Posts Tagged finance
The European Situation And The Financial Markets
Posted by Oksana Grebenjuk in Currency, Favourites on Декабрь 1st, 2010
Are the financial markets the WikiLeaks of economics? Politicians and economists and business people ignore what financial markets are saying at their peril.
The financial markets have not responded well to the «rescue» package for Ireland put together by the European Union. The news out of London: «The euro continued to slide Tuesday, falling to a 10-week low under $1.30 as Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Irish bond-yield spreads all continued to widen relative to Germany.»
«The euro had started the European day with a rally, helped by regular month-end flows in its favor. However, things turned sour again as it became apparent that the risks of contagion remained as strong as ever and that Italy is now being affected by the lack of investor confidence in the euro zone.
Like the debtor countries on the periphery, Italy watched the yield on its bonds rise relative to those of Germany as investors demanded greater returns for holding Italian debt.»
The Financial Times writes: «it is still hard to see how Ireland can repay all the debt it has now taken on. So it is unsurprising that the market sensed a fatal combination: governments lacked the means either to nix moral hazard or end the crisis by writing an enormous check.» Read the rest of this entry »
Five Lessons From Your ’09 Tax Return
Posted by Oksana Grebenjuk in Budget, Favourites on Апрель 15th, 2010
Your 2009 taxes are done. Congratulations! But you’re not done yet. (Sorry.) While you have all your 2009 tax forms and documents handy, this is the perfect time to analyze last year’s finances and use those insights to lower your taxes in 2010 and beyond.
The sooner you get started, the more you can save. So, take a big breath and then take these five steps:
1. Avoid a Big Tax Refund
You think you love getting a tax refund. What’s not to like about found money? But a refund is really just the return of a year-long, interest-free loan that you extended to your spendthrift Uncle Sam.
You can do much smarter things with that money, like putting it into a retirement plan or a college savings fund. So if you will be receiving a 2009 refund of more than a few thousand dollars and you’re an employee, adjust your withholding at work. If you’re self-employed, lower your quarterly estimated tax paymentsaccordingly.
If your 2010 income will be less than $75,000 ($150,000 if you’re married and will file jointly), be sure your tax withholding has been properly adjusted for the new Making Work Pay Tax Credityou’re entitled to receive this year. This credit (up to $400 for singles and $800 for couples) should be reflected in the amount of taxes taken out of your paycheck. But you may need to submit a revised W-4, especially if you’re holding down multiple jobs or you’re married, since your employer wouldn’t know about your extra work or your spouse’s income. Read the rest of this entry »
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