Coach: Alain MOIZAN



Stocks head higher after China cuts key interest rate - USA Today

U.S. stocks opened higher, following stocks in Asia and Europe, after the Chinese central bank cut interest rates by a quarter percentage point.

World stock markets also were boosted by hopes that Europe is preparing to take action to tackle the region's financial crisis and that the Federal Reserve will consider additional support for the U.S. economy.

Hope that the U.S. central bank is considering more monetary stimulus helped push up European stocks.

The Fed is believed to be considering a third round of "quantitative easing," or purchases of Treasury bonds to try to lower long-term interest rates and encourage borrowing. Traders have speculated that a third round, QE3, is under consideration.

The Fed could also continue its "Operation Twist" program, under which it sells shorter-term securities and buys longer-term bonds to keep their rates down. The current Operation Twist is set to expire at the end of this month.

Benchmarks across Asia rose. Japan Nikkei 225, Hong Kong's Hang Seng and South Korea's Kospi indexes all made gains.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 climbed, and benchmarks in New Zealand, Taiwan and Indonesia also rose, but those in mainland China and Singapore fell.

Speculation about new Fed moves helped traders overlook the disappointment that the European Central Bank offered no new monetary stimulus on Wednesday. Its chief Mario Draghi said it was the turn of governments to restore confidence in the 17 nations that use the euro common currency.

Draghi, however, has left himself some room to maneuver, saying that "we'll monitor closely all the developments and we'll stand ready to act" if necessary. He also said some members of the 23-member ECB council advocated a rate cut.

"This implies that rates cuts are in the pipeline very soon but any more action will require European politicians to act first," analysts at Credit Agricole CIB in Hong Kong said in a market commentary.

Japan's export shares rose as the yen softened against the dollar, which helps to make the cost of Japanese products more competitive in global markets.

In currencies, the euro rose to $1.2557 from $1.2546 late Wednesday in New York. The dollar rose to 79.37 yen from 79.18 yen.


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