| HSBC banks £12.2 billion profit
Banking giant HSBC has seen profits rise 10 per cent to £12.2 billion despite having to write off £8.7 billion from bad debts and investments linked to the credit crunch. The UK's largest banking business said it was "continuing to face challenges" in North America as a result of the housing market troubles and associated credit crunch. HSBC also warned that the credit outlook in the US may "get worse before it gets better". HSBC said overall performance during 2007 was bolstered by "exceptionally strong" results in the emerging market regions of Asia Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East. In the UK, profits from commercial banking topped the £1 billion mark for the first time. But the group's US consumer business - comprising mortgages, credit cards and personal loans - suffered from high bad debt charges, with write-offs in this area increasing 80 per during 2007 to £5.9 billion.
25 businesses rewarded for using HSBC EPOS machines
No fewer than 25 retailers representing a cross-section of the business community have won e235 each for swiping Credit Cards over an HSBC Point of Sales (EPOS) terminal during the first week of January 2008. During this busy month, particularly due to the euro changeover and sales, HSBC is giving retailers the opportunity to participate in a weekly draw every time they swipe a card through an HSBC EPOS.
The first draw, with 25 winning businesses who transacted payments over an HSBC EPOS from January 1 to date, took place on 7 January. The winners are: GS Superstore in Naxxar; Souvenirs Shop in Gudja; Saint James Hospital in Sliema; Top End Bortex in Sliema; Marios Hairstylist in Fgura; The Nuance Group in Gudja; Air Maltas Sales Office in Gudja; JB Stores in Lija; BHS in Sliema; Dorothy Perkins in Valletta; Mothercare in Sliema; Tower Supermarket in Sliema; Topline Centre in St Andrews; Marks and Spencer in Valletta; Medical Imaging Centre in Birkirkara; The Arches Restaurant in Mellieha; Smart Supermarket in Balzan; ARG Meats in BKara; The Model Shop in Iklin; Emm Enterprise in Bugibba; Monsoon Accessorize in Sliema; Zen Restaurant in St Julians; Wands Cash and Carry in Marsa; Scotts in Sliema; and Pizza Hut in St Julians.
As scanners shrink, their tax uses grow
It's tax time, and for management consultant Eric Ochieng, that used to mean spreadsheets, receipts, and other scattered documents. But now Ochieng handles his digital record-keeping with a portable document scanner that comes with software for categorizing images, whether it's a business card or a credit card statement. Ochieng says he also tracks all of his travel expenses, scanning in receipts and recording out-of-pocket and business costs. And at the end of the year, he runs ad hoc reports that he gives to his accountant. "I have up-to-date information about expenses incurred, and immediate access to receipts and related notes, which are saved on my laptop," says Ochieng. That clunky scanner, formerly a heavy flatbed machine, has downsized to portable document scanner that can easily fit into a briefcase and is typically made to scan receipts, business cards, and other small papers, as well as for letter-size documents.
Brazen Thieves Target ATMs Across New England
LAWRENCE, Mass. (WBZ) ― Police are on the lookout for a gang of brazen thieves who are suspected of robbing ATM's across New England over the past three years. This past weekend they broke into the District Courthouse in Lawrence and tried to smash and grab an ATM there. According to police, the thieves used a large vehicle to back through a window at the courthouse to gain access to the ATM. They then tried to load the ATM into the truck or van and take off. However it was bolted to the floor, so instead they broke into the ATM and took the cash inside. "The intention was to drag the machine out, but that wasn't possible, because it was anchored," said Lawrence Police Chief, John Romero. "(There was) a lot of broken glass, clearly pried open with probably a crow bar, it's quite a mess." The same group of thieves is suspected of stealing cash from an ATM from the Federal Credit Union in Methuen Sunday night, using a card with a magnetic strip to gain entry.
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eBay Inc. Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2007 Results
SAN JOSE, Calif. --(Business Wire)-- eBay Inc. (Nasdaq:EBAY) (www.ebay.com) today reported financial results for its fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2007. The ecommerce company posted fourth quarter revenue of $2.18 billion, representing a $461 million year-over-year increase. Revenue grew across all businesses highlighted by more robust growth from PayPal, StubHub, Skype, classifieds and advertising. The company recorded net income on a GAAP basis of $531 million or $0.39 per diluted share, and non-GAAP net income of $611 million or $0.45 per diluted share.
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Willy Northpole and the Phoenix hip-hop scene explode
Not much has changed for Everson since elementary school. Two years ago, at 15, Everson got his own cosmetics, accentuating his pouty, pink lips with a thick border of lip liner. He grew his hair long, plucked his eyebrows pencil-thin, and started wearing clothes made for teenage girls. Now, as "Francessica," a 17-year-old doe-eyed, pre-op male-to-female transgender with a bony frame and wavy black hair, living with her parents and six siblings just north of Window Rock, Arizona, she turns tricks with straight guys on the "rez." The men pick her up hitchhiking, paying $30 for a blowjob from a girl they never know is actually a boy. But Francessica prefers to hitch rides with truckers heading west on Interstate 40, all the way to Los Angeles, where she can spend a couple weeks making three times as much as she does on the Navajo Nation.
Do UFOs really exist?
A lot of the serious UFO investigation was aimed at trying to ascertain things such as the aerodynamics of some of the UFOs, the avionics and the propulsion systems. "We wanted to know if there was anything that we might learn from, regardless of what the source of these UFOs is."Have you seen UFOs flying above Scotland or do you think the whole idea of little green men is pie in the sky? Tell us what you think and discuss extra-terrestrial matters with other readers. .
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