Economy

Denmark / The Danish record offers no support for the social-spending-hurts-growth position

Danes are neither lazy nor poor. Despite high marginal tax rates (or perhaps because of them) they are about as rich, on average, as Americans are. The World Bank estimates that gross domestic product per capita in Denmark for the 2008-12 period at $59,889, compared with $48,112 for the United States. Adjusted for differences in … Continue reading →

Skills Gap / Banks struggle to recruit compliance experts

Nearly nine in 10 financial services executives are struggling to recruit staff with the right skills as regulatory changes boost demand for experts in areas such as compliance and accounting, a report suggested on Monday. Regulators around the world imposed tighter controls over the financial services industry following the financial crisis, including lifting capital requirements … Continue reading →

2012 Global Hunger Index

World hunger, according to the 2012 Global Hunger Index (GHI), has declined somewhat since 1990 but remains “serious.” The global average masks dramatic differences among regions and countries. Regionally, the highest GHI scores are in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. South Asia reduced its GHI score significantly between 1990 and 1996—mainly by reducing the share … Continue reading →

France / To cut 34,000 jobs in defence

Proposed cuts to France’s military spending met with stiff resistance from lawmakers and the army on Monday, although the flat budget of 179.2 billion euros over a five-year-period will mean 34,000 job losses by 2019. France will keep its defence budget broadly stable for the next five years, after meeting stiff resistance from lawmakers and … Continue reading →

Rio Tinto’s London HQ / Almost half of jobs to be cut

Mining group Rio Tinto plans to almost halve the size of its London head office, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters, cutting more than 200 jobs as it tries to slash more than $5 billion in costs by the end of next year. Rio has been reviewing high-cost office locations including London since … Continue reading →

Nigeria / Federal Government Plans to Create 5 Million Jobs By 2015

Dr Olusegun Aganga, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, on Thursday said that the Federal Government was working to create at least five million jobs by 2015. Aganga, who stated this in Ibadan at the opening of the 6th National Council on Industry, Trade and Investment (NCITI-06), said it would be achieved with industrialisation … Continue reading →

India / Jobless Growth ? (Video)

Twinkies are coming back

Twinkies are coming back from the dead, and the Indianapolis Hostess plant on Shadeland Avenue is expected to be fired up again.  Additionally, the Columbus plant may be used as a distribution center. “Well they need to be out here [because] no one can take their place,” said former employee Kevin Townsend. “That’s for sure.” … Continue reading →

AOL Music Is Closing

AOL employees revealed Friday on Twitter that news website AOL Music and properties associated with it will close and employees in the division will be immediately laid off. Spinner, a rock news website under the AOL Music umbrella, tweeted (and then deleted) this message to its 48,000 followers: “Hey guys. Just found out from AOL … Continue reading →

Spain / Co-operatives create 8,000 new jobs while unemployment hits record level

At a time when more then six million people are unemployed across Spain, co-operatives have managed to not only maintain, but also increase the number of jobs by 7.2 percent in the third quarter of 2012. By contrast, the unemployment rate in Spain has reached 27.2 per cent, the highest since 1976. Although it has … Continue reading →

UK / Capgemini to create 500 new jobs

French call centre operator Capgemini has said it will create 500 new jobs in Inverness over the next three years. The company employs about 500 people in the Highlands at the moment and more than 120,000 worldwide. First Minister Alex Salmond, who attended the jobs announcement in Inverness, described the move as “immense”. Capgemini is … Continue reading →

REpower Systems to cut 750 jobs

REpower Systems SE, the Indian wind turbine maker Suzlon Group’s German arm, said on Friday it would reduce up to 750 jobs across the world as part of its plan to achieve cost savings of about 100 million euros ($130 million) in the current fiscal year. “Whilst the long-term outlook for the sector remains strong, … Continue reading →

Electronic Arts / Layoffs for hundreds of employees

Electronic Arts announced on April 25 that the company is currently going through an organization restructure. As a result of this restructuring, it has led “to some difficult decisions to reduce the workforce in some locations.” The company went on to share that they are grateful for the contributions made by each of their employees … Continue reading →

Banks aren’t the big jobs machines they used to be

One after another, major financial firms are trimming their payrolls. In first-quarter earnings announcements this month, Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley revealed that they have slashed more than 31,000 jobs, or 3.5 percent of their combined workforce, in the past year. For three of those banks, it was the … Continue reading →

US / What about the 22 percent of young people who drop out of high school?

In the U.S., the percentage of high school graduates by state ranges from 62 percent (Nevada) to 88 percent (Iowa), with an overall average of 78 percent. What about the 22 percent of young people who drop out of high school? What are their prospects? From a historical perspective, this chart shows the economic impact … Continue reading →