Archive for April, 2008
News - Split cabinet passes Israeli budget
Israel’s cabinet has given its blessing to sweeping cuts in both social services and defence in an attempt to stabilise a gaping budget deficit.
The 10bn shekel ($2.2bn; 1.4bn) cutback takes the government’s 2004 budget to 257bn shekels.
The move, agreed on Tuesday morning after a marathon 18-hour meeting, follows a similar belt-tightening exercise for the current […]
Read More..>>News - Strikes hit Israeli jobless
Israel’s unemployed have been left out in the cold by public sector industrial action against civil service job losses.
Also affected is Israel’s main international airport, Ben-Gurion, where striking baggage handlers have left soldiers searching every bag, bringing travel almost to a standstill.
The go-slow by about 50,000 workers is the second bout of action this year, […]
Read More..>>News - Taxing times for dividends
Thousands of milkmen, plumbers, banking career career finance in insurance opportunity opportunity, nannies and freelancers were shocked by the Chancellor’s announcement in the Budget that if they’d set up a company they’d have to pay a new tax.
Gordon Brown had been itching to find a way to clamp down on traders who had set up […]
Read More..>>News - Japan minister quits over scandal
A key Japanese minister has resigned after admitting he failed to pay into the national pension scheme.
Yasuo Fukuda, chief cabinet secretary, was a close adviser to Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and was also seen as a possible successor.
He is one of seven ministers to have admitted skipping payments, though two others said they would not […]
Read More..>>News - India budget voted without debate
India’s parliament has passed the national budget amid a boycott by opposition parties.
There was no discussion on tax proposals announced as part of the 4,780 billion rupees ($104bn) budget.
The lower house passed the budget by a voice vote as opposition MPs stayed away after alleging that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had insulted them.
Parliament has been […]
Read More..>>News - Store card holders ‘overcharged’
Shoppers are being overcharged 100m a year as a result of inflated interest rates on retail store cards, the UK’s competition watchdog has said.
The Competition Commission said there was evidence that the store card market was uncompetitive, with interest rates far higher than they should be.
The watchdog said it wanted warnings on card statements to […]
Read More..>>News - India courts more US investment
India has urged US business leaders to up investment in the country, stressing that foreign capital has a key role to play in its economic development.
Finance minister P Chidambaram said India needed US money, technology and management expertise to help it fulfil its true growth potential.
The two nations discussed ways of deepening economic ties on […]
Read More..>>News - Suing the bank, again and again.
A new elite class of bank customer is emerging - people who have successfully sued their banks for the return of overdraft charges not just once but two, three or even four times.
In the past year or so, the UK’s banks have handed out millions of pounds to tens of thousands of customers who have […]
Read More..>>News - NI quango chief paid more than PM
The chief executive of a Northern Ireland quango has received a salary of more than 213,000 - almost 26,000 higher than the prime minister.
David Gavaghan also received 34,287 in national insurance and 15,213 in pension contributions as head of the Strategic Finance banking insurance
Board (SIB).
His 152,131 salary and 61,206 bonus was defended by the […]
Read More..>>News - Infosys gains on ‘Capgemini bid’
Shares in Paris-based case est finance finance hill in in insurance irwin mcgraw real series
Capgemini and Indian software firm Infosys Technologies have jumped on reports of a possible merger.
Infosys declined to comment on “market speculation” that it planned to bid for the European group, bolstering its position in the technology market.
But investors chased the […]
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