As a part of this agreement, Ansell has appointed Koreca Industries its exclusive distributor of Industrial and New Verticals personal protective equipment (PPE) products in the Republic of Korea. Furthermore, Ansell has an option to make equity investments in Koreca Industries in stages over several years.

Magnus Nicolin, CEO of Ansell Limited commented

“By partnering with Koreca Industries, Ansell will significantly strengthen its presence in Korea in the PPE market. This move is well aligned with our previously communicated ambition to expand globally in fast-growing markets”.

Ansell Limited
Ansell is a world leader in providing superior health and safety protection solutions that enhance human well being. With operations in the North America, Latin America, EMEA and Asia, Ansell employs more than 10,000 people worldwide and holds leading positions in the industrial and medical gloves market, as well as in the sexual health and well being category worldwide. Ansell operates in four main business segments: Medical Solutions, Industrial Solutions, New Verticals, and Sexual Wellness. Information on Ansell and its products can be found at www.ansell.com.

However, if the current value difference is negative when compared to the contract time, it is agreed that the seller will pay the set difference to the buyer.

CFD’s are traded between individual traders and as such there are no set contract terms.

They were originally developed in the early 1990’s in London and were initially used by hedge funds and institutional traders to hedge their exposure to stocks on the London Stock Exchange in a cost-effective way.

CFD’s are financial derivatives that allow traders to take advantage of price adjustments.  They are also commonly used to speculate on those markets.

CFD’s are used in many countries including the UK, Japan, Germany, France, South Africa, Switzerland, Australia, Ireland and Spain but due to restrictions are not permitted in the United States, while Hong Kong have plans to issue CFD’s in the near future.
With the increase in personal share ownership there are many websites that now offer individuals new to trading help and advice on how best to invest their money in stocks and shares.

The TD Derivatives Trading website allows you to manage Contracts for Difference, Forex and Futures trading with its integrated suite of trading platforms, so you can undertake all your CFD, Forex and Futures trading from one account.  The account also gives you access to TD’s suite of trading platforms: the web-based TD Derivatives Web Trader and the downloadable TD Derivatives Professional with Direct Market Access.

When entering the world of trading you should remain alert and cautious at all times and remember one or two good investments can be nothing more than beginners’ luck, and losing focus at any time could have disastrous consequences that mean your losses could very quickly escalate out of control.

With CFD online trading you should fully understand the risks and seek independent advice whenever necessary.

To help you gain some knowledge and confidence without the risk of losing money, TD Derivatives offer a 20 day free demo account with all the functionality of a live account and gives you a virtual £100,000 allowing you to put your trading skills and strategies to the acid test.

Despite going through several recessions and dips in economy this theory pretty much held true – that is up until the start of the financial crisis, when many investors and buy to let entrepreneurs well and truly had their fingers burned.

While most of us were happy to see our property increase in value over the years the credit crunch has returned the market to status quo, where our homes are once again, not an investment, but our castles.

The same can be said for most of the developed world and particularly in European countries such as Spain and France where many Brit’s have found themselves owning properties that have fallen in value over the last couple of years.

Buying abroad has always been a minefield, but the effects of the credit crunch have at least led to developers reducing ridiculously inflated prices and being more realistic about property values in certain areas.

One such development I recently came across offering property for sale in Cyprus is currently offering up to 30% off their 2010 prices to buyers willing to agree a deal before the end of March.

Interestingly the real estate agents of the Alexander Heights development are offering extraordinary deals on inspection trips that include three nights accommodation in the five star Inter Continental Hotel for prospective clients, with the agents picking up the tab.

Alexander Heights is an exclusive development set in the recently opened luxury resort of Aphrodite Hills, the first ever golf, leisure and real estate development in Cyprus.

The real estate agents require prospective clients to fill in a questionnaire prior to their trip to the Mediterranean island enabling them to design the perfect tailor made inspection visit package to suit each potential buyer.

On top of the hotel accommodation Alexander Heights will cover costs of transfers to and from the airport, a choice of a round of golf, game of tennis or spa treatment.

Special sight seeing trips and lunch or dinner packages may also be added to the free package and of course in the event of a property being purchased during the inspection trip, flight expenses will also be reimbursed.

Perhaps most importantly the company offer an attractive finance scheme to suit most purchasers.

“The deficit reduction programme takes precedence over any of the other measures in this agreement, and the speed of implementation of any measures that have a cost to the public finances will depend on decisions to be made in the Comprehensive Spending Review. We will significantly accelerate the reduction of the structural deficit over the course of a parliament, with the main burden of deficit reduction borne by reduced spending rather than increased taxes.”

Chancellor George Osborne, who has announced an emergency budget for June 22nd, said he would outline plans on Monday for an initial £6 billion’s worth of cuts.

The coalition has plans to cut Ministry of Defence spending by 25%, while proposing private capital investment in the Royal Mail.

The Accord supports the introduction of a banking levy and the reduction of the bonus culture in the finance sector. Meanwhile it will be interesting to see if the coalition can succeed where the Labour government failed, in getting banks to lend money to businesses.

“There is an urgent priority that is getting lending going to small- and medium-sized businesses. That is an absolute urgent priority,” said Osborne.

It is fair to say that plenty have had their fingers burned by the financial crisis through no fault of their own and cannot afford to take the risk of investment under current circumstances.

There are some areas of investment however that have profitted from the financial crisis, precious metals like gold for instance have rocketed in price, leading to a 21st century gold rush where every high street now appears to have a gold ‘expert’ ready to pay cash for your gold jewellery.

Inevitably the ‘gold rush‘ has brought out the worst in some unscrupulous people who are treating the business as they would any other scam that is fashionable at the time, and using outlets to rip off their clients.

But as an investment, if gold is doing well, how about other precious metals such as golds poorer cousin silver?

On the face of it, silver should make a good investment. Demand for silver has outstripped supply every year since 1990 and in the last two years supply has fallen significantly short.

Demand for silver in industry continues to grow, a staggering 44% of all silver produced each year is used in the technologies market alone, a huge growth market itself. But it does not stop there, silver is used in the production of many household goods and is essential to industries worldwide.

In the US the government is currently buying silver futures to replenish an empty stockpile of the commodity and many investors are seeing it as a safe bet, as industrial uses for the product grow along with the scarcity of silver.

Licuro.com is a totally independent market place designed to bring together, on the one hand, UK savers looking for the highest interest rates for their time deposits and on the other hand banks and financial institutions looking to access alternative sources of funding and gain new customers.

A time deposit is an amount of money that you deposit in a deposit taker for an agreed period of time. For this the deposit taker pays you a certain time deposit interest rate. Licuro provides you with a quick and accurate overview of where you receive the best interest rate.

For instance, if you have say £50,000 to invest for three months, you can put your funds up for auction and recieve interest rate bids from some of the UK and Denmark’s most competetive financial institutions. With just a few clicks you will be able to find the best interest rate in the market for your deposit.

Since July, Licuro.com has processed over £20 million in the UK and two sister sites will be launched in Luxembourg and Belgium in February 2010 with Germany to follow in March 2010.  It is expected that these new sites will see a rapid increase in traffic over the next 12 months.  The original site in Denmark, mybanker.biz, founded in 2002, has processed the equivalent £1.4 billion in the last twelve months.

John Norden, CEO of Licuro.com in the UK and founder of mybanker.biz inDenmark says:

“We are delighted to see Licuro gaining momentum in the UK. We’ve a proven model in Denmark, which has translated very well to the UK although it is still very early days, and with the roll out elsewhere in Europe UK will in the long run give savers the option of depositing with banks in other European countries, with the obvious foreign exchange advantages.

From the savers’ perspective, Licuro is the site to go to if you have, say, £25,000 to invest (although the minimum accepted, which is set by deposit takers themselves, is currently £12,000 with no maximum). We offer savers a totally transparent way of depositing their money at an interest rate that is pushed up by the competition created by the several building societies, each with their own distinct liquidity requirements, bidding for their cash online in real-time.”

casa se vende

As the winter draws in and the recession bites further into our incomes, memories of summer holidays long since passed may start us thinking of next years vacation or even thoughts of a life changing experience of  a ‘better life’ overseas.

The ‘easy’ life always sounds attractive, but is the grass really greener? It is worth remembering that the credit crisis was a global phenomenon and nowhere in Europe has escaped unscathed.

The financial crisis has taken its toll on property markets across Europe and while the UK sees a minor recovery in the market, property prices in Spain for instance are still falling dramatically. That is good news if you are in the market to buy, but ex pats selling property have had to deal with a double whammy.

Not only have prices fallen but the GB Pound/Euro exchange rate has also been badly hit, leaving ex pats who rely on a UK income facing all sorts of financial problems when they come to exchange money.

It is good to know therefore that there are financial companies around who can make  international payments at better exchange rates than those offered by high street banks.

World First is the leading currency exchange broker in the UK, exceeding £1 billion turnover in 2008 representing over 20,000 private clients and 3,000 business transactions. They also guarantee the best foreign exchange rates, the fastest available international payments and boast an exceptional level of service.

At World First they also offer ‘forward contracts’ which allow you to set the sterling cost of your property up to a year before payment is due, avoiding fluctuations in currency rates.

Savings can also be made by ex pats who rely on income from the UK, World First do not charge extra for transfers made to Europe and offer the option of fixing the exchange rate of all payments from six months to 2 years in advance, a great way to manage finances with no fear of fluctuation.

With the base rate at an all time low many savers have already had their fingers burnt with investments and savings and with the lack of trust in financial institutions it seems many people are stashing their cash outside of savings account, where the interest is minimal if at all.

Only twenty percent of those surveyed said that they would look for help when reviewing their investment options, with an equal number saying that they would now less likely to do so.

The same figure of 20% said they are more likely to save increased amounts of cash, outside of a savings account, over the next twelve months.

One in three said that the current economic climate makes it less likely that they would trust their savings providers’ opinions than before the credit crunch begun and a similar figure say they would steer clear of stocks and shares-based saving products.

But, with 30% of survey respondents also saying they are more likely to choose ISAs ahead of other products now that the ISA savings limits are increased, the Newcastle is highlighting the importance of savers using every available resource when making savings decisions to make sure they get the products which suit their individual needs.

Five key points for consideration by people unsure of how to make the most of their savings:

• Identify the term you wish to save over, and whether or not you require access to your money.
  • Decide on the level of risk – there are many capital guaranteed products which will protect an initial investment regardless of market movements.
  • Ensure you use your ISA allowance to benefit from saving tax free.
  • Decide on whether you require monthly or annual interest – often the interest rate can differ significantly.
  • Seek expert advice from your provider before taking out a savings/investment product

Steve Urwin, Senior Sales and Marketing Executive at Newcastle Building Society says:

“The financial marketplace is almost unrecognisable compared to little more than a year ago, so it’s no wonder that trust is a big issue for the consumer, and it’s something that all institutions are working hard to address.

With the base rate so low, savers may be tempted to think that they are better off holding onto their cash, rather than investing it in a building society or bank, but with the recent increase in tax free ISA allowance and a range of good products still available across the market despite the tough financial climate, doing so will see them miss out on getting the returns that they could otherwise secure.

It’s not all about the best rate, and savers should seek help from their provider to ensure they fully understand the terms and conditions of the account – in the current economic climate, for example, it may not be the best time to lock your money away for years with no access to it, and if you rely on the income from your savings, the level of risk on your return is going to be important.”

250kg gold bar!

The flagship store of London’s Knightsbridge borough, Harrods have this week started selling gold bars and coins, over the counter. While the commodities are obviously not on display, the discreet private investor is able to conduct business in the Harrods Bank.

Situated on the lower ground floor the gold including a 12.5kg bar will be displayed behind a wall of reinforced glass. The current estimated value of a 12.5kg bar is around £285,000.

Harrods say that they are responding to customer demand as more investors are seeking the security of gold in the current financial situation. The store will stock coins including the British gold sovereign and US gold eagle as well as smaller bars of gold from 1 gram.

Mehdi Bakhordar, managing director of Swiss-based PAMP, said: “Harrods stock our full range and are now the only location in London where investors can purchase a 12.5kg gold bar ‘off the shelf’.”

The research was conducted by TWC and commissioned by Alliance & Leicester International.  Five different categories were compared across 14 popular expatriate destinations to find the cost of living; the price of the average property and the cost of various shopping list items; litre of petrol, bottle of beer, litre of milk, bottle of water and cup of coffee.  The change in cost was measured over the period from October 2008 to July 2009.

The research found that ex-pats living in Italy who have seen basic prices drop, get more for their money than other top destinations, but property prices have falling in all of the 14 countries.

However ex-pats already living in Italy would still have experienced only a minimal 1.5% decrease in property prices on top of the drop in prices of everyday goods.

On the other extreme would be Florida, where prices have increased for all items, including a 200% rise in fuel, although house prices have only dropped by 3.31% or Dubai where property has dropeed a staggering 35.31% and all items on the list have increased.

In the scheme of things the UK fares pretty well, especially if you do not drink beer or milk!

Here is a table to illustrate the findings of the report: