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After the third quarter pre-tax profits report, banks had great profit slashes providing for the PPI claim compensation package. RBS and Barclays recently set aside £400 and £700 million respectively. Both banks stand next to each other with RBS at £1.7 and Barclays with £3.7.

The total compensation package for the entire United Kingdom is now at £12.96 billion but analysts state that it may reach £16 billion by the end of the year. PPI claims continuously bombard the Financial Ombudsman Service, who increased its manpower and had contractual spaces for the proper processing of all PPI claims.

Analysts mention that Barclays may need to reserve £200 million more by February of 2013 as well as Lloyds will need to set aside £2.3 billion more. Lloyds, the leading mis seller of Ppi in the country, now faces a £5.3 billion PPI bill to compensate their customers.

However, consumer group Which? and the FOS state that banks continue to reject customer claims despite the ruling of the High Court during 2011. Most of the claims received by the Financial Ombudsman have a 70% chance of success, but still, with the continuous refusal of banks with claims, the claims process continues to be “clogged”.

Banks blame the Financial Services Authority and claims management companies (CMC) for bringing thousands of “bogus” claims to the fray. However, the FSA only advised that the banks invite all their customers mis sold PPI to make a claim. CMCs such as www.PPICo.org mention that they look through each claim carefully and assess whether the claim is valid and they ensure that all claims are not bogus. They mention that some invalid CMCs that aim to gain money from the industry continue to send bogus claims to boost their market.

Natalie Ceeney, the Chief Ombudsman at the FOS, mentions that they are proposing a no-claim payout proposal for banks to ensure that they will not “drag their feet” in processing claims. The no-claim payout system will enlist the help of regulators to work with banks in providing repayment for customers who are potentially abused through sales methods without making a claim.

Italian citizens continue to live within the sacrifices called upon by their government to ensure they stay in the euro as the financial crisis continue to push many to the boiling point. The recent series of scandals committed by political leaders have surprised even the most distrusting citizen, however, not to the point where there is a willingness to change things.

Holiday vacation packages, a payment of at least $260,000 to the Calabrian Mafia for 4,000 votes as national elections come nearing. One case was that Lombardy Region Governor Roberto Formigoni was willing to disassemble the regional government to avoid organized crime infiltration among people in his office. The arrest of a lawmaker in the vote-selling case has revealed that there are many who are involved in these scandals.

The governor of Lombardy himself is in question of accepting paid vacation and yacht trips from a health care lobbyists. He vehemently denies the accusation however, and claims that people want him to stay in power.

The theft of public funds by government officials are a result of the economical problems wherein business don’t have much to offer government officials to corrupt themselves, states Marco Cobianchi who wrote books on government corruptions. The growing mistrust of public citizens may tip to the boiling point. He also states that it is one thing to take money when an economy is alright, but during the trying times of the euro crisis and politicians live lavishly, it just might spark more mistrust and inevitably, violence.

However, analysts state that people continue to be indifferent, facing the daily corruption of government leaders as a well-known “reality”. They state that people have “become used to the political climate and illegality of actions”, reflecting their indifference.

Source: NY Times

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Tips For Proper Credit Card Use and Credit Management

Italian Protester Scales Dome Against Property Reforms

Italian Economic Crisis Drives Many Adults Back Home

Credit cards are essential, but they are also double-edged sword as they can help you get financing instantly, but also lose you much money if you’re not too careful. Owning a credit card means taking responsibility to ensure financial stability with your privileges. Here are a few things to know about credit cards.

1. Pay Your Bills Punctually

The secret to owning a credit card and being successful with any kind of financing that you might have is by paying your bills on time. Nothing says you’re a faithful and responsible customer by paying your bills on time. Ensure that you manage your finances carefully.

2. Pay In Full

You can virtually have your card for free by paying in full the entire amount of spending you have each month. If you’re to use your card, ensure that you spend what you could pay for in the following month. You can use it for your daily needs or for financing appliances.

3. Keep a Notebook

For every purchase you make with your card, write them in a notebook. Write your card’s credit limit and interest rate. In case you made a purchase from the previous month but couldn’t pay in full, you could calculate your interest rate. By keeping a notebook, you avoid the problem of having to find out you’ve used up your entire card by hitting the credit limit.

4. Insurance

If you deserve an insurance policy as stated by your creditor, ensure that you can make use of the insurance. Read through its policies. A great number of credit card owners in the United Kingdom have lost money because of PPI and are now making payment protection compensation claims to get back their repayments. You don’t want this to happen to you.

5. Settle Your Debts

Ensure that you settle your debts in the next month or just allow yourself a month of debt. You understand that the credit card interest can hurt your budget. Also, try to ask your lender if your card has insurance repayments along with your monthlies. This is because you might need to look at the policies to ensure that you are not mis sold PPI, MPI or other types of payment protection products.

Marcello De Finizio has scaled the St. Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday evening and stayed over 24 hours protesting against the new government reforms. Two firefighters helped De Finizio go down the Basilica. He eluded Vatical security to demonstrate against the new economic reforms proposed by Italian President Mario Monti, who was making the new economic reforms and austerities.

De Finizio was taken to the Rome police station. He says that he does not expect any charges as he was only placed in the station as a “formality” for protesters.

He has scaled the dome a second time after he had protested in July for four hours in the same location against the austerity reforms. He had also scaled a 70 meter metal structure in Trieste earlier in the year and stayed for three nights in the structure.

Judges cleared him of charges for causing any alarm.

De Finizio was a former owner of a beachside restaurant in the city of Trieste in 2008, who lost his properties after a fire and did not get a loan because of the new reforms of business licensing.

The reforms prevented the passing of licenses from one generation to another generation to make it more competitive. However, businesses stated that they have placed mortgage and considerable investments in their properties, which would be lost and all loans are frozen as the changes are still pending.

Source: USA Today

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Italian Economic Crisis Drives Many Adults Back Home

“I Want Economic Stability” – Monti

Italian and Spanish Tile Industry Attempting to Tap Indian Markets

It was only last year that the High Court had approved that all mis sold payment protection insurance claims should be rewarded by their respective banks, financial institutions and other lenders. This year, from January to June, 2.2 million have claimed from the £9 billion compensation package set aside by UK’s high street banks, namely, Barclays, Lloyds and HSBC.

Recent updates on payment protection insurance claims has the Financial Ombudsman Services (FOS) contending with 1,500 claims a day. Barclays had gained over 19,000 on October. Lloyds received 22,000 in the same month. Both banks contributed to the £9 billion compensation package.

Which? CEO Peter Vicary-Smith states that Lloyds and the other banks will need to increase the amount of the compensation package. By November, Lloyds’ compensation package will almost be depleted. The extent of the compensation, along with the number of claims over six months, persuaded the Which? CEO to state that indeed, payment protection insurance is the biggest financial scandal of the United Kingdom.

Payment protection insurance, or PPI, is designed to cover loans, mortgages and credit cards. It allows disabled or unemployed customers to repay their loans on time to avoid outstanding debt. However, the method that financial advisers sold the insurance policy made it an infamous product.

The exclusions of the insurance became unknown to the customer as the financial adviser focused on the customer’s “artificial” need for the insurance policy. Sometimes, it is by urging high-priced and expensive products that included PPI as a free product. These abusive strategies are condemned by the Financial Services Autority (FSA), who seeks to reform the incentives system through the observation and guidance of the Financial Conduct Authority.

Italy’s economic and banking crisis deepens as austerity measures clamp down on the entire country. As factories and manufacturers continue to close down, many of the country’s independents move from their respective homes back to their parents. A third of the country’s 18-29 year old population has moved back to their ancestral homes due to the economic crisis.

According to experts, the trend of young adults moving back home is because of Italy’s socio-economic organization. The family is a close bond and is a primary provider of daily needs. The Italian family cares for the children and elderly. The young who moves out at the age of 18-20 tries to explore the possibilities of being independent in the world. The 30-44 year olds, who have 25.3% living with their parents, live with such to care for their aging parents.

Experts also state that Italy’s traditional family structure serves as a helpful defense against the growing economic troubles. Family traditions, especially in the rural areas of the country, while outdated, has become fundamental in motivating citizens to overcome any kind of crises in their lives, the economic crisis included.

Some of the 18-29 year olds who have returned to their homes did not return home to care for parents. Rather, they were disappointed with the high unemployment rate.

A report from the market research firm Coldiretti and Censis states that most Italians respond to the economic crisis by staying close to home. The traditional family ties of Italians help save them from personal and financial collapse.

Source: Huffington Post

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“I Want Economic Stability” – Monti

Italian and Spanish Tile Industry Attempting to Tap Indian Markets

Italian Ferraris Scantily Seen on the Streets as Austerity Measures Implement

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti states that economic stability is still the platform of his campaign for the elections next year. In the annual conference of Ambrosetti Workshop in Lake Como, he states that Italians want governability.

Italian business elites have also gathered in the event. The Chief Executive of Intesa Sanpaolo, Enrico Cucchiani, the largest lender of Italy, says that their confidence in Monti is still alive and they find him desirable and probable as Monti is methodical and focuses on priorities swiftly and carefully.

However, polls by the ISPO polling agency on Sunday state that the Italian nation is split in half regarding having a “technical” and “classical” government for their country. Around 39% voters state that the country should have its technical government while 46% state that they want a classical version of such.

Monti’s methods prove effective, yet unpopular. Due to the crisis in the euro, Monti’s cuts in pension and labor benefits and increases in taxes for austerity measures demanded by the European Union (EU) and European Central Bank (ECB) to lower their borrowing costs have placed pressure in the entire country.

Many business elite agree that even if Monti does not return to office by next year’s election, the austerity measures required by the EU and ECB will continue to be enforced.

Italy’s 10-year borrowing costs have declined from 4.5% to 3.5% because of ECB President Mario Draghi’s statement and dedication to fix the euro crisis.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

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Italian and Spanish Tile Industry Attempting to Tap Indian Markets

Italian Ferraris Scantily Seen on the Streets as Austerity Measures Implement

Italian Tourist Spot Still Closed After A Decade of Funding

Italian tile manufacturers are now joining forces with Gujarat’s tile markets to aid in opening new markets in India. Somany Ceramics, a tile company based in Ahmedabad, India, is now discussing partnerships with Italian and Spanish tile companies for joint manufacturing of their products.

GG Trivedi, the chief executive officer of Somany Ceramics, states that the new partnerships will help in marketing the partners’ products across India. He states that many Italian companies aim to open markets and collaborate in Gujarat for its cheap labor, which will help in providing India with Italian tiles much more affordable as it is produced in the country.

Somany Ceramics plan to open a 70,000 square kilometer factory within Tumkur near Bangalore to help with the production of the foreign investments. The Italian technology of making tiles will revolutionize the tile industry and help with selling tiles at cheaper rates.

Asian Granito is also venturing into the Italian and Spanish ventures with their five manufacturing plants, which can help sell the tiles at more affordable rates. Both Somany and Asian Granito will invest five years in manufacturing and making a nationwide network for luxury tiles. The Italian companies will provide the technology and design of the products.

Source: Times of India

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Naples the Source of Red “American” Cockroaches?

Rarely seen in Italy’s streets are luxury cars such as the Ferrari, the Lamborghini, Fiat and Maserati. Supercars made from Italy itself are now exported to other areas in the world. Former owners struggle with the new austerity measures of Prime Minister Mario Monti. Tightening measures and new laws on luxury tax are forcing many owners and factories to give up their vehicles and factories respectively.

Business analysts state that the supercars driving inside Italy has always been the symbol of its strong economy. Now that it is disappearing from the streets, it just shows how deep Italy’s economic crisis really is.

The weaker overall demand for luxury cars plunged profits for super luxury car makers to 47% lower, having only produced 593 vehicles for 2012. The supercar industry saw better days in 2008, having produced 1,116.

Monti’s austerity measures, which cut back allocations on social welfare services, benefits and increased attention to luxury and sin tax to create a 20 billion euro austerity package, is contracted for four quarters. The country roughly has 1.9 trillion euros in debt. Unemployment levels in Italy is now at a 13-year high with consumer spending and industrial output falling down.

Supercar factories were closed by their respective companies. One CEO mentioned that weaker supercar demands see fading interests in luxury vehicles. Many companies state that they’ll be moving their markets to stronger economies, such as the U.S. or China.

Source: Bloomberg

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Italy’s Prime Scientists Under Threat From Budget Cuts

An Italian Island, which houses a volcanic crater where archaeologists in the past have found evidence of life that dates back 55,000 years ago and pottery from early Greek settlements, still remains closed despite a decade of funding and management by the state. The island is located off the coast of Naples and was declared 10 years ago a nature reserve.

The Island is funded 1.5 million euros for management. Named Vivara, it has a 1.8 mile coastline and is considered an oasis for natural wildlife. It is linked to the island of Procida through a pedestrian bridge. It provides a great view of Capri and Ischia along the bay of Naples.

Committee head Maurizio Marinella, world-famous tie maker and manufacturer, mentions that the 150,000 euros yearly provided by state funds have been put to good use. Security has been placed in the island as well as tourist signs. New bridges are being constructed and a new one was recently finished.

Marinella mentions that the delays in the opening of the island was not the fault of the committee. The Greek government has not yet approved the opening as of the moment. However, Marinella is targeting September as its opening date.

Many local bloggers and journalists published investigations about the island’s funding and management. They have also called for action to access the Island. Former committee head Amadeo, the Duke of Aosta, predicted December 2011, that the island will open March 2012.
Marinella promises to do all they can to open the island by September this year.

Source: Telegraph

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