The $410 billion sovereign wealth fund of China said that it purchased a minority stake in Thames Water, a water network, which serves London, marking the first acquisition of the fund in Britain. CIC (China Investment Corporation) claimed on Friday that it purchased the 8.68% stake in Thames Water via its completely owned subsidiary. The deal follows gossips this week with Chancellor George Osborne in China, who seeks to boost investment in British infrastructure as way to lift the economy of Britain. Mr. Osborne stated that this speculation is a good news for Chinese as well British economies. Mr. Lou Jiwei, Chairman at China Investment Corporation said that china is delighted for investing in ailing infrastructure of Western nations, particularly Britain. The increase in inflation in [...]

The New Alternative Transportation to Give Americans Solutions Act of 2011 or the NATGAS of 2011 is a bipartisan proposal that was released in Apr 2011. It is an amendment to the Internal Revenue Code that was introduced in 1986. The Act is meant to encourage job creation, investments in alternative energy, and all in all an increased domestic production of alternative energy sources in the United States. According to the 2011 New Alternative Transportation to Give American Solutions Act (NATGAS) , the act will introduce the following . . . A credit on excise tax will be created from 2016, alternate sources of energy that involve liquefied or compressed natural gas. A Credit on the income tax will be created from 2016 for automobiles that run on liquefied or compressed natural gas. The percentage [...]

In the European market, which is currently blighted by rumor-mongering and high borrowing costs, four countries have banned short selling financial stocks starting from Friday 11th Aug 2011. The ban was imposed by France, Belgium, Spain and Italy. The enforcement of the ban varies in detail according to country specific features. This was an attempt coordinated to somehow restore confidence in the market. The information was given by the European Securities and Markets Authority (EMSA), which gave its statement late Thursday. Short selling is how an investor borrows shares and sells them expecting a fall in price. When the price falls, the investor buys the shares back at the lower price, making a profit on the difference. There have been repeated movements in the European markets due to rumors [...]

Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) had filed a lawsuit in Mar against Amazon because of the company launching the ‘Appstore’, a market place for Android apps that launched in Amazon. Apple filed against the use of the term App store by Amazon (AMZN, Fortune 500), which it argues is an infringement of trademark that will not only confuse customers, but also dilute the market for Apple. However, Apple was dealt a setback in the case as the federal Judge Phyllis Hamilton sided mostly with Amazon, and denied Apple’s request for an injunction stopping Amazon from use of the term. Amazon had replied back to apple saying that the ‘App Store’ term is generic in nature and does not come under protection, and also that Apple has not demonstrated the likelihood of any confusion. In her ruling in the [...]

Gold is a much celebrated metal in the world and people rush to possess that. But how much do we know of the other precious metal, silver? The recent news about silver is startling as it reached a historical high level after February 1980 in Thursday last week i.e., 24th March. For the last couple of years the price of silver has continuously outpaced the gold price and now financial analysts are expecting the precious white metal to witness a fall in near future. The fundamental reason behind the high price of silver rests on the old theory of demand and supply. Mine production of silver has declined significantly making the supply tight and that has raised the demand of it. The current geo-political events and the falling value of currency have made silver an attractive commodity for investors. [...]

We have taken for granted that some of the commodities of our daily use like petrol, gas etc. which are usually costly are charged more or less same all across the globe. The recent news has made this perception false as gas prices have a large variation all across the three continents. It may sound wired as oil and gas prices are supposed to remain somewhat same everywhere. So where does the variations come from? The very next question that will arise after hearing this news is that “If variation exists then who are being benefited by paying less?” The recent news has given replies to all of these questions with care. Recently a comparative study of gas prices, keeping US gas prices as the reference figure, has revealed interesting facts about distribution of gas prices in the world. A [...]

Two most celebrated industry leaders of the world are presently in India to tell the richest Indians about the need of philanthropy. The software leader Bill Gates and the world known investor Warren Buffet, both have arrived in India with a tight schedule that focuses primarily on the duo’s philanthropic efforts. Both the icons are busy in making their efforts successful, and at the same time Microsoft founder Bill Gates visited Bihar to monitor the progress of his non-profit organizations initiatives in the area of health. Whatever be the schedule of Buffet and gates, they are on their mission of philanthropy to the fullest. Both Buffet and Gates have a common area of interest which is “Giving Pledge”. This is a mission that started from America and now the founders have brought it [...]

Debt management is a common issue in USA and credit card debtors are often benefited with several programs, public or private to overcome the magnum credit cared debts. But this year’s Union Budget in India has opened avenues for debt management in this country also. This was perhaps the most noted feature of Union Budget 2011 in India. The announcement by Pranab Mukherjee, the finance minister of India, regarding the introduction of Public Debt Management Agency of India Bill was the most significant one. This bill will open the opportunity to build an independent office for debt management. This is undoubtedly a development but there is a need to judge this development by analyzing its aspects. The new legislation should be judged in the terms of it scope and its functions. It needs to [...]

How ironic it is to find that devastation in one country can be of a great help for another! The recent earthquake and tsunami that ravaged Japan has taken may lives and has weakened the countries economy as well. Not too much time was needed to kindle one more disruption which originated in Japan’s nuclear plant in Fukushima. The media hype regarding the nuke plant blast and possible radiation leak from Japan has just started yet and rumors are making their way in neighboring countries with lightning speed. Most of us, by now, have received text messages or emails warning about poisonous rain. That is too minor to make news. But the recent rumor in China has created havoc and plenty of salt vendors are accruing great profits out of it. Rumor has spread that salt can save people from getting [...]

The citizens of America are suffering from soaring bad debts just because of their habit of using credit cards for any purchase. The debt generated out of the use of credit card reflects a negative remark on the credit report which a credit card user hardly take account for. There is a common misconception in America as most of the citizens are not aware as to how much extra money they have to bear because of a bad credit report. This is the cause why people are generally heedless about the credit report all too often. According to a recent survey conducted by VantageScore Solutions and Consumer Federation of America jointly, about 70% consumers of America never realize that they need to pay more on the interest on loans as a result of bad credit report. On the contrary a person with a good [...]