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Samson Luong

Brazil economy surprisingly weak, adds to global fears - The Globe and Mail - 0 views

www.theglobeandmail.com/...article5837722

brazil economy adds fears globe mail Stagnate Growth Samson Zhang

shared by Samson Luong on 04 Dec 12 - No Cached
  • Brazil has been stuck in a pattern of slow growth since Ms. Rousseff took office last year, as companies struggle with high costs and severe infrastructure and labour bottlenecks. Ms. Rousseff has tried to revive activity with numerous tax cuts and other stimulus, but Friday’s data showed that companies are not responding, as investment fell for a fifth straight quarter.
  • Friday’s data renews concerns that its slow growth is not a cyclical issue, but the result of deeply rooted structural problems after strong growth of the previous decade.
  • The measures that the government imagined would be capable of bringing Brazil out of the global crisis weren’t enough
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • Data indicates that many consumers have reached their debt limit, despite a massive year-long cycle of interest rate cuts, leaving few other strong motors to power Brazil’s $2.5-trillion economy.
  • far deeper changes to Brazil’s restrictive labour laws as well as its complex and onerous tax code, which many companies say makes investment prohibitively expensive.
  • Ms. Rousseff has won some plaudits from foreign investors for efforts to address Brazil’s supply-side bottlenecks
  • Samson Luong on 04 Dec 12
     
    Questions 1. What effects will interest rate cuts and expanding consumer credit have on Brazil's economy? 2. Would allowing the private sector to build and operate airports, highways and cutting electricity costs be good for Brazil's economy? Why?
  • anonymous on 06 Dec 12
     
    1- It might cause an economic recession. 2- It will be beneficial as long as there isn't one company operating all these areas(monopoly power) which leads to a market failure. It will bring money to the private sector. Netan
faseehthemoonman

Bank of Canada warns of rate increase, flags debt concerns - The Globe and Mail - 1 views

www.theglobeandmail.com/...article4630682

globe mail bank canada rate increase consumer

shared by faseehthemoonman on 16 Jan 13 - No Cached
  • The Bank of Canada has laid out a clearer path for interest rates, pushing back the timing of an eventual increase
  • Bank of Canada’s benchmark rate from its current setting of 1 per cent.
  • 167 per cent
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • Households need to slow their borrowing on their own, or else the Bank of Canada will give them reason to do so
  • anada’s gross domestic product grew at annual rates of 1.8 and 1.9
  • Since April, the Bank of Canada had been talking about a potential rate increase in the context of an “economic expansion” that failed to achieve
  • forecast for economic growth this year to 2.2 per cent from 2.1 per cent
Erica Yeo

Canada's wage gap at record high: OECD - The Globe and Mail - 1 views

www.theglobeandmail.com/...article4099041

inequality canada challenges globeandmail skillsgap

shared by Erica Yeo on 23 Nov 12 - No Cached
  • gap between Canada’s rich and poor is growing
  • the income gap in Canada is well above the 34-country average, though still not as extreme as in the United States
  • Countries with greater income inequality tend to see shorter, less sustained periods of economic growth
  • ...21 more annotations...
  • Greater inequality raises economic, political and ethical challenges as it risks leaving a growing number of people behind in an ever-changing economy
  • the top federal marginal income tax rates tumbled – to 29 per cent in 2010 from 43 per cent in 1981
  • Canada’s growing gap: a widening disparity in labour earnings between high- and low-paid workers, and less redistribution.
  • Taxes and benefits reduce inequality less in Canada than in most OECD countries
  • Shifts in the labour market are a key reason why the gap is widening
  • Technological progress has been more beneficial to high-skilled workers, while the gap in men’s earnings in particular is growing ever wider
  • annual hours of low-wage workers in Canada have fallen to 1,100 hours from 1,300 hours, while those of higher-wage workers fell by less, to 2,100 from 2,200 hours
  • Rising self-employment
  • the self-employed typically earn less than other full-time workers
  • Taxation
  • Canada’s tax-benefit system was as effective as those of the Nordic countries in stabilizing equality, offsetting more than 70 per cent of the rise of market-income inequality
  • taxes and benefits now offset less than 40 per cent of the rise in inequality
  • inequality has been rising more rapidly in Canada than in the U.S.
  • social implications
  • income inequality with poor health outcomes
  • 11-year difference in life expectancy between men who live in its poorest neighbourhood and those its richest
  • Taxing the rich
  • closing loopholes
  • compliance with tax rules
  • education, skills training and job retraining programs
  • More and better jobs, enabling people to escape poverty and offering real career prospects, is the most important challenge
  • burmangabriel on 23 Nov 12
     
    1) What do you think are possible solutions for the rising inequality? 2) Since the rich are taking a higher percent of overall income and Canada is in debt, do you agree with lowering their taxes?
Erica Yeo

Divisions between haves and have-nots begin with having skills - or not - The Globe and... - 1 views

www.theglobeandmail.com/...article4906878

inequality divisions globeandmail challenges currentevents

shared by Erica Yeo on 22 Nov 12 - No Cached
  • Baby boomers are targeted because after struggling to get an education in skills that would land a job, and after decades of effort, they have accumulated some wealth.
  • To them, we symbolize intergenerational inequality.
  • Your future will be defined by how well you learn skills that match the needs of the job market. Those who gain useful skills will find higher paying, more rewarding jobs; those without that knowledge will face low-paying, unstable prospects.
  • ...9 more annotations...
  • fail to report what portion of their graduates find work that requires a university education.
  • large numbers of unfilled jobs co-existing with high levels of youth unemployment.
  • what if Canadian universities were the root cause of the skills gap, rather than the solution?
  • progressively widening inequality gap between members of your own generation.
  • 40 per cent of Canadian university graduates aged 25 to 29 were employed in “low-skill” jobs,
  • Canadian graduates turning to jobs-focused colleges for further training.
  • reduces Canadian productivity and prosperity
  • they just keep spending public money to produce graduates with few job prospects,
  • And the class of 2013 may come to realize that the most damaging inequality is not that of financial disparity, but rather the inequality of hope.
  • Erica Yeo on 23 Nov 12
     
    Discussion Questions: 1. Why should a widening financial income gap be concerning to the economy? 2. What are the economic differences of the baby boomer's generation (1940's-1960's) and the current generation? Do you think these differences affected the education requirement of today's jobs?
Erica Yeo

Crude Oil Rises on Gaza Conflict Amid Declining U.S. Stockpiles - Bloomberg - 2 views

www.bloomberg.com/...-weeks-as-stockpiles-fall.html

crude oil gaza conflict u s bloomberg challenges currentevents

shared by Erica Yeo on 29 Nov 12 - No Cached
  • boosting speculation that the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians of Gaza may disrupt crude supply from the Middle East.
  • Prices advanced earlier after American Petroleum Institute data yesterday showed crude inventories fell for the second week in three. An Energy Department report today is forecast to show supplies increased.
  • “Crude trade will remain choppy until we have some clarity on the Israeli-Gaza conflict,
  • ...5 more annotations...
  • Societe Generale SA raised its predictions for global oil prices next year,
  • Crude for January delivery was at $87.58 a barrel, up 83 cents, or 1 percent, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 1:38 p.m. London time. The contract dropped $2.53 yesterday to $86.75, the biggest decline since Nov. 7. Prices are down 11 percent this year.
  • The bank increased its price outlook for Brent to $110 a barrel from $103 previously, according to an e-mailed report.
  • Crude stockpiles in the U.S. slid 1.9 million barrels in the week ended Nov. 16, the API’s report showed.
  • Gasoline slid 4.8 million barrels, compared with a gain of 1 million barrels in the Bloomberg survey. Distillates, including diesel and heating oil, declined 4.4 million barrels, compared with a projected 1 million-barrel decrease.
  • Erica Yeo on 29 Nov 12
     
    1. What affect do you think the american stockpiles of crude oil have on the supply and demand graph of crude oil? 2. Since the middle east contributes to most of our oil resources, what are the possible solutions to the price increase of crude oil if the conflict between israel and palestine continues?
lebiez piranaj

Car loans drive Canadian consumer debt to record high $26,768 - The Globe and Mail - 2 views

www.theglobeandmail.com/...article5248875

consumer debt auto loans higher

shared by lebiez piranaj on 18 Jan 13 - No Cached
  • Canadian consumer debt hit a record high in the third quarter, driven by loans to purchase new cars
  • The average Canadian’s non-mortgage debt reached $26,768 in the third quarter
  • fastest pace of debt accumulation in nearly two years
  • ...6 more annotations...
  • ransUnion said Wednesday that consumer debt in the third quarter increased at its fastest rate since the end of 2010, jumping 4.6 per cent on an annual basis and 2.1 per cent from the previous quarter
  • the debt levels are certainly moving in the wrong direction
  • Auto borrowing debt climbed 11.25 per cent from a year earlier and 1.84 per cent from the previous quarter
  • One possible reason, Mr. Higgins said, is that during the recession, Canadians held off getting new cars and paid off their leases, driving auto loans lower
  • people have started thinking that it is time to get a new car
  • “Today, people can carry this debt, but if we do get a big shock, like higher interest rates or job losses, then we will get hit.”
  • lebiez piranaj on 18 Jan 13
     
    The article mentions about how auto loans have increased substantially in the past few years and that this may be because auto loans have lower interest rates. But it also mentions that the economy is recovering and another hit could affect us because we are borrowing so much. 
lebiez piranaj

What are some good reasons to borrow money? - The Globe and Mail - 1 views

www.theglobeandmail.com/...article4184887

tips saving money debt

shared by lebiez piranaj on 18 Jan 13 - No Cached
  • 2. Buy a car
  • Some people pay cash for a car, but most of us borrow or lease. Always weigh the cost of borrowing against using your own savings.
  • 3. Save for education
  • ...5 more annotations...
  • Student loans are one of the cheapest forms of debt. They are also a good investment
  • Another way to finance part of your child's education is through a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP)
  • 7. Pay off debt at a lower interest rate
  • A consolidation loan is a loan at a low rate, which you use to pay off several older loans that have higher interest rates
  • Others pay off their loans and credit cards by increasing their mortgage, which may have a low interest rate.
  • lebiez piranaj on 18 Jan 13
     
    The article talks about strategies on how to save for things like education, on saving for a car, how to pay off your debt at lower rates as well. 
Erica Yeo

The widening gap in Canada's labour market - The Globe and Mail - 1 views

www.theglobeandmail.com/...article4104784

inequality canada challenges skillsgap solutions globeandmail

shared by Erica Yeo on 16 Jan 13 - No Cached
  • A fault line is splintering Canada’s labour market into those who can’t find work and those who can’t find workers.
  • employers across the country say they can’t find the right workers for all kinds of available jobs.
  • Groups with high jobless rates such as aboriginal people, recent immigrants and those with disabilities are struggling to land good jobs, limiting their ability to climb the economic ladder.
  • ...11 more annotations...
  • At the same time, employers from Newfoundland and Labrador to the Prairies say shortages are constraining their ability to grow, innovate and compete.
  • Structural shifts in the labour market mean “workers in declining industries may not have the skills or experience to match immediately the needs of employers in expanding industries,”
  • Unemployment is high, even as the number of job vacancies continues to rise
  • That means more-efficient partnerships between employers and universities and colleges,
  • “The lack of young people pursuing further education in engineering and science and technology, is definitely a strain on our ability to grow,”
  • Last month it called on the federal and provincial governments to work with employers to find strategies to overcome expected shortfalls.
  • It says improving skills and workplace training should become a national priority, and recommended more companies make a “strategic decision to take a direct role in creating the skilled workforces and talent pipelines they need.”
  • In Canada, part of the problem is that many people haven’t pursued careers in areas where all the job growth is happening. Mining and energy extraction are, by far, the fastest-growing segments of job growth in Canada over the past year, with employment gains of 5.7 per cent.
  • Despite the presence of the local universities churning out tech graduates, he estimates there are about 1,900 current vacancies for technical jobs in the Kitchener-Waterloo region “that are unfilled and have been for some time.
  • the labour market imbalance “is the largest threat to our economy,”
  • Without that effort, he estimates 1.5 million jobs could go unfilled in 10 years’ time.
Cristina Raileanu

Ford confident its hybrid fuel economy numbers will stand up - The Globe and Mail - 0 views

www.theglobeandmail.com/...article7368391

ford hybrid fuel economy canada commodities resources

shared by Cristina Raileanu on 17 Jan 13 - No Cached
  • Cristina Raileanu on 17 Jan 13
     
    This is a article about a new hybrid car, that should work in favor with the spiking of the oil prices.
Cristina Raileanu

Paying down debt Canadians' main focus in 2013: poll - The Globe and Mail - 1 views

www.theglobeandmail.com/...article6841809

down paying debt

shared by Cristina Raileanu on 17 Jan 13 - No Cached
  • Managing day-to-day spending/budgeting came in third, selected by eight per cent of respondents and down from 14 per cent last year.
  • 45-64 named retirement planning as their top financial priority, which fell to just 12 per cent among that age group in this year’s survey.
  • “Even small contributions today can make it easier in future years to reach your retirement savings goals,”
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • debt management increased as a priority for that age group to 18 per cent from 14 per cent.
faseehthemoonman

Canada's Economic Future: What Have We Learned from the 1990s? - Bank of Canada - 1 views

www.bankofcanada.ca/...ic-future-what-have-we-learned

mail bank canada consumer

shared by faseehthemoonman on 17 Jan 13 - No Cached
  • To conclude, our economy has been expanding robustly over the past five years, inflation has remained low, employment and incomes have been rising. And we are now seeing encouraging signs of a productivity payoff from the restructuring of the past decade
  • faseehthemoonman on 17 Jan 13
     
    "r"
Ms Cuttle

Global markets scale new heights, but TSX 'wildly' underperforms - The Globe and Mail - 1 views

www.theglobeandmail.com/...article11744187

stock market

shared by Ms Cuttle on 07 May 13 - No Cached
  • Global markets are climbing again this morning, though Canadian investors should take note: Toronto has been "wildly" underperforming as other exchanges push fresh highs.
  • Toronto is down about 20 per cent from its peak.
  • he Globe and Mail’s Sean Silcoff and Dianne Nice hosted an online chat today with Vijai Mohan, the founder of a small U.S. hedge fund who’s perhaps better known as the man who’s selling Canada short.
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