As Democrats and Republicans continue to trade barbs in the senate over an agreeable debt deal, numerous market analysts and investors have now agreed that the US faces the increasing possibility of losing its AAA rating from at least one of the three major credit rating agencies – namely Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s, and Fitch – even if a compromise can be reached by the August 2nd deadline.
Patients will be paying less for the their medicines as seven of the world’s most popular drugs turn generic, including cholesterol fighter Lipitor, blood thinner Plavix and anti-depressant LexaPro. In the next four years, blockbuster drugs with annual sales of about $255 billion will go off patent, providing cost savings and increasing the accessibility of health benefits to patients.
A couple of weeks back, EconomyWatch.com cited a report by the United Nations Environment Programme, which stated that developing countries had overtaken their advanced counterparts to be the largest investors of clean energy projects in the world.
The report had also listed China to have been the world’s largest investor in renewable energy resources – investing nearly US$48.9 billion in 2010.
The Oman International Bank is set to become the latest market player in the US$1 trillion Islamic financial industry, according to reports from The National.
The bank announced on Sunday that it was considering a “strategic alliance” with another financial institution within the Middle-Eastern region, in the wake of the nation hosting its first-ever Islamic banking conference.
Young male American war veterans returning from Afghanistan and Iraq are finding it increasingly difficult to secure a good-paying job as they struggle to re-adapt to civilian life.
According to a Reuters report, 28.3 percent of male veterans aged 18-24 – and served their nation after 9/11 – were unemployed in the second quarter of this year, up from 21.9 percent for the whole of last year.
Starting off as a used-book store in 1971, Borders pioneered the growth and boom of the book superstore with its wide selections and cheap pricing. But analysts believe the company began to lose its edge at the onset of the digital era, missing important shifts in the industry as consumers migrated online and toward digital books.
If you’ve made 2011 your year to take control of your personal finances, tighten up careless spending and reign in those obligations, here are some great tips for staying on track for the rest of the year:
Source: Visual Infographics
Since June 12, half of the 18,000 workers employed in maritime services by seven subsidiary companies of the Suez Canal have been on strike. In contrast, those employed directly by the canal authority have always received higher wages and better benefits – long before January 2011 when subsidiary company workers raised the demand for parity, effectively a 40 percent wage increase.
Hard week at work? Well, here are some management jokes for a Friday chuckle:
