The president-elect on Friday was to tour a northern Ohio company that manufactures parts for wind turbines, a fitting backdrop to promote alternative energy dollars included in the mammoth stimulus package that could top $1 trillion by the time Congress sends it to the White House.

Obama’s campaign-style event is the first of a series he’s expected to hold to generate support for his plan to pull the country from recession. His trip comes a day after the Senate approved giving him access to the second half of last fall’s $700 billion financial industry bailout and after House Democrats unveiled a stimulus plan largely shaped by the president-elect’s team.

Citing an economy in crisis and worsening, Obama has spent the past two weeks securing lawmakers’ backing for the eye-popping plan that has drawn skepticism from both Republicans and Democrats because of its price tag and tax provisions. He’s now taking his pitch directly to the public — and trying to sell the sweeping package to lawmakers’ constituents.

The stakes are enormous for Obama. Passage of the plan, and bipartisan passage in particular, would mark a significant achievement at the outset of his presidency as he inherits a recession in its second year from President George W. Bush. Defeat would be a blow, coming not just in his first weeks in office but also as joblessness increases, bank failures continue, investment portfolios shrink and home prices drop. More…

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There will be no shortage of economic data and potential corporate news as traders get back to work after the holidays. The real hope is that the market can build upon Friday’s rally, when the Dow Jones industrial average snapped a four-week losing streak and closed above 9,000 for the first time since Nov. 5.

The past month has shown that the negative sentiment about things like corporate earnings and still-sluggish credit markets have already been factored into the market. Analysts say the next few weeks will determine if investors are comfortable enough to return to the market — with their fears of missing out on a rally outweighing concerns of a renewed downturn.

“There’s now an estimated $8.9 trillion sitting on the sidelines in cash and money markets,” said Stephen Leeb, president of New York-based Leeb Capital Management. “High cash levels and low stock prices historically go hand in hand. The current level as a percentage of the stock market’s capitalization matches that at the market bottom in 1990.”

He said this huge amount of liquidity “has yet to include the massive amount of money that will be created as a result of the Federal Reserve’s recent unprecedented actions to stimulate the economy and financial system.” That also could help bolster markets in the coming months. I was talking with term life insurance rates providing company, he says it will take more time to have positive effect of federal reserve’s last month actions. Another friend of mine who sell blinds online with vertical blinds and roman shades product, he says that everyone is waiting for the outcome of actions taken by Federal Reserve.

Leeb and other analysts do not discount that the market may retreat and retest lows seen in November. The next few weeks will go a long way in assessing the market’s resiliency, even in the face of abysmal economic news. 

Ref: Yahoo

This is a major problem for millions of Americans and it is only getting worse. It is vital to recognize that there are two main forms of debt – good and bad. If you have gotten into a bad debt trap, getting out is extremely difficult. Remember, bad debt is something that drains your finances, good debt is something that adds to it. Reduce your amount of bad debt, increase your amount of good debt and watch your finances turn around.

Saving More

No matter how much money you make, saving part of it is very important. Whether it is a simple emergency fund that can help you get through bad times, or a fund for retirement, saving is essential. If you find it difficult to have any extra money each month for savings, it is time to investigate how you can change that.

Whether you need to find a better job that pays more, manage your finances better, or find ways to create more than one stream of income, there are many ways that you can start saving more money.

These three principles will help you learn more about how your own personal finances work and how to start managing your money more effectively. Everyone makes mistakes, but the difference is whether or not you rise about them, recognize the problem and implement the solution.

Basic money management can be broken down into three main principles – Spending Less, Avoiding Bad Debt and Saving More.  For example, rather than going for individual medical policy, one should go with term life insurance which gives free medical coverage. Let’s take a look at each one and determine how you can start including these principles into your own life.

Spending Less

This is a vital lesson that everyone must learn, and unfortunately, it is a hard one. While most of us get the point that you have to spend less than you earn if you want to stay in the black, that concept tends to fly right out the window when faced with every day life. The prevalence of credit cards, easy payment plans and a lack of knowledge about bad debt have led many into spending much more than they make. For example, Company is planning for window treatment. With spending less approach they should go with woven wood shades and roller shades instead of using curtains. Curtains are having recurring expense with it while blinds won’t have recurring expense.  

One of the best ways to start spending less is simply to monitor exactly what you spend, keep a log and determine where you can cut expenses. A budget is a vital tool that will help you learn more about the money that goes out the door each month and how much comes in. By working with a budget, you can start to tip the scales in favor of how much is coming in. More..

2. Pay more than the minimum on your credit cards. Calculate the true cost of paying the minimum; Tips for spending less, saving more; 15 credit card terms

3. Read your bank statement regularly. Anatomy of a bank statement; 7 ways to keep your account in check; 10 most common checking account terms

4. Build an emergency fund of at least three months’ living expenses.

FAQ about emergency savings; Tips for kicking off a savings plan; Calculate what it’ll take to save for a goal

5. Prepare a will. Everything you need to know to write a will; What’s a living will?; More personal finance advice

6. Shop around for the best insurance rates and coverage. The basics of car insurance; 19 ways to save on auto insurance; More insurance advice

7. Look around for and switch to credit cards with lower rates. How to transfer a balance safely; Ask for a lower credit card rate; More on credit cards

8. Follow a monthly budget. Develop your own spending plan; What’s your spending style?; Money-saving tips

9. Adjust your W-4 annually to make sure you are not giving the government too much money. Understanding withholding ; Open a flexible spending account; More on taxes

10. Check your credit report annually for accuracy. Why you should check your credit report; Understanding your credit report; Protect yourself from identity theft

11. Contribute to a retirement account. Frequently asked questions about 401(k)s; The ABCs of IRAs; More on investing

12. Comparison shop for the best deal on your mortgage or refinancing.Lower your mortgage costs with a refinance; Estimate your savings with refi calculator; More on mortgages. More…

For now, Asia is keeping banks in business by embracing less risk and drawing on experience fighting its own financial problems of the past, including the region’s 1997-98 crisis. Public finances, external balances and corporate balance sheets are on sounder footing due to smarter macroeconomic policies, tighter bank supervision and better risk management systems. None of the major banks in the region is expected to need big bailouts such as the ones Citigroup Inc. and insurance giant American International Group have received from the U.S. government, analysts say.

Moreover, Asian banks stand to benefit from the high savings rates of their domestic depositors, which gives them a deep pool from which to lend and invest.

The milder impact of the financial crisis thus far means that Asian banks “may have relatively more resources to capture market opportunities when the market stabilizes and then look for the next stage of growth,” said Jerry Chine, managing director of the financial institutions group at Moody’s Asia Pacific.

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Australia‘s central bank slashed interest rates by 100 basis points on Tuesday in the latest in a series of aggressive cuts sparked by the global financial crisis.

The bigger-than-expected cut by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) dropped the official cash rate to 4.25 per cent, the lowest in more than six years, as the bank predicted that inflation could soon begin to fall. It was the fourth consecutive monthly cut by the RBA, which has sliced a total of 300 basis points off the official rate since September as inflation fears give way to concern about the impact of slower world economic growth. Most financial market economists had expected a 75 basis point reduction, although with the bank having opted for a big one percentage point cut in October a repeat was not totally unexpected.

“Recent actions by governments and central banks to stabilise their respective financial systems have begun to take effect,” RBA governor Glenn Stevens said in a statement. “Nonetheless, financial market sentiment remains fragile, as evidence accumulates of weak economic conditions in the major countries and a significant slowing in many emerging countries.”

The Australian economy had been more resilient than others, but recent data indicated that a significant moderation in demand and activity had occurred, he said, and it was likely inflation would soon start to fall. Inflation data released yesterday showed a sharp turnaround in price pressures amid the global financial crisis.

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Australia prepared a plan to stimulate a slowing economy, the Bank of Korea and a Chinese government researcher issued gloomy growth forecasts, Japan’s ruling party pushed for more spending and a newspaper said Malaysia would soon move to boost growth.

Across the region, spared the worst of a crisis that has engulfed the United States and Europe, policymakers struck cautious notes as investors exulted at the news that Western governments were ready to prop up collapsing banks.

“There’s relief that banks probably wouldn’t go bankrupt thanks to money injection plans,” said Koichi Ogawa, chief portfolio manager at Daiwa SB Investments.

“But after some rebound, we will inevitably enter a phase of thinking about how that would actually impact the global economy.”

Tokyo’ Nikkei share average had its best day on record and currencies and stocks rallied across Asia as the United States prepared to pump federal funds into banks after Europe pledged more than $1.3 trillion to keep its banking system afloat.

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said he was looking beyond the market gyrations to the gathering economic gloom, which some economists say could produce a global recession.

“The global financial crisis has entered into a new, dangerous and damaging phase, one which goes to the real economy, growth and jobs,” he said, announcing a A$10.4 billion ($7.3 billion) spending plan.

The plan, worth about 1 percent of gross domestic product, would offer cash to pensioners, home buyers and other Australians hurt by the surging cost of credit and slowing growth in the Asia-Pacific’s largest commodity exporter.

Economic growth in both Japan and China, the biggest markets for Australia’s metal and energy exports, is slowing.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said Beijing would direct policy toward keeping growth on track in the face of the global slowdown.

China’s financial system has been largely shielded from the market turmoil that has wrecked banks from Wall Street to Iceland. But its economy is slowing.

The Malaysian government will announce measures next week to strengthen the economy, the Star newspaper quoted Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak as saying on Tuesday.

South Korea’s central bank chief Lee Seong-tae said a global slowdown would probably drag growth in Asia’s fourth-largest economy below 4 percent until the first half of next year compared with 5 percent in 2007.

Ref: yahoo news, shopbliendsonline, agentswebworld

All talk about money.