At least 600,000 jobs could go in the UK in 2009, according to a report by a personnel managers' professional body.
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development says even those who escape redundancy face pay freezes.
It says that while total unemployment will not hit three million, the time between New Year and Easter will be the worst for job losses since 1991.
According to official statistics, there were 1.86 million people out of work in the UK in October.
That figure was the highest since 1997, taking the overall unemployment rate to 6%.The CIPD, which represents managers and personnel staff, issued its gloomy forecast a day after children's retailer Adams joined a growing list of well-known chains applying for administration.
Chief economist John Philpott said: "This time last year, in the face of some scepticism, the CIPD warned that 2008 would be the UK's worst year for jobs in a decade.It was, but in retrospect it will be seen as merely the slow-motion prelude to what will be the worst year for jobs in almost two decades.
"The CIPD's annual barometer forecast is that the UK economy will shed at least 600,000 jobs in 2009."Overall, the 18-month period from the start of the recession in mid-2008 until the end of 2009 will witness the loss of around three quarters of a million jobs, equivalent to the total net rise in employment in the preceding three years."
Mr Philpott said job losses were likely to continue into 2010, taking the final toll to about one million.
The CIPD also surveyed 2,600 workers and found that more than one in four did not expect a pay rise next year, while others feared a wage cut.
The institute's reward adviser, Charles Cotton, said employees were "realistic about their pay prospects".
"Against this backdrop, employers will need to work hard to find new ways to motivate their employees to perform," he said.
Financial incentives and targeted investment in training and development could be effective ways to do this, he added.
"More than ever, this is a time where organisations need to engage in an open and straightforward communication with staff, clearly explaining the reasons for any difficult measures that will affect them," he said.
"This will help preserve staff loyalty and engagement even during times when unpopular decisions need to be made." .
How to Save $5000 on Forex Trading Training and Get it Free
Jerusalem, (ANTARA News) - Pesawat-pesawat perang Israel telah menghantam 230 sasaran di Jalur Gaza sejak Sabtu.
"Sebanyak 230 sasaran telah dihantam," kata jurubicara militer Israel seperti dikutip AFP. "Sasaran itu mencakup infrastruktur Hamas seperti gedung, depot senjata dan tempat peluncuran roket."
Israel melancarkan serangan pemboman besar-besarannya terhadap Hamas di Gaza sejak Sabtu pagi. Aksi itu adalah salah satu operasi militer terbesar terhadap wilayah yang mereka rebut dalam perang 1967 itu.
Sedikit-dikitnya 280 warga Palestina tewas dalam serangan gencar itu, sebagian besar dari mereka anggota Hamas, menurut dokter.
Hamas membalas dengan menembakkan puluhan roket ke Israel, yang hanya menewaskan satu orang dan melukai sedikit orang lainnya.(*)
.
What are Your Options Regarding Forex Options Brokers?
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Forex option brokers can generally be divided into two separate categories: forex brokers who offer online forex option trading platforms and forex brokers who only broker forex option trading via telephone trades placed through a dealing/brokerage desk. A few forex option brokers offer both online forex option trading as well a dealing/brokerage desk for investors who prefer to place orders through a live forex option broker.
The trading account minimums required by different forex option brokers vary from a few thousand dollars to over fifty thousand dollars. Also, forex option brokers may require investors to trade forex options contracts having minimum notional values (contract sizes) up to $500,000. Last, but not least, certain types of forex option contracts can be entered into and exited at any time while other types of forex option contracts lock you in until expiration or settlement. Depending on the type of forex option contract you enter into, you might get stuck the wrong way with an option contract that you can not trade out of. Before trading, investors should inquire with their forex option brokers about initial trading account minimums, required contract size minimums and contract liquidity.
There are a number of different forex option trading products offered to investors by forex option brokers. We believe it is extremely important for investors to understand the distinctly different risk characteristics of each of the forex option trading products mentioned below that are offered by firms that broker forex options.
Plain Vanilla Forex Options Broker - Plain vanilla options generally refer to standard put and call option contracts traded through an exchange (however, in the case of forex option trading, plain vanilla options would refer to the standard, generic option contracts that are traded through an over-the-counter (OTC) forex dealer or clearinghouse). In simplest terms, vanilla forex options would be defined as the buying or selling of a standard forex call option contract or forex put option contract.
There are only a few forex option broker/dealers who offer plain vanilla forex options online with real-time streaming quotes 24 hours a day. Most forex option brokers and banks only broker forex options via telephone. Vanilla forex options for major currencies have good liquidity and you can easily enter the market long or short, or exit the market any time day or night.
Vanilla forex option contracts can be used in combination with each other and/or with spot forex contracts to form a basic strategy such as writing a covered call, or much more complex forex trading strategies such as butterflies, strangles, ratio spreads, synthetics, etc. Also, plain vanilla options are often the basis of forex option trading strategies known as exotic options.
Exotic Forex Options Broker - First, it is important to note that there a couple of different forex definitions for "exotic" and we don't want anyone getting confused. The first definition of a forex "exotic" refers to any individual currency that is less broadly traded than the major currencies. The second forex definition for "exotic" is the one we refer to on this website - a forex option contract (trading strategy) that is a derivative of a standard vanilla forex option contract.
To understand what makes an exotic forex option "exotic," you must first understand what makes a forex option "non-vanilla." Plain vanilla forex options have a definitive expiration structure, payout structure and payout amount. Exotic forex option contracts may have a change in one or all of the above features of a vanilla forex option. It is important to note that exotic options, since they are often tailored to a specific's investor's needs by an exotic forex options broker, are generally not very liquid, if at all.
Exotic forex options are generally traded by commercial and institutional investors rather than retail forex traders, so we won't spend too much time covering exotic forex options brokers. Examples of exotic forex options would include Asian options (average price options or "APO's"), barrier options (payout depends on whether or not the underlying reaches a certain price level or not), baskets (payout depends on more than one currency or a "basket" of currencies), binary options (the payout is cash-or-nothing if underlying does not reach strike price), lookback options (payout is based on maximum or minimum price reached during life of the contract), compound options (options on options with multiple strikes and exercise dates), spread options, chooser options, packages and so on. Exotic options can be tailored to a specific trader's needs, therefore, exotic options contract types change and evolve over time to suit those ever-changing needs.
Since exotic forex options contracts are usually specifically tailored to an individual investor, most of the exotic options business in transacted over the telephone through forex option brokers. There are, however, a handful of forex option brokers who offer "if touched" forex options or "single payment" forex options contracts online whereby an investor can specify an amount he or she is willing to risk in exchange for a specified payout amount if the underlying price reaches a certain strike price (price level). These transactions offered by legitimate online forex brokers can be considered a type of "exotic" option. However, we have noticed that the premiums charged for these types of contracts can be higher than plain vanilla option contracts with similar strike prices and you can not sell out of the option position once you have purchased this type of option - you can only attempt to offset the position with a separate risk management strategy. As a trade-off for getting to choose the dollar amount you want to risk and the payout you wish to receive, you pay a premium and sacrifice liquidity. We would encourage investors to compare premiums before investing in these kinds of options and also make sure the brokerage firm is reputable.
Again, it is fairly easy and liquid to enter into an exotic forex option contract but it is important to note that depending on the type of exotic option contract, there may be little to no liquidity at all if you wanted to exit the position.
Firms Offering Forex Option "Betting" - A number of new firms have popped up over the last year offering forex "betting." Though some may be legitimate, a number of these firms are either off-shore entities or located in some other remote location. We generally do not consider these to be forex brokerage firms. Many do not appear to be regulated by any government agency and we strongly suggest investors perform due diligence before investing with any forex betting firms. Invest at your own risk with these firms. John Nobile - Senior Account Executive CFOS/FX - Online Forex Spot and Options Brokerage
