Assad’s brutality won’t be enough to save his regime July 30, 2012 SYRIA’S ongoing civil war is now entering a decisive phase. Bloody battles, street by street, alley by alley, are raging for the two key cities of Damascus and Aleppo. The regime of the Syrian President Bashar al Assad appears to be expending every last ounce of effort to maintain its hold over urban centres. Fast [...]
Can the payday loan industry be trusted to protect consumers from excessive charges? July 30, 2012 YES Richard Griffiths Despite all the negative media commentary, responsible payday lenders work hard to provide customers with an excellent service, resulting in extraordinarily high satisfaction ratings. The industry isn’t perfect and does have a poor reputation. But the four main associations representing payday and short-term lenders have launched a new customer charter, setting out [...]
RAPID RESPONSES July 30, 2012 Olympic reactions [Re: Olympics are a great success, but won’t solve economic crisis, yesterday] The Games so far have been a triumph. Pre-event grumbling was just a classic example of a British tendency to play down expectations. As you write, however, we will have to wake up. The much-vaunted legacy must materialise, even if solely [...]
Prices are the only thing growing as crops feel the heat July 30, 2012 WHILE the UK has spent most of 2012 soaked to the bone, wondering when summer was going to gift us some rays of sunshine, on the other side of the Atlantic – specifically the key growing region in the US Midwest corn belt – they have been experiencing quite the opposite. Wiltingly hot temperatures in [...]
TAKE YOUR EMOTION OUT OF TRADING BY MANAGING RISK July 30, 2012 FX360 LAST week, I began a series of three articles aimed at anyone who is considering trading for themselves. My own background is in spread betting and contracts for difference (CFDs) and, over the years, I’ve managed to pick up a few do’s and don’ts. But before launching in, it’s important to emphasise a particular [...]
THE TIPSTER | Thomas Cook hoping to book profits July 30, 2012 EMBATTLED shareholders in Thomas Cook will be hoping that the poor weather and the prospect of the London Olympics will have driven more people to book holidays in sunnier climes. The Arab Spring might have moved on from Tunisia and Egypt, but the firm might still see some weak trading, as people stay away from [...]
Analyst picks for 30 July 2012 July 30, 2012 CURRENCY STRATEGIST CHRIS VECCHIO My pick: Short Australian dollar-dollar Expertise: Fundamental and technical analysis Average time frame of trades: 1 day to 1 week Our previous Aussie dollar-dollar short from $1.0425 hit its initial profit target at $1.0270. The pair hit trendline support at $1.0190, in turn giving way to the rally up to $1.0500. [...]
Conquer a daunting wall of ice without a trip to the Antarctic July 30, 2012 Clinging precariously to a sheet of rippling blue ice, the summit in sight, I took a leap of faith. Digging my spiked shoes into the metre-thick walls of the “chimney” of frozen water, I lunged with an ice axe, connecting for a brief second, only to dislodge a block the size of my fist: it [...]
EPISODE 62 – THE HANGING COMMITTEE July 30, 2012 The school year has ended. The children have dispersed, if only briefly. It seems that many of them will reconvene shortly in Tuscany, with splinter groups in Umbria and the Dordogne. Noel presented Mr Donnelly with a fine and very expensive teapot as his end of year gift. As recommended by Nick. It seems that’s [...]
Five tips to help you get your beach body July 30, 2012 If the fact you’re going to be baring all in a couple of weeks has completely slipped your mind, fret not. There’s still time to tackle your 2012 tum. 1) Splash out on a Swiss ball. Whether or not you’ll resemble an Olympian in fourteen days is debatable, but a Swiss ball is the perfect [...]
