Made Moon Blog

The European Union (EU) constitution was dealt a double blow, first by a French “no” vote on 29-May and then by a follow on “no” from the Netherlands on 01-Jun. To add insult to injury, one low level Italian diplomat quickly called for a referendum in Italy to decide if a return to the lira was warranted. Additionally, Prime Minister Tony Blair, who took over leadership of the EU on 01-Jul, indefinitely postponed the British referendum on the EU constitution.

This news along with plenty of speculation about the repercussions dominated the international headlines for much of the month of June. Not surprisingly, all the hubbub about the EU had a direct impact on the FX market. The euro fell to a new seven month low following the French referendum, reaching a low of 1.2371 and the “single currency” has been under pressure ever since. Probes below the 1.2000 level were seen ahead of 30-Jun, suggesting additional near term downside potential toward 1.1756 and beyond.

Since the inception of the euro in 1999 central banks, especially those in Asia and the Middle East were seen diversifying out of dollars into the euro. They were not only looking to scale back their substantial dollar holdings in the face of a declining market, but they also sought the higher returns available in the eurozone. However, returns on eurozone deposits slipped below those in the United States in December and the FED’s string of rate hikes bodes well for those differentials to further widen. Combine the better returns in the US and a generally more favorable dollar outlook with the specter of continued political turmoil within the EU and it seems there is little incentive to hold euros at this point.

Truth be told, the EU was facing some rather significant hurdles long before the double “noes” derailed confidence. Many of these hurdles are associated with expansion. Discontent on the part of established club members with the admission of central European countries in May-04 and general hostilities about the proposed admittance of Turkey played significant roles in the recent referendums. In addition, diverging economic performance, productivity growth, inflation and fiscal performance among member nations are all fodder for further turmoil.

Worthy of particular note is the broad based economic malaise in Italy. Italian consumer product manufacturers are losing their battle with Asia and consequently the trade balance is moving into the red. Unemployment is up, as is the budget deficit. Being part of the euro, and therefore having a relatively high exchange rate, essentially thwarts any effort to compete with Asia on price. Without its own currency, Italy is unable to devalue out of its non-competitive position. Hence, the aforementioned comments by Italian Minister Maroni. Countries such as Portugal and Greece are also in rather dismal economic health. The budget deficit of the former has already reached 7% of GDP.

Many have noted that the EU constitution may be dead, but it’s not buried yet. I’m not so sure that I would agree as approval of all 25 member counties is needed for ratification. The initial thought was that any dissent was likely to come from newer or smaller EU countries and that a little economic arm twisting by the likes of France and the Netherlands might encourage them to reconsider. Unquestionably the long standing skepticism of the Brits was going to be an issue. However, rejection of the constitution by two of the founding members of the EU certainly throws a wrench in the works.

I don’t believe that we need to worry about the European Monetary Union (EMU) breaking up any time soon. In other words, the euro will continue to be actively traded on the global spot market. A Reuters poll early in June suggested there is only a 5% chance of an EMU collapse within the next 15 years. However, around the same time the German weekly magazine Stern reported that the failure of the EMU was discussed at a meeting attended by German Finance Minister Hans Eichel and Bundesbank President Axel Weber. Having said that, I don’t think there is any question that there is a greater risk premium attached to the euro than there was a month ago.

In the months ahead, look for continued political wrangling within the EU. Further bad news is likely to be forthcoming, which should help keep the euro under pressure, creating trading opportunities not only against the dollar, but in the cross rates as well.

Peter Grant is VP of Operations for CFS Capital Management (http://www.cfscap.com), an alternative investment firm in Lakewood, Colorado. This article is an excerpt from our monthly newsletter ‘The Alternative’ which can be read online at http://www.cfscap.com/news.htm. Emails may be sent to pgrant@cfscap.com

Based on my research, this seems to be the basic principle that website owners have been following to get passive income online:

* Get many people to come to your website
* Get them to click on your Adsense links

Sounds simple enough. Get people into your website from Google search, then link out to an Adsense Ad. Search In - Adsense Out.

Practically applying it to get sufficient commendable income, however, can be quite a challenge.

The first problem is how to get many visitors to your website.

That’s where Search Engine Optimization comes in. However, this is really easier said that done. It’s a bit of an artwork. You basically have to read the mind of an Internet user. What keywords would he use? Why would he visit your website? Do you have the content go get people interested enough to get to your website?

Basically, your goal is visibility. You have to be seen. You can do this using SEO or using traditional brand-building methods. Tell your friends, family and colleagues. If they have websites, politely ask if you could link with each other.

For those lucky few that are already on top of the search engines, this is not a problem. Others (including myself) would have to work hard at it. Look at FilipinoLinks.com. It’s been around for a very long time and has made quite a foundation. It would not be too difficult for its owners to tweak the website for SEO.

Experts have varied opinions on what to put in a website. Some say, put relevant important content - with around 500-1000 words on each of your website. Some say provide simple 300 word news posts.

Another option to get clicks would be to advertise online for keywords. Adwords is an example of a tool that can allow you to do this. There will be marketing expenses in this scenario. The goal here is to get more Adsense income than Adwords Expenses - which is really basic business sense. This is easier said than done, I tried it and got dismal results.

The next problem would be how to get visitors to click on Adsense links.

Well, the first thing that needs to be done is to get an Adsense account. It’s pretty easy to setup. After that, you need to put the Adsense links on your website. There are people who say make it blend it when the rest of your pages. Here, on my website, you can see my Adsense Ads that seem to be part of the overall theme.

Other experts say the more noticeable the advertisements, the more they will be clicked. In this case, the Ads stand out prominently - with a different, and sometimes contrasting color scheme. One tip given was actually position the Google Ad right next to an image/picture. Viewers tend to click on picture links, so more income potential income there.
What does this all mean for a Filipino Entrepreneur?

In my point of view, it means opportunities. Although I have just started experimenting on all of this myself, there seems to be a real possibility of gaining a little revenue. For example, I started this website (last January) and have,in my first month I gained US$7 from Adsense. It’s not much but consider this:

* My expenses so far have been the webhosting (US$4 monthly), and domain name (US$3 for one year - got it at a discount).
* If I continue getting US$7 a month, that would be, US$84 a year.
* My year’s hosting would be US$48
* My theoretical income for one year would be US$33.

There are other costs, of course, from writing the content for this website - electricity, less time to do other things, etc… I didn’t include it yet. If you had pre-existing content, this wouldn’t matter to you. Just upload it and you should be ready.

For example, if you had a song lyrics database, you could find a pretty reliable web developer, have him upload your database, and include AdSense. Optimize it for search and you should soon get some revenue. It will probably not be big, but enough to get you interested.

I remember on my last test with the wordtracker application, “Pinoy Ako Lyrics” were some of the top keywords I found. People were actually looking for lyrics of Filipino songs. Since new songs come out every month, whoever gets the lyrics out soonest would be found earlier.

If you had a database of all Philippine Lotto Results ever since it began, you could probably have a statistics analyzer custom-made from your website. It could give suggested lotto numbers based on historical info. That would be something a lot of people would go to.

There are probably other more interesting opportunities for the web-savvy Pinoy entrepreneur. As long as you get people to your website, and get them to click on an advertisement, there will be revenue.

For more Philippine-based SEO resources, check out:Isulong SEOPH

You may be asking yourself “how does one begin to trade profitably as a currency trader?”.

First, it is important to closely monitor foreign equity markets to attempt to predict or model how their respective currencies will perform against other currencies, ideally, currencies that are not very closely related, nor proportional, to the former currency.

For example, Mexico’s economy is closely linked the the U.S. economy, in some respects, but in other respects, they are not very directly proportional since Mexico’s economy is currently improving as a consequence of increased consumer financing, an increased number of remittances from family members in the U.S., and other factors.

Back to our original point, when you begin to notice that an equity market is about to become bullish, it may be a signal that the currency of the country in which the equity market you’re looking at is based may be about to rise. Conversely, if the market turns bearish, that may be a bad sign for the country’s respective currency. Nevertheless, you may still be able to capitalize on bear markets and economies by short-selling a currency pair. That is one distinguishing feature in currency trading: you may bet against a country’s economy (including your own!) by betting against that country’s respective currency.

Other currency fundamentals to consider include a country’s interest rates, deficit, exports and imports, as well as, and probably very importantly, oil prices. Look at how the recent OPEC meeting affected oil prices and how that in turn had a considerable effect on the DJIA.

Joshua M. Kunken is Currency Analyst for ForeignMarketWatch.com.
His articles have been featured at ForexTrack.com.

Looking for a free living will? If you are preparing your finances and other personal matters for your retirement and want to make sure that your family members are taken care of in the event of your death, you will need one. There are several useful sites online where you can download a free living will form to use for your needs. You can chose generic forms based on your state, as each state has different laws regarding living wills.

Many of the free living will sites online will recommend that you use their free will
forms as something to cover general purposes, but not to act as a substitute for
seeking the advise of an actual estate attorney or lawyer. If you have a lot of
complicated estate needs, you might consider hiring an estate planner or lawyer to
write up your will.

Another thing to consider as you write your free living will is to make sure that you
assign a power of attorney and executor of your will. If you have an accident and
are incapable of making health decisions (advance directives), you will need a health
care advisor to carry out your requests in the event that you are in a coma or on life
support machines. Something is better than nothing, so if you are unable to afford
an attorney at this time, at least get started with your temporary free forms so that
you have something legal in place for your future.

Did you know that if you cannot afford a lawyer to draw up certain estate papers,
that you can find a free living will form online that you can print right at home? If
you have a basic need for a living trust and you want to print a free living will form
to have on hand in case of your illness or death, it is a good idea when you are
preparing for your retirement. Using an online free living trust form should not
replace seeking professional advice from a lawyer, but if you can’t afford a lawyer, it
is the next best thing.

Once you print your free living will form and fill in your crucial information, you
might be wise to have it signed and stamped by a notary public in your area. This
notary signature will act as proof of your document’s existence and that the
signatures on it are valid. You can also find a lot of other free estate planning forms
online that you can use when planning your retirement.

In addition to a free living will form, look for durable power of attorney, advance
directives (health care advisories) and any other special forms regarding the
executor of your estate. Gather all of your important documents like car pink slips,
mortgage loan documents, and anything else that can be useful in the event of your
death or incapacity, and make sure that a family member or child, or a lawyer,
knows of their location and existence. Planning ahead now will save your children
from a headache later.

For more information on retirement planning and senior care visit us at:

http://www.best-senior-care-online.com

J.J. Nielson is a successful internet publisher and author.

The British government at the beginning of this year officially launched its Child Trust Fund (CTF) initiative in an effort to encourage parents and children to develop the savings habit and to teach children the value of saving their own money.

Chancellor, Gordon Brown said, “The Child Trust Fund is designed to ensure that every child in our country has assets and wealth and that no child is left out and all children in Britain have a stake in the wealth of the nation”.

The basis of the CTF scheme is that every child born in the UK on or after 1 September 2002, will receive an initial Government payment of £250-£500 (depending on family income), which must be placed into a tax-free CTF savings account which cannot be accessed for withdrawals until the child reaches 18 years of age. Additional contributions to the account can be made by the child’s family or friends, and the government also plans to make another payment to children on their seventh birthday. Parents that do not invest the government’s gift within a year will have it invested for them by the Inland Revenue.

This ‘free money’ for children idea seems on the face of it to be a great idea for parents. A recent survey by the Halifax has shown that, of those parents who have already opened a CTF account, six out of 10 planned to make further contributions, and wanted their children to use the cash from a matured CTF to pay towards a university course. The survey also showed that 28% of parents hoped the cash could be used to buy a car, while 19% hoped the money could be put towards a deposit for a flat or house.

Although some families have taken to the idea by quickly investing the funds to maximise the cash return for their child when they reach 18, with figures from HM Revenue and Customs recently showing that nearly half a million CTFs had been opened, others have been more reticent, with approximately 1.2 million CTF vouchers sent out to parents still not invested.

A study by Abbey found that of those who had so far not invested their CTF voucher, nearly two-thirds stated that they, “just hadn’t got round to it yet”, while about one-quarter had not invested the money because they did not know which supplier to choose.

Another problem that has been recently highlighted is the lack of provision that has been made for Islamic children, as none of the existing CTF accounts complied with Sharia law. Under Sharia law, it is forbidden to give or receive interest or to invest in unethical firms. This meant that, in order to use the voucher, parents of the 120,000 eligible Muslim babies could only choose non-Sharia compliant accounts. Thankfully, in a move welcomed by the government, the first Sharia compliant CTF has just been launched by Children’s Mutual, allowing a growing community of people who were previously reluctant to invest their CTF, the opportunity to benefit from CTFs.

The take-up of the CTF has proved to be extremely disappointing for the Government, with those who have not so far invested their voucher being at risk missing out on valuable growth to their fund.
Ray Milne, managing director of Halifax Financial Services, said that “Most parents probably still have opening a Child Trust Fund on their ‘to do’ list, but we’re urging them to act now and ensure their children benefit from their investment”.

Whilst many view the whole idea of the CTFs as a waste of tax-payers money given the ensuing pensions problem that is looming, others see that any benefit to future university students would be overshadowed by the rising cost of university tuition fees.

“For those who choose to go to university it is a particularly hollow gesture as the government will give them a few hundred pounds in cash and at the same time a mortgage-style bill in tuition fees,” stated Phil Willis, the Liberal Democrat education spokesman.

Whatever your opinion of the scheme itself, it seems that even the majority of those whose children will benefit from the fund are either not interested or feel they do not have enough knowledge to choose a provider. While the government can produce expensive adverts to raise pubic awareness and companies can provide information on the accounts that are available, the public’s fear and apathy regarding all things related to personal finance may prove a more difficult hurdle to overcome, and this may be a problem that not only affect us, but will also lead to many of our children paying the penalty in later life.

Further information:

Shariah compliant CTF

Moneynet child investment account comparisons

Trust fund information

Richard works in Edinburgh for a media company, occasionally writing for the personal finance blog Cashzilla, and drinking too much coffee.

At present you can investigate rates of interest quickly at websites and cipher if there are other sneaky conditions you should be aware of. Lots of of the moneylenders wil show you a rate of interest that looks safe but feels mischievously or so after some time. 7 percent rate may appear so mediocre but will that be changeless after you’re going to return your credit loan. Examine to see if the bank who is tending to give you a loan is right. A merchant bank in Cambridge Massachusetts or so can have a total different actual interest rate for a 15000 dollar money loan then a moneylender in Fort Lauderdale Florida and that makes a big clear gap in your monthly pay backs. That’s the reason why now you really need to go out and understand if you can have a credit loan at a honorable percent loan rate. Be saucy today to analyze if you have a nice offer or if you don’t with the moneylender that offers you a money loan.

Translated in Dutch is says: Woon je in Hoogeveen of Moordrecht en heeft u BKR registratie. Lenen met en BKR codering is nergens zo eenvoudig. Koop een andere caravan met met lenen negatieve bkr, 170458 euro is geen obstakel om te financieren. Van Naarden tot Amsterdam, financieren met een BKR notering is hier geen enkel probleem.

It makes no difference if you live in Orange California or in Cypress California a effective online examination will preserve you often a lot of disorder.

Heard about the Child Trust Fund? surprisingly few seem to have heard of the fact that all new babies get a free £250 voucher from the State to place in a Child Trust Fund. The child’s voucher can be invested in any one of three sorts of CTF account, Stakeholder - a shares-based account thatswaps into cash, a savings account or a shares account. It is an excellent way to invest for the future needs of a child

Scottish Friendly is a licensed provider of the Child Trust Fund The State is eager for the general public to have access to Stakeholder accounts and this is the type of account that we supply. This means that:

Investments are paid into Scottish Friendly’s Managed Growth Fund, which intends to provide good growth potential

It invests partly in shares to get the benefit of potentially higher returns over 18 years,compared to a cash deposit account (although the value of shares can
decrease as well as increase whereas capital would be protected in a deposit account)

It comes with a low ‘Stakeholder’ funds charge of only 1.5 percent perannum

When reaching 18 the young person will receive a lump sum, totally free of Capital Gains and Income Tax under present law

It’s affordable - additional payments can be placed in the account from only £10

One of the highlights of the Child Trust Fund is that anyone - parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, friends - may give to the Fund to a ceiling of £1,200 per year to help augment the child’s Fund (once added, this money may not be withdrawn).

In a nutshell our Stakeholder account offers a good balance between possible high returns and a lower level of risk. There’s also the extra assurance that our account meets with the Government’s stakeholder criteria. However this does not mean that returns are guaranteed or that Stakeholder accounts are appropriate for everyone. Remember that the value of shares in the Managed Growth Fund (where your Child Trust Fund money is held) can go down as well as increase and would not be guaranteed.

Only children whose birthday is on or after 1st September 2002 are eligible to start up a Child Trust Fund. If you have older kids born before the above-mentioned date who are not eligible you could consider saving for them with a Child Bond - it’s a tax-free savings plan intended for long-term growth.

It is undoubtedly the case that saving for a child.your children is a sound means of preparing for tomorrow.

If you had to choose the greatest enemy of your financial security, where would you look? In the
lineup, as you look them over, who would you choose? There are so many that qualify. Banks,
credit card companies, persuasive advertisers, finance companies, and identity thieves, would all
be in the running.

Banks because, while you are their customer, they do not have your best interests at heart. They
hit you with all sorts of fees and charges for services which used to be provided free. They
constantly bombard you with offers to go further into debt. Car loans, home equity loans and
other lines of credit are pitched in every statement you receive. But, they are not your worst
financial enemy.

Credit card companies love to add charges for many different errors on your part (and sometimes
theirs). Late fees, over-limit fees, yearly fees, and returned check fees are just a few. They hike
your interest rate if you looked cross-eyed on a Tuesday, or miss a payment (not just with them,
but any creditor). Still, they are not your greatest financial enemy.

Persuasive advertisers love to get you to buy, buy, and buy. They have you pegged as far as your
habits. They know your wants and desires. They have so much information on you, the fight isn’t
even fair. Their ads make you feel good and pull all the triggers. Yet, they are not your greatest
financial enemy.

Finance companies who charge rates that reach to the moon do you no favors when you walk in
the door. Sometimes you don’t even need to walk in the door. They send you a check you can
deposit in your account and thus take out a loan with them with out ever seeing them. They turn
easy money into easy debt; easy until it comes time to pay the bill. Even here you will not find
your greatest financial enemy.

How about identity thieves? They pilfer your financial information, and run wild with the account
they set up. They rummage through your trash, set up scams, and flat out steal your info. They
definitely qualify as real lowlifes. Never the less they aren’t your greatest financial enemy either.

So how do you find your greatest financial enemy? You go look in the mirror. This is the person
you really need to watch. This is who gives into all of the credit offers in the mailbox. This person
watches the television and reads the magazines; then responds to the ads that are displayed. It is
this same person who is careless with their financial information or falls for the scams.

This is the man or woman who spends more that they make. This person refuses to save any
money. It is this person who doesn’t invest for the future. This is also the person who doesn’t
educate themselves in matters of money. This is your greatest financial enemy.

It is this person who ruins all your dreams. It is also this person over who you have the most
control. Do not look anywhere else for the cause of your financial problems. You are in charge
and you are accountable.

You need to take the time to investigate all matters financial. You need to educate yourself
concerning money, credit, debt and its uses. You are the one who needs to curb your spending.
You are the one who needs to establish a plan for your savings and in turn your future. Your
greatest enemy is in the mirror, and so is your greatest help and friend. Depending on who or
what you see determines what you need to change or what you need to keep doing.

(c)2005 David Wilding

David Wilding has for the past ten years worked with both groups and individuals to rid their lives of debt. Visit his site http://www.debtattack.com for more ideas, tools, and strategies to get rid of your debt.

There is a new type of business sweeping across the internet. If you haven’t heard already, e-currency trading is becoming the fastest growing online business in the years 2005 and 2006.

Just exactly how does this new type of business work? E-currency trading is still a relatively unknown, yet lucrative market. E-currency trading is the act of exchanging one online currency in exchange for another. When the exchange takes place, the middle man receives a fee for processing the exchange. This is where everyday people just like you and I are able to step in and be that middle man and collect that fee for processing a transaction.

So how do we become that middle man? There are multiple online courses available that will teach anyone the e-currency exchange business. Most are rather pricey on the order for $700 to $1000. However, there are a few reliable training courses that you can find for much less. Through one of these training courses, you will be taught how to effectively trade e-currency and take $200 and double that amount in just less than 1 month.

Like anyone else, I was a bit skeptical at first and reluctant to buy anything online. Given the recent growth of the internet over the past 5 years, I decided to give it shot. I funded my account with $200 as suggest from the online training course and away I went. During the first month of trading I earned a profit of $278 from a $200 initial investment. My skepticism and fear were completely gone and I had all the confidence in the world and I ended up investing another $100. To this day I am still an active e-currency trader and it has definitely changed my life.

I can say the most difficult part of e-currency trading was finding a course that was learning all the terminology and how to navigate through the system. Through the help of an online training course I was able to do this and what seemed to be difficult at first became extremely easy.

John Rohrer is an established e-currency trader. John Rohrer makes it easy for anyone whishing to earn an income from home. Visit http://www.mazumoney.net

Imagine writing a check payable to Visa for $100, placing it in an envelope and walking it and various other bills to the mailbox at the end of the driveway for the letter carrier to pick up.

Later, you receive a VISA statement showing payment past due and a late charge. Then later, you learn that the phone and utility company hadn’t received their payments either.

A visit to the bank reveals your check to Visa as well as the others, had been cashed, however, the dollar amount had been changed. Further investigation revealed the checks were made out to and cashed by an individual using false identification.

How could this have happened? The criminals stole the mail from the mailbox and used a technique known as check washing. They erased the ink on the checks using chemicals found in common household cleaning products and increased the dollar amount payable to themselves under assumed names.

According to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service certain parts of the country are seeing an increase in “volume” mail thefts, particularly in Phoenix, Arizona, and portions of California and Texas. Volume attacks occur when someone steals the mail from neighborhood delivery and collection box units, or from blue Postal Service collection boxes, postal vehicles or apartment house mail panels.

What’s alarming is it only takes one stolen item- an outgoing bill, an incoming checking account statement- to give a thief the information he or she needs to steal your identity.

The general public gives little thought to their mail. Most people perceive bills-incoming and outgoing- as having no perceived value. However, by stealing an outgoing bill payment or incoming credit card application, credit card replacement or newly printed checks, a thief can steal your identity.

Thieves generally target mailboxes at the end or the beginning of the month when bills are paid. Some law enforcement officials have also noticed mail theft increases during the Christmas holiday season when cash mailings increase.

The type of mailbox that you utilize can determine your vulnerability. Cluster mailboxes, such as the type found in new subdivisions and apartment complexes are attractive to thieves because one theft can produce numerous pieces of mail.

Suburbs also get hit hard because they have rural type mailboxes on the street, which are easily accessed by someone driving a car or walking up and down the street. A red flag on a mailbox is an open invitation to identity thieves.

In some areas, the increase in mail theft has been linked to methamphetamine addiction. The addicts steal mail to get checks and credit card account numbers to support their drug habits.

It appears methamphetamine addicts have turned to mail and identity theft because they are non-violent and non-drug related crimes with lenient penalties. There is also less chance of apprehension.

The following safeguards will help minimize your chances of becoming a victim of mail theft:

• Avoid sending cash in the mail. Use checks or money orders.

• Have your post office hold your mail while you are on vacation or absent from your home for an extended period if time.

• Remove your mail from the mailbox as soon as it is delivered if possible.

• Don’t leave outgoing checks or paid bills in your residential mailbox. Take your mail to the post office or drop it in a U.S Postal Service mailbox. Also consider paying bills electronically, a lot of financial institutions now offer this option.

• Purchase a residential mailbox with a locking mechanism or install a mail slot to your existing door.

• Consider starting a neighborhood watch program to help keep an eye on mailboxes and report suspected mail thieves.

• Contact your credit card company immediately if your card has expired and you have not yet received a replacement or you do not receive your monthly billing statement.

• When you order new checks, do not have them sent to your residence. Pick them up at the bank instead. Or, have them sent registered mail so you have to sign for them personally.

• Shred or tear up canceled checks. If you need to save them, make sure you put them in a secure place.

• Don’t leave gaps and spaces around dollar signs and numbers, as the least little space can give criminals room to change the amount. Also fill space in the “payable to” line. This can be accomplished by drawing a solid line in blank spaces.

• Consider ordering checks with extra security features that discourage tampering.

Johnny R. May, CPP is an independent trainer/ consultant who specializes in protecting individuals and organizations from identity theft. He is also the author of Johnny May’s Guide to Preventing Identity Theft and the featured expert in the video production Identity Theft: How to Protect Your Credit, Your Money and Your Good Name. For more information visit http://www.identitytheftinfo.com or e-mail at secres@prodigy.net