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Global supply chain problems have thrown up everything from abandoned containers full of rotten red cabbages to beer kegs and dog blankets. The stranded, unwanted or delayed goods have created a boom in the business of cargo salvage — and a group of companies rarely in the spotlight that keeps world trade ticking over. “We’re ridiculously busy

The United States began its history indebted, owing more than $75 million after the end of the Revolutionary War in 1783. However, the first actual fiscal deficit in the federal ledger was not run until the end of that decade.  A History of Budget Deficits In September 1789, Alexander Hamilton, then-Secretary of the Treasury, negotiated

Apollo Global Management has struck a deal to buy housebuilder Miller Homes for more than £1bn as the private equity investor aims to increase its exposure to the UK’s booming housing market. Funds managed by Apollo affiliates will take control of the company from British buyout group Bridgepoint, which recently listed on the London Stock

Yanbo Li began searching for an international school in Asia as soon as his son Zhilun was born. A Chinese businessman who works in the IT sector, Li eventually chose a British school on South Korea’s subtropical island of Jeju over schools in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Singapore. Two years ago he bought a house

Mortgage rates took a step back Thursday, after three consecutive days of increases started the week. Still, the 30-year fixed-rate average is within a tenth of a percentage point of its highest rate of 2021. National Averages of Lenders’ Best Rates Loan Type Purchase Refinance 30-Year Fixed 3.31% 3.44% FHA 30-Year Fixed 3.09% 3.35% Jumbo

Only a month ago, Bethlehem gallery owner Rula Dughman was preparing for her busiest time of year: Christmas. “In November everybody was busy cleaning, getting ready for the rebirth of Bethlehem for Christmas. Then came Omicron,” she sighed, looking over a deserted Manger Street, near where tradition says Jesus Christ was born. Soon after the new

The government on Friday acted on two fronts to ease labour market shortages, allowing thousands of agricultural and social care workers from overseas to fill gaps left by a dearth of British staff. In two announcements slipped out on Christmas Eve, ministers said British fruit and vegetable growers will be able to recruit overseas workers

Gifting your children or grandchildren with contributions to an individual retirement account (IRA) can give them the advantage of a longer period of tax-free savings. It is definitely a gift that keeps on giving. An IRA is a tax-deferred retirement savings account. It is similar to the employer-sponsored 401(k) plan because it also allows funds to

In this article MON Sam Bankman-Fried, CEO of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, at the Bitcoin 2021 conference in Miami, Florida, on June 5, 2021. Eva Marie Uzcategui | Bloomberg | Getty Images Cryptocurrencies have had yet another wild year. Bitcoin, the world’s largest digital asset, has seen a roughly 65% gain since January — with some

Reckitt Benckiser has agreed to sell its E45 skincare brand to Swedish pharmaceuticals group Karo Pharma for £200m, the latest disposal by the UK consumer group as it seeks to focus on higher-growth product areas. The proposed sale of the brand would be another step forward in its plan to “manage its portfolio for higher

Britons can celebrate “a glimmer of Christmas hope” following preliminary findings that people with the Omicron coronavirus variant are less likely to go to hospital than those infected by Delta, according to one of the country’s top health officials. Jenny Harries, chief executive of the UK Health Security Agency, was speaking on Friday after the

Every industry has its jargon, and the financial industry is no exception. Below is a collection of the oddest business and investing terms found on Investopedia. Liven up a conversation and tell folks you prefer “ankle biters” to “big uglies,” that you expect a “dead cat bounce,” but that you’d never take a tip from a

In this article NKLA CEO and founder of U.S. Nikola, Trevor Milton speaks during presentation of its new full-electric and hydrogen fuel-cell battery trucks in partnership with CNH Industrial, at an event in Turin, Italy December 2, 2019. Massimo Pinca | Reuters Nikola shares jumped 20% on Thursday after the electric truck maker completed delivery of

Selfridges, the UK-based department store chain controlled by Canada’s billionaire Weston family, has been acquired in a £4bn deal by Thai conglomerate Central Group and Signa, an Austrian real estate group. The Thai and Austrian groups said on Thursday they had reached a deal to buy the retailer, established by Harry Gordon Selfridge in 1908,

The Omicron variant has brought the slow reopening of Asia to a juddering halt as governments rush to reimpose travel restrictions even though the new strain is already circulating in the local community. Thailand and Singapore this week joined Japan in closing their borders to most foreign travellers. All three countries have reported domestic cases

Serving in the military can unlock a number of financial benefits, including the option to participate in the Savings Deposit Program (SDP), tuition benefits to pay for college, and access to affordable housing. Military members are also eligible to take advantage of federal retirement savings plans. Developing a strategy for retirement saving and investing can

In this article AMC GME DWAC HWIN Shoppers wait for a GameStop store to open on at the Tysons Corner Center, in Tysons, Virginia, November 27, 2020. Hannah McKay | Reuters An army of Reddit traders, triple-digit gains and a $100 million deli: In a wild year of trading, the unexpected became the norm in

Brussels’ top trade official has urged caution over EU plans to ban products made using forced labour, arguing that such a “sensitive” measure could risk a trade backlash. Valdis Dombrovskis, EU executive vice-president for trade, has written to MEPs warning that the European Commission will not rush into proposing a law on forced labour. He said

Joe Biden has acknowledged that he should have pushed for a bigger national programme to distribute free rapid Covid-19 tests earlier, as the US testing supply crunch worsens just before Christmas. The US president announced this week that the federal government would buy 500m at-home tests and send them through the post, starting in January.

There are dozens of excuses for not saving for retirement, and they all sound good. You may have a few of your own. But you know you should. Here are four good reasons to save for retirement: You don’t want to rely only on Social Security benefits after retirement. You don’t want to be a

Intel has apologised for a ban on using components from Xinjiang in response to attacks from Chinese nationalist media over the policy, becoming the latest multinational to become embroiled in China’s battle with the US over human rights issues. The episode quickly became one of the most talked-about topics online in China with netizens on

On January 1 this year, a mysterious written communication appeared on a new YouTube channel. Its description read: “KLF exist”. Jimmy Cauty and Bill Drummond were back, almost 30 years after scuttling their band in the most flamboyant fashion — when they fired machine gun blanks at music industry schmoozers at the 1992 Brit Awards,

A FICO score is used by creditors and lenders to determine the overall credit risk of any individual consumer. Individuals with higher ratings are considered to have greater creditworthiness. Each score is calculated using a proprietary tool developed by the Fair Isaac Corp (FICO), and each of the three major credit bureaus in the United

New York reported more than 28,000 new Covid-19 cases, setting a record for daily cases for the fifth time in six days. A further 28,924 infections were reported to the state, reflecting cases on December 21, governor Kathy Hochul announced on Wednesday. That works out to a statewide rate of about 115 infections per 100,000,

India’s decision this week to ban agricultural trading contracts marks Narendra Modi’s latest effort to ease popular fears about rising inflation ahead of crucial state elections early next year. The country’s consumer price index, which tracks retail inflation, rose to 4.9 per cent in November after bottoming out in September. The wholesale price index, which

Although many employers allow workers to save for retirement using qualified retirement plans, such as a 401(k), 403(b), or 457, these plans have rules that can be cumbersome for both employers and employees. Some small businesses instead choose SIMPLE (Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees of Small Employers) IRAs. These plans have fewer rules, are

People wait in line for t-shirts at a pop-up kiosk for the online brokerage Robinhood along Wall Street after the company went public with an IPO earlier in the day on July 29, 2021 in New York City. Spencer Platt | Getty Images News | Getty Images Stock options gained popularity on Main Street this

The UK and EU have struck a deal on sharing fish stocks in 2022, while a separate dispute with France over access for its boats in British waters continues. The two sides on Wednesday decided on total catch levels of around 100 shared fish stocks in joint EU and UK waters, such as the North

A lower share of people infected with the Omicron coronavirus variant are likely to require hospital treatment compared with cases of the Delta strain, according to healthcare data from South Africa, Denmark and the UK. The findings by separate research teams raise hopes that there will be fewer cases of severe disease than those caused

General Motors Company (GM) is the quintessential American company. Incorporated in 1908, the Detroit-based automotive company has weathered its fair share of boom and bust economic cycles. The company designs, manufactures, markets, and distributes new cars, trucks, and vehicle parts globally. GM additionally offers consumers automotive financial services.  In this article, we take a brief