Tough austerity measures and harsh labour reforms are hurting employment markets globally, according to the International Labour Organisation (ILO). Unemployment figures are forecast to increase at a rate of 6.1 percent to 202 million during 2012. The organisation found that employment levels are not expected to return to pre-crisis levels until the end of 2016….
Standard & Poor’s late on Thursday cut Spain’s sovereign credit rating by two notches due to “a challenging fiscal outlook” for the nation. The ratings agency downgraded the country from A to BBB+. The drop reflects the agency’s views on “the mounting risks to Spain’s net general government debt as a share of GDP in…
South Korea’s GDP grew 2.8 percent year-on-year for the first quarter 2012, slipping to its weakest level in two and a half years, according to figures published by the central bank on Thursday. The country’s economy expanded in the quarter by 0.9 percent thanks to gains in exports and improved domestic demand. The consumer confidence…
Europe’s largest oil company, Royal Dutch Shell, on Tuesday said it has come to an agreement to buy Mozambique-focused Cove Energy for £1.12bn, according to a company statement. Shell secured the deal after it increased its offer for Cove Energy buy levitra online from a previous 195 pence to 220 pence a share to match…
Dutch finance minister Jan Kees de Jager cut short US-based IMF austerity talks to return home after the governing coalition in The Hague failed to reach an agreement on deficit limits which were imposed by the EU. De Jager will attempt to reassure ratings agencies that he is able to put the country’s budget back…
For the second year running, Royal Forex Trading SAL has been recognised for the firm’s outstanding work within online brokerage, offering some of the industry’s best products over recent times. This comes as numerous FX brokerage firms are being established worldwide every month and competition is increasing in emerging markets such as in the Middle…
Credit ratings agency Egan-Jones and the firm’s founder Sean Egan are expected to face charges for allegedly making material and intentional misstatements in its application to US securities regulators. The charge refers to information in rating sovereign debt and asset-backed securities in 2008. The civil action filed by the SEC concerns Egan-Jones’ conflict of interest…
The Japanese government late on Tuesday said it will add an estimated $60bn of funding to the IMF to help bolster its firewall, its finance minister Jun Azumi said. Japan believes the injection will prevent the European sovereign debt crisis from dragging down other economies across the globe and shield it from a deepening crisis….
Software giant Oracle commenced its high stakes trial over smartphone technology against internet concern Google in a California court. The case represents the first big court challenge for Android technology and at an estimated $1bn claim it is expected to become one of the largest ever technology trials. Oracle first accused Google’s Android team of…
There are about 5000 languages spoken around the world. In terms of popularity, Spanish is number four, after Chinese, Hindi and English. In the United States there are 37 million native Spanish speakers, making up 15% of the country’s population, according to a 2010 census – and that number keeps going up. The Hispanic sector…
