Poverty deepens worldwide
Friday, 29 August 2008
Fazle Rashid from New York
Banks' earnings in America nosedived by 86 per cent from April to June to a paltry $4.96 billion from $36.8 billion a year earlier. This was the finding of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FIDC) that gurantees savings and checking deposits (current account). The catalogue of the banks in trouble is also swelling the FDIC said. About 117 banks have been enlisted in 'trouble list' but the FDIC for obvious reasons did not name the banks. The beleagured banks once had a combined assets of about $78 billion, the New York Times (NYT) reported last Wednesday. Nine regional banks have already collapsed. Many more are expected to follow suit, the experts fear.
The depositors are gripped with fear about the state of the health of the FDIC. It gurantees repayment on deposit accounts upto $100,000. Agency's fund is fast dwindling. It now has a reserve of $45.2 billion down from $53 billion in the first quarter. The FIDC is contemplating to replenish its funds by raising it charges on bank deposits. The scheme will draw flak from the banks, admitted Ms. Sheila Bair, CEO of the FDIC How Ms. Bair navigates the financial and political landmines will help determine the course of the banking industry and by extension the broader economy, said NYT.
Ms. Bair had predicted the housing market crisis and prodded the Treasury Department to draw a comprehensive plan to beat back the growing problems long before the crisis appeared on the scene. She put pressures on the bank to strengthen capital base and at the same time urged the depositors to remain calm. The Wall Street expects Ms. Bair to put things on the right track. She is a woman of varied experience. She once left a government job to join University of Massachusetts where she taught public policy. She was requested by President Bush to take up the leadership of the FIDC.
She is championing the idea of a sweeping programme to modify banking loans. Not everyone agrees with her.
Meanwhile, the World Bank in a report said that the number of people living under poverty line the world over has increased to 1.4 billion. This finding is the result of a survey after bank raised the yardstick of measuring poverty to $1.25 a cent from $1.0 previously. Anyone living under $1.25 a day is considered to be a poverty stricken man.
The WB last year reported that there were one billion people who were living under $1.0 day, then the yardstick of poverty. Justin Lin, chief economist of the World Bank exuded confidence that the world is still on target to meet United Nations goal of halving the number of people in poverty by 2015, seven years from now. Only China has made significant stride in reducing poverty. The people living under poverty line in China dropped to 207 million in 2005 from 835 million in 1981.
The number of people living under poverty line (less than $1.25 earning a day) in India has increased to 455 million in 2005 from 420 million in 1981. India is described as a mega economic power by the media in the West. The names of China and India are taken in the breath.
Banks' earnings in America nosedived by 86 per cent from April to June to a paltry $4.96 billion from $36.8 billion a year earlier. This was the finding of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FIDC) that gurantees savings and checking deposits (current account). The catalogue of the banks in trouble is also swelling the FDIC said. About 117 banks have been enlisted in 'trouble list' but the FDIC for obvious reasons did not name the banks. The beleagured banks once had a combined assets of about $78 billion, the New York Times (NYT) reported last Wednesday. Nine regional banks have already collapsed. Many more are expected to follow suit, the experts fear.
The depositors are gripped with fear about the state of the health of the FDIC. It gurantees repayment on deposit accounts upto $100,000. Agency's fund is fast dwindling. It now has a reserve of $45.2 billion down from $53 billion in the first quarter. The FIDC is contemplating to replenish its funds by raising it charges on bank deposits. The scheme will draw flak from the banks, admitted Ms. Sheila Bair, CEO of the FDIC How Ms. Bair navigates the financial and political landmines will help determine the course of the banking industry and by extension the broader economy, said NYT.
Ms. Bair had predicted the housing market crisis and prodded the Treasury Department to draw a comprehensive plan to beat back the growing problems long before the crisis appeared on the scene. She put pressures on the bank to strengthen capital base and at the same time urged the depositors to remain calm. The Wall Street expects Ms. Bair to put things on the right track. She is a woman of varied experience. She once left a government job to join University of Massachusetts where she taught public policy. She was requested by President Bush to take up the leadership of the FIDC.
She is championing the idea of a sweeping programme to modify banking loans. Not everyone agrees with her.
Meanwhile, the World Bank in a report said that the number of people living under poverty line the world over has increased to 1.4 billion. This finding is the result of a survey after bank raised the yardstick of measuring poverty to $1.25 a cent from $1.0 previously. Anyone living under $1.25 a day is considered to be a poverty stricken man.
The WB last year reported that there were one billion people who were living under $1.0 day, then the yardstick of poverty. Justin Lin, chief economist of the World Bank exuded confidence that the world is still on target to meet United Nations goal of halving the number of people in poverty by 2015, seven years from now. Only China has made significant stride in reducing poverty. The people living under poverty line in China dropped to 207 million in 2005 from 835 million in 1981.
The number of people living under poverty line (less than $1.25 earning a day) in India has increased to 455 million in 2005 from 420 million in 1981. India is described as a mega economic power by the media in the West. The names of China and India are taken in the breath.