Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
South China's industrial heartland of Guangdong to raise minimum wage by average of 21% to range of $96 to $150 a month
The minimum wage in South China's industrial heartland Guangdong Province, is to be raised by 21 per cent on average to a range from RMB 660 renminbi to 1,030 ($96 to $ 150) a month from May 1st in a bid to attract migrant workers, local authorities said Thursday.
Guangdong, north of Hong Kong, in the Pearl River delta region, which is responsible for a third of China’s exports and would rank as one of the world’s 10 largest exporters if it were a country, is finding it harder to attract migrant labour as other regions develop. So on Thursday, it was announced by the Guangdong Provincial Human Resources and Social Security Department that the minimum wage of both full-time and part-time workers will be raised.
The adjusted minimum wage is divided into five categories ranging from RMB660 to 1,030 yuan/renminbi ($96 to $ 150) a month, depending on the financial situation in different cities in the province. The move came a month after the country's second biggest exporter, Jiangsu Province, raised its minimum wage by about 12 per cent to 960 yuan ($140.64) from the current 850 yuan ($124). East China's Fujian Province increased its minimum wage by 24.5 per cent from March 1st. China is making huge investments in its rail network and last December, it launched the world’s fastest passenger train service between Guangzhou, Guangdong's provincial capital, and the central city of Wuhan, covering 1,100km in just three hours. The railway investment will result in more balanced regional development.
"A 20 per cent raise is a big jump because many other provinces offer around 10 per cent. That's because Guangdong wants to stand out from among other competitors," Lü Xuejing, professor of social security at Capital University of Economic Business, told the Global Times Thursday.
"However, I don't think the adjustment is attractive enough as it doesn't make much of a difference to work as a farmer at home or as a migrant worker far from home in Guangdong," she said.
She explained that the higher minimum wage might attract some older migrant workers but won't appeal to skilled workers who are less willing to do manual work.
According to the Beijing Times, Beijing will raise its monthly minimum wage levels by 10 per cent from the current RMB 800 ($117.2) possibly next month.
Wage pressure is coinciding with pressure on China to raise the value of its currency.
"It is unfair and harmful to continuously depreciate a country's own currency and ask other countries to revalue their currencies in the meantime," Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said at a regular press conference on Thursday in Beijing.
The China Business News news service reported Friday that the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology are expected to disclose the results of a study on the effects of yuan exchange-rate appreciation on exporters by April 27th..
Zhang Wei, deputy director of the China Chamber of International Commerce, is quoted as saying the Ministry of Commerce's yuan stress test involves over 1,000 companies in 12 industries.
Zhang Wei, vice chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, said at a press briefing in Beijing on Thursday that exporters in labour-intensive sectors such as garments and furniture worked on margins as low as 3 per cent, he said. "If the yuan rises, these companies will face the immediate risk of going bust as their profit margin is already very narrow," Zhang told reporters. "So for these companies, the consequences would be disastrous."
Guangdong, north of Hong Kong, in the Pearl River delta region, which is responsible for a third of China’s exports and would rank as one of the world’s 10 largest exporters if it were a country, is finding it harder to attract migrant labour as other regions develop. So on Thursday, it was announced by the Guangdong Provincial Human Resources and Social Security Department that the minimum wage of both full-time and part-time workers will be raised.
The adjusted minimum wage is divided into five categories ranging from RMB660 to 1,030 yuan/renminbi ($96 to $ 150) a month, depending on the financial situation in different cities in the province. The move came a month after the country's second biggest exporter, Jiangsu Province, raised its minimum wage by about 12 per cent to 960 yuan ($140.64) from the current 850 yuan ($124). East China's Fujian Province increased its minimum wage by 24.5 per cent from March 1st. China is making huge investments in its rail network and last December, it launched the world’s fastest passenger train service between Guangzhou, Guangdong's provincial capital, and the central city of Wuhan, covering 1,100km in just three hours. The railway investment will result in more balanced regional development.
"A 20 per cent raise is a big jump because many other provinces offer around 10 per cent. That's because Guangdong wants to stand out from among other competitors," Lü Xuejing, professor of social security at Capital University of Economic Business, told the Global Times Thursday.
"However, I don't think the adjustment is attractive enough as it doesn't make much of a difference to work as a farmer at home or as a migrant worker far from home in Guangdong," she said.
She explained that the higher minimum wage might attract some older migrant workers but won't appeal to skilled workers who are less willing to do manual work.
According to the Beijing Times, Beijing will raise its monthly minimum wage levels by 10 per cent from the current RMB 800 ($117.2) possibly next month.
Wage pressure is coinciding with pressure on China to raise the value of its currency.
"It is unfair and harmful to continuously depreciate a country's own currency and ask other countries to revalue their currencies in the meantime," Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said at a regular press conference on Thursday in Beijing.
The China Business News news service reported Friday that the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology are expected to disclose the results of a study on the effects of yuan exchange-rate appreciation on exporters by April 27th..
Zhang Wei, deputy director of the China Chamber of International Commerce, is quoted as saying the Ministry of Commerce's yuan stress test involves over 1,000 companies in 12 industries.
Zhang Wei, vice chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, said at a press briefing in Beijing on Thursday that exporters in labour-intensive sectors such as garments and furniture worked on margins as low as 3 per cent, he said. "If the yuan rises, these companies will face the immediate risk of going bust as their profit margin is already very narrow," Zhang told reporters. "So for these companies, the consequences would be disastrous."
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Six Ways to a Successful Savings Plan
You've found a job, started a family and are living comfortably from month to month. What's next? If saving money comes to mind, you're on the right track.
"Time is of the essence," says Certified Financial Planner Ted Snow, founding principal of Snow Financial Group in Addison, Texas. "The earlier you start, the less you'll have to take out of your pocket to save, and the more opportunities you'll have in terms of compounding and doubling your money."
Ready to get started? Follow these six strategies to incorporate long-term savings into your budget.
Know what you wantThe most critical part of a long-term savings plan is to understand what you're truly saving for, says Certified Financial Planner Jude Boudreaux, director of financial planning at Bellingrath Wealth Management in New Orleans.
Do you want to buy a beach home in Florida? Send your offspring to college? Save for a sumptuous retirement?
"The clearer the picture of the long-term goal, the easier it is to make daily decisions that truly affect your success," he says.
Get into the right mindsetOnce you know what you want, it's time to set aside money for it. But shifting funds into a long-term account can be tough, especially if it means investing money you regularly spend at the coffee shop, drugstore or restaurants.
RELATED LINKS
Current DateTime: 01:13:37 11 Mar 2010
LinksList Documentid: 35650092
Tracking Down Your Tax ReformHolistic Financial PlanningSix Tax Errors and How to Avoid Them
If setting aside money normally spent on entertainment leaves you feeling deprived, try changing your attitude.
"By saying 'no' right now, you're giving yourself a 'yes' toward something bigger and better in the future," says Boudreaux.
An attitudinal adjustment may be more easily achieved for short-term goals. Case in point: Say you want to take a trip every year that will cost $5,000. Put aside $100 a week and you can make the trip a reality. This might mean eating at a restaurant one or two fewer times a week. By saying "no" to eating out, however, you're saying "yes" to a big annual trip. See the difference?
The same mindset goes for your long-term goals.
Use Bankrate's simple savings calculator to see your savings grow.
Mortgages
30 yr fixed 5.00% 5.13%
30 yr fixed jumbo 5.82% 5.92%
15 yr fixed 4.35% 4.64%
15 yr fixed jumbo 5.36% 5.53%
5/1 ARM 3.87% 3.49%
5/1 jumbo ARM 4.47% 3.70%
Find personalized rates:
Bankrate.com
Understand the power of compound interestSetting aside money early on and watching it grow can be a powerful motivator.
To envision the potential of compound interest, consider the rule of 72, suggests Snow. Take the number 72 and divide it by the projected rate of return you expect to receive each year from an investment. This will reveal the estimated number of years it will take for that amount of money to double.
For example, say you invest $8,000 in a mutual fund with an average return rate of 8 percent. It will take approximately 9 years (72 divided by 8) for that amount to turn into $16,000. The earlier you start, the more time your investments have to multiply.
"Time is of the essence," says Certified Financial Planner Ted Snow, founding principal of Snow Financial Group in Addison, Texas. "The earlier you start, the less you'll have to take out of your pocket to save, and the more opportunities you'll have in terms of compounding and doubling your money."
Ready to get started? Follow these six strategies to incorporate long-term savings into your budget.
Know what you wantThe most critical part of a long-term savings plan is to understand what you're truly saving for, says Certified Financial Planner Jude Boudreaux, director of financial planning at Bellingrath Wealth Management in New Orleans.
Do you want to buy a beach home in Florida? Send your offspring to college? Save for a sumptuous retirement?
"The clearer the picture of the long-term goal, the easier it is to make daily decisions that truly affect your success," he says.
Get into the right mindsetOnce you know what you want, it's time to set aside money for it. But shifting funds into a long-term account can be tough, especially if it means investing money you regularly spend at the coffee shop, drugstore or restaurants.
RELATED LINKS
Current DateTime: 01:13:37 11 Mar 2010
LinksList Documentid: 35650092
Tracking Down Your Tax ReformHolistic Financial PlanningSix Tax Errors and How to Avoid Them
If setting aside money normally spent on entertainment leaves you feeling deprived, try changing your attitude.
"By saying 'no' right now, you're giving yourself a 'yes' toward something bigger and better in the future," says Boudreaux.
An attitudinal adjustment may be more easily achieved for short-term goals. Case in point: Say you want to take a trip every year that will cost $5,000. Put aside $100 a week and you can make the trip a reality. This might mean eating at a restaurant one or two fewer times a week. By saying "no" to eating out, however, you're saying "yes" to a big annual trip. See the difference?
The same mindset goes for your long-term goals.
Use Bankrate's simple savings calculator to see your savings grow.
Mortgages
30 yr fixed 5.00% 5.13%
30 yr fixed jumbo 5.82% 5.92%
15 yr fixed 4.35% 4.64%
15 yr fixed jumbo 5.36% 5.53%
5/1 ARM 3.87% 3.49%
5/1 jumbo ARM 4.47% 3.70%
Find personalized rates:
Bankrate.com
Understand the power of compound interestSetting aside money early on and watching it grow can be a powerful motivator.
To envision the potential of compound interest, consider the rule of 72, suggests Snow. Take the number 72 and divide it by the projected rate of return you expect to receive each year from an investment. This will reveal the estimated number of years it will take for that amount of money to double.
For example, say you invest $8,000 in a mutual fund with an average return rate of 8 percent. It will take approximately 9 years (72 divided by 8) for that amount to turn into $16,000. The earlier you start, the more time your investments have to multiply.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)