Monetary Policy Committee Minutes - March 2010

The Monetary Policy committee published the minutes for the meeting held on 3rd and 4th of March 2010. CLICK HERE to obtain a copy of the minutes.

Here are my views based on the points highlighted in the document:

-(point no 2): guessing Greece is one of the countries that investors have uncertainty about, but the hedge funds are happy to be betting against it.

-(point no 4): Shame I don't have UK bonds at my disposal.

-(point no 6): Couple of my friends do not share the same view that their equity portfolio has gone up by 5%.

-(point no 10): Am suprised India was not highlighted as I thought the country's economy is going rapidly as well.

-(point no 14): Investors will not be happy with this point at all.

-(point no 15): HSBC did a marketing ploy in today's papers by advertising their big lending to Businesses, wise move I think.

-(point no 18): .......Second, over the pastyear, oil prices had increased by around 70%. Am guessing Virgin group (owned by Richard Branson) will be smiling now has I read that they have some options that enables them to buy oil at a much lower price.

-(point no 22): ......fallen by 12,000 in three months to December, could that be as a result of recruitment drive for Christmas?

-(point no 30) - This to be me a political strategy, once the Election is over we should all be expecting interest rate hike.

CLIK HERE to visit the link for BBC take on the Interest Rate Freeze, based on the meeting.

INTERNET VENTURED CALLED "BLIPPY"

On a slightly cold Monday evening on my way home from work, picked up the free Evening Standard newspaper, the article that took my attention was on the internet venture called called BLIPPY.

Blippy is encouraging you to share your credit card and debit-card numbers with it, as well as your bank account details, Amazon, Blockbusters, iTunes, eBay, GoDaddy accounts, etc. Then it will broadcast the details of every purchase you make using the accounts, in real time, to other Blippy users. According to the site, "Blippy is a fun and easy way to see and discuss the things people are buying."

The brains behind the genius(or crazy idea) are Ashvin Kumar, Chris Estreich, and Philip Kaplan. Am guessing Ashvin and Chris probably met at Stanford, as they both graduated in 2005.

From Ashvin blippy feed, I was able to see that he spent $231.66 at Intercontinental Hotel for 2 nights stay in Houston, around 22nd February 2010. Also observed that he likes his food, a lot, as he eats out at Uzumaki Sushi Restaurant, Ninfas, Lotus Thia Curry, Back A Yard Grill, etc. The fact that am able to know this details might scary to some, but people(excluding you and me) that seriously embrace technology see this as the norm.

Apart from the Marketing companies being able to target customers more precisely, and people trying to show-off how much/where they spend their hard earned cash, I really do not see the point for this.

I will consult MYSPACE to know what type of music you are into. LINKEDIN to know about your career. FACEBOOK to know all about your social life. Now I just need to consult BLIPPY to see what you spend your cash on.....In that case, no need for your autobiography.

Until the security aspect, and benefits to me are clearly highlighted, don't think am in a hurry to join.

GOING TO UNITED KINGDOM TO STUDY

In order to come to the United Kingdom (UK) to study, one would need a student visa (also know as a Tier 4 Visa). At the moment, there are there are two main routes which can be used to enter UK, these include child and adult student category, Brief description is provided below:

Child Student Visa: this visa is for children between 4 and 17 years old who are coming to the UK. It was highlighted that children between four and 15 years old can only apply if they are going to study at an independent fee-paying school. If the child is under 16 years old, maximum time allowed under this category is the full length of the course (up to a maximum of 6 years) plus 4 months after the end of the course. If the child is 16 or 17 years old, maximum time allowed is the full length of the course (up to a maximum of 2 years) plus 4 months after the end of the course. Am guessing the type of student that would fall under this section includes those intending to study at the secondary or Advance Level (possibly the first part of the study called ‘AS’).

Adult Student Visa: According to the home office website, one can apply to come to UK as an adult student if the intention is to study at post-16 education level. Types of course that can be taken under this section is more varied compared to the child student visa. Some of the courses and length of stay allowed in the UK includes:
­ Degree level or above: For courses 12 months or more, duration of stay is the full length of the course plus 4 months after the end of the course. Courses that are 6 months or more but less than 12 months, duration of stay is the full length of the course plus 2 months after the end of the course.
­Course to prepare to study (known as pre-sessional): duration to stay would cover the full length of course plus 1 month after the end of the course.
­ Postgraduate doctors and dentists on a recognised Foundation programme: the maximum length of the course allowed is 3 years. Duration of stay in the UK would cover the full length of the course plus one month after the end of the course.

As UK has now adopted a point based system, you would need 40 points to be able to apply for a student visa. A brief description on how to obtain the points and document needed as proof is explained below:
­ -30 Points from doing a course (at an acceptable level) with an approved education provider (also known as sponsorship). A visa letter or confirmation of acceptance for studies issues by the approved education provider is the proof needed to get the points. From February 2010, UK Border Agency will only accept a confirmation of acceptance for studies and will no longer accept a visa letter.
­-10 Points for having enough money to cover the course fees and monthly living costs (also known as maintenance). Document needed as proof of meeting the point is a bank statement or letter confirming that you have enough funds to cover the course fees and living costs for up to one year, at the time of submitting the application. You would need to be able to prove that the fund (money) has been in the account for 28 days prior to submitting the application for it to be accepted.

Approved Education Provider
To score the 30 points highlighted above, the institution (College, University, etc) to be attended needs to have been approved and hold a license to teach international students. List of approved education provider which has been assessed by UK Border Agency (UKBA) can be found on the education provider register following the link below. Potential student would not be able to obtain student visa if the institution is not on the register.

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/studyingintheuk/quickguideforstudent/adultstudents/applyingforanadultstudentvisa/#header1
Rules on working
As an international student in the UK, you are only allowed to work 20 hours per week during term-time (except where the placement is a necessary part of the studies such as one-year industrial work placement). Students are allowed to work full time during the holiday season which is usually between July – September.
People on student visa are not allowed to engage in activities such as Business services, self-employment or professional sportsperson/entertainer services.

Post-study work
As part of UKBA initiative to retain the most able international students who have studied in the United Kingdom, there is an option to apply for a 2 years working visa. This enables a graduate to be able to secure a job more easily as the potential employer does not need to apply for a work permit for the graduate. You need to note that you will need to switch to another category once the Post Study Work (PSW) visa expires, and also this does not count as part of the residency period.

Key Facts about UK
­ According the UK Met Office the average warmest year in the UK was 2006 with a temperature of 10.84 degree Celsius. So, if you are moving from Bahamas you might want to think twice!
­ United Kingdom consists of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The capital of England is London, hence London is not the country as some people might think.
­ If you see football like a religion then you are in for a spoil. Premiership, probably the biggest league in the world is based in UK. Be warned though that the ticket and club jersey are quite expensive if you are a dedicated fan.

Reference and Links
Overview of the student visa system

Video about studying in the UK

Calculating how money needed as proof

Post study working in UK

UK Met Office

Premier League

Microsoft Combined with Yahoo, a recipe for......

Thank goodness it was friday, was in the process of switching of my pc, its been a busy week work hard as ever on web projects, but thought let me quickly take a quick glance at the bbc news website technology section, Microsoft wants to buy Yahoo was the headline. I checked the calendar and realise it was no where near April 1st, hence it was not a fools day joke.

$44 billion is not a small price to pay in order to have a bigger share of the $80 billion online search market, which Google currently leads the way. I dont really know how Microsoft would dissolve Yahoo into its already big company, but am sure it MIGHT work.

They are still in the proposal stage, but Google has already wants regulators to scrutinise the proposed buy out.

Damn... I might now need to combine my Hotmail with Yahoo Mail, but lets wait and see