Govts face extra debt costs as stimulus dries up

August 19, 2013 Leave a comment

Updated: Monday August 19, 2013 MYT 6:51:22 AM

Govts face extra debt costs as stimulus dries up

PARIS: Governments face a rise in their borrowing costs due to the winding down of monetary stimulus programmes and as investors bet on central banks hiking interest rates sooner than promised. Moody’s Analytics warned last week that “US rates could rise as the Fed moves to slow its purchases of long-term debt, which in turn could push up the yields on European government bonds.” Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

Chinatown buses: Driving them out of business; For some 15 years “Chinatown bus” lines have shuttled thrifty folk between east-coast cities for a fraction of the price of name-brand carriers

August 19, 2013 Leave a comment

Chinatown buses: Driving them out of business

Regulators nobble cheap travel

Aug 17th 2013 | WASHINGTON, DC |From the print edition

FRUGAL travellers in America’s north-east have heard the stories. There was the bus that rolled over from going too fast. There was the one that, somehow, lost its rear wheels. A few others burst into flames. Yet potential passengers still gather near the Chinese gate in Washington, DC to catch a cheap ride to New York. A one-way ticket costs around $20, against a whopping $150 on the train. It is far from luxurious, but you can watch films on your iPad or flirt with the other young travellers.

For some 15 years “Chinatown bus” lines have shuttled thrifty folk between east-coast cities for a fraction of the price of name-brand carriers. Chinese immigrants were first to hop aboard, followed by college students and other cash-strapped Americans. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

Brazil tries to fill the potholes in its path to growth; Potholed roads among the worst in the world

August 19, 2013 Leave a comment

August 18, 2013 12:25 pm

Brazil tries to fill the potholes in its path to growth

By Joe Leahy in São Paulo

Fernando Atisto has one of the most dangerous jobs in Brazil. He delivers fresh produce to São Paulo’s central market. “The roads getting here are terrible and, aside from that, dangerous. There are a lot of potholes even on the privately run ones,” said the truck driver, who has just delivered a haul of apples to the Ceagesp market from São Joaquim in Santa Catarina state, more than 800km away. When people in South America’s biggest city shop at the supermarket, they rarely spare a thought for the sacrifice required to ensure there is food on the shelves. In a country with some of the world’s poorest infrastructure and most congested cities, every apple or piece of meat that reaches a supermarket must undergo a journey that is as perilous for truck drivers as it is tedious. Read more of this post

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Audit the auditors; Rule changes will make the profession serve investors better

August 19, 2013 Leave a comment

August 18, 2013 4:52 pm

Audit the auditors

Rule changes will make the profession serve investors better

There has been plenty of blame to go around for the financial crisis and the scandals it exposed. Until recently, some of it stuck to auditors who had signed off on company accounts that were quickly exposed as wishful thinking or worse. But efforts to improve the value of audits to investors have produced mixed results in the face of resistance from the profession. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

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