Monthly Archives: January 2013

Amazon reports disappointing holiday sales

In the final quarter of 2012, the most important for retailers, the online shopping giant’s revenue grew by 22 percent to $21.3bn, about $1bn short of Wall Street forecasts. Reported holiday sales in the US were disappointing across the board, despite growth of 14 percent, according to ComScore, a research group. Amazon profits have diminished…

Using Social Media in Unusual Places

Have you ever had a desperate need to go the bathroom, and stood waiting in line, crossed your legs, or hummed to yourself while waiting for that the person to be finished using the facilities? It might sound surprising that in recent years, a growing reason why some people are hogging up the stalls is…

Apple stocks drop 10% after growth concerns

The share drop came in the wake of Apple’s December results were announced. The company sold 47.8m iPhones in the three months to December, a year-on-year increase of 78 percent; revenues were up 18 percent to $54.4bn. However, the results fell significantly short of analysts’ expectations. Investors have expressed disappointment, in spite of reported net…

Britain’s big question: In or out?

In a long awaited speech, UK Prime Minister David Cameron has promised an in-out referendum on the country’s membership in the EU should his Conservative Party be returned to power following the next general election. Cameron said that the UK government will attempt to negotiate a new settlement with other European countries before putting the…

Short Term Loans Due to Sandy

The recent Hurricane Sandy has left a lot of destruction and property damage, but where does that lead people with loans?  If you happen to live in the northeastern portion of the United States, you do not need to be informed of the devastation that your state or town has endured due to the recent…

Moscow Stock Exchange set to launch its own IPO

The Moscow Stock Exchange has announced its IPO, but has so far not released any more concrete details. However, it has been confirmed that the banks handling the IPO will be JPMorgan Chase, Credit Suisse, Sberbank and VTBank. Analysts have suggested it is too early in the IPO’s pre-marketing phase to pinpoint how much the…

China reports slowest growth since 1999

Though China’s GDP growth slowed to its lowest in 13 years, the country finished 2012 in a slightly stronger position reporting 7.9 percent growth in the last quarter, compared to 7.4 in the three months before. The overall growth rates for the year topped 7.8 percent, significantly higher than some estimates of 7.5 percent. The…